February 2009 Archives

This week's restaurant: Pho Vi, 281 S. Thomas St. (at Third), Pomona.

Pho Vi opened in early 2008 in downtown Pomona, in a corner of the 1912 Founders Building that had seen a variety of marginal businesses in recent years. In preparation for its opening, the sidewalk was widened to allow patio dining.

As aficionados know, Pomona is home to several exemplary Vietnamese restaurants, most of them on East Holt between Clark and Indian Hill, but Pho Vi is the first attempt downtown. It may have represented something of a gamble, but perhaps because downtown is light on sit-down restaurants, Pho Vi was an immediate hit, especially during the monthly art walk or when there's a concert up the block at the Glass House.

I first went there last May and I've gone back almost a dozen times, ordering something new each visit. The menu has 222 numbered items, which should keep me busy through Obama's second term. (On one visit, employees were overheard testing each other on their recall of the menu: "147!" "Sauteed mixed vegetable fried noodle!")

I'm far from an expert on Vietnamese cuisine, but my own experience and that of friends tells me Pho Vi, while perhaps not the best in Pomona, is among the best.

There are three dozen examples of pho (pronounced "fuh"), the Vietnamese beef noodle soup, most of them under $6.50 even for a two-person bowl. You also get a plate of mint leaves, bean sprouts and lime wedges to season the soup to your taste.

(The very long thin noodles are a challenge to eat if you're not good with chopsticks; I always, rather shamefacedly, twirl them with a fork against my soup spoon, like spaghetti, hoping no one sees me.)

There are dozens upon dozens of rice and noodle dishes, often with charbroiled pork, beef or shrimp. I've had a few of these too and liked them quite a bit.

The restaurant is L-shaped, done in shades of green, with an industrial look. Each table has jars and bottles of various spices and containers of cutlery and chopsticks. The service is prompt, but rather than make you feel rushed, they rather quaintly never bring a bill until you motion for it. The place is family-run, with the oldest member of the family usually seen sitting at a table reading a Vietnamese-language newspaper.

Also, their neon sign, which lends an urban feel to the corner, is really cool.

As noted here previously, I'm on furlough this week -- no work, no pay, for those who don't know the term; everyone in our chain is affected at varying points in February and March -- so don't look for much activity here. There will definitely be a Restaurant of the Week on Friday. I'll stop by here once or twice per day to approve and post comments.

What can I tell ya? The economy affects newspapers too.

But this would be a good week to catch up on posts you've missed, via the categories along the right. You can find the last several months of my columns at http://www.dailybulletin.com/davidallen.

Sunday's column is mostly about this week's Ontario council meeting, which provided plenty of fodder on such topics as Mayor Paul Leon's duties, Mayor Paul Leon's personal life, a lawsuit by police officers, plans for Guasti and the loss of sound for viewers at home. They may have been the lucky ones.

In addition, there's an item about an unsung bookstore in Claremont and an explanation of why my column won't be in the paper next week: I'm on furlough. Well, that's the way things go in the new depression.

My statement in Feb. 15's column that the loss of Second Story Books "will leave Claremont without a bookstore -- other than the one at the Claremont Colleges -- for the first time in decades" drew comment from two other stores that sell books: the Thoreau Bookshop in the Packing House and the Friends of the Library store in the Claremont Library.

For various reasons, I can't exactly qualify them as bookstores, since both are nonprofits that rely on donated material and hence have very small collections. I give them a shout-out in Sunday's column anyway. And I'd like to quote the e-mails I got. The one concerning the Thoreau store was, as one would hope from bookish people, particularly well-composed.

First, here's what Rachel McDonnell, office manager of the Claremont Forum, had to say about the Thoreau:

This week's restaurant: Sal & Sons Pizza & Pasta, 1520 N. Mountain Ave. (at Sixth), Ontario.

Sal's opened in November in the modern-looking shopping center visible from the 10 Freeway across from the Edwards 14. Sal's has some connection to the Graziano's chain, although it's unclear what. The menus are similar.

It's a peppy, fast-food-looking place, on the small side, with yellow and red being the dominant colors. You order at the counter. They have a variety of pizzas, a dozen pastas, plus calzones and hot and cold sandwiches.

I've now been there twice. In January, I got one of the lunch specials, a half-order of lasagna with a salad and soda (price forgotten, but under $7). Kind of thin -- it was like the half order was done horizontally, giving you two layers out of four -- but good, and the price was right.

