Princeton's Clubby Steakhouse Plays the Hits Well
Princeton · American · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · April 18, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Witherspoon Grill’s wine list and gave it The Reliable — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
The wine list at Witherspoon Grill reads like a greatest hits album — Silver Oak, Opus One, Caymus front and center. It's a confident, familiar lineup that tells you exactly who this place is cooking for: the Princeton professor celebrating tenure, the alumni weekend crowd, the client dinner that needs to impress without taking risks.
California and France anchor everything here, and that's by design — 150 to 250 bottles deep with a clear bias toward Napa Cabernet and classic Burgundy. You'll find the reliable stalwarts: Jordan, Stag's Leap, Duckhorn, Far Niente, and Louis Jadot alongside Joseph Drouhin on the Burgundy side. What you won't find is much adventure — no Rhône wildcards, no domestic outliers, no natural wine curiosity. The list has held a Wine Spectator Award of Excellence since 2008, and it earns that credential by being consistently solid rather than exciting.
A solid 12 to 20 pours by the glass keeps the program accessible without being overwhelming. The selections mirror the bottle list — expect California Chardonnay and Cabernet to dominate, with a few French options mixed in. Rotation appears limited; this is a set-it program, not one that's swapping in seasonal surprises.
Jordan Winery Cabernet Sauvignon — $40s
Jordan consistently punches above its price point — it's approachable, well-structured, and a smarter move than reaching for the Opus One if you want a great glass of Napa Cab without the trophy-wine markup.
Chateau Ste. Michelle
Easy to overlook on a list stacked with Napa heavyweights, but Chateau Ste. Michelle consistently offers real quality at a fraction of the price of the California names surrounding it. Most diners walk right past it — their loss.
Opus One
Look, Opus One is a legitimate wine — but on a restaurant list it's almost always marked up to the stratosphere, and you're paying for the label as much as the liquid. At Witherspoon, there are better ways to spend that money.
Stag's Leap Wine Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon + Braised Short Ribs
Stag's Leap brings enough structure and dark fruit to stand up to the richness of braised short ribs without overwhelming the dish — it's the kind of pairing that feels obvious in hindsight and makes the whole table happy.
The Bottom Line
Witherspoon Grill isn't trying to be a wine destination and it doesn't need to be — it's a dependable, well-maintained list that serves its room well. Send a friend here if they want a great bottle of Napa Cab with dinner; don't send them if they're chasing something unexpected.
· 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
· Baltimore · American
Give the international and local sections a look before defaulting to Burgundy. Sula at $70 and Old Westminster at $90 offer different budget options. These are posted bottle prices, not guaranteed stock; confirm availability. This menu guide doesn't rate service or cellar conditions.
· Key West · American
Caroline's Café is not a wine destination, and it's not trying to be — the identical pricing across all five house labels makes that abundantly clear. If you're in Key West looking for something interesting in your glass, keep walking; if you just need a cold pour of Chardonnay with your lunch and aren't asking questions, $8 gets you there without drama.
Grocery Store
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Kerns · Portland · American
Noble Rot is the rare restaurant wine program that would hold up as a standalone wine bar — deep list, sharp staff, fair prices, and a view that makes the whole experience feel earned. Send your friends here. Send yourself here.
Deep & Eclectic
Fair
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Seasonal Rotation
Proper
One wine list review, one adventure pick, one quick tip, and a personal note. Every week. Under 500 words.
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