Good burgers, forgettable wine list
Southeast Portland · Portland · American, Bar · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · April 13, 2026
RagingWine reviewed The Observatory’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 Observatory is a genuinely likable Southeast Portland neighborhood bar — casual, comfortable, and good at what it does. But the wine list reads like an afterthought stapled to the back of a menu that already knew what it wanted to be. Nothing wrong, exactly. Just nothing trying very hard.
The list clocks in at 20-35 bottles with a loose focus on Oregon, California, and France — which sounds reasonable until you realize the producers skew heavily toward grocery-store-familiar and import-filler territory. Giocato and Zaccagnini aren't exactly the names that get Portland wine nerds excited. To the list's credit, it nods at regional identity with Oregon representation, but doesn't dig deep enough to reward anyone who's looking for something beyond the obvious.
Eight to twelve by-the-glass options in a $10–$14 range is workable for a neighborhood bar, and the price points won't shock anyone. The problem is the markups behind those prices — the Bocelli Prosecco split lands at $10 for a 187ml pour on a bottle that retails for $5, which is a 100% markup on something you're drinking out of a tiny bottle. The glass program feels static rather than curated.
Bocelli Prosecco 187ml Split — $10
Look, it's not glamorous, but a cold split of Prosecco before a burger is a move. The markup stings a little, but at $10 you're not making a major financial commitment, and it's cheerful and fizzy and does its job.
Giocato Sauvignon Blanc
At $36, it's not thrilling on paper, but if you're eating something with heat — like the Chipotle Elk Burger — a crisp Sauvignon Blanc is doing real work on your palate. Most people here are ordering beer. You ordering this gets you something that actually cuts through the fat and fire.
Zaccagnini Pinot Grigio
Forty-four dollars for a bottle that retails at $18 is a 144% markup on a perfectly average Pinot Grigio. It's not bad wine. It's just not $44 wine, and in a casual bar setting, that math is hard to justify.
Giocato Sauvignon Blanc + Chipotle Elk Burger
The brightness and acidity in the Sauvignon Blanc does what beer can't — it actually refreshes the palate between bites of that smoky, spicy elk burger rather than just sitting alongside it.
The Bottom Line
The Observatory is a great bar with decent food that treats wine as a box to check rather than a reason to come in. Drink the beer, drink the cocktails — but if you must order wine, go in with eyes open on the markups.
Northwest 23rd · Portland · Rustic French / Northwest French
St. Jack is the rare Portland restaurant where the wine list earns as much respect as the kitchen. The French-Oregon axis is well-executed, the staff knows what they're talking about, and the pot lyonnais format alone is worth the trip.
Solid Range
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Downtown · Portland · Mexico City–inspired tacos and small plates
Tope is a Wild Card in the best sense — a rooftop taqueria that's quietly assembled a natural and low-intervention wine list worth paying attention to. If you're eating here and only drinking mezcal cocktails, you're leaving half the story on the table.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown · Portland · Texan–Pacific Northwest, Wood-fired American
Bullard Tavern is the Wild Card badge in its purest form — a smoked-meat joint that snuck in a genuinely considered wine list without making a fuss about it. Send a friend here if they think good wine and good brisket can't coexist.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown/Waterfront · Portland · Seafood, Pacific Northwest
King Tide earns its Wild Card badge by hiding a genuinely curious, well-priced wine list inside what could easily have been a forgettable hotel seafood room. If you're eating oysters on the Willamette, you could do a lot worse than Domaine de l'Écu in your glass.
Small but Thoughtful
Steal
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Concordia · Portland · New American
Dame is the rare neighborhood restaurant where the wine list is genuinely worth the trip on its own. Send your friends here — just tell them to skip the safe picks and trust the list.
Deep & Eclectic
Fair
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Seasonal Rotation
Proper
Buckman · Portland · Russian/Eastern European
Kachka is the best argument in Portland for drinking wines you've never heard of — the list is adventurous, the staff backs it up, and the food was built for exactly these bottles. Send every curious wine drinker you know.
Surprising Depth
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Acceptable
West Kennewick / Clearwater Ave · Kennewick · American, Bar
Magill's isn't a wine destination, but it's a neighborhood spot that actually tried with its list — local producers, a thoughtful rosé pick, and a Wednesday deal that makes the steep everyday markups irrelevant. Show up on a Wednesday, order the Mourvèdre rosé, and stop overthinking it.
Small but Thoughtful
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Seasonal Rotation
Acceptable
Fairhaven · Bellingham · American, Bar
The Black Cat is a genuinely good neighborhood spot with a wine list that mostly gets out of its own way — just steer toward the Washington and Spanish bottles, stay away from the California Pinot trap, and enjoy the view. We'd send a friend here for a low-key dinner, not a wine-first evening.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Fogelsville / Near Allentown · Allentown · American, Bar
Madeline's won't be the reason you plan a trip to Fogelsville, but if you're already there, the wine list earns a solid passing grade. Fair prices, decent range, and a few genuinely good picks make it worth ordering a bottle instead of defaulting to the bar menu.
Solid Range
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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