Honolulu

Wolfgang's Honolulu earns its Rager badge by delivering a genuinely serious wine program in a city where most restaurants are coasting on tourist traffic and markup. Monday half-price wine night is one of the best kept secrets in Waikiki — show up, order the strip, and let Jon point you toward something worth drinking.

Solera is quietly one of the most serious wine destinations in Hawaii, and the farm-to-table menu gives you plenty of reasons to open something special. Yes, you'll pay for the privilege, but a sommelier who knows the list and a cellar stocked with Conterno and Leflaive isn't something you find at every beachside restaurant.

La Mer is the real deal — a destination wine list in a destination restaurant, backed by a team that clearly knows what they're doing. Yes, the markups sting, but when you're sitting oceanside in Honolulu with a glass of Leflaive in hand, it's difficult to argue with the experience.

Hy's is the rare Honolulu restaurant where the wine list feels like it was built with intention, not just filled in around the menu. The markups are real, Wednesday half-price night is your friend, and sommelier Prestyn Timas is worth the conversation — this one earns the Wine Spectator hardware.

Empire Steak House is a Wild Card in the best sense — a legitimate wine list in a setting where you'd forgive them for phoning it in. The markups sting a little and no sommelier means you're navigating on your own, but the bones are good and the California-Bordeaux depth is real.