Restaurants in Arlington

Cast Iron satiates eager sustenance-hankerers with its gourmet versions of homemade southern-cuisine favorites, pleasing both the traditional grandmother and the edgy, postmodern foodie. Inaugurate the gastronomic ceremonies with fried green tomatoes ($7), a flavorful side spruced with local goat cheese and cilantro oil. Drizzled in red-wine syrup, the Shiner-brined pork chop ($17) is an entree juicy and tender enough to replace a damaged waterbed. Reach the fudge-soaked checkered flag with Cast Iron's double-chocolate-fudge cake ($6) with indulgent vanilla sauce. Early-risers still exhausted from a long night of trapeze-archery practice can rejuvenate lethargic brains with a New York–sourced bagel from H&H Bagels, topped with smoked salmon ($13) or the pulled-pork eggs Benedict ($14).

Featuring an extensive menu of creative American food—including The Reuben 1976, born on the restaurant and brewery's opening day—Humperdink's has served the mertroplex area for 36 years. Humperdink's boasts menu items such as barbecue ribs, sustainable seafood, steaks, gourmet burgers, and original buffalo hot wings, along with a number of award-winning microbrews crafted on the premises and served on tap.

Simply Fondue's intimate, chandelier-lit dining room plays host to tabletop pots that bubble with warm imported cheeses, oils, and broths. The restaurant's cheese fondues from Switzerland, the Mediterranean, and England allow diners to taste the world's flavors without having to lick every country's flag. The eatery also simmers traditional canola oil fondue and broth fondue. For each entree, chefs pair simmering helpings with platters of meat, seafood, or veggies, all of which can be altered upon request.

Many meals conclude with chocolate fondue, which features an impressive coterie of sweets such as pound cake, triple-chunk brownies, cookie-dough balls, and fresh pineapple chunks plucked from the hats of local conga dancers. The dining experience stays casual throughout with plush booths and granite table tops.

There’s a big difference between the muffins you pluck from the grocery shelf and those you choose from the counter at Social Bakehouse Cafe. That’s because the in-house bakers wake up early every morning in order to have fluffy cupcakes, flaky scones, and gooey cinnamon rolls freshly made just as customers begin flocking to the shop’s counters.

The pastry chefs liberally wield frosting guns over sweets, applying sugary flowers to the borders of custom cakes and creating seasonal designs on cookies and pumpkins trying to expand their resumés. Once the bakery rush subsides, chefs turn their attention to lunch dishes, such as mandarin chicken wraps and spinach salads drizzled with house-made dressing.

Le Peep's focus on breakfast and lunch stems from a decision made more than 40 years ago, when Buddy and Rhoda Waldman opened The Village Pantry in Aspen, Colorado, and—not wanting to miss a half day of skiing—would close the kitchen each day before noon. The duo would continue to tinker with their concept, stare at it through a novelty-sized microscope, and change its name before it eventually migrated to Texas.

Nowadays, the kitchen staff perpetuates the breakfast-crafting tradition by offering omelets, eggs benedict, skillets, and build-your-own pancake options that use ingredients such as walnuts, bacon, pineapple, and chocolate chips. Traditional dishes are augmented with unique twists, such as the Gooey Buns, english muffins broiled with brown sugar, cinnamon, and almonds and served with a signature side of Mom's Sassy Apples. During midday hours, a variety of salads, burgers, and sandwiches parades out of the kitchen accompanied by smoothies, juices, or Mother Parkers coffee. Le Peep's catering service delivers breakfast and lunch fare to homes, events, or filibustered neighborhood-watch meetings.

From the ninth floor, sweeping views of Arlington’s entertainment district fill the windows at Cacharel Restaurant. Cacharel’s menus list an array of steaks and seafood entrees to accompany the panorama, which includes views of Rangers Ballpark, Cowboys Stadium, and acres of trees planted between them so the buildings would stop fighting. Pale earth tones and plenty of natural light decorate the space as the staff exits the kitchen bearing swordfish piccata, center-cut pork rib chops, and 13 oz. grilled new york strip steaks. At the other end of the restaurant, views of serpentine roller coasters glimmer in the twilight as the staff tempts diners with homemade desserts. The Grand Ballroom portrays the same picturesque scenery through its seventh-floor windows and can be rented for weddings, meetings, and other gerunds.