On Wednesday I returned for a pizza. I got an 8-inch mini-pizza, luna style ($7.70), a small salad ($2.35) and small drink ($1.25).

The pizza had olive oil, garlic, mozzarella and romano, no tomato sauce. Perhaps too much olive oil, but the crust was nice and thin, with a light, crunchy edge. The salads here are just chopped lettuce and a single tomato slice. It might be worth adding a topping for 95 cents. Or not, since for $5.25 you could get a small antipasto salad.

Sal's has a variety of lunch specials and dinner specials, all under $7. Not a bad place for a low-cost meal if you're in the neighborhood, such as before or after a movie.

For weeks I've been stymied at trying to watch "Lost," my favorite show, because with my digital converter, I can no longer get Channel 7. Ah, the wonders of the digital age. ABC never came in well with just an antenna, but at least I could watch it. So I've been going to friends' homes to watch the show.

Tune in Friday when I offer an update on the pitfalls of digital TV -- but with a (whew!) positive conclusion.

Chino Hills' new library opens Feb. 28 and with 60,000 books it sounds well-stocked. But this weekend, the old library is holding a moving sale, selling purged or donated material at fire sale prices. Everyone else is liquidating, so why not a library?

"We are selling the books, with a few exceptions, for $5 per bag," says Geri Moore of Friends of the Library. She adds: "The bag is the size of a paper grocery bag and we supply the bags."

Free bags too? This deal just got even better.

"We have a wide variety of books," Moore says. "We have a large selection of children's books. In addition, we have adult fiction and non-fiction (cookbooks, biographies, travel, crafts, and large coffee table books) in both hardcover and paperback."

Various "antique" books, VHS tapes, DVDs and CDs will be priced individually. Maybe you still get a free bag. Shelving, display racks, carts and other odds and ends will also be sold.

C'mon, you know you've always wanted your very own library cart.

The sale will be held in the old library building at 2003 Grand Ave., in the old Civic Center complex, on Friday from noon to 8 p.m., on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Sunday from noon to 5 p.m.

The Friends of the Library is hosting the sale, with proceeds to help fill gaps in funding at the new library. Friends, for instance, pays for some reading programs and bought children's furniture for the new library.

Looks like we've missed "The Big Sleep" and "Treasure of the Sierra Madre" earlier this month, but two more Bogart classics are playing at the Ontario City Library, 215 E. C St., the next two Thursdays.

"Casablanca" is playing tonight and "The Caine Mutiny" rounds out the month. I love "Casablanca" but have seen it often enough that I'll take a pass. "Caine Mutiny," however, I've never seen. Barring complications, I'll be there.

Screenings begin at 6:30 p.m. and admission is free.

Spotted in Upland on Wednesday: a McDonald's 18-wheeler whose side panel consisted of a giant closeup photo of a Big Mac and the motorist-friendly phrase "merge at taste and quality."

On the rear of the truck was the loaded question "are we there yet?"

Is McDonald's at the intersection of taste and quality? Better keep driving, pal.

I get used to all the big names coming to the Claremont Colleges for lectures, all of them within walking distance from your humble blogger.

But the University of La Verne is getting into the act, next Tuesday bringing out Tavis Smiley. Smiley has a PBS talk show and an NPR radio show and has authored 11 books, including the soon to be released "Accountable: Making America As Good As its Promise."

In your face, Claremont!

Smiley's talk is free, but you need to reserve a seat, pronto. To do so, call Christina Massengale at (909) 593-3511, ext. 4682.

The talk begins at 7:30 p.m. in Founders Hall Auditorium. Maps, directions and campus parking information are available at www.ulv.edu/maps.

I got a tour of the Fox Theater in Pomona on Monday to see the renovation in progress, two months before the opening. It's pretty awesome, even with a lot of work left to go.

Since I'm a guy who loves old theaters, movies, music and downtown Pomona, the Fox provides no shortage of interest. Besides, there's a lot of history and sentiment behind the Fox's return. It may end up as the Inland Valley's most exciting development of 2009.

I expect to be writing considerably more about the Fox in coming weeks. In the meantime, Wednesday's column offers a sneak peek.

If you like wolfing your food, or like the idea of watching other people wolf their food, this could be for you. Jody Maroni's Sausage Kingdom is opening a location at The Shoppes at Chino Hills -- and marking the occasion with a sausage-eating contest.

