Downers Grove

The Foxtail is a reliable suburban wine destination — well-stocked with familiar California names and the Wine Spectator stamp to back it up. Send a friend who loves Napa; just don't send one who's hunting for a Vermentino to go with the mezze.

Cadence Kitchen & Co. is a genuinely solid wine destination for the western suburbs — California-focused, fairly priced, and worth skipping the usual chain options for. It won't dazzle a wine nerd, but it will absolutely satisfy a table that wants to drink well over a good meal.

Parkers' is the rare suburban restaurant where the wine list is genuinely worth the trip — a working sommelier, serious depth in California and Australia, and enough range to reward the curious diner. The markups are real, so pick carefully, but the bones here are excellent.