Restaurant of the Week: Sal & Sons Pizza & Pasta

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.