Lincoln's Date Night Wine List Done Right
Southeast Lincoln · Lincoln · New American with Italian influences · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed June 25, 2026
Wingman Metrics
The wine list at Carmela's arrives with real ambition — 115 labels at a bistro in Southeast Lincoln is not a small bet. It reads like a place that genuinely wants to be a wine destination, with Italian producers sharing space alongside California heavyweights and a few unexpected regional picks. The atmosphere backs it up: cozy, date-night energy with the kind of lighting that makes a good bottle feel even better.
The list leans hard on California and Italy, which makes sense given the New American-meets-Italian kitchen, but there's enough range to keep things interesting. You've got entry-level crowd-pleasers like La Crema and Kim Crawford alongside serious bottles — Virna and Prunetto Barolos, a Terrasole Brunello, a Chateauneuf-du-Pape from Domaine du Grand Tinel. The Opus One and Dom Pérignon are here for the splurge occasion, and while that's smart programming for a celebration crowd, those markups deserve a hard look. The Oregon and German Riesling presence is a welcome sign that someone building this list has actual taste beyond the obvious.
The by-the-glass program is the everyday engine here, with pours running $8 to $14 and hitting familiar names that most tables will land on comfortably. Pacific Rim Riesling and Impero Chardonnay anchor the lower end while Annabelle Sonoma Chardonnay and Meiomi Pinot Noir give people a step up without sticker shock. We'd love to see more rotation and a couple of bolder by-the-glass picks — right now it plays it a little safe.
La Crema Chardonnay, California — $38/bottle
At $38 a bottle — which works out to the same $10/glass they're already charging — you're getting a consistently well-made Russian River-adjacent Chardonnay that punches above its weight. Order the bottle for the table and you're ahead of the game.
Virna Barolo, Piedmont, Italy
Most tables at Carmela's are reaching for California Cabs, which means the Virna Barolo at $85 tends to sit quietly on the list. Barolo in Nebraska at a bistro is already an unexpected find — this is a wine that rewards the curious and shuts up the skeptics.
Opus One, Napa Valley
At $310 a bottle, you're paying full trophy-wine tax at a Pioneer Woods bistro. We get it — it signals ambition to have it on the list — but the value isn't here. Take that budget somewhere with a deeper cellar program.
Prunetto Barolo, Italy + Carmela's signature fettuccine
Barolo's firm tannins and earthy red fruit are practically engineered for pasta in rich, meaty sauce. The Prunetto at $90 is not a casual Tuesday pour, but split it on a date night over fettuccine and it earns every dollar.
✔️ The Bottom Line
Carmela's is the best wine list in Southeast Lincoln, which is a low bar, but the Barolos, the Brunello, and the Chateauneuf-du-Pape prove there's real intent here. Markups on the prestige bottles are hard to swallow, but for a neighborhood bistro date night, this list delivers more than it had to.
South Lincoln · Lincoln · Modern Asian (Thai-focused with pan-Asian influences)
Issara has no business having a wine list this considered — and we mean that as the highest compliment. If you care about drinking well with your food, this is the most interesting wine list in Lincoln and it's not particularly close.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Haymarket · Lincoln · French-influenced contemporary American
The Green Gateau is a lovely room with a kitchen worth visiting, but the wine list is a 200-bottle monument to playing it safe and charging extra for the privilege. Send your friend here for the food; tell them to watch their wallet on the wine.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown · Lincoln · Wings / Sports Bar
The Watering Hole is a great spot for wings and a cold beer — the wine list is an afterthought and the pricing makes sure you know it. If you're here for a game and need wine, grab the Riesling or the Prosecco and call it a night.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
MIA
Set & Forget
Acceptable
South Lincoln · Lincoln · American grill and brewpub
Lazlo's South Lincoln is a reliable neighborhood brewpub that happens to stock a respectable short wine list — don't expect discovery, but you won't feel stranded if you're skipping the beer. Send a friend here for dinner knowing the wine won't embarrass anyone.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Occasional
Acceptable
Downtown / Near South · Lincoln · French-influenced contemporary American
The Green Gateau is doing something genuinely uncommon: running a deep, fairly priced, award-recognized wine program in a mid-sized Midwest city without making a big show of it. Yes, send your friends here — just tell them to show up before 6 p.m.
Deep & Eclectic
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Seasonal Rotation
Proper
Downtown · Lincoln · Contemporary American, farm-to-table
DISH is doing something genuinely impressive for a mid-sized Midwestern city — a thoughtful, sommelier-curated list with real depth and serious producers. The markups keep it from being a true Rager, but as a Wild Card, it earns every bit of that badge: you simply don't expect this wine list in Lincoln, Nebraska, and that surprise is worth the trip downtown.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
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