The Texas Michelin-Recognized Sommelier Who Takes Benadryl to Do His Job

Eater

2 days ago

Steven McDonald might be one of the most interesting wine experts in the country.
The head sommelier at Pappas Bros. Steakhouse was given the Michelin Guide's Sommelier Award during Michelin's inaugural year in Texas in 2024, which recognized him for his repertoire and vast knowledge in overseeing the three massive wine lists at one of Texas's most lauded steakhouses. But McDonald wasn't always on a path destined for wine: He originally had aspirations to be in music and worked as a school band director straight out of college. Moving to New York City with his wife changed his trajectory. 'The obvious thing was to go into hospitality with my brothers, who were already in the industry,' he says, and so he started as a server, then naturally followed his interest in wine.
That burgeoning interest led to an unpaid internship in the wine department at Tribeca Grill, a stint at a wine bar, and, later, after passing some accreditations, sommelier status at Ai Fiori, his first fine-dining wine job in the city. In 2011, following the birth of his daughter, McDonald's path shifted again. He and his wife moved back to Texas, and thanks to an advanced credential from the Court of Master Sommeliers America, he started working at Pappas almost immediately. In a few years, he was in charge of the Galleria location, and not long after that, all three steakhouses.
His story gets even more interesting: McDonald eventually developed an allergy to wine. Yes, a former band geek turned master sommelier who received Michelin recognition gets blotchy after sipping certain varietals. Eater caught up with McDonald to talk about life after Michelin, his favorite wines, and how the industry is working to attract younger and more novice drinkers, and, of course, how he manages to still do his job when he is allergic to the very thing he has to taste (spoiler: Benadryl).
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
How is it being the inaugural Texas Michelin-recognized sommelier?
That's the coolest thing that's ever happened to me. I mean, you put it up there with the birth of your kids, getting married, and passing master sommelier accreditations. This is right up there with those because, first, they do such a good job on the actual ceremony and the theatrical component. It's really great pageantry, so it's the closest thing to winning an Oscar that I can think of, and I'm still buzzing off of it. It's the coolest thing, and the timing was amazing.
Has it changed your job at all?
It's funny you should ask. Yeah, it has — in a couple of ways. I attended the ceremony with the Pappas Bros.' owner, the executive chef, and my boss, and it was just the four of us, so they got to see it firsthand. I'm having broader conversations about the business The applicant flow to the steakhouse for sommeliers, servers, and managers is higher. I've seen more applications because of it, and that's a very good place to be.
It's an interesting time to receive this award, considering the state of the wine industry. What changes are you seeing, in terms of where we are?
Pappas Bros. Steakhouse is in a bubble of fine wine, and we know it, but even within that, we're still seeing some of the trends. I have more requests for non- alcoholic wine than I ever have, but that tracks with the overall trend of diners drinking less that I see. There was this shift during COVID, when everybody was drinking a lot in their homes. They watched all the documentaries, went down all the rabbit holes, and came out on the other side — younger people, in particular, wanted to try the whole world of wines. They weren't just passing through what their parents drank. They were discovering more worldly wines in hyper-speed. They were way more curious and quite a bit more knowledgeable at ages 21 and 22.
We're a classic Texas steakhouse, which surely sells a lot of California wines, but we see a lot more European and other continents in general. Some people were starting to do better at their jobs or have a little bit more money — maybe they got that promotion or whatever, and so they're starting to collect, so there's kind of a young batch of collectors that are a little bit more thoughtful. They have different tastes, so it's a bit more Francophile in this town, specifically in Houston.
Burgundies are quite hot right now — they're everywhere, really, and there's much more interest in Italian wines. I think it's interesting going between the two Pappas Bros. markets. Diners at Dallas' Pappas Bros. seem to understand Italian wine a bit better, and I don't know exactly what the reason is, but that's just been my observation. We never fully jumped on like the natural wine thing, so it was an easy dismount, if that makes sense. We still have some cool, funky, weird stuff. I mean, at the end of the day, we're a bunch of nerds, anyway. We like that stuff, too.
How would you say the wine industry is working to engage younger audiences, a younger generation, and people new to wine?
We're thoughtful about rolling out more non-alcoholic cocktails and drinks, especially as we read that younger people are more choosy. They want more history and a story. They want more experiential experiences when it comes to how they're drinking. That's always been true for wine drinkers, so that doesn't seem like a deviation. Most people who are interested in wine are also interested in the story, sustainability, that kind of thoughtfulness, the pageantry of the canteen, so we're pretty much doing what we always did. However, there are some programs we were looking at to change the approach, like wine dinners, to tie in something different. We're talking about doing a cool, never-been-done-before collaboration with the Houston Symphony. Nothing at these restaurants happens quickly, so it's always gonna be a long-term look and slow incremental things, but that's something we're looking at — these tiny little adjustments to how we're programming to see who we're capturing.
