The Bloomin' Onion Deserves Better Wine
North Davenport · Davenport · Steakhouse / American · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · July 9, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Outback Steakhouse’s wine list and gave it The Lazy List — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
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Wingman Metrics
The wine list at Outback Davenport is essentially a greatest hits album of grocery store shelf-grabbers — you've seen every label here a hundred times, probably at a gas station. There's nothing wrong with it exactly, but there's nothing right about it either. It exists because a steakhouse has to have wine, not because anyone actually cared.
Thirty to fifty bottles and nearly all of it is California and Australian commercial production — Josh Cellars, Meiomi, Jacob's Creek, Penfolds Koonunga Hill. These are fine wines in their context, but that context is a supermarket endcap, not a steakhouse wine list. There's no depth, no regional curiosity, no interesting producer to stumble onto. The Chateau Ste. Michelle Riesling is the lone bright spot showing any range, and Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio is here doing what it always does: being wildly overpriced for what it is.
Eight to fourteen pours by the glass sounds generous until you realize it's basically the whole list reshuffled. The rotation doesn't appear to rotate — this is a set-and-forget program where the same bottles have been on the menu since the Clinton administration. If you're eating here, order a beer or a cocktail unless you're committed to the Koonunga Hill.
Penfolds Koonunga Hill Shiraz — $9
It's honest, it's Australian, and it actually makes sense with a slab of steak. Not exciting, but it does its job without embarrassing anyone.
Chateau Ste. Michelle Riesling
Nobody orders Riesling at a steakhouse, which is a shame — a touch of sweetness and bright acidity cuts through the richness of Outback's heavier dishes in a way that Cab can't. It's the most interesting thing on this list by default.
Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio
A $13-14 retail bottle appearing at chain restaurant markup prices for a wine that tastes like lightly flavored water. The brand is coasting entirely on its 1980s reputation. Hard pass.
Penfolds Koonunga Hill Shiraz + Outback Special Sirloin
Bold fruit and a peppery finish on the Koonunga Hill is built for red meat. It's not a sophisticated pairing, but neither is the Outback Special, and that's exactly the point.
The Bottom Line
Outback's wine list in Davenport is a chain doing the bare minimum — recognizable labels, steep markups, zero ambition. Come for the steak, order the Koonunga Hill if you must have wine, and save your serious wine spending for somewhere that earned it.
Elmore Avenue · Davenport · Wine Bar & Lounge
The Grape Life is the kind of quietly good wine spot that Davenport probably doesn't fully appreciate yet. It's not trying to be a big-city wine bar, but it's doing more right than most — send a friend here on a Thursday with live music and let the flight menu do the work.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
East Davenport Village · Davenport · American Cafe, Bistro and Bar
Brew in the Village isn't trying to be a wine destination and it doesn't pretend to be — but Wednesday half-price wine with a food purchase is one of the better deals in Davenport, and the list is priced fairly enough that you won't feel gouged the other six nights. Send a friend here for a low-key weeknight dinner; just tell them to go on a Wednesday.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Seasonal Rotation
Acceptable
Greater Quad Cities / Nearby Illinois Side · Davenport · New American / Hotel Restaurant
5th Avenue Syndicate is doing more than most hotel restaurants bother to do with wine — nearly everything is available by the glass, there are a few legitimate picks in the mix, and the pricing, while steep in spots, doesn't cross into outright insulting. Send a friend here if they want something familiar and competent; just steer them away from the Caymus.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Central Davenport · Davenport · Mexican
Los Primos is a place you go for the food and the margaritas — the wine list is an afterthought and everyone involved seems to know it. Order the cocktails, be happy, and don't let the Merlot talk you into anything.
Grocery Store
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
North Davenport · Davenport · Seafood
Red Lobster's wine list exists to check a box, not to enhance your meal. Order the Riesling, enjoy the Cheddar Bay Biscuits, and save the serious wine drinking for somewhere that earned it.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
North Davenport · Davenport · Steakhouse, American
Come here for the steak and the rolls — they're genuinely good. But the wine program is an afterthought at best, and you're better off ordering a draft beer or skipping alcohol entirely than wrestling with this list.
Grocery Store
Steep
Basic Stemmed
MIA
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown / Spalding Hall · Bardstown · Steakhouse / American
The Rickhouse is a perfectly competent steakhouse wine list doing exactly what a steakhouse wine list in bourbon country is supposed to do — familiar names, heavy pours, and enough bottles to keep the table happy. Just go in knowing you're paying for the atmosphere and the ambiance of that historic cellar as much as what's in the glass.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown · Durango · Steakhouse / American
Ore House delivers a competent, Napa-centric wine list that matches the room and the menu without much ambition beyond that — the markups sting on the trophy bottles, but there are a few smart finds if you know where to look. Send a friend here for steak and the Eroica Riesling; tell them to skip the Silver Oak.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
North Atherton · State College · Steakhouse / American
Texas Roadhouse is not a wine destination and makes no pretense of being one — the food is the point, and the wine list is a legal obligation. Order a beer, enjoy the rolls, and save your wine curiosity for somewhere that earned it.
Grocery Store
Fair
Basic Stemmed
MIA
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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