The 10 best restaurants in Arlington Heights

Arlington Heights restaurants run from a ramen counter inside a Japanese supermarket on Algonquin Road to white-tablecloth dining rooms a short walk from the downtown Metra station. This ranked list of 10 is for residents planning a night out and for visitors looking for a good meal in Arlington Heights, and every pick sits inside the village limits.

The list favors independently owned places with a track record: a steakhouse open since 1979, an Italian dining room from 1985, a Puglian kitchen about a decade old and newer chef-run spots downtown. Prices range widely, from a $16 bibimbap to a $75 double-cut prime rib, with family-style dinners for groups costing more.

How we chose

Outside recognition set the order first: WTTW Check, Please! episodes, Daily Herald profiles, and awards from the Arlington Heights Chamber of Commerce and the Italian Chambers of Commerce. Longevity came next, which is why two dining rooms from 1979 and 1985 rank above the downtown pub, the cantina and the barbecue counter. Every pick has an address in ZIP code 60004 or 60005 and was confirmed open with a 2025 or 2026 source. Only two picks belong to groups with other locations, and review-app ratings played no part.

Hours and prices below come from each business and change without notice. Call ahead if you are making a special trip.

Passero

Chef Matt Peota opened Passero in 2017 as an Italian-American trattoria and moved in 2019 to a bigger room, the Daily Herald reported, going from Campbell Street to 3 S. Evergreen Ave. Peota, an Arlington Heights resident, came up through two of Chicago’s large restaurant groups before going out on his own. The kitchen cooks around a hearth: hand-rolled fusilli, ricotta cavatelli, a wood-fired pizza topped with Italian beef and cheddar, and pistachio-crusted branzino. Passero takes the top spot for a Check, Please! episode, recurring Daily Herald coverage and a chef-owner with big-city training. Book through OpenTable for weekend dinners, and use the Toast page for carryout.

Hours: Check current hours before you go.

Address: 3 S Evergreen Ave, Arlington Heights, IL 60005

Why they made the list

• WTTW’s Check, Please! aired an episode on Passero that premiered February 8, 2019, while the restaurant was still at 5 W. Campbell St.
• Wood-fired pizzas run $21 to $24, and the hand-rolled fusilli is $25 on the current online menu.
• Grandma’s Table, a family-style dinner for four served after 4:30 p.m., costs $89.95.
• The private event room holds 50 people, a size Peota told the Daily Herald in June 2026 is often too small.

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Osteria Trulli

Giovanni DeNigris grew up in Mola di Bari on the Adriatic coast, and Osteria Trulli cooks the food of his home region, Puglia, from a spot on East Hintz Road at the north end of town. An August 2026 Daily Herald profile counted about a decade in business and described the restaurant as the only one in the area specializing in Puglian food. DeNigris, a former executive chef at a downtown Chicago hotel, rotates seafood specials every couple of weeks, often whole branzino or red snapper. That regional focus, backed by an Italian hospitality award, earns second place. Ask about the fish before settling on pasta.

Hours: Sun-Thu noon to 9 p.m.; Fri-Sat noon to 9:30 p.m.

Address: 1510 E Hintz Rd, Arlington Heights, IL 60004

Why they made the list

• Orecchiette con cime di rapa, with rapini, garlic and chili flakes, is $25, and orecchiette con ossa e bracciole, with beef roulades in a neck-bone ragu, is $33.
• Tiella barese, rice, potatoes and mussels baked in a wood-fired oven, costs $33.
• The restaurant’s site lists the Marchio Ospitalità Italiana award from the Italian Chambers of Commerce for both 2023-2024 and 2025-2026.
• A whole branzino from the specials list is $39, and the Book a Table button on the restaurant’s site handles reservations.

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Scratchboard Kitchen

Danielle Kuhn spent nearly four years hunting for a space before opening Scratchboard Kitchen at 5 W. Campbell St. in April 2020, right as the pandemic shut dining rooms. Breakfast and lunch came first; now the kitchen runs all day and adds a seasonal tasting menu. Founding chef Grace Goudie trained at the Culinary Institute of America in Napa and cooked in Thomas Keller’s kitchens, and a 2024 Daily Herald profile noted ingredients sourced from Illinois, Wisconsin and Michigan. A chamber award and a state tourism honor put Scratchboard third. OpenTable takes reservations for brunch, lunch and dinner.

