Kitakata Japanese Restaurant
(between Arlington Heights Rd & Goebbert Rd)
Arlington Heights, IL 60005 (847) 364-7544
- Hours:
Tue-Fri 11:30 a.m.-2:00 p.m.
Tue-Fri 5:30 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Sat-Sun 12:00 p.m.-2:00 p.m.
Sat 5:30 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Sun 5:30 p.m.-9:00 p.m. - Price Range: $$
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Private Lot
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: Yes
- Good for Kids: Yes
- Takes Reservations: Yes
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: Yes
- Waiter Service: Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: No
- Good for: Lunch
- Alcohol: Beer & Wine Only
9 reviews
Wheaton, IL
"Discount for birthday dinners! Good food and great service! Very family friendly. We (group of 6) dined here last night and it was nice.…" read more »
21 Reviews for Kitakata Japanese Restaurant
This is a noodle house, so their specialty is noodles (ramen or udon). It's the best ramen in the chicagoland area and it's so affordable - about $7.00 for a nice size bowl with plenty of toppings. They also offer vegetarian options as well.
Go here for the ramen, you'll be impressed. Also try the daily specials.
One note, they close between 2pm - 5:30pm.
My roommate looked at me quizzically when I explained to him where I was going. "Ramen?!" he asked, in disbelief. "You're going up to Schaumburg to eat ramen?!" He produced a packet of Neoguri Ramen which we keep for emergency situations and late night drunk fests. "THIS stuff?!"
Well, no - not THAT stuff.
The Tantan Men w/ spicy ground pork (the only spicy ramen on the menu - although there is an option to have any ramen in a spicy broth) was very good and filling. It's not as spicy as I usually like my ramen (the Neoguri is probably spicier) but it's still very tasty and worth the trek out from the city.
The next time you're shopping at Mitsuwa and are planning on grabbing a quick meal in the plaza, think twice and make a stop in here instead.
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I'm so happy to find a place that has decent ramen! I usually go to Mitsuwa to eat ramen but if you compare the two, the ramen at Kitakata is much lighter and less oily.
I got the Shio ramen which I believe was a lightly seasoned broth...? I enjoyed it a lot but my taste is a lot more subtle and bland than most other people. My friend got the Tantan Men and it was much more flavorful. I'm sure you'll find something to like when you go there.
The sliced pork was really tender and juicy too! It came with only one but you can order extra for... I think about a buck more. I think I'll do that next time.
The place is small but service is very warm. Food came out rather quickly too. It felt really relaxing there to me... I feel like I could sit there and sip tea all day long.
It's right next to Mitsuwa so you can just go there afterwards and stock up on groceries!
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4 stars because it's in chicago. If this place were in LA, San Francisco, Hawaii, or Vancouver... it would probably get 2 or 3 stars.
BUT- I think this is the best ramen store in Chicago. At least they give a couple different options of soup base and toppings... and the noodles don't taste like they used to be hard.
If anyone knows a better ramenya in the chicagoland area, lemme know! :)
So I decided to come to Kitakata after a fellow Yelper told me to try it after my bashing of Noodles by Takashi. I had high hopes for this place, especially after reading reviews on Yelp. The ramen here was quite good, but again nothing special. It was your regular Shoyu/Miso ramen etc... etc...
Let me ask you a question. I remember going to Japan, and the ramen was NOT this simple. There were unique soup bases and toppings. Am I mistaken??? Let me know if you've been to Japan recently or know what I'm talking about.
Anyhow, the ramen was overall quite tasty (I had the Tanten men, hoping for a different taste), but more than that, the sukiyaki don was very very good. It was a simple dish but extremely tasty with the fried egg, tofu sauces and sliced beef. I still think the food here is above par for Chicago's standard, so a it's a definite recommend.
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A friend of mine turned me on to this place after a bartender in Chicago told her about it, and I'm glad she did! Everyone talks about the ramen, but people you have got to try the Tonkatsu! It's a breaded pork chop with a sweet sause on the side, and absolutely delicious. Wow!
The ramen is great! Not to mention I don't know ANYWHERE else that I could find authentic Japanese food that isn't just sushi. It's a pretty comfortable place to bring a date or a family member.
The hours are a bit strange, but I suppose that is authentic Japanese style too.
Would recommend in a heartbeat.
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We don't usually find a decent ramen place around Chicago. The curry and ramen dishes are recommended. The atmosphere and service are average.
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I finally was able to convince my boyfriend to stop here - after a few disappointing nights out with Japanese food he pretty much swore off everything but Sushi Station.
The restaurant was a bit dingy but I've never been inside a sparkling clean ramen-ya so I guess that goes along with the whole ramen-ya feel.
The menu is great and it even has a few options if you don't eat meat. After a quick look I decided to get the miso ramen sans pork and my boyfriend ordered yakisoba sans chicken. There are six or so different ramen offerings and you can add on items like more pork, a hard boiled egg, bamboo shoots, etc. They also offer udon and soba dishes as well as a bit of sushi and teriyaki chicken, tonkatsu and other dishes.
Our food was delicious - my ramen was yummy and I'm thrilled that I've finally found a good ramen-ya. The broth was tasty and the noodles were good. The only glitch was that the waitress forgot my hard boiled egg ... and when she brought it out it was so cold it didn't suit the hot broth very well. My boyfriend really enjoyed his yakisoba, no broccoli or cauliflower in it - it was full of cabbage, carrots and onions like any good yakisoba should be. We also had the vegetable egg rolls - they were so hot I couldn't really taste them, I doubt we'd order them again instead getting agedashi tofu or something similar.
