Italian comfort, wine list keeps pace
Downtown Princeton · Princeton · Casual Italian café and trattoria · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed July 22, 2026 · How we review
RagingWine reviewed Teresa Caffé’s wine list and gave it The Reliable — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
Fourteen bottles, fourteen glasses — Teresa Caffé isn't hiding behind a sprawling list it can't back up. Everything is by the glass, which is either a bold move or a practical one for a cozy café on Palmer Square. Either way, we're here for it.
The list leans Italian, as you'd expect, but doesn't get lazy about it — there's a Sardinian Vermentino, a Sicilian Insolia, and a Portuguese Touriga Nacional that shows someone was paying at least some attention when building this. The California and Chile entries (Benoni Chardonnay, Leyla Sauvignon Blanc) feel a little safe, like they're there to keep the table happy rather than to make a point. Gaps are real: no Nebbiolo, no Sangiovese, nothing from Tuscany or Piedmont is a curious omission for an Italian restaurant. But for 14 labels, the range punches above its weight.
Every wine on the list is available by the glass, which we love — no one's stuck ordering a bottle of something they're not sure about. Prices run $12–$18 a pour, which is reasonable for Princeton without being a giveaway. The rotation doesn't appear to change much, so don't expect seasonal surprises.
Basile 'Arteteca' Vermentino, Italy 2024 — $13/glass
Vermentino is chronically underordered, which means Teresa gets to pour a genuinely interesting Italian white at a price that doesn't sting. Herb-driven, coastal, and exactly what you want with a brick-oven margherita.
Quinta dos Roques Touriga Nacional, Portugal 2021
Most people at a casual Italian café are going to reach for the Pinot Grigio without a second thought. The Touriga Nacional from Quinta dos Roques is the interesting answer — structured, dark-fruited, and from one of the Dão's most respected producers. Worth every penny of the $18 ask.
LC Villa Pinot Grigio, Veneto 2024
Nothing wrong with it, but nothing right about it either. It's the default order for people who aren't really thinking about wine. With a Vermentino and an Insolia on the same list for similar money, there's no reason to land here.
Allegrini Valpolicella, Veneto, Italy 2022 + House-made pasta
Allegrini's Valpolicella is light enough not to bulldoze a plate of pasta, but has the cherry fruit and earthy backbone to actually complement it. Classic Veneto match — no overthinking required.
The Bottom Line
Teresa Caffé isn't trying to be a wine destination, but its 100% by-the-glass format, fair pricing, and a few genuinely interesting Italian picks make it more than an afterthought. Order the Vermentino, skip the Pinot Grigio, and enjoy the square.
· Princeton · Steakhouse
Ruth's Chris Princeton delivers a competent, corporately assembled wine program that covers the bases without taking any real swings. Markups are steep across the board — this is not the place to drop serious money on a bottle — but the all-by-the-glass format and the Trimbach and Catena Zapata picks give you room to drink well if you choose carefully. Come for the steak; drink strategically.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Palmer Square · Princeton · Italian / Pizza & Wine Bar
Teresa's has the bones of something genuinely good — a wine-bar concept in a charming Princeton setting, with an Italian-leaning list and the kind of casual-but-intentional vibe that makes you want to linger over a second glass. We'd call it a Wild Card because the setup is promising and the concept is right, but without a fully sourced list in hand, we're betting on potential as much as proof. Worth a walk-in to find out.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Princeton · Wine Shop with Tastings
Princeton Corkscrew is doing something genuinely useful: shop-floor pricing on a focused, mostly Old World list that punishes nobody for wanting to drink well without a restaurant markup. The Dubreuil-Fontaine Beaune Premier Cru at $67.50 and the Tardieu-Laurent Rhône Blanc at $19 both represent the kind of value that makes a wine list worth paying attention to. If you're in Princeton and care about what's in your glass, this deserves a stop.
Small but Thoughtful
Steal
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Princeton · Italian / American
Metro North's wine program is honest, approachable, and priced fairly for what it is — a crowd-pleasing list that gets out of the way and lets you eat dinner. If you're looking for discovery or depth, you won't find it here, but if you want a glass of something reliable at a fair price, the Nebbiolo and the Rosso di Montalcino are quietly doing the real work on this list.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Princeton · Farm-to-Table / New American
Brick Farm Tavern has no business having a wine list this interesting, and that's exactly the point. The markups are real — this isn't a value destination — but the curation earns genuine respect, especially with the local Unionville pours and the Slovenian Rebula Brut as curveballs. If you're driving out to Princeton for the farm-to-table experience anyway, the wine list is a legitimate reason not to skip it.
Small but Thoughtful
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Princeton · Italian / Pizza
LaScala's Fire Princeton offers a functional, crowd-friendly wine list that does the job without making any bold moves. The by-the-glass selection is genuinely broad and pricing stays reasonable at the lower end, but markups on recognizable names like Kim Crawford and Veuve Clicquot are steep enough to notice. Send a friend here for a casual pizza night — just point them toward the Vermentino or the Prosecco and away from the big-name bottles.
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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