Three thousand bottles and zero apologies
Flatiron · New York · Plant-based fine dining (American, European) · Visit Website ↗
Updated June 2026
Reviewed March 23, 2026 · How we review
RagingWine reviewed Eleven Madison Park’s wine list and gave it The Rager — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
The wine list at Eleven Madison Park lands on the table like a small novel — and we mean that as a compliment. Three thousand bottles, a team that actually knows what's in those bottles, and a room grand enough to make you feel like the wine deserves to be here. This is not a list that was assembled by a purchasing committee checking trend boxes.
France dominates at 72% of the list, and it earns that real estate — DRC Burgundies, first-growth Bordeaux, grower Champagnes, serious Rhône from Robert Michel in Cornas and Les Pallières in Gigondas, and old vintages including a 1989 Napa Cabernet that proves this cellar has patience. But the depth doesn't stop at the usual suspects: there's Timorasso from Piedmont (still underrated everywhere else), Eva Fricke Rieslings showing that Germany gets a real seat at the table, New York State wines flying a quiet local flag, and Piedrasassi Syrah repping California without leaning on Napa's biggest names. Austria, Corsica, and thoughtful picks from across the Old World round out a list that clearly has a point of view. The one honest gap is that if you're hunting value-priced everyday drinkers, you're in the wrong room — this list is built for occasions and exploration, not casual Tuesday pours.
EMP has won recognition for best by-the-glass list in New York in 2025, and the program lives up to it — selections rotate with the seasons and span the same serious geography as the bottle list, which is genuinely rare at this level. You're not getting the dregs of the cellar poured into a glass; the BTG program here functions as a proper tasting vehicle for the list's range. Whether you want a grower Champagne to open or a Burgundy to close, there's a real option at every stage of the meal.
Champagne Heidsieck Monopole Blue Top Brut NV — $24
At a restaurant where bottles regularly stretch into the hundreds, finding a Champagne pour at $24 — against a $40 retail price — is legitimately fair. It's not the flashiest bottle on the list, but at this markup in this zip code, it's the closest thing to a deal in the room.
Piedrasassi Syrah
Most tables are going straight to Burgundy or Bordeaux, and we get it. But the Piedrasassi Syrah from Santa Barbara is one of California's most serious and least-discussed Syrah producers, and seeing it on a list this Old World-heavy means someone in that cellar genuinely cares about what's happening on the Central Coast. Don't sleep on it.
First Growth Bordeaux
These bottles are here, they're real, and they're impressive — but at EMP price points on already-expensive Bordeaux, you're paying for the address as much as the wine. Unless you're celebrating something that warrants a four-figure bottle, the Rhône and Burgundy selections at lower rungs of the list are where the actual excitement lives.
Les Pallières Gigondas + Honey-Lavender Duck
Les Pallières makes Grenache-driven Gigondas with a savory, garrigue-laced earthiness that cuts through richness without fighting it. Against the floral-sweet profile of the honey-lavender preparation, it grounds the dish and makes both the wine and the food taste more like themselves.
The Bottom Line
Eleven Madison Park's wine list is the real deal — 3,000 bottles deep, priced with more restraint than you'd expect for a three-Michelin-star room, and backed by a team that treats the list as seriously as the kitchen treats the food. If you're going to spend serious money on a wine dinner anywhere in New York, this is the benchmark.
Midtown · New York · French Brasserie
La Grande Boucherie earns its place as a reliable stop for wine in Midtown, especially if you're leaning French. The glass list is genuinely wide and has some smart picks buried in it — the Fleurie and the Wiemer Riesling both punch above their price points. Markups trend steep as you climb the bottle list, so your money works hardest in the by-the-glass section. If you're here for the brasserie experience, the wine program holds up its end of the deal.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· New York · Steakhouse
BLT Prime's wine program is glass-only, which limits your options if you came for a big bottle moment, but the pricing is honest and the selection is more thoughtful than most steakhouses bother with. If you're keeping it casual and ordering by the glass, you can drink well here without feeling taken advantage of — and that's not nothing in this city.
Solid Range
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· New York · Restaurant
The Palm Midtown is not where you'd expect to find Puzelat and Ruth Lewandowski sitting next to each other on a wine list — which is exactly what makes it worth a second look. Six bottles is a short menu, but all six are defensible picks at prices that don't insult you. If you're in the mood to trust the list and not overthink it, this works.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Murray Hill · New York · Classic American Steakhouse
Wolfgang's is a reliable steakhouse wine experience in the sense that you know exactly what you're getting: a list built around the bottle you already know, priced for the room you're sitting in. If you're here to close a deal over a Porterhouse for Two, the wine list will do its job without embarrassing anyone — but it's not going to surprise you, and it's almost certainly going to cost more than it should. Go in with eyes open and a strong second-choice red in mind.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· New York · Mediterranean
Zaytinya's wine list is a rare thing in New York: a focused, regionally coherent program that commits hard to Greek and Eastern Mediterranean varieties without making you feel like you need a flashcard to order. The by-the-glass selection alone — 18 options, all under $18, featuring producers most wine lists wouldn't touch — makes this worth visiting even before the food arrives. If you eat here and order a Cabernet, that's on you.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
SoHo · New York · Italian
A long bottle list with Italian, Burgundy and Champagne sections, fronted by a 22-wine glass page. For a glass, try the Skerk Orange Wine from Friuli at 25/95, and for a bottle on a lighter budget, the Volpaia Vermentino at 60; upstairs in the café, the labeled list pours Palistorti di Valgiano's orange Tuscan blend at Glass $22. Confirm prices before you order, because the site's Upstairs Café dinner menu and the beverage PDF do not match. This unrated guide covers the posted wine lists, not service, storage or markups.
One wine list review, one adventure pick, one quick tip, and a personal note. Every week. Under 500 words.
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