We shared a large bottle of beer and I was going to try the mochi ice cream for dessert but the waitress brought us our check without checking first. I deducted a star because though she was nice she seemed like she was rushing us and she forgot my egg (the hard boiled egg is my very favorite part of ramen).
From my experience the place was pretty authentic and most of the other patrons were Japanese so as far as Japanese food goes in the Chicago-land area this is probably a good bet for authentic Japanese food. Sure, it isn't as great as my memories of my local ramen-ya but it was very good and we'll definitely be back.
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i remember the first time my friend took me here. she swore that it was amazing ramen and that it would be fabulous...i agreed, thinking that if the food wasn't good, i could always run across the street to mitsuwa and grab a riceball or two...
no need! the ramen was really good, the place isn't that big but very cozy. all the food we ordered was delicious...i would definitely go back.
a big plus was that i went during ACEN (anime convention) - the majority of crazy anime people were at mitsuwa, scaring the regular grocery shoppers...so i got to enjoy my meal away from all the crazy otaku. (nothing against otaku -i personally like anime too. but some of them are crazy. that's all i'm saying.)
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The decor is bare bones, the service is outstanding, the menu is complete, and they offer great specials.
The first time I went in, I did not know what to expect, as I had never tried Japanese food. The waitress was very patient, and offered us samples of everything. I enjoyed my meal so much that I wrote a quick note to them online, thanking them for the good experience and outstanding food.
About a week later, I received a HAND WRITTEN LETTER from the owner, thanking me for trying her restaurant. There was also a coupon enclosed for my next visit.
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I think this is a great little lunch place. The food was very good and priced reasonably. It reminds me of a little family run noodle shop you would find in a city, which I thought was charming.
Please note that it's tough to get in and out of the parking lot.
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I had the chashu ramen for lunch. Soup stock included miso paste. Pork slice was on the fatty side and can be seen as a good thing. Served with the ideal proportion of ample, springy noodles and broth. My only beef with this pork soup was the lack of flavor in the broth. Sure, miso adds flavor but the broth lacked the 'body' you'd taste from a good bone boil.
One of the more pleasant service treats was the attentiveness of the busboy... we had refills before our water glasses reached their 50% level. Pretty impressive that his job alone accounts for a quarter of the rating. Hopefully he was passed on at least 1/4 of the tip...
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Hell yes. A ramen shop! Chicago has gotten the idea that Japanese Food == Sushi, which is only partially true. The real staple of Japanese food is this.... ramen noodles!
Kitakata hooks you up with all sorts of tasty varieties of ramen and keeps the prices low - under $8, and most are in the $5-6 range.
They've also got a few sushi items, teriyaki, and tempura for the folks who can't wrap their head around a bowl of noodle soup as a full meal.
Go, go now! Ramen gives you strength!
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I've said it before...will say it again. I do so like Japanese food. I do, I do, I do. Yet, I was a bit disappointed with this dining experience. The sushi was standard. VERY. The Katsu Don was only average. The pork cutlet was a tad bit dry and the vegetables were few. Not to mention, the tea was less than luke warm. Perhaps I should have tried the ramen noodles...since other reviewers say this is the house specialty. Sad, sad.
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Kitakata-ramen and I go back years, possibly decades. (I used to come here when the restaurant at this location was called Hyotan.) Believe it or not, taste and quality of ramen at Kitakata has changed, for the good, over the years. I've been a royal customer, even before they had a fire and had to shut the place down for couple of months. At first, their ramen was barely edible (early 1990's). Since then, they've made improvements, and now it's pretty good. Don't get me wrong, it's not nearly the quality of ramen in Tokyo, but good for Chicagoland.
I still prefer Santouka Ramen at Mitsuwa (http://www.yelp.com/bi...), but I like to support home grown restaurant like Kitakata.
I normally don't rate places I haven't been to for a while, but I had to make an exception for this place.
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To be truthful, I only know of two dedicated ramen places (the other being the food court in Mitsuwa. Avoid the ramen there.) but there is no need to find another place. If you want noodles - Japan style, can't beat this place. I usually stick with the ramen dishes cause thats what drives me to come here, but friends have commented that other dishes are excellent as well. As for the ramen, well, lets just say it's good enough that you have to slurp it.
Casual, good food, and good service makes this place nearly unbeatable. If only it was a smidge cheaper...
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Despite my Japanese friend claiming it's inauthenticity, I really enjoy it. I really enjoy the ramen and tempura! Nice! they also offer sushi, and I've always enjoyed that as well.
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This is THE spot for ramen in the Japanese vortex that is Arlington Heights. Pretty typical menu for a Ramen-ya -- different kinds of pork-based toppings on a delicious soy sauce or pork-based stock with curly (more curly than soba or udon) wheat noodles. I usually order Miso ramen, butter ramen, or sea veg ramen. Lunch time clientele is largely Japanese, with a smattering of in-the-know gaijin. Lots of fun typical side-dishes too.
http://www.kitakatares...
'Kitakata' ramen is a style from Kitakata City, Fukushima prefecture, Japan, where there are over 120 ramen houses. The broth is typically made from spring water, soy sauce and sake.
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I like this place. My husband and I were looking for a good Japanese restaurant and we were lucky to have dined here. I'll go back soon.
I have passed this place by so many times that I finally decided to to try it. What a great decision that was! The sushi was very fresh and presented beautifully. The miso soup is also delish! My take-out experience was absolutely pleasant. While you wait, they give you a piping hot cup of green tea which I thought was very comforting.
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