West Palm Beach

Il Bellagio is a perfectly decent place to drink Italian wine with Italian food on a warm West Palm Beach evening — just don't expect the list to surprise you, and steer clear of the Santa Margherita markup. Order the Chianti, grab a table on the plaza, and call it a reliable night out.

PLANTA West Palm Beach won't disappoint you on wine, but it won't thrill you either — the list is safe, the markups are mostly steep, and the picks are designed for consensus. Come for the food, order the Whispering Angel, and don't overthink it.

Felice earns its keep with a genuinely Italy-focused list, a Tignanello markup that won't make you wince, and a Monday wine program that should be on your weekly calendar. Not groundbreaking, but reliably good — and in this neighborhood, that's not nothing.

Abe & Louie's is a dependable, well-stocked steakhouse wine program with real depth and knowledgeable staff — it just charges accordingly and rarely colors outside the lines. Send a friend here for a serious bottle of Cab with a prime steak, but tell them to ask the sommelier to find something off the beaten path.

Grato is a reliable wine list for a neighborhood Italian that punches above its weight in by-the-glass options and producer selection — just know the markups skew steep on anything recognizable. Send a friend here for the Pinot and the pasta, not the prestige bottles.

The Blind Monk is the kind of place West Palm Beach didn't know it needed — a genuine natural wine bar with a thoughtful list and a low-key atmosphere that makes you want to stay for another pour. The markups keep it from being a true Rager, but as a Wild Card in a city not exactly known for its wine culture, it absolutely earns a visit.

Avocado Grill isn't a wine destination, but it's not trying to be — and at these prices, with this food, the list holds up for a casual downtown night out. Send a friend here for the small plates and tell them to order the Albariño.

Pistache isn't trying to reinvent anything, and it doesn't need to — a focused French list, fair pricing, and half-off bottles on Wednesdays make this an easy yes for wine with dinner downtown. Send your friends here on a Wednesday and tell them to order the mussels.

Rocco's Tacos is a great tequila bar with a wine list that exists only because restaurants feel obligated to have one. Order a margarita and be happy about it — if you insist on wine, keep it simple and keep it cheap.

The Regional is a reliable wine stop if you're already there for dinner — just don't expect to be surprised or to feel like you got a deal. Order the Duckhorn Merlot, eat the fried chicken, and resist the urge to blow the budget on a Stag's Leap pour.

Rocco's is a genuinely fun restaurant — just not a wine destination by any stretch. Drink the tequila, enjoy the guac, and save your wine ambitions for somewhere that shares them.

RH Rooftop is a great place to drink wine you already know in a room that photographs extremely well — just don't come expecting to discover anything. If you're a guest who wants reliability and a gorgeous sunset view, this delivers; if you're chasing depth or value, this list isn't going to find you.

Bar Capri is not a wine destination, but it's a genuinely good wine option in a neighborhood that doesn't have many. If you're on Clematis on a Tuesday or Wednesday, the pasta-plus-bottle deal alone is reason enough to walk through the door.

Leila is the Wild Card call of the year in West Palm Beach — a casual Middle Eastern restaurant quietly running one of the only Lebanese wine programs in South Florida. If you're here and you order a Chardonnay, we can't help you.

Hullabaloo is a fun night out on Clematis Street, and if you're strategic about Thursday's wine special or daily happy hour, the pours are legitimately worth ordering. Show up outside those windows expecting a fair deal on wine, though, and the list will take your wallet to the cleaners.

Table 26 punches above its neighborhood weight with a list that has real ambition and a happy hour program that's one of the best deals in South Florida. The markup on the trophy tier is aggressive, but if you drink smart — and especially if you show up before 6 PM — this place absolutely delivers.

Palm Beach Meats is a place where the protein is the star and the wine list knows its supporting role — reliably decent, occasionally steep, never surprising. Come for the Wagyu, order something drinkable from the Cab side, and don't overthink it.

Imoto earns its Wild Card badge because nobody expects a sushi lounge in Palm Beach to stock Domaine Weinbach and skin-fermented California whites — and yet here we are. Markups run on the steeper side (this is Palm Beach, after all), but the list has genuine personality and a sommelier who clearly put in the work. Go for the spicy tuna, stay for the Blanc de Blancs.

Buccan earns its reputation as a go-to Palm Beach spot — the wine program is well-staffed, properly stored, and broad enough to satisfy most tables. Just know going in that you're paying a Palm Beach premium, and the list rewards guests who already know what they want more than those looking for discovery.

Meat Market Palm Beach is a fun room with a wine list that coasts on its crowd's brand recognition — come on a Wednesday, grab the Trefethen or order something off the beaten path like the Hillick & Hobbs, and you'll drink well. Show up any other night without a plan and you'll pay full markup for wines you could find at Total Wine.

Proper Grit is a good-looking restaurant with a wine list that doesn't match its ambitions — steep markups on brands you can buy at Publix aren't a wine program, they're a tax on people not paying attention. Order a cocktail, or bring your own if the corkage is reasonable.

Fern is a steakhouse wine list that plays it safe with quality producers, charges steep glass prices, and then redeems itself completely with Wednesday half-price bottles — if you can hit a Wednesday, this becomes a very different conversation. Come for the wagyu, stay for the Flowers Pinot, and set a calendar reminder.

Harry's wine list won't blow anyone away, but a few smart picks buried in a short lineup make it more than just a bottle-of-Cab-before-the-steak situation. If you know where to look, you'll drink well enough — just don't expect the list to do the work for you.

Henry's isn't a wine destination, but it's not pretending to be one either — the list is familiar, the markups are fairer than you'd expect from a Breakers property, and the flight program gives you a reason to explore. Send your friends here for dinner without worrying they'll get gouged on wine.

HMF is the rare hotel bar that could embarrass a dedicated wine bar on both depth and pricing — the by-the-glass program alone is worth the trip. If you're in Palm Beach and you care about what's in your glass, this is the most obvious call on the island.

Flagler Steakhouse is the rare resort restaurant where the wine program is worth the trip in its own right — fair markups, real depth, and a staff that knows what's in the cellar. If you're eating in Palm Beach, this is the wine list that earns its room.

Pistache earns its Wine Spectator Award of Excellence without drama — a well-rounded French list at fair prices, served with a Intracoastal breeze and food that knows what it's doing. It's not a wine destination, but it's absolutely the right list for the right room.

Okeechobee Steakhouse is a legitimate wine destination dressed up as a neighborhood institution — three sommeliers, a 400-plus bottle list heavy with serious producers, and Wednesday half-price nights that make the steep markups almost forgivable. Send your friends here, just tell them to go on a Wednesday.

Harry's is the kind of place you send someone when they want a serious wine experience without having to explain why. Four sommeliers, a deep classic list, and a Best of Award of Excellence make this one of the strongest wine programs in West Palm — just go in with eyes open on the markups.

Marcello's La Sirena is the real deal — a proper Italian cellar hiding in plain sight on South Dixie Highway, with the kind of depth that justifies a trip from anywhere in South Florida. Yes, the top end is expensive, but a Grand Award list this focused and this well-maintained earns its reputation.