12 of the Best BYOBs in Philadelphia

Owned by a husband-and-wife duo, June BYOB is one of the loveliest restaurants in the food-centric town of Collingswood, N.J. Having trained under Pierre Calmels at Bella Vista’s now-closed Bibou, chef Richard Cusack specializes in traditional French fare with modern touches. Try the foie gras torchon with cocoa, persimmon, apple, and shiso or braised lamb shank with espelette pepper and goat cheese polenta. On Sundays, you’ll get a deal on a four-course menu for $55, but for special occasions book the “Canard à la Presse Voyage” experience that features a whole Muscovy duck carved and pressed tableside to create a thick sauce.

Since its 2015 opening, Helm has been drawing diners from all over the city. Chef-owners Kevin D’Egidio and Mike Griffiths launched their new American BYOB in residential Kensington before the neighborhood became one of the centers of Philly’s restaurant ecosystem. Look up to find the menu on a colorful chalkboard; it’s loosely organized by ingredients, but you’ll chat with a server to learn more about each dish. The one thing that doesn’t change: Sourcing that prioritizes local farms and ethically raised meat. The three-course prix fixe goes for $55; a more than fair price for quality this high.

For almost a decade, Alex Yoon has been serving pristine seafood in a 16-seat BYOB on a corner in the middle of a residential neighborhood. From his open kitchen, he serves a tight menu that runs from shellfish to handmade pasta to seared fish. He’s also known for incorporating Asian flavors into his dishes, like the chile oil that gives his buttery scallop sesame toast some kick. You’re in good hands: Yoon cooked at Michelin-starred restaurants on the French Riviera and in San Francisco, as well as Philly’s heralded Le Bec-Fin.

Omakase sushi experiences — where the chef delivers bite after bite of their favorite pieces of fish at that moment — don’t come cheap. Since its 2019 opening, Sakana has billed itself as a no-frills, affordable omakase option. As it has grown in renown, the price has gone up, but you can still bring your own bottle and that makes a difference. Today, chefs Sam Lin and Naohiro Yanagi, who previously worked at top New York spots, serve a $178 menu that runs from soup and appetizers to a dozen or so pieces of top-notch sushi, and finishes with a small dessert.

We’ve been shouting about Tabachoy from the rooftops since it opened in late 2022. Chance Annies’ Filipino BYOB sings with welcoming hospitality and a family-style menu. If you go with a few hungry people, do know that trying the whole menu isn’t out of the question. Otherwise, go for the pork adobo, spring rolls, fried chicken wings, and ube soft serve.

Located in the hallowed halls that once belonged to Sate Kampar, Gabriella’s Vietnam is an excellent successor, right on E. Passyunk’s restaurant row. Here, chef Thanh Nguyen serves the Vietnamese food that she grew up eating and cooking. She sources ingredients from area farmers markets to make gorgeous water fern dumplings, nicely charred and tender shaken beef, sizzling catfish, and so much more. Pro tip: Do not sleep on the bún đậu mắm tôm. Trust us.

Chef Townsend Wentz’s top-tier lineup of restaurants all have bars, but A Mano is a quintessential Philadelphia BYOB. This charming Fairmount spot is known for handmade pasta and Italian fare. You’ll choose between a three- and four-course menu, for $48 and $68 respectively, that runs through antipasti, pasta (you must try the ricotta cavatelli made green with broccoli rabe), substantial entrees, and sweets like a white corn panna cotta with blueberry compote. Bring a bottle you’ve been saving for this special meal.

Hospitality industry veteran Luis Pedrago’s Old City (relative) newcomer has been delighting the neighborhood with Mediterranean flavors and warm atmosphere since its 2022 opening. When a meal starts with complimentary hummus, olives, and pita, you know you’re in good hands. Olea’s happy vibes play out through dinner, with highlights like artichokes in lemon butter, squid ink ravioli in puttanesca sauce, and a 14-ounce pork chop with creamy and grainy mustard sauce.

On a Washington Square West corner, one of Philly’s classic BYOBs recently shifted direction from Greek-Cypriot fare to a Greek-Turkish menu. Under chef Tayfun Abuska’s ownership, it’s just as delicious. Kebabs — meat or fish — with rice pilav are the go-to, punctuated with colorful dips to start and syrupy filo-based sweets to finish. A $42 prix-fixe menu offers a nice taste of the menu and is a perfect opportunity to share.

Bobby Saritsoglou is a chef’s chef. After working at Center City’s Greek taverna Opa and longstanding pizza favorite, Santucci’s, he and his wife Christina opened Stina Pizzeria. The brick oven pizza is great, but this is much more than a pizza place. You must try the borek, a flaky Turkish pastry stuffed with cheese, and the pide, a Turkish bread filled with merguez sausage, greens, or mushrooms. Even the vegetables — think cauliflower with tahini and za’atar potatoes with turmeric — touch the fire here.

Filipino food is having a moment in Philly (see Tabachoy above), but Lou Boquilla has been at it for nearly a decade. Perla is the place to go for kamayan dinners, where your whole party digs into soy-marinated chicken, fried pork, spring rolls, whole fried fish, eggplant, long beans, and bok choy all laid out over jasmine rice on a bed of banana leaves. Yes, you eat with your hands at this $50 per person feast. It even comes with chocolate coconut budino for dessert.

The move at this Graduate Hospital newcomer: Go with a few friends and order the whole menu. You’ll get to try about a dozen reasonably portioned dishes, from crudo and pasta to fish and steak. With experience working at Massoni in Manhattan and Leo in Brooklyn, Aaron Randi is a smart young chef who employs restraint and solid technique to put out elegant, balanced dishes like cappelletti in a dark mushroom broth, a bitter chicory salad lighted up with buttermilk and covered in shredded comte, and a coffee-dusted banana cream puff with a pleasant crunch.