Updated: June 29, 2017
Feeling the tug of wine wanderlust this winter? These 10 Wine Spectator Restaurant Award–winning destinations span exotic locales from a 12th-century castle in Chianti to a wine hotel in Porto to a resort with 1,500 acres of private vineyards in Mendoza. They’ll have you daydreaming of your next big getaway and the wines you’ll drink upon arrival. To check out more great wine dining spots across the globe, see Wine Spectator’s nearly 3,800 Restaurant Award–winning picks, including our choices for 10 iconic hotels and resorts with great wine lists in North America and the 100 Grand Award recipients holding our highest honor.
This is only a partial guide to restaurants at iconic hotels and resorts outside the United States. Other destinations with impressive wine lists that have appeared in past Restaurant Guides include Graycliff Restaurant in the Bahamas, Le Louis X–Alain Ducasse in Monte Carlo, Palais Coburg in Vienna, Rôbuchon Au Dôme in Macau and Il Gallo d’Oro in Madeira.
Do you have a favorite you’d like to see on this list? Send your recommendations to restaurantawards@mshanken.com. We want to hear from you!
Note: When calling the following establishments from North America, dial 011 and then the telephone number.
Don Alfonso 1890
Grand Lisboa Hotel, Avenida de Lisboa, Macau, China
Telephone (853) 8803-7722
Website www.grandlisboahotel.com
Open Lunch and dinner, daily
Grand Award
Very few restaurants in Asia offer the kind of fine-dining experience found at Don Alfonso 1890, where refined Italian food combines with a selection of 16,800 wines. Located on the third floor of the Grand Lisboa Hotel, the restaurant shares the hotel and cellar of more than half a million bottles with fellow Grand Award winner Robuchon Au Dôme. Wine director Paul Lo’s program has earned a Grand Award since 2005, and the two restaurants draw on the most expansive list and inventory of any Wine Spectator Restaurant Award winner. Regions from around the world are abundantly represented on the 582-page list, particularly Bordeaux, Burgundy, the Rhône, Australia, Germany, California, Tuscany, Piedmont, Spain, Champagne and Portugal. Over two dozen vintages of DRC Romanée-Conti grace the list, with the vertical dating back to 1929.
Epicure
Le Bristol Paris, 112 Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, Paris, France
Telephone (33) 1-53-43-43-40
Website www.lebristolparis.com
Open Lunch and dinner, daily
Grand Award
On Paris’ picturesque Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, you’ll find Epicure at Le Bristol Paris, which earned its first Grand Award in 2016. Head chef Eric Fréchon’s cuisine is steeped in French tradition while offering unique twists: His macaroni, for example, is stuffed with black truffle, artichoke and duck foie gras and gratinéed with aged Parmesan. The 3,000-selection list, backed by nearly 95,000 bottles in the cellar, is overwhelmingly French. There’s a heavy emphasis on Burgundy, with nearly 200 grand cru reds alone. The list is also strong in the Rhône, with Hermitage reds from Chapoutier and Chave, as well as Bordeaux, with verticals of the first-growths, Cheval-Blanc and Pétrus.
Nathan Outlaw at Al Mahara
Burj Al Arab Hotel, Jumeirah Road 1, Dubai, UAE
Telephone (971) 4-301-7777
Website www.jumeirah.com
Open Lunch and dinner, daily
Best of Award of Excellence
Set on its own island off Jumeirah beach, the striking Burj Al Arab Hotel is a symbol of luxury in Dubai. Its Best of Award of Excellence–winning restaurant, Nathan Outlaw at Al Mahara, is no exception to the opulence: With 970 wine selections and a cellar of over 12,000 bottles to peruse, you’ll find plentiful options from Champagne, Bordeaux, Italy, Australia and California. Highlights on the seafood-focused menu include crispy oysters and caviar, lobster risotto, and scallops with seaweed butter.
Pierre Gagnaire Restaurant
La Grande Maison de Bernard Magrez, 10 Rue Labottière, Bordeaux, France
Telephone (33) 0-5-35-38-16
Website www.lagrandemaison-bordeaux.com
Open Lunch and dinner, Wednesday to Sunday
Best of Award of Excellence
For many serious wine lovers, a visit to Bordeaux is a pilgrimage for phenomenal wines. Equally important, however, is spectacular cuisine. For that, head to Pierre Gagnaire Restaurant at La Grande Maison de Bernard Magrez. The seasonal French menu includes dishes such as traditional hare terrine, duck foie gras ravioli and scalded blue lobster à la minute, while the Best of Award of Excellence–winning wine list of 700 selections provides an abundance of options from the surrounding region, including verticals of Château Pape Clément (which Magrez owns, along with 19 other wineries in the region), Château Cheval-Blanc and Pétrus.
