The Best American Restaurants This Year Are Wine Bars

Bar Le Côte

Los Olivos, California

Bar Le Côte modestly bills itself as a “seafood tavern” but it’s one of the best places to drink and eat in the Santa Ynez Valley, if not the state. Beef tartare comes with fried oysters, and its take on “Julia Child’s Seafood Chowder” puts any other attempts to shame. Don’t miss happy hour, with 50% off all sparkling bottles and caviar at cost.

Juliet

Los Angeles, California

Choose from nearly 50 wines by the glass—available per ounce, half glass, glass or carafe—and a food menu of Parisian-inspired seafood and vegetable dishes. The French influence extends to the remarkably deep bottle list, which has over 300 Champagne selections alone.

Melanie

Los Angeles, California

Beverage Director Austin Ferrier usually has around three dozen bottles open at all times at Melanie, where discovery is the name of the game. The terrific food is less discovery-driven, only because dishes like the double burger with onion jam and chipotle aioli, and the crab and scallop fettuccini with lobster stock and Thai basil have such devout followings.

The Rose

San Diego, California

This wine bar and bottle shop (only $10 corkage for bottles bought retail) is one of the cheeriest spots on our list, making its list of little-seen producers and varieties thrilling rather than intimidating. Pair with a strawberry-feta-pistachio salad, or grilled lamb with spiced yogurt and onion-date vinaigrette.

Valley

Sonoma, California

This combination bottle shop, wine bar and restaurant is a wine industry insiders’ favorite in downtown Sonoma. It’s not uncommon to see tables sharing wines they either bought or brought, over communal dishes like chicken with achiote, sour orange and cabbage, cod and clams, and its locally famous crispy rice with scallion-ginger sauce.

Voodoo Vin

Los Angeles, California

Natalie and Michael Hekmat’s wine haven started as a bottle shop, morphed into a wine bar, and then—with the addition of former Rustic Canyon Chef Travis Hayden—could now be confidently called a restaurant. Over 400 bottles are on offer, with unpretentious dishes like scallops and turnips in beurre blanc and a peach panzanella with mimolette cheese.

avec

Chicago, Illinois

When it opened 20 years ago, avec quickly morphed from a forward-thinking wine bar into a destination restaurant—a pioneer of the kinds of places we’re celebrating in this issue. Now with a second location, it’s still firing on all cylinders, celebrating Mediterranean wine and food in all its ever-changing forms.

The Press Room

Chicago, Illinois

A new beverage director, new chef de cuisine and new managing partner means a lot of fresh new energy at this popular West Loop wine bar. Look for dishes like Nashville hot quail and pork with persimmon and bulgur, and a wine list that’s transitioning to highlight underrepresented regions and varieties.

Celladora

Richmond, Virginia

Reserve one of this bottle shop’s four tables, whether for the daytime snack menu (think flounder ceviche and cumin okra), dinner service or Sunday brunch. Any retail bottle can be enjoyed at your table for just $15 corkage, and owner Megan Lee Hopkins is usually there to offer smart pairings.

Pop Fizz Bar

Washington, D.C.

The newest from prolific D.C. sommelier and restaurateur Brent Kroll is his most fun yet. All sparkling all the time (including sake, cider and much more), Detroit-style pizza, a fried section (because fried food and sparkling is always the right pairing), caviar practically at cost, and rotating seasonal dishes. What’s not to love?

Reveler’s Hour

Washington, D.C.

Co-owner and Beverage Director Bill Jensen also runs a Reveler’s Hour wine shop and weekly wine podcast in addition to his rotating wine list at the restaurant, which is often curated in collaboration with industry luminaries. Food is centered around snacks, salads and house made pastas, like bucatini with lamb sausage, carrot, pistachio and chives.

Tremolo Bar

Middleburg, Virginia

Owner Jarad Slipp is both a veteran of fine dining and a Master Sommelier, giving wine and food equal billing at Tremolo Bar. The dishes, all listed as “snacks,” easily combine to make a leisurely meal, and every wine on the bottle list—yes, every one—is available by the glass or half bottle.

Bar Brava

Minneapolis, Minnesota

By partnering with chefs doing long-term pop-ups in the space (the most recent was Vietnamese food from Khue’s Kitchen), Bar Brava is a two-inone experience. People coming for small-production wines that are otherwise hard to find in the city (if not country) get food from chefs who don’t otherwise have a brick-and-mortar showcase. Win-win!

