Dana Point

Kahani is the Wild Card because nobody expects a serious wine program inside a Ritz-Carlton Indian restaurant — and yet here we are, with Gaja on the list and a sommelier who can tell you why it matters. Steep prices are the price of the address, but if you're eating here anyway, the wine list absolutely earns your attention.

Luciana's isn't going to challenge your assumptions about wine, but it'll take care of you — fair prices, a few genuine gems buried in the California lineup, and a Wednesday half-price night that's legitimately worth planning around. Send your friends here if they want a great bottle with dinner, not a lecture about terroir.

Bourbon Steak earns its Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence and then some — a deep, well-kept list with a real sommelier behind it, set against one of the better views in Southern California. The markups reflect the zip code, but this is where you go when the occasion demands it.