Endless Breadsticks, Finite Wine Ambition
Overland Park · Italian · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · June 29, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Olive Garden’s wine list and gave it The Lazy List — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
The wine list arrives tucked inside a laminated folder that's seen better days, and the selection reads like a grocery store endcap someone copy-pasted into a menu. Nothing here is going to surprise you, but at these prices, nothing is going to insult you either.
Twenty-something bottles split almost entirely between Italian imports and California crowd-pleasers — Italy for the branding, California for the people who don't want to think about it. You've got the usual suspects: Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio holding down the prestige slot, Meiomi covering the fruit-forward Pinot Noir contingent, and Ecco Domani doing the budget Italian work. There's no real depth here — no regional Italian exploration, no small producers, nothing from anywhere else on the planet. What you see is what you get, and what you get is exactly what Olive Garden wants you to order.
Eight to twelve options on glass, which is actually a decent count for a chain of this scale, even if the lineup is entirely predictable. You're rotating through the same bottles you'd find at a Chili's with an Italian accent. No rotation to speak of — this list hasn't changed since the Clinton administration.
Ecco Domani Pinot Grigio — $8
It's not a wine you'd seek out, but at roughly $8 a glass in a sit-down restaurant, it's honest, cold, and does its job alongside a plate of pasta without drama or regret.
Ruffino Moscato d'Asti
Most people ordering here skip the sweet stuff out of reflex, but a lightly fizzy, low-alcohol Moscato d'Asti actually makes a lot of sense with the sugar-forward red sauces and dessert menu. It's underordered and undersold, and it works.
Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio
You're paying the Santa Margherita premium for a wine that's entirely ordinary — a bottle you can grab at any grocery store for less than you'll pay here. The name does all the heavy lifting, and at Olive Garden prices it's not worth the splurge over cheaper options on the same list.
Meiomi Pinot Noir + Chicken Parmigiana
Meiomi's ripe, jammy fruit and soft tannins don't fight the marinara sauce on the Chicken Parm — they just roll with it. It's a low-risk match that actually makes both the wine and the dish taste a little better than they'd manage alone.
The Bottom Line
Olive Garden's wine list is exactly what it needs to be for Olive Garden — accessible, cheap, and completely uninspired. Don't come here for the wine; come here for the breadsticks, and order whatever's coldest.
Overland Park · Overland Park · Seafood / Steakhouse
McCormick & Schmick's isn't here to surprise you with wine, and it doesn't. At $7–$9 a glass the prices are fair, but the list is pure corporate default — grab the Riesling or the Sauvignon Blanc and put your energy into the food.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Overland Park · Overland Park · Steakhouse / Fine Dining
The Capital Grille Kansas City is a reliable splurge — the bones are good, the list has legitimate heavy hitters, and the Champagne section alone will make certain expense accounts very happy. Just don't expect any surprises, and watch the markup.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Proper
Leawood · Overland Park · Farm-to-table American
Rye Leawood is a Wild Card in the best sense — it's a brunch-centric farm-to-table spot that somehow assembled a thoughtful, geographically curious wine list in a market that usually plays it very safe. Send your friends here, steer them past the cocktail-adjacent glass pours, and point them at the Cava or the Hito rosé.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Overland Park · Modern American
Silo Modern Farmhouse punches above its suburban weight class with a white-focused list that shows genuine curation and pricing that won't insult you. It's not a destination wine list, but it's exactly the kind of reliable program that makes a neighborhood restaurant worth coming back to.
Solid Range
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Overland Park · Overland Park · New American
Nick & Jake's wine list is a set-it-and-forget-it situation — functional for the casual diner, forgettable for anyone paying attention. Order the Moscato or a cocktail and move on.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Overland Park · New American
Tavern in the Village isn't trying to be a wine destination, but the all-by-the-glass format, fair pricing, and a handful of genuinely good picks — Picpoul, Sancerre, Riesling — make it more than worth a glass or two. Send a friend here knowing they won't get gouged, even if they won't get their mind blown.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Los Angeles · Italian
Osteria La Buca is running one of the more quietly ambitious wine lists in LA — fair prices, genuine Italian depth, and enough natural and obscure producers to keep things interesting across 54 bottles. If you care about what's in your glass and want an Italian restaurant that doesn't treat wine as an afterthought, this is worth your attention.
Deep & Eclectic
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Venice · Los Angeles · Italian
Felix Trattoria has the bones of a genuinely good wine destination — Italian-focused list, sommelier on staff, and a kitchen full of pasta that begs for a proper Nebbiolo or Vermentino alongside it. Markup reports lean steep for the neighborhood, so budget accordingly. We'd send a friend here for the full experience, but with a reminder to ask questions and not just grab the first recognizable label.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Acceptable
La Jolla · San Diego · Italian
Marisi earns its Wild Card badge by building a wine list that actually reflects curiosity about Italian wine rather than just the greatest hits. The dessert wine section alone puts it ahead of most Italian restaurants in San Diego. Pricing data wasn't available to us, and staff knowledge is an open question — but if you're the kind of person who gets excited about Albana from Emilia-Romagna or a Barolo Chinato to close the night, this list is worth your attention.
Deep & Eclectic
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
One wine list review, one adventure pick, one quick tip, and a personal note. Every week. Under 500 words.
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