The Antler Room

Kansas City, Missouri

Leslie and Nick Goellner’s Antler Room is proof that a brief but well-curated wine and food menu in a warm hospitable environment is all you need to be a neighborhood favorite. (It helps that Nick has been thrice nominated for the “Best Chef: Midwest” James Beard Foundation Award). The refined menu of creative global small plates and pastas supports an expansive wine list that offers everything from an Ozark Traminette to Austrian Zweigelt.

Strange Town

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

At Strange Town, small-production wine and vermouth meets a vegan menu that includes ingredients grown and foraged by Chef and Co-owner Mia LeTendre. Celeriac steak recently came with Virginia water leaf, split toothwort, winter rocket and violet greens, delicious with a brambly Blaufränkisch from Serbia’s Maurer Oszkár.

Bodovino

Boise, Idaho

During the pandemic, longtime Boise wine staple Bodovino partnered with local favorite Happy Fish Sushi and a new model for wine-bar pleasure was born. Is it a sushi bar with 144 wines by the glass, or your favorite wine bar that happens to have fantastic sushi instead of cheese and charcuterie? Either way, it’s heaven.

Sunday Vinyl

Denver, Colorado

This party-themed arm of the Frasca Hospitality Group is arguably its most fun. It’s a chance for Lead Sommelier Clara Klein to showcase more experimental wines and underrepresented regions, and the food works as either small plates (duck liver gougères, misocharred cabbage with crispy chicken skin) or a proper dinner (king salmon with leek fondue). Check Spotify for hundreds of its public playlists.

Claud

New York, New York

Simply stated, it’s one of NYC’s best new restaurants. But wine is at its heart and walk-ins are welcome, leading to revelatory moments like casually sitting at the bar with a full-bodied Cantina Giardino “T’ara Rà” Campania and realizing it’s magic with the halibut with cockles and green garlic.

The Four Horsemen

Brooklyn, New York

Long a destination for its deep cellar of some of the wine world’s most coveted producers (especially from France), The Four Horsemen is finally getting recognition for Chef Nick Curtola’s food. As a rule, both balance elegance with strong personality, like fried chicken with black maitake mushrooms and Marsala alongside Philippe Pacalet’s “Aux Chaignots” Nuits-Saint-Georges.

Place des Fêtes

Brooklyn, New York

This neighborhood wine bar has evolved into one of Clinton Hill’s favorite restaurants. Spanish wine is a focus, while food straddles ultra-modern (raw hiramasa with green garbanzo and magnolia) with creative comfort (pork ribs with fermented greens).

Wildair

New York, New York

In many ways, Wildair (and its tasting menu-driven sister restaurant Contra) pioneered the modern wine bar-restaurant hybrid and is still among NYC’s best. Some visit for the food that continues to influence chefs nationally while others stop in for a glass they aren’t likely to find elsewhere—and staff who are equally versed in both.

Dear Annie

Cambridge, Massachusetts

Local and seasonal have become maybe even more annoyingly ubiquitous buzzwords than small plates, but Dear Annie understands the way in which these concepts need to dovetail with labor practices and culture. Or just drink the greatest wines with dishes like clams with ginger and gochujang butter or come Monday for pizza night.

Antica Terra

Dundee, Oregon

Most people trek to Antica Terra winery for a taste of winemaker Maggie Harrison’s ethereal wines and maybe a chance to meet her. Book the “A Very Nice Lunch” experience, however, and be treated to one of the best meals in the Pacific Northwest, with six paired wines. Even the regular tasting, though, comes with snacks from chef Timothy Wastell that would constitute a great meal anywhere else.

Canard

Portland, Oregon

Canard is the more casual, wine-focused sibling to Portland fine-dining stalwart Le Pigeon, and it’s been an influential model for a city that’s become one of the country’s best for wine. Try rabbit larb or morel and pea lasagna with a skin-contact Vermentino-Riesling-Roussanne blend from nearby Applegate Valley’s Troon Vineyard and thank us later.

OK Omens

Portland, Oregon

OK Omens calls itself, simply, “a wine-focused restaurant”— though it could just as easily be “a food-focused wine bar.” Its glass list is uncommonly informative (but Riesling freaks should head straight for the bottle list), and there are always unlisted bottles open at the bar. Chef Justin Woodward is one of Portland’s most acclaimed, and here he keeps things surprising but unpretentious.

Late Air

Savannah, Georgia

Late Air has a lot going on beyond its modest industrial-chic veneer. There’s a dynamic list of small Old World producers rarely seen in the area—even Les Matheny Vin Jaune from Jura by the ounce—and Chef Juan Stevenson’s not-so-small plates always surprise, such as his snap peas with dashi-tahini dressing, Manchego and hazelnuts, or whipped dates with tangy Humboldt Fog cheese.

