Steak-first, wine-second — but not bad
Naperville/Warrenville · Naperville · Steakhouse · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · July 2, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Eddie Merlot's’s wine list and gave it The Reliable — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
The wine list arrives and it feels exactly like the room — polished, confident, and unapologetically corporate. Two hundred-plus bottles sounds impressive until you realize a good chunk of that real estate belongs to California Cabs and the house private label. Still, for a steakhouse in the western suburbs of Chicago, this is a serious effort.
Eddie Merlot's leans hard into the California playbook, with Caymus anchoring the prestige end of the list. The private label program — a Chardonnay, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and a St. M Riesling — does the heavy lifting for mid-range drinkers, and the Riesling is a genuinely interesting inclusion on a steakhouse list. Don't come looking for Old World depth or anything from the Rhône; the list is built to sell to the table ordering a bone-in ribeye, not to the Burgundy obsessive hoping for a surprise. Gaps in natural wine and smaller producers are real, but within its lane, the list is well-curated and properly stored.
Twenty to thirty by-the-glass options is a strong count for a steakhouse, and the range covers enough ground to keep the whole table happy without forcing a bottle commitment. The private label pours give the kitchen a captive audience at accessible price points, though we'd love to see more rotating selections to keep regulars on their toes. Glasses start at $10, which is fair entry for the format.
Eddie Merlot's Private Label St. M Riesling — $10
A Riesling on a steakhouse list is already a minor miracle; the fact that it's priced accessibly makes it the smartest pour in the room. It cuts through rich sauces and gives the lobster bisque crowd something to work with beyond Chardonnay.
Eddie Merlot's Private Label Merlot
Everyone sleeps on the house Merlot because the room is full of people flexing on Caymus, but the private label Merlot is a quietly solid, food-friendly pour that won't punish your bill or your palate. Underordered, underappreciated.
Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon
Caymus is everywhere — Total Wine, Costco, your neighbor's garage. At steakhouse markups you're paying a significant premium for a bottle you could easily find at retail. It's not a bad wine; it's just a bad deal in this context.
Eddie Merlot's Private Label Chardonnay + Jumbo Lump Crab Cakes
The crab cakes need something with enough body to match the richness but enough freshness to not flatten the seafood flavor. The house Chardonnay, priced to not sting, does exactly that without the oak sledgehammer you'd get from something bigger.
The Bottom Line
Eddie Merlot's is a reliable steakhouse wine program that does its job without surprising you — solid storage, knowledgeable staff, and a big enough list to find something worth drinking. Just don't expect discovery; expect competence, and bring your own enthusiasm for anything outside California.
· Naperville · American bar and grill
Bar Louie Naperville's wine list exists to check a box, not to excite anyone. Order a beer or a cocktail — the bartenders are more invested in those anyway.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Oak Brook · Naperville · Steakhouse
Gibsons Oak Brook is a reliable, if unexciting, wine stop — the BTG program is genuinely strong in volume, but the markups and brand-safe selections keep it from being anything more than comfortable. Order smart and you'll drink well enough; let the table pick and you'll probably end up with Whispering Angel.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Naperville · Italian / Pizza and Wine Bar
Fire + Wine is doing something genuinely thoughtful in a market that usually settles for Malbec and Pinot Grigio. The sparkling program alone is worth the trip, and the value on the French and Italian bottles is hard to argue with.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Naperville · American Winery Restaurant
Goat & Vine is a one-winery show, and that's both its charm and its ceiling. Send a friend here if they want a casual, curiosity-driven evening — not if they're looking for serious wine range.
Plays It Safe
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown Naperville · Naperville · Modern American / Latin-influenced
Santo Cielo is a great place to have a drink — the atmosphere earns that — but the wine list isn't the reason you're going. Come for the rooftop and the small plates; just don't expect the wine program to match the view.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Naperville · Modern American
Entourage earns its stripes as a genuinely thoughtful suburban wine list — fair pricing, more depth than the address suggests, and a by-the-glass program that actually tries. We'd send a friend here without hesitation, especially if they're willing to wander past the Chardonnay section.
Solid Range
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· San Jose · Steakhouse
The Capital Grille San Jose is a reliable but unambitious wine program — it stocks the bottles a Napa-loving business dinner crowd expects and prices them accordingly. If you're looking for discovery or value, you won't find much here; if you need a solid Cab to go with a dry-aged steak and you're on someone else's tab, it does the job.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Sandy Springs · Steakhouse
Kevin Rathbun Steak's by-the-glass program is a legitimate effort in a category — steakhouses — where most restaurants phone it in. The pricing skews steep at the top end and there's no evidence of active wine events or rotation keeping things fresh, but the range is real and a few picks like the Long-Depaquit Chablis and Lachini Pinot Noir punch above their weight. Come for the steak, but don't just default to the house Cab — there's more here if you look.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· San Jose · Steakhouse
Mastro's San Jose is showing us a very specific slice of its wine program — a Judgment of Paris throwback dinner built around two of Napa's most iconic names. It's a fun concept and the selections are legitimate, but we don't have enough visibility into the everyday list to give this a full endorsement as a wine destination. Come for the event if you can get a seat; for a regular Tuesday steak night, the wine picture is still fuzzy.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Occasional
Acceptable
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