Golden China, 8851 Central Ave. (at Arrow Highway), Montclair

The sign outside Golden China was glowing as were the paper lantern-shaped lamps outside when a friend and I met here for dinner on a Friday night. I’d never been here but we were drawn by the four-star Yelp rating.

Inside the place is very 1980s, with vinyl booths and mirrored walls. Charmingly old school. (The decor likely originated with Royal China, there from 1987 to 1996; for the record, it was followed by the shortlived Golden Buddha. Golden China opened in 1998. A future incarnation as Royal Buddha would round things out nicely.) There’s a well-stocked bar at which drinks are mixed. You can see the menu here.

We tried two of the specialties, black pepper chicken ($12.55, below) and sizzling rice shrimp ($16, bottom), both as dinners with soup, egg roll, paper-wrapped chicken and rice. The platter of white-meat chicken pieces came with onions and black pepper. My shrimp arrived on a sizzling platter. The dish had a welcome number of large shrimp in a sweet sauce with unusual crisp rice puffs.

My friend and I liked his dish more than we liked mine. When Yelp reviewers rave about the orange chicken, you know you’re not getting cutting-edge food. Ditto when you’re brought a cup of jello to end your meal, as well as the requisite fortune cookie. But the service was efficient and attentive. Not a four-star restaurant, and you can do better, but for Americanized Chinese food, it’s homey.

Best Taco, 5110 Holt Blvd. (at Central), Montclair

On Sunday evening, feeling like getting Mexican food, I realized I hadn’t written about a restaurant in Montclair for a while, so I went for a drive on Holt to look for a taqueria. That’s when I saw a sign for a business named Best Taco. What the heck, I pulled in.

The interior was not what I expected at all: deep and wide as a tennis court, with floor-to-ceiling murals of storefronts or market stalls. Hotel Hidalgo, one reads, complete with phony door and mirrored windows. La Tiendita, reads another, with a Coke bottle painted on the “exterior.” (Tiendita, I believe, would be a convenience store.) There are painted stalls representing a tortilleria and a pinata business, as well as a theater exterior mural for Cine El Rey, complete with marquee and two movie posters.

This might be the most art in one place in all of Montclair. Unique.

There was only one other customer in the cavernous interior. The natural light was fading and the further recesses were a bit dim, so after ordering at the counter I sat closer to the door to give me enough light to read my Heinlein paperback.

The menu has tacos, burritos, huaraches, tortas, sopes, gorditas and the like. I got a carne asada burrito ($4.90). It wasn’t as meat-intensive as many places but rather balanced out with rice, refried beans and chopped onions, plus plenty of cilantro. I liked it.

According to Yelp there’s another Best Taco at 10410 Ramona just above Holt, also in Montclair. This Best Taco appears to have opened late in 2011, replacing another taqueria, Mi Mexico. The murals look new.

They have a Taco Tuesday special, 70 cents each. I’m going to go out on a limb and guess that the tacos aren’t the absolute best, but the interior is certainly interesting.

Korean BBQ, 4232 Holt Blvd. (at Amherst), Montclair

In the Inland Valley, where Korean restaurants are rare, Korean BBQ is the venerable granddaddy of them all. It’s located in a strip mall next to a laundromat along Holt Boulevard. Yes, it’s an unpromising location, but Korean BBQ has been there since sometime around 1990, so it must work for them. It used to have a giant yellow pole sign out front until a makeover to the center required a more modest sign.

My friends Meg and K. (of the M-M-M-My Pomona blog) highly recommend the place, and since they used to live in L.A.’s Koreatown neighborhood, their advice was heeded. The three of us met for dinner there on a recent Sunday.

The interior is dated, especially the paneling, but it’s clean and pleasant enough, and Korean restaurants generally are utilitarian. The staff brought out the usual array appetizers in small dishes: kimchi, fish cake, bean sprouts, etc.

We ordered short ribs ($25) and beef ($18) off the barbecue menu, plus a bowl of bibimbap (forgot the price, sorry) to share. The barbecue items are cooked on a grill in the middle of your table. The staff fires up the grill, puts the meat on and returns to turn it or serve pieces that are done.

Korean barbecue is even rarer than Korean restaurants out here; I’ve tried two Korean places in Rancho Cucamonga and one in Chino Hills, and none of them had tabletop barbecue. The food in Montclair didn’t impress me as much as my one previous experience with Korean barbecue, at the highly regarded Park’s in L.A. — the meat wasn’t of as high a quality — but I liked the meal, the staff was nice and Montclair is a lot closer than Wilshire Boulevard.

The restaurant gets 4 stars on Yelp, where they have the name as Arirang. The menu and sign say Korean BBQ (as did the old sign), but the strip mall’s name is Arirang Plaza, and for all I know that’s the restaurant’s secret name.

