Wilmington Steakhouse Earns Top 50 North America Ranking

Bardea Steak in Wilmington, Delaware, has earned a spot on the 50 Best Steak Restaurants in North America for 2025, the only restaurant in the tri-state area of Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey on the list.

Upper Cut Media House Ltd. curates the World's 101 Best Steak Restaurants in North America. It uses 28 criteria, including meat quality, ageing, grilling, service, wine program, and ambience, with global tastings conducted by 21 anonymous ambassadors and approximately 1,200 restaurants worldwide reviewed.

Bardea also operates Bardea Food & Drink, which is James Beard-nominated. Both Bardea locations have appeared on Wine Spectator's Restaurant Awards winners list for the second year in a row.

Bardea director Eric Gallen has built a robust Italian-forward wine list at Bardea to pair with the elevated, chef-driven menu. He's crafted a program tailored to a steakhouse that balances classic regions with favorites from Côte-Rôtie, Australian Reds, and South American Reds.

In an interview with the (Harrisburg) Patriot-News, Gallen said he emphasizes a mix of domestic wines from California and Oregon with international picks like Spain's Rioja and France's Bordeaux. These selections highlight a trend toward wines that are enjoyable upon release rather than requiring long cellaring. He describes a wine mix that trends toward more approachable, youthful styles that still age gracefully. He tends to favor leaner, structured wines to complement the restaurant's beef cuts, including Brunello di Montalcino, Barolo, Bandol Rouge, and Etna Rosso.

“My favorite way to enjoy our cuts is contrasting with our steaks. If the wine is too big, you'll miss the subtleties of the cuts or breeds, particularly with something like our Butcher's Feast,” he said.