Where are Pappas Bros. wines sourced from? I'm sure all over, right?
Most of the fine wine world is represented on the wine lists. Some of the more obscure countries, like Georgia, Turkey, or China, might be underrepresented or not represented because of the laws at a granular level. We have around two dozen distributors that we work with, who then work with dozens more suppliers and porters to get wines from around the world. The actual logistics are complicated, but the short answer is everywhere.
How many wines do you oversee at Pappas Bros. steakhouses?
Each restaurant has its own wine list. The biggest list has around 6,000 selections. The next biggest list has around 4,500, and the third largest has around 3,500, so it's a lot. A little peek behind the curtain is that we can't share wine, meaning the wine that's on one property can't be shared with another property, so they each have massive inventories of tens of thousands of bottles of wine that we have to take care of and store properly to ensure quality.
What is the most expensive bottle you've ever opened?
It's probably 1961, Petrus. It's from Pomerol on the right bank of Bordeaux; 61 was a great vintage. That was 10 or 12 years ago, but it was probably in the $15,000 or $16,000 range.
So does it taste like a $3,000 glass of wine?
It is a very unique experience. When you're in that range, that's what those individuals who do these sorts of things are looking for. They are looking for something very few people can experience, and that's where most of the value is baked in. When you get up to even a few thousand per bottle, that's essentially the market determining how rare and valuable those bottles are. The difference between a $7,000 bottle and a $15,000 bottle may not be double, but it's still gonna be super special and unique to that person. Don't get me wrong. They're magnificent beverages and products, and sometimes you're like, 'Oh God, this is so good,' but it can be tough to enjoy something with a price that seems so obscene.
What suggestions do you offer to help diners get more experienced and comfortable drinking wine?
The tip is to converse with somebody you feel you connect with and trust. Our sommeliers are very helpful because they remember their journey, too, right? And they're still learning. Have the conversation. Be curious. You don't have to spend a lot of money. There are plenty of $50 bottles of wine; you just have to go through all 200 pages to find them, but those individuals are on the floor helping you. They're gonna point you in the right direction because ultimately they're very motivated by you getting what you want out of the experience and not like getting a sale, so to speak. It's hospitality first. That helps the sommelier be specific and accurate about how they describe the wine. Then, you can navigate from there. Take that journey. Be willing to be curious, but be willing to have a few bumps on the road, and just be honest about what you can spend.
It's very common in Europe to drink wine with even casual home dinners or have a glass with lunch. That ease and frequency can make the experience of drinking wine seem more accessible.
Exactly right. Wine is a beverage that's supposed to go with food, and it shouldn't be so precious. As a restaurant, we're working against that stereotype every day, and that's why we have some liaisons — sommeliers — to make it all less intimidating. We know there's a 200-page book in a big fancy restaurant that is busy and loud. There are a lot of things to be overwhelmed by, so it's our job to put them at ease and make it approachable.
What is your favorite trend in wine right now, and what is your least favorite? What's the worst?
My favorite is that people are still really excited about Champagne and are becoming more curious about Piedmont, a wine region in Northwest Italy. That is very exciting because some of the best work is being done there. The wines in the Piedmont are still approachable in price point. I don't think there's any trend that I'm unhappy with, but I think the ship has sailed for natural wines when it felt like we were tasting somebody's science experiment or, you know, basically a flawed product made just for a philosophy. I'm happy that we got that out of our system. I do like natural wine. There are many classic natural wines, and we have a lot of them, but there was an extremeness to the natural wine movement that I'm happy has subsided a little.
How have your wine selections and preferences changed throughout your tenure?
I drink much more white Burgundy, Champagne, and Nebbiolo. For restaurants, it's a process of listening to the guests, the winemakers, and the importers to determine which investments to make and how to shape the wine list.
If the table wants to start with bubbles, what is your go-to glass right now?
Oh my gosh. Well, I think I just said it: Champagne, and we pour some brilliant Champagne by the glass. Some, like Palmer Champagne, André Clouet of the white and the rosé varieties, respectively, up to something very luxurious, like Krug, which is available by glass, too. I still think our price on the Krug, even if it's like $65, is actually a steal because it should be closer to a $100 glass. If you can't get champagne, we don't pour it currently, but some Telmont or Crémant de Bourgogne. Some other sparkling wine regions in Italy and Spain are really good, too, but I'm always gonna say Champagne.
I've heard some Texas wines can stand up to the best from France and Italy. Do you agree? What are we seeing in Texas wines?
They're getting closer. I don't spend enough time out in the regions tasting a bunch of Texas wine. I should probably do a better job of that, but what I see in the stuff that we work with, like McPherson Cellars Winery in Lubbock and Dukeman Family Winery in Driftwood — they're getting better every year. What's interesting is that many Italian varietals do well in Texas, and some people are playing with Spanish varietals, too.
