New York Steakhouse Energy, Aloha State Prices
Waikiki · Honolulu · American Steakhouse · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · April 7, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Wolfgang's Steakhouse by Wolfgang Zwiener’s wine list and gave it The Rager — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
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Wingman Metrics
The wine list lands on your table with the confidence of a place that knows exactly what it is: a New York steakhouse that happens to be sitting in the middle of Waikiki. Dark wood, white tablecloths, and a list pushing 500 bottles — this is not a place that cobbled its wine program together as an afterthought. Best of Award of Excellence from Wine Spectator eight years running backs that up.
The list is built around two pillars — California Cabernet and Bordeaux — and within those lanes it goes deep. You've got the full roll call of Napa royalty: Caymus Special Selection, Silver Oak, Jordan, Peter Michael, Stag's Leap Cask 23, and Opus One all present and accounted for. On the Bordeaux side, Margaux, Lafite, and Mouton Rothschild anchor a serious First Growths section that gives the list real gravitas. Where it's thinner is outside those two worlds — if you're hunting Burgundy, Rhône, or anything from the Southern Hemisphere, you'll find options but not depth. Sommelier Jon Biyajima keeps things curated and intentional rather than sprawling.
Fifteen to twenty-five options by the glass is a solid pour program for a steakhouse of this caliber, and the rotation reflects the list's California-heavy personality. You're not going to find esoteric natural wines here — expect Chardonnay, Cabernet, and a few crowd-pleasing reds that fit the dry-aged beef mandate. It's not a by-the-glass hero situation, but it gets the job done for a pre-dinner pour while you decide what bottle to commit to.
Jordan Cabernet Sauvignon — Not individually listed — ask staff
Jordan punches well above its price point in a list full of four-figure bottles. It's the move when you want serious Alexander Valley Cab without the Opus One hit to your credit card.
Patz & Hall Chardonnay
Everyone at a steakhouse is eyeing the Cabernets, and Patz & Hall gets overlooked. It's a genuinely great Sonoma Coast Chardonnay — restrained, site-driven, not the butter bomb people expect — and it's a smart call if you're splitting a table between red and white drinkers.
Pétrus 2019
At $4,800 a bottle in a restaurant setting, you are paying a massive premium on top of what is already one of the most expensive wines in the world. Unless someone else is picking up the check, this is a flex purchase, not a value play. The wine is extraordinary; the markup is not.
Stag's Leap Wine Cellars Cask 23 + Dry-Aged New York Strip Steak
Cask 23 is built for exactly this moment — it's structured enough to stand up to the intense, funky depth of dry-aged beef, but it has the elegance to not steamroll the meat. This is the pairing Wolfgang's was designed for.
Monday — Half-price wine night every Monday — the single best reason to plan your week around dinner here.
The Bottom Line
Wolfgang's Honolulu earns its Rager badge by delivering a genuinely serious wine program in a city where most restaurants are coasting on tourist traffic and markup. Monday half-price wine night is one of the best kept secrets in Waikiki — show up, order the strip, and let Jon point you toward something worth drinking.
· Honolulu · Restaurant
Merriman's Honolulu delivers a wine list that punches above the typical Hawaii resort-area offering — genuinely good producers, a clever small-format section, and enough variety to reward a curious drinker. The pricing skews steep and the list won't surprise anyone, but you won't be embarrassed ordering here either.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Kaimukī · Honolulu · Wine Café & Bistro
Brix and Stones is doing something genuinely valuable for Kaimukī — bringing a thoughtful, accessible wine program to a neighborhood that needed one. The Caymus carafe pricing is a bona fide deal and the Meinklang shows real taste, but watch out for the bubbly markups and a list that could use a little more rotation to keep regulars coming back.
Small but Thoughtful
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Kakaʻako · Honolulu · Wine Bar & Spirits Lounge (BYO Food)
Brix and Stones is the kind of place that shouldn't exist in the form it does, in the city it's in — and that's exactly why you should go. The markup swings from genuinely fair to eyebrow-raising depending on what you order, but the natural wine focus and knowledgeable staff make it the most interesting wine stop in Honolulu by a comfortable margin.
Small but Thoughtful
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Waikiki · Honolulu · Italian with local Hawaiian influence
Fresco is a solid resort wine list doing exactly what it's designed to do: keep guests comfortable and the floor moving. If you're looking for adventure, you'll need to look elsewhere — but if you just want a cold glass of something decent with a view of the Pacific, it gets the job done.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Kakaʻako / SALT · Honolulu · Hawaiian-inspired / New American
Moku Kitchen isn't a wine destination, but it's a reliable neighborhood spot that doesn't gouge you — and in Hawaii, that alone earns real points. Send a friend here for dinner, not for the wine list, but tell them the prices won't sting.
Crowd Pleasers
Steal
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Waikiki · Honolulu · Steak and seafood with Hawaiian regional influences
Beachhouse at the Moana is a perfectly decent wine experience as long as you know what you're walking into: a hotel list with hotel markups and a stunning ocean backdrop doing the heavy lifting. Go for the Jordan with your steak, catch the sunset, and save the serious wine exploration for somewhere else on the island.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Fort Worth · American Steakhouse
Del Frisco's Grille Fort Worth has a wine list the same way an airport newsstand has a wine section — technically true, practically limiting. Order the Tokaji for dessert, drink cocktails with dinner, and don't expect anyone to help you navigate the difference.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
North Carson · Carson City · American Steakhouse
Glen Eagles is a comfortable, classic Carson City steakhouse with a wine list that's essentially coasting — one strong Port section surrounded by a whole lot of nothing. Come for the prime rib, order a Port after, and don't expect much more from the wine side of the menu.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
San Marcos · San Marcos · American Steakhouse
Outback San Marcos won't embarrass you if you order a glass with dinner, but you're not here for the wine list and nobody pretends otherwise. Stick to the Riesling or the Malbec and spend your energy on the steak.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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