It's not only the high cost of wines on restaurant wine lists that makes the BYOB (bring your own bottle) concept so popular. It's also knowing that you can select your wine from the large assortment offered in a retail wine shop.

Diners from outside the state of Pennsylvania are usually astounded at the high cost of wines in our restaurants. Part of the reason for the excessive prices in the restaurants in our state is the pricing policy of the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board. The restaurant trade in other states can buy their wines directly from a distributor at a cost which is typically 35 to 50 percent lower than the retail price. The typical markup for wines sold in restaurants inside or outside of our state is 300 percent.

The restaurants argue that they need that profit margin to compensate for the purchase of glassware and replacement of broken glasses. They also have a sizable sum tied up in wine inventory. Add to that the cost of extra dishwashing for the glasses and one can perhaps justify some of the elevated cost of wines in restaurants.

The problem in Pennsylvania is that restaurants pay almost the same price for the wines they sell as normal consumers pay in the retail store. When they add their markup to this higher price, diners end up paying excessive prices. To illustrate just how this works, let's look at a hypothetical sale of the same wine purchased in a Wheeling, W.V., restaurant versus a Pittsburgh one.

Robert Mondavi Napa Chardonnay

In Wheeling: Retail: $15 Cost to restaurant: $9 Price on wine list: $27 Profit for restaurant: $18

In Pittsburgh: Retail: $17.99 Cost to restaurant: $16.19 Price on wine list: $48 Profit for restaurant $31.81

Although in each case the restaurant has priced the wine three times what they paid, the Pittsburgh restaurant is making $13.81 cents more in profit. One can reasonably ask why the Pittsburgh profits should not be more in line with restaurant profits nationally.

For restaurants that have extensive wine lists with old vintages and labels not available on the retail market, there is a good argument for paying the inflated price. But rather than be limited to modest wine lists that cater to unsophisticated tastes, more and more diners look for restaurants without a liquor license where they are invited to bring their own wines. Most of these establishments charge a nominal fee, termed "corkage."

Even restaurants that have a license to sell wine allow guests to bring bottles from home. It is considered gauche to bring an ordinary wine or one that the restaurant has on their list but my own experience is that every restaurant will accept bottles from outside and charge a fee which is still far more reasonable than the markup would be on a bottle. In my experience, simpler restaurants normally charge $10, upscale restaurants charge $15 and a few luxury spots charge $20. Even the highest corkage fee does not discourage me from taking bottles of wine I know I want to drink when I am dining out.

Here are two restaurants where you can BYOB:

ORCHIDS

Vegetarian dining in other cities has been gaining in popularity for years but Pittsburgh has been slow to join the trend. Finally we have a restaurant serving lunch and dinner from a menu of essentially South Indian specialties.

Spread over two full pages, the selection of samosa, pakora, puri, vada and dosa is impressive. The flaky pastry crust used for somosas is wrapped around a spicy (though not overly hot) blend of potatoes and green peas and served with a cooling mint and tangy tamarind chutney. Pakoras are vegetables dipped in a spicy batter made from pureed chick peas. Orchids offers onions, spinach or hot chili peppers fried in the pakora batter. All are $2.75. If you like cauliflower, the Gobi 65 ($5.95) is worth a try. Flowerettes of cauliflower are dipped in a batter seasoned with ginger, tomato and hot spices and fried to crispy perfection.

Idlis are steamed southern Indian cakes made from black lentils and rice that one rarely sees on Indian menus. There are three versions of idlis on Orchid's menu. Thrilled to have a chance to try this unusual dish which Indians frequently eat for breakfast, I was disappointed in the sour taste that reminded me of fermenting wheat. More appealing is the long list of dosas. These thin, crisp wafers made from lentil flour look like a giant crepe and are wrapped around a center of curried potatoes and onions, much as pierogies are encased in pastry dough. Depending on the stuffing, each dosa comes with a prescribed sambar (a kind of soup) and a creamy chutney with curry. Dosas range in price from $5.50 to $7.99. The top of the line dosa is Paneer Masala Dosa and it is stuffed with Indian soft, white cheese similar to farmer's cheese and potato curry.

Under vegetable entree dishes, my favorite is Baingan Bhartha ($8.25). This is eggplant stewed in spicy tomatoes, green peppers and onions which has been treated to a generous helping of cayenne pepper but is cooled down with yogurt sauce. Palak Paneer ($8.25) is cubes of the mild, white cheese cooked in a mild curry sauce with tomatoes and spinach. Try these with lemon rice ($5.99), a delicious combination of basmati rice that is seasoned with fresh lemon juice and peanuts and dusted with cilantro.

Don't leave without sampling as many of Orchids' breads as you can handle. Whether fried puri or roti or tandoori naan or paratha, the Indian breads are a special treat that help to make the entire meal memorable.

The restaurant is simple but clean and pleasant. The kitchen staff are all professionals from Southern India. The waitstaff too is Indian and can describe the unfamiliar dishes to the uninitiated. You will encounter a number of Pittsburgh's growing Indian community dining here.

4519 Center Ave., Oakland, 412-688-8383. No corkage fee. Hours: Monday -- Sunday: Lunch: 11 a.m.-3 p.m.; Dinner: 5-10 p.m. No smoking, accessible, credit cards accepted.

CAFE ZINHO

Chef Nia Edmondson, left, and Chef Timothy "Chewy" Lewis keep the tasty morsels coming at Cafe Zinho in Shadyside, a restaurant where you can bring your own bottle of wine.

Toni and Becky Pais' funky neighborhood cafe has stood the test of time and become a dining institution in the East End.

The unusual interior of bright colors and garage-sale, recycled treasures has recently been revamped. Gone are the orange and pink walls, replaced by charcoal and burgundy that provide a subtle backdrop for the bright art and fabrics scattered though the room.

The ambience is part of the fun of dinner at Cafe Zinho but the food is equally enchanting. There is nothing on the menu that doesn't excite the palate. Take the Tomato Bisque ($5.50) which is infused with roasted garlic and sprinkled with fresh dill. It's an unforgettable soup, both sweet and tangy. In the days when Cafe Zinho served lunch, this soup and a fresh green salad were my favorite mid-day meal. Now that the cafe serves dinner only, I have some new favorites.

Pork Loin stuffed with Morello cherries and roasted with cherry brandy sauce ($17.50) is an awesome entree. Pork and almost any fruit make for a happy marriage but I have to say that pork and tart cherries are a blissful match. For vegetarians, Toni has created a lovely dish of spinach raviolis in a creamy sauce with fresh asparagus and mushrooms ($15.50). Where else will you find Shellfish Risotto in a light curry cream sauce ($19.95) or Elysian Field Lamb Burger with Fruit Chutney ($11.50)?

Becky Pais makes the desserts, which change daily. All are $5.50.

238 Spahr St., Shadyside, 412-363-1500. Dinner only: Daily from 5:30. Corkage: $5