Rooftop pours without the rooftop pretension
· Honolulu · Rooftop Wine Bar · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · August 19, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Tchin Tchin Bar’s wine list and gave it The Reliable — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
The list at Tchin Tchin is compact and immediately legible — 22 labels, nearly all available by the glass, with a clear lean toward crowd-friendly bottles you'd recognize from a well-stocked grocery store. It's a wine bar built for the view-seekers and sunset-chasers, not the cellar-dwellers. That's fine, as long as you know what you're walking into.
The list covers the obvious bases — California reds, Italian whites, a port section, and some sparkling options — but doesn't venture very far off the beaten path. You've got Bonanza by Caymus for the cab drinker who wants a name they trust, Elouan for the Pinot crowd, and Louis Jadot Chablis as the lone French flex that earns its spot. The Emilio Moro Tempranillo is the most interesting pour on the list and easily the most underrepresented style here. A port section with both Dow's Ruby Red and Cockburn's Fine White is a genuinely nice touch for a wine bar in a warm-weather city — dessert pours that most rooftops would never bother with.
With 21 of 22 labels available by the glass, this is essentially a by-the-glass-only program — and that's the right call for a rooftop bar. Prices run from $10 for Josh Cellars N/A Prosecco up to $26 for Luc Belaire Brut and Cockburn's Fine White, with most reds landing in the $14–$23 range. The range is there; the value is inconsistent.
Alta Vista Malbec — $14/glass
Alta Vista is a solid, honest Mendoza Malbec — fruit-forward without being jammy, and $14 is the most reasonable ask on the red side of the list. In Honolulu, where everything costs more and the wine markup reflects it, this is the low-key win.
Emilio Moro Tempranillo
Most people at a rooftop bar are ordering Pinot or Cab. The Emilio Moro is a Ribera del Duero producer that punches well above its visibility here — structured, earthy, built for sipping slowly while the sun drops into the Pacific. Skip the Elouan and order this instead.
Luc Belaire Brut
At $26 a glass, you're paying for the bottle design and the Instagram moment, not the wine. G.H. Mumm Champagne exists on this list for $75 a bottle — actual Champagne, actual value by comparison. Belaire is a party brand dressed up as a wine bar choice.
Louis Jadot Chablis + Fresh oysters or light seafood bites
Chablis and shellfish is one of the great unbroken rules of wine, and on a rooftop in Hawaii with ocean air and fresh seafood in reach, the Jadot Chablis at $22 is the move. Crisp, mineral, and clean — it cuts through salt and fat without getting in the way.
The Bottom Line
Tchin Tchin is a perfectly pleasant place to drink wine with a view, and nearly everything being available by the glass means you can graze without committing to a bottle. Just don't come expecting discovery — come expecting a solid pour and a great sunset.
· Honolulu · Hawaii Regional
Moku Nui is a casual Hawaii Regional spot that has no business running a wine list this thoughtful — and we mean that as high praise. Fair glass prices, a sommelier clearly making intentional choices, and enough variety to reward the curious drinker. If you're eating here, skip the default beer order and let someone at the table order the Vouvray.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Waikiki · Honolulu · Seafood
Azure is a genuinely lovely place to drink wine — the setting does a lot of heavy lifting and the France-Italy-Hawaii focus is a sensible match for the island seafood menu. Just go in knowing resort markup is real, and if the tasting menu with wine pairing is available, that's likely your best shot at getting something memorable poured without having to guess blind from the list.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Honolulu · Tasting Menu
Senia's wine program is one of the more thoughtful in the state — sommelier on staff, an Old World-focused list, and a Wednesday night deal where bottles at $65 and under get cut in half plus a tasting flight. If you're serious about what's in your glass, this is where you go in Honolulu. Book a Wednesday if you can.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Active Program
Proper
· Honolulu · Italian-American
53 By The Sea plays an interesting game: a short, all-glass list that punches well above its weight in the mid-range, anchored by a custom Failla Pinot and some genuinely thoughtful picks from Austria and southern Italy. Markups lean steep, especially as you climb the tiers, and the absence of bottle service means you're always buying by the glass. But if you stick to the $12–$31 range, this is one of the more curated pours you'll find in Honolulu — and that Grüner alone is worth the visit.
Small but Thoughtful
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Honolulu · Steakhouse
The Capital Grille Hawaii's wine list does what the brand does everywhere — it's safe, corporate, and priced to capture resort-market margins. The Champagne selection is genuinely deep and includes some worthwhile picks like the Paul Bara and the Llopart Cava, but markups are steep and there's little here to excite anyone looking beyond the obvious. If you're here for a steak and want bubbles, you'll find something that works — just don't expect the list to dazzle you.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Waikiki · Honolulu · Steakhouse
BLT Steak Waikiki is a competent, crowd-pleasing steakhouse wine list in a setting where you're mostly paying for the view and the popovers. If wine is central to your evening, call ahead and ask what's actually open — the list's documented depth isn't enough to guarantee a great bottle without some homework. Come for the porterhouse, manage your wine expectations.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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