Lucian Books and Wine

Atlanta, Georgia

The readers among us will find it hard to resist any place with both “books” and “wine” in its name, but Lucian is a destination even if you only read on your phone. Its classic European dishes always have an unexpected twist, like gnudi with a ragu of rabbit, or the spring shower of morels, ramps and English peas with roast duck.

Renzo

Charleston, South Carolina

Of the many spots in the U.S. combining serious wine with serious pizza, Renzo is one of the best. And non-pizza fans will be just as happy with the escarole Caesar, cauliflower in mushroom XO sauce or Korean fried chicken. Follow them (on Instagram @renzochs) for frequent theme nights and winemaker dinners. And don’t miss a nightcap at The Faculty Lounge, its sister bar across the street.

Bar Cleeta

Bentonville, Arkansas

Trae and Weisi Basore bring their combined experience in NYC and L.A. fine dining to Arkansas at this small, savvy spot. While oysters, caviar, charcuterie and cheese are always on offer, the menu changes seasonally and at whim. Try dishes like burrata toast with rhubarb, jamón serrano and hazelnut streusel with a glass list of 15+ wines with generous, detailed descriptions.

Boia De

Miami, Florida

This diminutive hotspot seems to hover between a wine-bar feel (at the counter seats) and a celebratory dinner vibe at the outdoor tables. A smartly curated Old World wine list meets Italian-influenced dishes like veal sweetbreads with carrot, lettuce and cumin and tagliolini nero with king crab and Vin Jaune.

Margot

Miami, Florida

Glass pours change daily at Margot, which also draws fans for its terrific cocktail program. The small plates are just interesting—and delicious—enough that it’s a destination for food as well. Try dishes like salmon crudo with labneh and dill zhug (a spicy Yemeni herb sauce) and a sardine bành mì.

Saint-Germain

New Orleans, Louisiana

Located in balmy New Orleans, Saint-Germain takes its wine bar outside to a verdant garden, while food is served as a 10-course tasting-menu experience in the cozy indoor dining room. Naturally we recommend you experience both, especially on Wednesdays when there are deep bottle discounts.

Ada’s Food + Wine

Las Vegas, Nevada

Chef-partner James Trees’ comfort-food standards—burrata, kale salad, pasta, chicken, steak and the like—taste anything but standard. There’s watermelon and spicy mojo with tea-brined pork loin; fried capers and grapefruit vinaigrette with grilled asparagus. To drink, choose from over two dozen glass pours and generous flights (try the “Nerd Out” flight with a friend).

Corner Office

Taos, New Mexico

An oasis in Taos, Corner Office promotes small plates, an increasingly ubiquitous term but that rarely involves dishes like chickpea tamales with creamed leeks and sweet and sour chicken liver. A detailed and wellpriced wine list makes it a legit destination.

Birdie’s

Austin, Texas

At Birdie’s, it’s first-come firstserved, you order at the counter, and Chef Tracy Malechek-Ezekiel’s menu can change daily (though the beef tartare with pecans, rosemary and Sonora wheat berries happily seems to be a staple). But close your eyes and taste and you might as well be at the finest Michelin-starred restaurant around. Beverage Director and Co-owner Arjav Ezekiel will guide you through pairings, including a fantastic Madeira selection.

June’s All Day

Austin, Texas

Proprietor and Master Sommelier June Rodil’s nowfamous “wine zine,” a madcap visual wine list that’s also wildly informative, shows the clear wine focus at this all-day bistro suitable for a quick glass and snack or a leisurely meal from the surprisingly extensive menu. For the right morning, the breakfast chalupa with Gilles Bonnefoy’s low-alcohol “Bulles Rouge de Madone” pét nat isn’t the worst idea.

Nancy’s Hustle

Houston, Texas

Wines equally straddle New and Old Worlds—plus hefty fortified and cider selections—at this sexy wine bistro. Chef Jason Vaughan has a playful touch with dishes like pickled oysters, pork and butter dumplings with yogurt and sauerkraut, white anchovies draped over leeks, and beef sticky rice with a Wagyu tri-tip.

Trova

Dallas, Texas

Trova takes meat and cheese boards to another level, with over a dozen charcuterie picks and almost 20 cheeses, along with creative small plates like “peaches + cream,” roasted local peaches with labneh, prosciutto and fennel pollen. The choose your-own-adventure theme continues with around 20 glass pours.