It takes place at 2 p.m. Saturday on a stage in the Promenade area of the open-air mall. Anyone interested should show up at 1:30 to fill out forms and such. Unlike the famous Nathan's hot dog contest at Coney Island, contestants only have to eat two "fully loaded" sausage sandwiches. Whoever finishes first, wins coupons for five free combos. Thankfully, they don't have to be redeemed immediately.

And no, you won't find me within miles of the place. I prefer to eat less, and more slowly.

Maroni's will also give out free samples from noon to 4 p.m. and donate 15 percent of any proceeds to a Chino Hills charity, the Let It Be Foundation, which offers support for the families of Chino Valley children with life-threatening medical conditions. They're calling the event Haut Dogs for Hope.

Reader Shirley Wofford writes:

"Do you think you could come up with any information on Barbeques Galore, formerly in Upland on Mountain in the Home Depot mall, and Janie's Sports Lounge, formerly in Montclair? Both businesses have disappeared without fanfare -- at least I never saw any news notes on either one.

"I was planning to get a customized fireplace screen and glass enclosure at Barbeques. I thought they would always be there when I finally got around to it. Now, I don't know where to go.

"Janie's Sports Lounge was a fixture at the strip mall anchored by Stater Bros. Market (Montclair's only supermarket) for many years and was very popular with its regulars. I was not a patron, but it always seemed to be an integral part of that neighborhood."

I have no knowledge of the circumstances of either business' demise, Shirley, nor do I know where else you might get a customized fireplace screen. Readers?

The owner of Janie's, Janie McLaren, sent me a nice note a year or so ago, inviting me in for lunch sometime. Sorry to say, I never took advantage of the offer. Oh well. Anyone able to share any memories of the place?

This week's restaurant: Stevie Dee's Cafe, 8890 E. 8th St. (at Vineyard), Rancho Cucamonga.

Stevie's is the shack perched a few feet below the railroad tracks on Vineyard. The blue and white striped building appears to have been there forever. The building was Chuck's Diner for at least a decade prior to Stevie Dee's arrival. Anyone know more of its history?

Inside there's a counter, a few tables, frilly curtains on the windows and '50s kitsch on the walls: Marilyn posters, Elvis photos, etc. The walls also hold 45s tacked up in a row near the ceiling and an autographed photo of that late-night yodeler, Slim Whitman.

I'd been to Stevie's once, maybe three years ago, eating a fish sandwich and a cup of soup. The sandwich was fine and the soup was the standout. This time I went with two friends who'd always been curious about the place. It serves breakfast and lunch and now also has dinner.

Our sandwiches -- tuna melt ($7.25), tuna sandwich ($6.75), avocado burger ($6.99) -- were deemed average to slightly above. They were all generously sized. The burger seemed to have both mayo and Thousand Island, which made it a little goopy.

An order of onion rings to share ($2.75) was thick cut and tasty. Our sandwiches came with a side of soup, salad, fries, onion rings or zucchini. My salad was standard. My friends got two of the day's housemade soups, Northern bean and beefy noodle, and that's where the action was. Instead of cups, the soup came in bowls and could have been meals in themselves. The beefy noodle had big pieces of tomato, as well as pasta, beef and corn. "I would come here just for the soup," one friend said.

Twice during lunch a Metrolink train roared past, whistle blowing. People have been hearing train whistles in that building for decades. You could do worse than to join them.

Here's a review with photos at the fun Dinerwood blog.

What a difference a letter makes, as this sweet message at a florist's shop in La Verne becomes something more pungent. Says the friend who tipped me off to the sign: "One colleague said he was going to take a picture and send it to his wife on Valentine's Day. I said he needed to include an image of Gabe Kaplan."

Spotted on the rear window of a vehicle in Ontario, the self-dramatizing logo: "Only God Can Judge Me."

Really? The court system might disagree with you, pal.

Which reminds me of the woman in a Pomona courtroom a couple of years ago who was there (as was I) as a potential juror. She said she would prefer not to serve on a jury because she didn't "believe in the court system." "It's here," the judge replied. "It exists. Trust me."

I almost never attend Upland council meetings, being rather busy following Ontario and Pomona politics. Yet there were two good reasons for me to attend Monday's Upland council meeting:

1) a controversial proposal for a social hall in a residential neighborhood and

2) the strong possibility that people would talk about Councilman Ray Musser's comment at the last meeting about the "nonwhite" people at the inauguration who were "well behaved."