It's rare that you hear about a sommelier who is allergic to wine. How did you find out? How do you manage it?
So, my dad used to get red. It wasn't always with alcohol, but there was a doctor who said it was genetic. After I turned 40, I noticed that it wasn't the quantity of alcohol but sometimes I'd just put wine to my lips, and my nose, forehead, and arms would get splotchy. I was like, 'Okay, something is going on, because it's not the amount I'm drinking. It's just something in this product.' Finally, I went to some allergists, and no one could figure it out, but the one thing that solved it was an antihistamine. I remember that this doctor was making wine in California, and he discovered that people's headaches and reactions weren't because of sulfites; it was histamines. At the risk of getting sleepy, I took a Benadryl, and [my reaction] went away in about four minutes. I'm like, 'Okay, well, I can't take a Benadryl every time I drink.' I take a Zyrtec every day, and I have Benadryl in my backpack everywhere I go, so I'm just really choosy because sometimes I don't get affected. Sometimes it's really bad — not bad enough to go to the hospital or call 911 or anything, but depending on where I'm at and what I'm doing, I'll pop a Benadryl.
Have you been able to zero in on what type of wine is causing your allergic reactions?
My best guess is that it's a yeast, and there are tons and tons of yeasts that people use in wine or grow, depending on how they're making their products and what they're trying to do with them, and they all do different things.
It's pretty cool you're still doing what you're doing. You still love wine, and it's still your profession. That shows a lot.
If there's some study that comes out that like a Benadryl a day is the worst thing you can do, then, I'm like well I'm screwed.
You have had discussions with people about how wine has made them feel, from headaches to just feeling a little bit hungover. You mentioned that some of that has to do with agriculture and studying how the grapes used in wine are grown. Can you tell me more about that?
Yeah, it's two ideas at the same time. There are a bunch of reasons for somebody's perceived hangover, including the amount of alcohol. They could be drinking too much, and, typically, people drinking wine also consume foods they don't usually eat, which could compound it. The other idea here is that of transparency. There are fine wine regions where you don't have to tell the consumer what's in that bottle. All it has to do is pass, like, the FDA. It won't kill you, but you don't know what coloring or sweetening agents they add. Some wineries would prefer it that way because they add a lot of stuff you shouldn't be putting in your body. If you don't care what it is and how it tastes, that's fine, too, but you won't know what's affecting you. I think we might be moving into an era when, in our own country, we're gonna be demanding that if it says wine, it's only like grapes, yeast, and water.
In terms of a new era of wine, what else do you foresee for the wine industry?
We're already seeing it. There might be a re-shifting of the value of wine right now. California is going through a crisis. Nobody is drinking the more valuable wines, and the grapes are staying on the vine. People are gonna have to repurpose the land. There's also cannabis, which is another way to get your desired effect. I think you'll see some overlap, maybe even some wineries moving toward growing cannabis, and that's probably the biggest shift from a fine wine perspective. We will hit a ceiling at some point where, as a restaurant, we cannot continue supporting certain producers' varietals because the pricing will wildly increase. Hopefully, we'll enter an era of price correction, and we can put more iconic producers on the wine list because the prices have eased off. I don't know when that's gonna be, but I'm hoping that's in the future.
As we wait to see how tariffs impact beverage programs at large, how will you ensure that beverages remain a central part of the Pappas experience?
To be honest, I don't think the average consumer will notice any difference because we have ways to absorb or fortify against it by buying massive inventories, meaning the average guest is not likely to see it. Ultimately, it would affect the business, but it's so uncertain for how long or how much. We'll see how that all plays out, but it's not going to be as noticeable to our final consumer, and that's on purpose.
What wine is your favorite right now?
There's a wine from J. LaSalle Preference, and it's non-Champagne, and it's so good. It's funny that we bought a case of it because my wife loves it, too. My wife pretty much just drinks Champagne. She likes white and a few other types of wine, but she's not nearly as enthusiastic about them. It's one of the things we enjoy equally, so that's special, and it's not too expensive.
What else would you want people to know about Pappas Bros. or the wine industry?
We work hard to make this approachable. We want to work against all the typical stereotypes of a steakhouse. We want it to be a place where people show up curious and have a great time, and where there's something for everybody. We're a legacy institution, and it can sometimes be perceived as inflexible, but I think, within our building, we're dynamic in how we listen and how we adjust to the guests. We have some of the smartest, most talented people in restaurants, not just in the wine department, but also on the culinary side. There's a lot of heart and soul here.
And where are your Michelin awards?
That's a great question, actually. I have this little bar nook in my house, and that's where I have a metal clover thing, and then, we're working on getting the chef's coat framed.
Nice. I guess you don't want to wear that every day.
It's kind of weird cause it's, like, where would I ever wear this thing?
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