Kayuputi
The St. Regis Bali Resort, Kawasan Pariwisata, Nusa Dua, Lot S6, Bali, Indonesia
Telephone (62) 361-8478-111
Website www.kayuputi.com
Open Lunch and dinner, daily
Best of Award of Excellence
Overlooking the ocean, the St. Regis Bali Resort is steps from the beach and only a short drive from the Bali National Golf Club, making it a prime destination for vacationers of all types. At its fine-dining restaurant, Kayuputi, enjoy the stunning views with East-meets-West–inspired haute cuisine from chef Agung Gede, including the artful eight-course tasting menu with optional wine pairings. In the dining room, the two-story wine cellar houses the restaurant’s Best of Award of Excellence–winning assortment of 390 choices, with strengths in Australia, France and Italy, curated by wine director Harald Wiesmann.
Restaurant Coworth Park
Coworth Park, Blacknest Road, Ascot, West Berkshire, England
Telephone (44) 0-1344-876-600
Website www.coworthpark.com
Open Dinner, Wednesday to Saturday; lunch, Friday to Sunday
Best of Award of Excellence
A short drive from both Windsor Great Park and the Royal Ascot Golf Club, Coworth Park is the picture of luxury in the English countryside, with tennis, croquet, horseback riding and polo lessons available to guests. The eponymous restaurant, located in the hotel’s Mansion House, blends British cuisine with a Best of Award of Excellence–winning wine list. Head sommelier Jonathan Ellson oversees the 350 selections, with strengths in Champagne, Burgundy, Bordeaux, California and Italy.
La Brasserie
Park Weggis, the Sparkling Resort, Hertensteinstrasse 34, Weggis, Switzerland
Telephone (41) 413-92-05-05
Website www.parkweggis.ch
Open Lunch and dinner, daily
Best of Award of Excellence
The historic Park Weggis resort on the shores of Lake Lucerne in central Switzerland has been pampering guests since 1875. Today, guests can indulge with spa treatments, visits to the beach and decadent meals at the hotel’s multiple restaurants, bars and lounges. At La Brasserie, enjoy French-inspired cuisine and hearty meat dishes from chef Florian Gilges, including roast lamb saddle with herbs and cassoulet, duck liver with grapes and thyme brioche, and green asparagus with mashed potato and egg. Wine director Christian Bock manages the 2,500-selection, Best of Award of Excellence–winning wine list, with strengths in Bordeaux, Italy, Burgundy, California and Austria. Those celebrating with a group may also choose to reserve the restaurant’s 50,000-bottle wine cellar for private dining.
Ristorante La Torre
Castello del Nero Hotel and Spa, Strada Spicciano 7, Tavarnelle Val di Pesa, Florence, Italy
Telephone (39) 055-806470
Website www.castellodelnero.com
Open Dinner, daily [Closed Mondays, November to December 2017]
Best of Award of Excellence
Looking to immerse yourself in the Tuscan countryside? Pay a visit to the Castello del Nero Hotel and Spa, which makes its home in a 12th-century castle in Chianti. Nestled in the hills, with views of local vineyards and olive groves, the resort is a popular destination for weddings. After a day of exploring, unwind with a meal at Ristorante La Torre for authentic Tuscan wine and dining. Chef Giovanni Luca di Pirro’s menu includes favorites such as suckling Mora Romagnola pig with apple, roasted scallops with cauliflower cream and Italian caviar, and homemade agnolotti filled with Parmesan and Chianti snail sauce. Di Pirro’s Best of Award of Excellence–winning list, clocking in at over 1,000 selections, offers a supreme array of local bottles.
Siete Fuegos
The Vines Resort and Spa, Ruta Prov. 94, KM 11, Mendoza, Argentina
Telephone (54) 261-461-3910
Website www.vinesresortandspa.com
Open Lunch and dinner, daily
Best of Award of Excellence
At the base of the Andes mountains in the Uco Valley in Mendoza, the Vines Resort and Spa offers the ultimate Argentine wine getaway. Guests can create their own wine through the resort’s private vineyards or enjoy an abundance of local bottles alongside authentic regional cuisine at Siete Fuegos. Famed chef Francis Mallmann’s specialties include nine-hour slow-grilled rib eye; cast iron–baked, salt-encrusted salmon; and grilled seasonal fruits. The wine list, overseen by Mariana Onofri, boasts a Best of Award of Excellence for its strong local picks; several flights are also available in the cellar, with accompanying artisan cheeses.
The Yeatman
The Yeatman, Rua do Choupelo, Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal
Telephone (351) 22-013-3100
Website www.theyeatman.com
Open Dinner, daily
Best of Award of Excellence
The Yeatman's opening in 2010 raised Porto's wine tourism experience to new heights, changing the landscape of the Gaia hill, where the facility spreads over five terraced levels. Today, the resort attracts guests from around the globe for its tastings, seminars, wine dinners and expansive cellar of local wines. At its contemporary Portuguese restaurant, enjoy a menu of regional favorites from chef Ricardo Costa while perusing wine director Beatriz Machado’s 1,200-selection, Best of Award of Excellence–winning wine list, which boasts an abundance of local bottles.
