Southern Comfort, Decent Pours, No Surprises
· West Palm Beach · Southern / New American · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · August 29, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Sassafras’s wine list and gave it The Reliable — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
The Sassafras wine list is exactly what you'd expect from a Southern-leaning New American spot in West Palm Beach — familiar names, approachable selections, and nothing that's going to make your jaw drop. It's a list built for the table that wants wine with dinner, not a list built for the table that came for wine. That's fine. Not everything has to be a statement.
Twenty-nine labels sounds like a tight edit, but the range here is actually reasonable — sparkling, whites, rosé, and reds all get representation without any single category feeling neglected. The white wine section does most of the heavy lifting, with Chardonnay getting three slots (Mer Soleil, Rodney Strong, Rombauer) and two Pinot Grigios somehow finding their way onto a 29-bottle list. Reds are where things get thin: the list leans hard on Malbec and Pinot Noir, with no Cabernet, Syrah, or Zinfandel to speak of — a gap that'll frustrate anyone who wants something with more structure or grip. The R. Prum Essence Riesling is the one moment of genuine curiosity on an otherwise safely navigated list.
Twenty-one of 29 labels available by the glass is a genuinely impressive ratio — nearly the whole list is open, which makes this a strong spot for table splits and exploration. Glass pours run $10–$20, which is fair for West Palm Beach. The Chandon Brut at $14/glass is the smartest entry point on the menu.
Chandon Brut — $14
Fourteen bucks for a glass of Chandon Brut is one of the more honest prices on this list. It's a crowd-pleasing sparkler that punches above its price point, and it's the kind of pour that works as an aperitif or carries you through a whole meal without demanding attention.
R. Prum Essence Riesling
Nobody at a Southern restaurant in West Palm Beach is reaching for the Riesling, which is exactly why you should. R. Prum makes a beautifully balanced off-dry Riesling that cuts through rich, saucy food like a knife. It's the most interesting wine on the list and it'll go ignored all night.
Rombauer Chardonnay
Eighty-eight dollars for Rombauer — a wine that retails around $28 — is a markup that's hard to justify when you can get the equally solid Mer Soleil Silver for $46. Rombauer's buttery California Chardonnay has a fan club, but this isn't the price to pay for it.
Clos de los Siete Malbec Blend + Southern-style braised short ribs
Clos de los Siete is a Mendoza blend with enough fruit weight and structure to stand up to slow-braised beef without steamrolling the table. It's the red on this list with the most complexity, and it earns its $54 price tag when it's next to something rich and saucy.
The Bottom Line
Sassafras is a reliable neighborhood wine list that gets the job done without asking too much of you — or offering too much in return. Markups run steep in spots, but the by-the-glass program is generous enough that you can find your footing without committing to a bottle.
· West Palm Beach · Italian
For a pizza and pasta spot, Elisabetta's glass program is legitimately ambitious — 60 options, fair pricing across the board, and enough obscure Italian varietals to reward the curious. We can't speak to staff knowledge or glassware quality from the available data, but if the execution on the floor matches the ambition on the list, this is one of the better wine spots in West Palm Beach, full stop. Go in, skip the Santa Margherita, and let someone at the table order the Brocard Chablis.
Solid Range
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· West Palm Beach · Italian
Sant Ambroeus Palm Beach is a reliable, if unambitious, wine experience — Italy and France, done cleanly, priced for Royal Poinciana Way. If you're here for the scene, the truffle pizza, and a glass of something Italian and uncomplicated, it delivers. Just don't come looking for value or discovery.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Palm Beach Gardens · West Palm Beach · Steakhouse
The Capital Grille Palm Beach Gardens is a reliable wine stop if you're already there for the steak — just don't expect the list to excite you. Lean toward the glass pours, chase the value picks, and avoid the temptation to drop $30 on that Orin Swift.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Worth Avenue · West Palm Beach · French / Bistro
Le Bilboquet Palm Beach is a safe, French-focused list that suits its dressed-up crowd without pushing anyone toward something new or surprising. Send a friend here for the vibe and the steak frites — just go in knowing the wine spend will feel steeper than it probably should.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· West Palm Beach · Wine Bar / Tasting Room
If you want to spend an afternoon actually understanding Willamette Valley wine across a single focused producer, there's no better setup in West Palm Beach. Just don't show up expecting a world tour — this room has a point of view and it's Oregon, all the way down.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· West Palm Beach · Italian
Cafe Sapori's wine list is a reliable Italian-leaning companion — not adventurous, not cheap, but curated enough that the right picks reward you. Skip the Whispering Angel, dig into the Tuscans, and you'll leave satisfied.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Harrah's Gulf Coast / Biloxi · Gulfport · Southern / New American
Magnolia House isn't trying to be a wine destination, and with Kelly English's Southern cooking as the real draw, you can forgive a lot. Stick to the by-the-glass program, lean on the seafood-friendly whites, and don't expect your markup to be treated with any particular mercy.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Inman Park · Atlanta · Southern / New American
Wisteria is a dependable red wine destination — especially if Pinot Noir is your thing — but the list plays it too safe to excite, and markups keep it from being a true value play. Send a friend here knowing they'll drink well, just don't expect to be surprised.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown Greenville · Greenville · Southern / New American
Soby's has one of the most legitimately impressive wine programs in the entire Southeast, and the fact that it's anchored in Greenville rather than a major metro makes it worth a detour on its own. If you're anywhere near South Carolina and you care about wine, you owe yourself a seat at this table.
Deep & Eclectic
Fair
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Seasonal Rotation
Proper
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