Fu-Lin, 9645 Central Ave. (at San Bernardino Road), Montclair

The sign near the sidewalk for Fu-Lin always makes me chuckle, but I’d never gone in until this week. In honor of April Fool’s Day, it was time. (The sign reads “Fulin,” but all the references online are to “Fu-Lin,” the spelling I’ll go with here.)

From the outside Fu-Lin looks like a big box. In back there’s a large parking lot and an entrance. The interior, while dated, is nicer than I’d expected with Chinese prints, a relief mural and windows letting in a lot of natural light.

Fu-Lin, which opened in 1990, has the usual Mandarin and Szechuan dishes, as well as Chinese American standbys like chop suey and egg foo young. But according to a Korean American friend whose family loves the place, there’s a subtle Korean tinge to the menu. You can get a cold combination, ja jiang myun or ya kki mandoo. It was only after leaving that I noticed at least some of the lettering on the exterior is in Korean.

The lunch specials, available every day but Sunday, are all priced between $4.25 and $5.50. I had garlic chicken ($4.65), which turned out to be steaming hot and fairly spicy. This came with a dollop of rice, two wontons, an eggroll and a cup of hot and sour soup. For $6 with tax and tip, this was a filling lunch, and better than expected.

Yelp reviewers seem of two minds about the place, unable to agree on whether it’s great or terrible. Quality-wise I’d compare Fu-Lin to Rancho Cucamonga’s China Point or Upland’s China Gate, two other old-school Chinese American restaurants.

Fu-Lin was busy; even at 1:30 on a weekday, 12 tables or booths were occupied with some 30 diners, many Latino and some Asian. Fu-Lin must be doing something right. No foolin’.

Dolce Cafe and Bakery, 8821 Central Ave. (at Arrow Highway), Montclair

Located in a retail center that includes Tokyo Kitchen and Bombay Bistro, Dolce opened in 2007 in the anchor spot. The interior space is cavernous, probably two or three times larger than strictly necessary, with high ceilings and a wooden floor. They ought to roll the furniture away at night and hold ballroom dance classes.

Dolce does breakfast, lunch and dinner in a bistro setting (a very large bistro), everything from muffins and shrimp crepes to panini sandwiches and salads to pizza, pasta and steak au poivre. Its website describes Dolce as a “Euro Asian inspired bakery” with “an eclectic Italian inspired menu.”

Ambitious. I haven’t tried the $10 to $16 dinner entrees, but I’ve been in for lunch a couple of times this summer.

The chicken canneberge (pictured) ($7.25) was chicken salad with cranberries and candied walnuts, apple slices and romaine in a garlic herb pocket. For $1, I upgraded from a salad to the tomato basil soup. I was pleasantly surprised.

On a later visit I had the chicken florentine panini (also $7.25), with grilled chicken, bacon, sundried tomatoes, provolone and spinach artichoke spread, accompanied by a side of slaw. Not bad.

The setup is slightly confusing, in part because the space is so large it’s hard to know what to do. (The website has a video that gives you a fair idea of the layout.) If you want a baked good, go to the case to your left. If you want to be waited on at a table, go to your right and take a seat. If you want to avoid paying a tip, go straight ahead to the U-shaped serving stations, where you can order, pay and have your food brought to you.

There weren’t more than a half-dozen customers on my two visits. I can only guess that Dolce got a sweet deal on the rent and that the catering side of the business brings in the dough.

The food is pretty good, and items like Bistecca alla Portal (“sirloin smothered in a red wine reduction and topped with tomato mango chutney”), Pork Chasseur (“tender center cut pork chop with a rich mushroom and tomato infused gravy”) or Fire Grilled Vegetables certainly sound delicious. This might vie with Cafe Montclair as the city’s most ambitious restaurant. Just know that you may have most of the dining room to yourself.

Photo: Marc Campos

Shakey’s Pizza, 5639 Holt Ave. (at Benson), Montclair.

A few weeks back I wrote about the new Shakey’s in Rancho Cucamonga and promised I’d revisit the one in Montclair. Pretty much the same food, obviously, but the Montclair Shakey’s holds a small place in my heart.

After all, it’s the oldest chain restaurant location in the Inland Valley still in operation. The Montclair location has been serving up pizza since 1961, nearly 50 years, without a break. Any other chains that arrived earlier have closed.

The enormous paddle-like sign out front is clearly original, as sign codes today would never allow a sign as large as a tennis court, and the exterior is basically unchanged too. The interior is revamped, however, other than a few lamps.

But I like this Shakey’s anyway. The food’s fine and they do the Bunch of Lunch all-you-can-eat special from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. weekdays ($7.50, drink extra). There may only be two pizzas out, not 10 as in Rancho Cucamonga, but this is a smaller operation.

Assistant manager Gina Amir is one of the friendliest restaurant employees you’ll meet and it’s her personal touch that keeps customers coming back. Frankly, this Shakey’s could use your business, so if you’re in the area and you like Shakey’s, check ‘em out.