Hours: Daily 8 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Address: 5 W Campbell St, Arlington Heights, IL 60005

Why they made the list

• The Arlington Heights Chamber of Commerce gave Scratchboard the 2022 Emerging Business of the Year award.
• The Illinois Office of Tourism picked the restaurant in 2023 as one of 48 businesses in the state’s Illinois Made program.
• The restaurant’s site names 24 farm and dairy suppliers.
• Smoked brisket hash is $22 at brunch, and happy hour from 3 to 5 p.m. daily includes a $15 classic smash burger.

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Hokkaido Ramen Santouka

Inside Mitsuwa Marketplace, the Japanese supermarket on East Algonquin Road, Hokkaido Ramen Santouka runs the ramen counter in the food court. Order the shio ramen, the salt-based bowl the brand started with, which comes with a small pickled plum on top. The company’s U.S. site names the white tonkotsu soup as the house specialty. Santouka is one of two picks with locations elsewhere, and the long track record earns fourth: the brand dates to 1988 in Japan, and WTTW’s Check, Please! reviewed Mitsuwa Marketplace back in 2007. Mitsuwa’s store page warns that restaurant hours inside the market change often, so call ahead before a late trip.

Hours: Check current hours before you go.

Address: 100 E Algonquin Rd, Arlington Heights, IL 60005

Why they made the list

• Hitoshi Hatanaka opened the first Santouka in Asahikawa, Hokkaido, in March 1988 as a nine-seat shop that sold only shio ramen, according to the company’s U.S. site.
• Mitsuwa’s own store page lists Santouka among more than a dozen food and sweets counters in the market.
• The market’s main phone line is (847) 956-6699.

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Ttowa Korean Bistro

Family recipes have been the draw at Ttowa Korean Bistro on West Wing Street since 2011, according to the restaurant’s site. Bulgogi is made with thick-sliced rib eye in a house Korean barbecue marinade, and pork belly comes thinly sliced with vegetables and fermented chili paste. Japchae, sweet potato noodles sauteed in sesame oil with vegetables, rounds out the noodle side of the menu. WTTW’s Check, Please! visited in 2014, and 15 years of steady business put Ttowa fifth, ahead of older rooms with less outside attention. Reserve on OpenTable for Friday or Saturday.

Hours: Mon-Thu 11:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.; Fri-Sat 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.; closed Sunday.

Address: 161 W Wing St, Arlington Heights, IL 60005

Why they made the list

• Bulgogi is $28 on the current menu, the same price as the pork belly.
• Bibimbap is $16, with $2 more for the hot stone bowl.
• The Check, Please! episode on Ttowa premiered October 24, 2014.
• Japchae is $17, and adding beef costs $5 more.

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Palm Court

Since 1979, Palm Court has run a steakhouse on North Arlington Heights Road with a classic menu: USDA Prime steaks, rack of lamb, prime rib and macadamia-crusted Alaskan halibut, with saganaki among the starters. A piano lounge with live music and cocktails sits off the dining room, and the banquet side handles private parties of up to 350 guests. Longevity decides the spot; 47 years is the longest run on this list. Sunday brunch is on the schedule, so call to confirm Sunday hours.

Hours: Mon-Thu 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Fri-Sat 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.; call for Sunday hours.

Address: 1912 N Arlington Heights Rd, Arlington Heights, IL 60004

Why they made the list

• The 10-ounce Blackhawk filet mignon is $49 and the regular cut of prime rib is $52 on the August 2026 dinner menu.
• A double-cut prime rib, $75, is served Friday through Sunday while supplies last.
• Oysters Rockefeller are $18 for four, and saganaki is $14.
• Reservations go through OpenTable.

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Carlos & Carlos

Brothers Carlos and Eddy Montiel opened Carlos & Carlos in 1985 as a white-tablecloth Italian dining room, and the restaurant at 27 W. Campbell St. now describes itself as a French and Italian bistro. Veal gets six preparations, from piccata to a chop Milanese, and the pasta list includes the Black Pasta: black angel hair with shrimp, scallops, mushrooms and lobster reduction. Forty-one years in business earns seventh place. Every reservation is confirmed by phone, and parties of nine or more need to call.