Well, the first matter was withdrawn, it was announced at the meeting's start, so that the proposal could be rethought. This confirms my theory that any city meeting in Upland is likely to be half as interesting than one would hope.

Despite that loss, the meeting was pretty entertaining. I got a whole column out of it. Which confirms my other theory, which is that Upland is still more interesting than one might think.

Your Rancho Cucamonga business report:

* The Long's Drugs location at Haven and Base Line closed a couple of weeks ago, a victim of the chain's purchase by CVS, reports reader Marilyn Varney. Don't know what this means for other Long's in the valley, or whether all or any will reopen as a CVS.

* The long-closed Mobil (I think) station at Arrow and Vineyard is going to reopen as a Valero station. Just saw the banner on my lunch hour Monday. The station is half-hidden behind a berm of lawn at the corner and you'd hardly know there was a gas station there. Which may be one reason it failed.

Stuck on how to spend Valentine's Day? Worry no more. At 2 p.m. that day, the Pomona Public Library is hosting a talk by a Pomona Valley Genealogical Society member on the pulse-quickening topic "Beware: Modern Records Can Be Just as Inaccurate as Older Records."

Sounds like a great place for a first date. Or not. For information: (909) 646-9216.

This week's restaurant: City Broiler, 12959 Peyton Drive (at Rock Springs), Chino Hills.

In a standalone building in a shopping center on the north end of Chino Hills, City Broiler is reminiscent of New York Grill at Ontario Mills. Both are white tablecloth restaurants, lightly swank, with a Big Apple theme. City Broiler took over in 2007 from Peppino's, a short-lived Italian eatery.

The interior is brick with wood trim, brass and etched glass. There are some stylish B&W NYC photos dotting the walls. The restaurant feels urban, certainly more urban than Chino Hills, even if it is across the parking lot from a Wendy's.

I ate there Wednesday night with a couple of friends who live nearby and like the place. We sat in the bar area, which I would recommend for a casual experience. We ordered the mini-pizza with mushrooms ($6) and the crab cake sandwich ($8) off the bar menu and the fish and chips ($12.50) off the regular menu. The latter two came with a side dish; we got fruit and mixed vegetables, respectively.

We traded food and none of us were disappointed. I wasn't blown away, but I would eat there again. Service was attentive and the atmosphere is appealing. It's nice to see a family-owned sit-down restaurant.

The specialties are steak and seafood, by the way, although they also have sandwiches, salads and pizzas. You can view the menu and photos here.

Ms. Lois asks that we plug the 43rd annual Laura Ingalls Wilder Sociable at the Pomona Public Library this Saturday from 1 to 4 p.m., and this blog is happy to comply. Because rain threatens, the event will take place indoors but should be no less fun for the younger set. Wilder, of course, was the author of the "Little House on the Prairie" series of books.

You can learn all the details in a series of posts on the library's blog. Did you know Melissa Sue Anderson of TV's "Little House" series visited Pomona in 1975? I didn't. You can learn more about the library's connection to Wilder from my "Pomona A to Z" piece here.

Chaffey High alumnus Dave Linck reminded me of a couple of oldtime Ontario restaurants: one that may be the original Inland Valley pizza parlor, or darn close to it, and a beloved burger emporium with a buffet line of condiments.

Take it away, Mr. Linck:

"Here are a couple old Ontario places to jog the bloggers:

"Valenti's Fine Foods on South Euclid: One of the few places in the early '60s to serve pizza. I had my very first pie there, served by owner Phil Valenti, whose brother, Frank, ran the Texaco station on Holt near Vine. Both places are long gone. The pizza was amazing, with so much mozzerella (and fresh oregano) it ruined me for all others to come.

"Another long-gone fave was O'Reilly's Buffet Burger on Holt near Mountain, which is now housing The Paint Bucket. O'Reilly's was beloved among we kids because they sent you a coupon for a free 'Buffet Burger' on your birthday. O'Reilly's served burgers, broasted chicken and dip sandwiches.

"There was a 'buffet bar' where you could dress your burger as you liked, as well as a twin 'sundae bar' where you could do so with ice cream sundaes. It was always crowded and I am sure lots of people will respond with their own memories of this long-gone icon of burger cool."