I wrote a column about the place in 2006 that you can find by clicking below. In it I listed runnerups in the chain-restaurant longevity derby and at least two of them — Wienerschnitzel on Mountain in Ontario and Sizzler across Holt from Shakey’s, have folded since then.
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Three Anas, 8980 Benson Ave. (at Arrow Highway), Montclair.

Located in a small, nondescript industrial park, Three Anas doesn’t promise much. But then you step inside, notice the two colorful murals and learn you order at your table, not the counter. There are other homey touches: a Wall of Fame by the door in which regular customers’ photos are posted and a stack of magazines for solo customers’ reading pleasure.

Our server cheerfully explained the origin of the Three Anas name: That’s what their father called Ana, Julianna and Joanna, the three sisters who own the restaurant. It will mark five years in business on Oct. 1.

Our table ordered steak picado ($7.50), which was pleasingly dry, not soupy; the special burrito ($4.50) with potatoes, carne asada, onions and peppers; and the chile relleno and chicken enchilada plate ($7), served wet with green sauce, plus rice and beans. They were all solid, satisfying versions. Three Anas “rivals Mi Pueblita,” one of our group said admiringly, referring to the popular Upland restaurant.

You have to like a restaurant run by three sisters, especially when the experience delivers so much more than the location promised. A hidden gem.

Los Portales, 10244 Central Ave. (at Kingsley), Montclair.

I’d seen Los Portales for ages in the strip center behind the estimable Cafe Montclair, but hadn’t yet gone in. That is, until looking for a new place to eat before Monday’s Montclair council meeting and finding most restaurants on Central closed, Mondays being what they are. Los Portales it is!

I was pleasantly surprised how large the interior is and how nice it looked. There were at least four dining rooms and the one where I was seated had banquette seating, those wooden booths with high backs. Chips, salsa and a menu were quickly delivered. The place was moderately busy.

The menu has plenty of seafood and steak dishes in the $10 to $15 range. Not having time to linger, I opted for the fish taco plate, grilled ($9.95). The two tacos had at least an entire filet between them, more fish than Rubio’s would put in a half-dozen tacos, plus some cabbage, diced tomatoes and cilantro on corn tortillas. Double tortillas would have made the tacos easier to eat, but I felt like I got my money’s worth. The plate also came with beans and rice. A horchata ($2.25) washed it down well.

My first impression of Los Portales is positive and it may be one of the valley’s better Mexican restaurants. Anyone else been there? Do any of you know the location’s history?

Super Sandwich, 9885 Central Ave. (at Benito), Suite A, Montclair.

I learned about Super Sandwich from the Goddess of Pomona blog a couple of weeks back. The place has all sorts of sandwiches but specializes in banh mi, which are Vietnamese and served on thin baguettes. Besides several kinds of meat, they have strips of carrot and cucumber, daikon (a carrot-like root vegetable), cilantro, onion and pate. Also, peppers.

Super Sandwich is next to a Domino’s in a small, standalone building. The interior is small, like a yogurt shop, but there are a few tables and chairs in a mod, Space Age style. One wall features a large photo mural of the Eiffel tower with a giant sandwich superimposed in the sky. Mmmmm…Eiffel tower.

The menu lists “regular sandwiches,” French baguette sandwiches (i.e., banh mi), kitchen dishes (teriyaki, mostly), tea, coffee, shakes, salads and nonfat yogurt.

I got a 6-inch sandwich combo, the house special, with pork and ham, which came with a salad, chips and a boba milk tea (all for a mere $5.38). It’s only the third time I’ve had banh mi, so I’m still a neophyte, but this was certainly comparable to the others. (I removed the peppers.) The salad was iceberg, nothing special, but fine for the price. There was so much food I couldn’t finish the salad and didn’t even crack open the chips!

They bake their own bread here, by the way. They have a happy hour special in the window: From 2 to 5 p.m., buy two baguettes and get the third free.

(Happy hour specials must be getting more imaginative: I ate Thursday at Classic 66 Burgers in Pomona and noticed their window advertises a happy hour special involving chili cheese fries.)

One thing Super Sandwich doesn’t have is…soup. But they make a mean sandwich.

Central Burgers, 10340 Central Ave. (at Bandera), Montclair.

I went here before a Montclair council meeting. This location was Andy’s Burgers No. 2 until fairly recently. This is one of those burger places (like Jim’s in Upland and Terry’s in Rancho Cucamonga) that has a surprisingly broad menu.

For breakfast, eight omelets, eggs, bacon, hotcakes; 13 types of burgers, plus a patty melt and chili size; burritos, tacos, quesadillas, taquitos and tostadas; tuna, fish, steak, chicken and gyro sandwiches; five salads; steak dinners ($6.55!); and even a cup of chili ($3.25) and a cup of rice ($1.75).

I had a burger combo ($4.37 with tax) and enjoyed it while watching “King of Queens” on the dining room TV.