10 of America’s Best Wine-Focused Restaurants Open Right Now
Wine Spectator has uncorked its annual list of the best wine-centric eateries around the world.
Wine Spectator has unveiled the winners of its 2020 Restaurant Awards, which honor the world’s best restaurants for wine. This year’s awards, a tribute to the restaurant industry’s resilience amid COVID-19, recognizes the achievements of nearly 3,800 eateries across all 50 states and 80 countries. Here, the esteemed wine mag highlights 10 top U.S. restaurants that represent a diversity of locations, cuisines and wine programs right now, all either open for dine-in, delivery or pickup. We’ll drink to that.
Lazy Betty – Atlanta, Georgia
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Lazy Betty proves that tasting-menu destinations don’t have to be stuffy, with an accessibly priced prix-fixe menu of inventive American dishes by chef Ron Hsu. Match the meal with thoughtful wine pairings by wine director Carl Gilbert, or choose from his full 200-label list, comprising a mix of international regions, from France and California to Lebanon, Greece, Australia and beyond. This restaurant is open for dine-in.
Le Zoo – Bal Harbour, Florida
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Le Zoo brings elegant French flair to the already luxurious Bal Harbour Shops, just north of Miami Beach. The menu features staples like trout amandine and filet mignon au poivre, ideal for enjoying with the 200-selection wine list emphasizing French labels. This restaurant is open for dine-in.
Majordōmo Meat & Fish – Las Vegas, Nevada
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Chef David Chang is known for flavorful, Korean-influenced cuisine across the many concepts in his international restaurant empire. The Las Vegas outpost of Majordōmo is no exception, utilizing ingredients like chili oil, sichuan peppercorn and ginger to craft dishes that truly pack a punch. There are endless ways to mix and match Chang’s cuisine with the extensive wine list of 700 labels, covering everything from classic Burgundies to New World chilled reds. This restaurant is open for dine-in.
Conversation – Seattle, Washington
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In the Thompson hotel in downtown Seattle, Conversation is all about encouraging personal connections. Chef Kaleena Bliss serves up regional American plates to pair with wine director John Miller’s moderately priced list of 200 bottlings highlighting nearby wine-growing regions, plus an impressive whisky selection. This restaurant is open for dine-in.
Saint Urban – Syracuse, New York
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This upstate destination is constantly reinventing itself to keep guests engaged. Saint Urban chef-owner and wine director Jared Stafford-Hill creates a new 3-course menu every week, drawing from the surrounding bounty. That means endless ways to play with pairings from the eclectic 495-wine list, which includes an array of half-bottles and magnums, and highlights in France and Italy. This restaurant is open for dine-in.
Le Crocodile – Brooklyn, New York
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Experience the feel of a Parisian brasserie at Le Crocodile, inside Brooklyn’s Wythe Hotel. The heavily French wine list boasts particular strength in Burgundy and showcases an abundance of biodynamic and organic options, plus more than a dozen orange wines. The fare puts a creative spin on French classics, such as skate frites (as the menu notes in French, “Yes, it’s fish”) and vichyssoise soup with chilled oysters. This restaurant is open for outdoor dining.
Selby’s – Atherton, California
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San Francisco–based Bacchus Management Group is no stranger to noteworthy wine programs. The team currently holds Grand Awards for two other restaurants: The Village Pub and Spruce. Their latest white-tablecloth project, Selby’s, not only offers a swanky setting, but also a 3,450-selection wine list with seemingly endless selections from California, Burgundy, Bordeaux, Italy and beyond. This restaurant is temporarily limited to pickup and delivery.
Rosie Cannonball – Houston, Texas
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Live-fire cooking meets European comfort foods at Rosie Cannonball, a refined yet laid-back concept from locally based group Goodnight Hospitality. The 330 wine picks by acclaimed sommelier June Rodil are strongest in staple regions of France, Italy and California, but offer plenty of opportunities for discovering lesser-known bottlings. This restaurant is temporarily limited to pickup and delivery.
Mar – New York, New York
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Inside Mercado Little Spain, a comprehensive food court on the ground floor of Manhattan’s new Hudson Yards development, powerhouse chef and activist José Andrés celebrates his Spanish heritage through numerous wine-and-food concepts, such as tapas spot Mar. The 300-wine list, chosen by wine director Andy Myers, is naturally strongest in Spain, with a particularly exciting Sherry selection. Mercado Little Spain is temporarily limited to pickup and delivery.
Elements – Princeton, New Jersey
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At 12-years-old, Elements is still on the forefront of sustainable cuisine, continuously working with local farms and butchers to fuel chef Scott Anderson’s seasonally driven menu. Wine director Daniel Tucker, Jr., complements the cuisine with a 550-selection program filled with selections from small, artisanal winemakers. This restaurant is temporarily limited to curbside pickup.
To view the complete Wine Spectator list, go here.
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