West Texas Beef With an Unexpected Wine Education
TX-191 Corridor · Odessa · Steakhouse · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · July 6, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Red Oak Steakhouse’s wine list and gave it The Wild Card — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
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Wingman Metrics
Nobody walks into a steakhouse on TX-191 in Odessa expecting to see Sancerre and a Super Tuscan on the same by-the-glass list. And yet, here we are. The list is compact at 18 pours, but whoever built it was paying attention.
For a steakhouse in the Permian Basin, the range here is genuinely surprising — France, Italy, California, Oregon, Germany, New Zealand, and South Africa all show up. You've got the Famille Lauverjat Sancerre sitting next to Avignonesi 'Grifi' and Reyneke 'Vine Hugger' Chenin Blanc, which is a range most big-city steakhouses couldn't pull off. The reds are built for red meat — Leviathan, Clos du Val Cab, and the Dave Phinney 'Acolytes' Pinot cover the spectrum from plush and powerful to something lighter if you want it. The only gap is the bottle list, which isn't published anywhere, so you're flying blind on anything beyond the glass pours.
Eighteen options by the glass is a strong showing, and the spread across sparkling, white, rosé, and red is genuinely balanced. At $12–$30 a glass, you can drink well without committing to a bottle. The ceiling is the Charles Orban Champagne at $30, which is fair for a grower Champagne poured by the glass anywhere, let alone Odessa.
Clos du Val Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 2021 — $25
Clos du Val is a serious Napa producer with decades of history, and $25 a glass for their Cab in a steakhouse setting is the kind of pricing that makes you order a second. This is the move at this list.
Reyneke 'Vine Hugger' Chenin Blanc
South African Chenin Blanc from a biodynamic producer on a Texas steakhouse list is not something you see coming. Most tables will reach for Chardonnay and miss this entirely — don't be most tables.
Dawn Chorus Sauvignon Blanc 2024
At $13 a glass it's not a rip-off, but New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc is the path of least resistance here. With Famille Lauverjat Sancerre on the same list, there's no reason to default to the safe pick.
Avignonesi 'Grifi' Super Tuscan + Ribeye
Grifi is a Sangiovese-Cabernet blend that handles the fat and char of a ribeye without the weight of a full Cab. It's got enough acid to cut through, enough structure to hold up, and it makes the whole thing feel a little more interesting than the obvious pairing.
The Bottom Line
Red Oak Steakhouse is punching well above its weight class for Odessa — the list is small but curated with real intent, and the by-the-glass pricing keeps it accessible. Send a wine-curious friend here; they'll be pleasantly thrown off.
West Odessa · Odessa · Mexican
Mi Casa is a place you go for the food — and the food is probably earning its keep. The wine list is purely functional, a last-minute add-on that no one's tended to in a while. Stick to the margaritas.
Grocery Store
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Occasional
Acceptable
Marriott Odessa Convention Center · Odessa · Private Dining / Texas Bistro
Barrel & Derrick's private dining room wine list does exactly what it's designed to do: keep oil executives and convention guests comfortable with names they recognize at prices their companies will reimburse. If you're paying out of pocket and actually care about what's in your glass, focus on Penner-Ash or the Amarone and steer hard away from the Silver Oak Napa at $440.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
TX-191 Corridor · Odessa · Private Dining / New American
Red Oak Kitchen's wine program punches above its weight for West Texas — a thoughtful small list with some real finds buried under the obligatory Napa names. Markups keep it from being a steal, but the Social Hour pricing and the William Chris collab give you real reasons to order a bottle instead of a cocktail.
Small but Thoughtful
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Occasional
Acceptable
Retail Corridor · Odessa · Casual American
Ruby Tuesday Odessa is not a wine destination — and it has absolutely no interest in becoming one. Order a cocktail, lean into the salad bar, and don't come here with a corkscrew in your heart.
Grocery Store
Fair
Basic Stemmed
MIA
Set & Forget
Acceptable
East Odessa · Odessa · Sports Bar
Buffalo Wild Wings Odessa is not a wine destination — it's a wings-and-beer operation that happens to stock a canned Pinot Noir as a corporate checkbox. If you're with a group and someone insists on wine, the Archer Roose won't ruin your night, but don't come here for the list.
Grocery Store
Steep
Red Flag
MIA
Set & Forget
Hot Mess
East Odessa · Odessa · Steakhouse
Outback Odessa's wine program exists because a restaurant has to have one, not because anyone here cares about it. Order a beer or a cocktail, save the wine for somewhere that's earned it.
Grocery Store
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Plano · Steakhouse
Steve Fields clearly puts its energy into the kitchen, not the cellar — and at these price points, that imbalance is hard to ignore. Order the Evesham Wood if it's still there, and otherwise come for the steak, not the wine list.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· San Diego · Steakhouse
Greystone is a reliable, if predictable, steakhouse wine list — the kind where you can always find something decent but you'll rarely be surprised. Skip the Opus splurge, order the Paradigm, and you'll walk out satisfied.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· San Diego · Steakhouse
Morton's San Diego is spending more energy on the wedge salad than the wine list, and it shows. Come for the steak, order carefully, and don't expect much beyond the obvious.
Crowd Pleasers
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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