Cracking the Code: Legal Sea Foods Wine Pricing

 

If you might indulge me, it’s time to toot our horn a bit. In a recent article in The Wall Street Journal (August 15, 2008) about how restaurants price their wine lists, reporter Juliet Chung mentioned us in her opening paragraph:

“At Legal Sea Foods in Washington, a bottle of 1999 Dom Perignon Champagne costs $155. At McCormick & Schmick’s, less than a half mile away, the same bottle goes for $250. At Carnevino in Las Vegas, it’s $450, and at Per Se in New York, it’s $595.

“Never mind trying to understand oil prices; for complexity, inscrutability and sheer customer frustration, it’s hard to match restaurant wine pricing.”

I agree and I applaud Ms. Chung for calling public attention to a consumer issue that most journalists who cover wine are apparently afraid to touch. What was not explained fully enough in the piece is why we price our wines so moderately. People often ask me: are you insane, why are you giving wine away? I’m not (I think) and we’re not! I’m happy to say that every bottle is sold at a profit. If it weren’t I would not have a job.

 

If our wine list was a mutual fund it would be the no-load offering with minuscule annual expenses that passes full value on to investors. Paying a sales commission or marketing fee is fine, if that is what you want to do; it’s just not what we ask our guests to do. The Journal piece quotes one of the other wine director’s explanation that their “luxurious ambience” and “the relatively high wholesale costs in Las Vegas” are “a big part of the reason a bottle of 1999 Dom Perignon costs so much more there than at Legal Sea Foods.” $295 more? If this seems reasonable to you, so be it. We, on the other hand, are said to be “able to keep prices lower on some wines with broad name recognition…because the restaurant chain serves so many bottles.” Yes, we do take pride in being one of the largest purveyors of truly fine wine in the US, but the reason we price bottles moderately is not because we are “able to.” It’s actually the exact same reason that we take such great pains to insure that our fish is really fresh and healthful: it’s good business! It brings our guests back because they feel good about the experience. Not to be self-righteous, but ultimately it’s consistent with our business ethics.

 

I know that there are guests who come to Legal Sea Foods because of our beverage program, but they are a tiny minority. To the vast majority, on the other hand, the cuisine, the service and the overall ambience, are the critical elements. So I view the wine list, and the larger beverage program, as adjuncts to the larger mission. Condiments for the food, if you will. They have to keep the positive feelings going. One very important way to do that is to treat people fairly, with respect for their intelligence.

 

Here are some prices from our current Boston restaurant list that guests tell me shock them because of what they see the same popular wines being listed for elsewhere:  Cakebread Chardonnay $52, Cloudy Bay Chardonnay $38, Conundrum $39, Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio $39, Chateau de Sancerre $39, Moet & Chandon Imperial Champagne $52, Louis Jadot Gevrey-Chambertin 2005 $52, Jordan Cabernet Sauvignon $62 and Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon $85.

 

Pricing is just one part of our overall strategy for enhancing guest satisfaction about wine. Offering a broad range of choices is another. Not counting dessert wines, the same Boston list offers 28 half bottles (always less profitable by a wide margin than full bottles or glasses), as well as 12 wines that can be sampled in 2 ounce pour sizes as part of “tasting flights.” At our newly opened downtown Atlanta restaurant, all 30 of the wines offered by the glass are preserved in an Enomatic machine which dispenses 2 ounce tasting pours. This is a direction we see as enhancing our guests’ experience, so the machines are worth the substantial investment.

 

The other piece is the delivery system: our staff. Our goal is to train our team to walk you through the menu offerings in a customized way so that after brief discussion you can quickly find an appealing match for your lunch or dinner. In my opinion, the best way to order wine in a restaurant is to take some time looking over the list and scanning the way the categories are organized. We select many of our wines in blind tastings, but which categories do we choose to focus upon? Those we believe are excellent values and those we believe work best with our food. If you look through a restaurant list and you see a disproportionate number of selections in categories that strike you as unusual, it’s a good bet that the person who composed the list has a special passion for those wines, or at least believes that they are ideal with the food. Interestingly these are generally some of the best overall values as well.

 

For instance, our Boston list referenced above features the usual mainstays, but there are 15 wines from the Loire Valley, including 3 reds (try the Domaine Vacheron, Sancerre Rouge, 2005, $39) and 4 Chenin Blancs (including an amazingly mineral Damien Laureau, Savennieres “Les Genets,” 2005, $39). There are 6 Alsace Rieslings (note the fully mature Domaine Sipp Mack Grand Cru “Osterberg,” 2000, $29). Do I think these wines are magical with seafood? Absolutely. There are 6 New Zealand Pinot Noirs (a must have being the Pegasus Bay, Waipara Valley, 2006, $49), 4 Gamays (try the brilliant old vine Moulin A Vent, 2006 from Domaine Diochon, $35), 5 Grenache from Spain and Australia (including the luscious Reilly’s “Old Bushvine” 2005 from Clare Valley, $28) and 5 Argentine Malbecs (all of which are delicious, with the real steal being the chocolaty Dona Paula Estate, 2006 at $31). Ordering, or at least inquiring about, some of the more obscure items on a wine list is often the best way to go. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. It will help you gauge how seriously the restaurant takes its wines.

 

In summary, there’s no real code. It’s certainly not just about price, and every one has different challenges staying profitable in the highly competitive restaurant business, but all things being equal, don’t you feel better if you know you’re not overpaying?