Vince’s Spaghetti, 8241 Foothill Blvd. (at San Bernardino Road), Rancho Cucamonga

While I prefer the Holt Boulevard Vince’s in Ontario for history, as it’s been there since 1945, the location in Rancho Cucamonga, known as the Route 66 Vince’s, is closer to the newspaper, and thus more convenient at lunchtime.

By this point the upstart, in operation since 1984, is starting to feel historic too. The high-backed wooden booths are private and some are capped by the top of a wine barrel, stamped name faded but visible.

The food, of course, is the same. The In-N-Out of pasta, Vince’s has six menu items, and I don’t know that anyone orders one of them, Victoria’s antipasto salad. Actually, this Vince’s has a dinner item known as mostasagna, a combination mostaccioli and lasagna, unique to this location.

On a recent visit, a friend had his standby, a half-order of spaghetti with meat sauce ($8), which comes with soup or salad and bread, either garlic or cheese. Having been there fairly recently for spaghetti, I plowed new territory and finally tried the french dip ($7) with soup.

Have you had the Vince’s french dip? That was the main item when Vince’s opened as a six-stool dip stand. As a history on the website says, “If Frank Cuccia’s uncle hadn’t eaten a plate of his grandmother’s spaghetti in front of the customers, Vince’s Restaurant might still be a French Dip Stand.”

The sandwich turned out to be tender and delicious, even better when dipped in the au jus. I began wondering if they don’t put a little extra care into the dips simply because it’s more of a specialty item. In any event, while I dote on the pasta, the french dip may be Vince’s secret weapon. Why, it might almost be the “revelation in taste” the menu quaintly promises about the cheese bread.