Solid Slice, Decent Sip, No Complaints
· Glendale · Italian · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · September 28, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Lil' Capo Pizzeria’s wine list and gave it The Reliable — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
Lil' Capo is a counter-service pizza spot in Westgate — the kind of place where the focus is squarely on the pie, not the pour. The wine program exists, which already puts it ahead of half the casual pizza joints in the valley, and it leans into Italian and California bottles that make sense for the menu.
The list appears to draw from Italy, California, and Argentina — a sensible trio for a pizza-forward concept. You're not going to find aged Barolo or single-vineyard Napa Cab here, but the regional logic holds: Italian-leaning bottles alongside a menu of Neapolitan-style pies is a smart if modest pairing strategy. The selection stays tight, which can mean less decision fatigue or less excitement depending on your mood. Gaps in depth are expected for a counter-service format, and the list seems appropriately sized for the operation.
By-the-glass specifics aren't confirmed from available sources, but a spot like this typically runs a short pour list that mirrors the bottle selection. If you're here for a quick slice and a glass of red, the Italian-focused options are the obvious move. Don't expect a rotating program or anything that changes with the season.
The Bottom Line
Lil' Capo isn't a wine destination — it's a pizza destination with wine available, which is exactly what it should be. If you're grabbing a pie before a Westgate event and want something in a glass that won't embarrass the food, the Italian-leaning list does its job without asking too much of you or your wallet.
· Glendale · Market / Bottle Shop with Food
AJ's is not a restaurant, but if you're eating in the Glendale area and want to drink well on the cheap, their wine section punches hard for a market format. The selection is thoughtful, the prices are genuinely fair, and finding Pieropan next to the prepared foods is the kind of pleasant surprise that makes us want to keep coming back.
Small but Thoughtful
Steal
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Glendale · Entertainment Restaurant
Dave & Buster's wine list exists because a liquor license requires one, not because anyone here cares. Order a cocktail, grab tokens, and save the wine night for literally anywhere else.
Grocery Store
Steep
Basic Stemmed
MIA
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Glendale · Gastropub
Bar Louie is a perfectly fine place to drink a beer or a cocktail, but the wine list is an afterthought dressed up in column formatting. If wine is why you're going out, go somewhere else.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Glendale · Hotel restaurant
Desert Sage is a hotel bar wine list that knows exactly what it is and makes no apologies. Unless DAOU is calling your name, order a cocktail and save the wine for dinner somewhere else in Glendale.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Glendale · Modern American
The Lola isn't trying to be a wine destination, and the list makes that perfectly clear. If you're eating here, order the Chandon to start, pick the Cape Mentelle Semillon if you want to feel something, and budget the rest of your enthusiasm for the food.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
VAI Resort · Glendale · Rooftop Bar / Small Plates
Amara Rooftop is a place you go for the view and a cocktail — the wine list is an afterthought dressed up in a resort price tag. If wine is your thing, drink something fun downstairs and come up here for the sunset.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Vail · Italian
La Nonna is an Italian restaurant in a ski resort town that somehow assembled one of the more thoughtful grower Champagne lists in Colorado — and that's genuinely worth acknowledging. Markups run steep across the board, which is par for the Vail course, but if you order smart (Mignon, Larmandier-Bernier, the Correggia sparkler), you'll drink better than almost anywhere on the mountain. Come for the pasta, stay for the bubbles.
Surprising Depth
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Moab · Italian
Pasta Jay's wine list is a list in the most technical sense — it has wines on it, they cost money, you can order them. But with no whites, no rosé, steep markups on grocery-tier labels, and a selection that ignores most of Italy's wine country, it's hard to recommend anyone spend real money here on wine. Order the pasta, drink water, and save the bottle for somewhere that actually cares.
Grocery Store
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Gatlinburg · Italian
A five-bottle wine list at an Italian restaurant with zero Italian wines on it is not a wine program — it's a placeholder. If you're in Gatlinburg and wine matters to you tonight, this isn't your stop. The October wine dinner series is genuinely interesting and worth watching, but the everyday list doesn't give us enough to recommend making wine a priority here.
Grocery Store
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Occasional
Acceptable
One wine list review, one adventure pick, one quick tip, and a personal note. Every week. Under 500 words.
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