Hours: Tue-Thu 4:30 to 9 p.m.; Fri-Sat 4:30 to 10 p.m.; Sun 4:30 to 8:30 p.m.; closed Monday.

Address: 27 W Campbell St, Arlington Heights, IL 60005

Why they made the list

• The restaurant’s history page says the founders built a following by preparing fresh pasta in front of guests.
• The Black Pasta is $29, and linguini pescatore is $30.
• Four plates top the menu at $45: a veal porterhouse, a veal chop Milanese, a peppercorn filet and a rib eye.
• Private event bookings range from bridal showers and intimate weddings to corporate dinners, per the restaurant’s site.

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Peggy Kinnane’s

On North Vail Avenue, a short walk from the downtown Metra station, Peggy Kinnane’s is an Irish restaurant and pub whose site says pieces of the building’s structure came over from Ireland. The kitchen sends out the Jameson burger, sliders, fish and chips and firecracker salmon, while the bar stays open until 1 or 2 a.m. depending on the night. Peggy’s makes the list as the downtown pub with a full kitchen and a spot in the village’s to-go drinks district. Order food early: the kitchen closes at 8:30 p.m. Monday through Wednesday.

Hours: Sun-Thu 11 a.m. to 1 a.m.; Fri-Sat 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.

Address: 8 N Vail Ave, Arlington Heights, IL 60005

Why they made the list

• Peggy Kinnane’s was one of nine downtown businesses selling to-go drinks when Arlington Heights launched the Arlington Alfresco social district in July 2026, the Daily Herald reported.
• The kitchen serves until 9:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and until 8 p.m. on Sunday.
• The pub closes on Easter and all day on Thanksgiving and Christmas.

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Mago Grill & Cantina

Two dining rooms and a run of sidewalk tables make up Mago Grill & Cantina on West Campbell Street, in the same building as the downtown performing arts center. The menu draws on family recipes credited to Grandma Paula and on house-made traditional moles, with tacos, fajitas and margaritas filling out the order. Mago is the second pick with other locations, and the Arlington Heights room ranks ninth for a deep tequila list and a downtown address that joined the social district at launch. Holiday hours can change, so check before a holiday visit.

Hours: Mon-Thu 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Fri-Sat 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Sun 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Address: 115 W Campbell St, Arlington Heights, IL 60005

Why they made the list

• The bar stocks more than 200 tequilas, according to the restaurant group’s site.
• Fajitas come to the table in a hot molcajete, the volcanic stone bowl.
• Sister restaurants operate in South Barrington and Bolingbrook.
• Mago sold to-go drinks as one of nine businesses in the July 2026 launch of the Arlington Alfresco social district, per the Daily Herald.

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Big Ange’s Eatery

Owner Rocco Fridono runs Big Ange’s Eatery on West Northwest Highway as a smokehouse and Chicago sandwich counter, open since 2016. Prime brisket by the pound, St. Louis ribs, rib tips and smoked tri-tip share the board with Italian beef with giardiniera, a Maxwell Street Polish and smoked pastrami on rye. WGN-TV’s Daytime Chicago put Fridono and his specialty sandwiches on the air, and that coverage plus nearly a decade in business rounds out the ten. Call (224) 248-8644 to confirm Sunday hours before a weekend visit.

Hours: Check current hours before you go.

Address: 640 W Northwest Hwy, Arlington Heights, IL 60004

Why they made the list

• The Barbarian platter, $69.95, feeds three with a half slab of St. Louis ribs, half a pound of prime brisket, a smoked sausage link and a choice of a third meat.
• The smaller Da Junior platter is $39.95.
• Homemade ice cream and milkshakes are on the menu.

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Also worth knowing

Out on West Algonquin Road, Penang Malaysian Cuisine cooks dishes inspired by the street food of Penang, Malaysia: nasi lemak with coconut rice, a fried chicken thigh, anchovies and a boiled egg; char kway teow with an optional duck egg; curry laksa; and roti canai with curry for dipping. The dining room closes on Tuesdays.

Down the block from Carlos & Carlos, Salsa 17 is a Mexican restaurant where executive chef Cesar Gutierrez writes a new set of limited-time dishes each month. Salsa 17 takes no traditional reservations and uses a remote waitlist on the restaurant’s site instead.

See a place we missed or a detail that has changed? Send us a correction.