I'm sure they will too. Readers?

In other news from Monday's Pomona City Council meeting (most of the rest is in Wednesday's column):

* Beforehand, Councilman Tim Saunders approached me and held out his arms, showing off the perfect fit of his suit's sleeves. I had noted in a column that Saunders, who is known for his Hawaiian shirts, at his first meeting wore a suit with sleeves down to his fingertips. "After Mr. Blackwell here wrote his article," Saunders joked, he bought four suits. I thanked him for being a good sport.

* Without comment, the council awarded a contract to Aramark to provide meals to prisoners at the city jail for $7.05 each per day. The wag sitting next to me circled that figure on his agenda and whispered, "You'd starve to death."

I wondered why it's $7.05. If prisoners get bread and water, maybe the nickel is for a slice of lemon.

* Sensitive students from the Claremont Colleges said they had witnessed police traffic checkpoints in Pomona, with one finding the spectacle "horrifying" and another saying solemnly, "We saw things we'd never seen before." Which is, if memory serves, kind of the point of college.

* A grant application for checkpoint money was approved 6-1, but not without an hour-long discussion, and a minor dustup. Councilman Steve Atchley, whose remarks kept being interrupted by hecklers, finally said he found opponents' arguments "specious." "I'm not going to explain it," he added. "You're going to have to look it up." Three people walked out in protest.

"It was a little condescending, I'll admit it," Atchley later told me sheepishly.

Well, it was a long night -- the meeting lasted more than four hours. Groan. But I did get a column out of it.

Since I've written about my reading goals for 2009, I might as well share what I'm reading. If I remember, I'll write one of these posts each month. The idea, and the form, are unabashedly swiped from Nick Hornby's (now-defunct) books column in The Believer magazine.

Books bought this month: "Shakespeare Wrote for Money," Nick Hornby; "Highway 61 Revisited," Mark Polizzotti; "Exile on Main Street," Robert Greenfield.

Books read this month: "Billy Budd and Other Stories," Herman Melville; "The Demolished Man," Alfred Bester; "Double Indemnity," James M. Cain; "Bradbury Speaks," Ray Bradbury.

I liked all four, to one degree or another. "Billy Budd..." has already been featured here. "Demolished" is a '50s SF classic in which a man plans the perfect murder in a society where the police are mind-readers. The book holds up. "Indemnity" is lean and mean and makes me want to rent the movie version again -- script by Raymond Chandler, no less. The Bradbury book is a collection of essays and, although I'm a fan, is hit and miss.

Four books in January? I might actually meet my goal of 50 books this year -- or at least 48.

Incidentally, I had saved "Double Indemnity" to read someday on Metrolink, because the book is a mere 125 pages. Last Saturday I took the train to L.A. for lunch and a museum visit. I opened the book on the train and by Union Station was at p. 40. I read a few more pages on the subway. At lunch at Pete's Cafe I lingered and read more.

After the museum I walked to Clifton's, where I enjoyed a slice of pie and a drink and read. At the subway station I got in another four pages. At Union Station for the return home, I boarded the waiting train, turned to p. 80 and started in. When we stopped in Claremont, I had two pages left. Well, I couldn't ask them to hold the train, so I walked to my car and finished the book in the Metrolink parking lot.

A book in a single day? Haven't done that since I was in short pants. Credit a very short book and a very gripping story.

Marilyn Varney found a 1940s postcard on eBay for the Hotel Ontario, with photos of its dining room, bar and coffee shop. I have no information on the hotel, but the pictures aren't bad.

Continuing my lifelong avoidance of the Super Bowl, I spent Sunday afternoon 1) eating lunch outdoors at The Habit in La Verne, reading the LAT Travel piece on a car trip up the California coast, 2) catching a matinee of "Last Chance Harvey," the Dustin Hoffman/Emma Thompson romance, at the La Verne Edwards, which drew a good crowd of middle-agers and seniors, 3) mopping my floors and 4) reading from a Harlan Ellison story collection at the Coffee Bean in Claremont, which was at half-capacity, unusually.

I hear the Steelers won. Whatever.

Incidentally, "Last Chance Harvey," while not brilliant, was charming, as long as you can accept the lovely Emma Thompson as unattached and lonely. The movie is down to two showings per day, and is playing at only this one theater, so anyone so inclined is encouraged to zip over there before Friday.

How did you spend your Super Bowl Sunday?