Is ordering the second-cheapest wine on the menu actually worthwhile? Wine expert weighs in on common budget hack

We've all been there – your pay hasn't hit your account yet but you've somehow found yourself on a last-minute date with someone you're not really into but feel the need to impress anyway.

Your server brings the menu over, and although you go through the charade of 'umming' and 'aahing', you already know the drink your bank balance – and your date – would not fault you for ordering.

The second-cheapest wine on the menu.

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It's a common budget-friendly trick that nobody is immune to, but one that high-profile etiquette expert William Hanson recommends avoiding.

"When ordering from a wine list, don't make the mistake of picking the second-cheapest item on the menu," Hanson, who is the director of the United Kingdom's leading etiquette training institute The English Manner, notably said on social media.

Hanson claimed: "That's often the wine with the biggest mark up from the restaurant and often the poorest of quality."

"Instead, ask your sommelier for any suggestions that they may have, including if they have any end-of-bin wines," he continued.

"These are wines that are no longer on the menu, but they might have some bottles round the corner available for a discount."

Hanson also advised not to shy away from the house wine, saying there's "no shame" in ordering it.

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How to order cheap wine that's also good in a restaurant, according to an expert

Award-winning wine expert Jeremy Ottawa, however, doesn't exactly agree with Hanson's take.

Ottawa – who made the prestigious Master Winemaker Top 100 list this year – notes that the second-cheapest wine on a restaurant menu is "not necessarily" one that's had the biggest mark-up in price.

"Each restaurant will have its own pricing methods, so it's best not to overthink it," Ottawa, who is the senior winemaker at historic Barossa Valley winery Château Tanunda, tells 9honey Kitchen.

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Ottawa emphasises that a "cheap wine doesn't mean it's a bad wine", noting that if a restaurant has included a wine on their menu, it was "chosen for a reason" – and it could be a "great value-for-money addition" to your meal.

"Instead of looking at pricing first, I'd look at the region and the variety or chat with the sommelier about the wines you usually enjoy," Ottawa advises.

"And then from there, look for an option within your price range."

9honey Kitchen encourages readers to drink responsibly.