Long Beach's most serious Italian wine cellar
Downtown Long Beach · Long Beach · Italian · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed April 7, 2026
Wingman Metrics
The wine list at L'Opera lands with the kind of weight that makes you slow down and actually read it. This is a 300-500 bottle program that has held a Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence since 2017, and you feel that pedigree immediately. California, Italy, and France are the three pillars, and none of them are treated as afterthoughts.
Italy is the heart of this list — you'll find Antinori Tignanello, Sassicaia, and serious Brunello di Montalcino from both Banfi and Poggio Antico sitting alongside Barolo from Ceretto and the always-commanding Gaja. The California section leans into the classics: Caymus, Opus One, Silver Oak, Far Niente, and Grgich Hills represent the greatest hits of Napa and Sonoma without much adventurousness. France gets a nod through Louis Jadot Burgundy, which holds its own but doesn't quite match the depth of the Italian selections. If you came for old-world Italian firepower, this list delivers; if you were hoping for a Rhône or Loire discovery, look elsewhere.
With 20-35 pours available between $12 and $22, the by-the-glass program is genuinely useful rather than just decorative. That range is wide enough to cover a pre-dinner Chardonnay and a proper red alongside the main course without feeling like you're drinking from the bottom shelf. We'd love to see more rotation and discovery-driven pours, but what's here is solid for an Italian fine dining context.
Louis Jadot Burgundy — $40–$60 range
Jadot is a reliable Burgundy producer that consistently overdelivers at the entry level — in a list that skews toward triple-digit Italian collectibles, a well-priced Jadot is your smartest play for a full bottle with dinner.
Poggio Antico Brunello di Montalcino
Most tables here reach for the Caymus or Tignanello on autopilot, but Poggio Antico is a Brunello producer that rewards attention — structured, age-worthy, and genuinely exciting in a way that crowd-pleasing Napa Cab just isn't.
Caymus Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon
Caymus is fine wine, but at a restaurant with Sassicaia and Gaja on the same list, ordering it feels like flying first class and asking for a Diet Coke. The markup on a name this recognizable rarely leaves you ahead, and the list has far more interesting options at similar or lower prices.
Ceretto Barolo + Osso Buco
Barolo and braised veal shank is one of the great Italian table certainties — the wine's tannin structure and earthy depth cut through the richness of the braise while the shared regional roots (Piedmont and Lombardy, neighbors in the Italian north) make the whole thing feel intentional rather than accidental.
🔥 The Bottom Line
L'Opera is one of the most credible Italian wine programs in Southern California, full stop — the cellar is deep, sommelier Scott Fisher knows his stuff, and the room is built for a long dinner with a serious bottle. The markups lean steep and the list plays it safe on discovery, but if you want to drink Tignanello or a great Brunello in a room that deserves them, this is your place.
Belmont Heights · Long Beach · Modern Latin / New Mexican
Panxa Cocina isn't a wine destination, but it's a Wild Card worth knowing — a kitchen-first list that actually shows some regional personality in a city full of lists that don't try. Send a friend here for dinner and tell them to order the Gruet just to watch the table react.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Alamitos Bay · Long Beach · Seafood, Steak, Sushi, and American Coastal
Boathouse on the Bay isn't a wine destination, but Wine Wednesday — 50% off bottles under $100 — turns a perfectly decent, crowd-pleasing list into a genuine reason to show up. Come for the views and the crab, grab the Eroica Riesling, and don't overthink it.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Active Program
Acceptable
Downtown/Shoreline Village · Long Beach · Asian Fusion
PF Chang's wine list exists because restaurants have to have one, not because anyone particularly cared about building it. Grab the Riesling, enjoy your lettuce wraps, and don't expect the wine to be the reason you came.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Belmont Shore · Long Beach · Upscale American
Nick's on 2nd is a dependable neighborhood wine stop — solid list, familiar producers, nothing that'll blow your mind but nothing that'll disappoint a table of mixed drinkers. Send a friend here for a date night, just tell them to order the Duckhorn and leave the Jordan for someone else.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown/Pine Avenue · Long Beach · Greek/Mediterranean
George's is a Wild Card because it's doing something most casual Greek spots don't bother with — actually leaning into Greek wine. Monday's half-price promotion makes it worth building a night around.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Occasional
Acceptable
Belmont Shore · Long Beach · Seafood, American, Elevated Coastal
Roe Seafood's wine list is a crowd-pleaser in a restaurant that deserves something a little wilder, but Wine Wednesday — half-price bottles, no corkage, live jazz — is a genuine reason to show up on a Wednesday instead of a Friday. Come for the lobster roll, stay for the Sauternes.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Active Program
Acceptable
Downtown Provo · Provo · Italian
La Dolce Vita earns its stripes as a dependable neighborhood Italian with a wine list that actually respects the cuisine it's serving. It's not a destination wine program, but in Provo, it's one of the better options on the table — and that house pour at $4 a glass is almost disarmingly honest.
Solid Range
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
East Odessa Retail Corridor · Odessa · Italian
The wine list at Olive Garden Odessa does exactly what Olive Garden's wine list is supposed to do — it's inoffensive, familiar, and gets out of the way of the breadsticks. If you're here for a serious glass of wine, you're in the wrong zip code.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
South Lakeland · Lakeland · Italian
Carrabba's isn't where you go to discover wine, but it's where you go to drink something decent without getting ripped off. Send a friend here if they want a familiar Italian night with a glass that makes sense — just steer them toward the Italian side of the list.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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