3 restaurants you need to try ASAP, from Mason to Terrace Park to OTR

From a chef-y Terrace Park taco spot to an extraordinary Sichuan restaurant in Mason and a new Greek-style dinner destination in OTR, here are three spots (new and old) worth paying a visit.

Golden State Tacos, Terrace Park

The California-style taco spot Dan and Lana Wright dreamed up in this high-tax-bracket neighborhood is more laid back than you might expect. Located in a 1950s-era gas station, the seafoam-colored tile floors recall the retro Los Angeles diners I've visited and fallen in love with over the years. In fact, the vibe at Golden State is so L.A. that you can practically imagine catching a glimpse of Don Draper himself sitting at one of the outdoor tables reading a copy of "Dante's Inferno."

The stage for the Golden State experience is set as soon as you pull into the parking lot, where a high-as-the-sky round sign featuring the restaurant's name in cursive script resembles something straight off of Hollywood Boulevard. It was no afterthought. The sign was made by local artist Jason Snell, the man behind the Ezzard Charles mural near Wright's Holiday Spirits bar in Over-the-Rhine.

White, California-style brickwork surrounds the outdoor patio and a battered retro trailer serves as an outdoor margarita stand serving Jimmy Buffet's favorite beverage in both frozen and non-frozen forms, as well as cocktails and ice-cold beer. While I haven't visited Golden State on a weekend night yet, Wright tells me the place is packed to the gills; its parking lot overflowing with cars and the golf carts people in these parts use to get around town.

The tacos, which range in price from $7 to $9, remind you why Wright was so important to the city's culinary scene in the first place. There's a sly hint of his Abigail Street restaurant's DNA in Golden State's blood. Just as the former restaurant sneaks a variety of flavors and textures into each ostensibly simple dish, so too do the tacos, appetizers and mains at Golden State. Each ingredient receives just the right amount of love and attention. Oh, and I'll add some extra style points here for the beautiful dishware the Wright's selected, mostly from California-based Crow Canyon.

Of the three tacos I've tried, the vegetarian version with tempura avocado is the one I'll beg of you to order first. Here, a thin veil of batter gives way to luscious avocado, the golden nuggets topped with a light pour of cilantro crema and a sweet, sour and mildly spicy pile of shaved cabbage tossed in the leftover juices chef de cuisine Charlie Gerhardt uses to pickle his carrots and jalapeno for the ensalada magnifico, a bright, crunchy mixture of mango, torn-herbs, salsa macha, crunchy jicama, pickled carrot and jalapeno topped with toasted peanuts.

The baja fish taco was equally as good, with tender chunks of mahi mahi placed in a cool pool of pico de gallo and topped with the same slaw mentioned above. Other taco fillings include wood-fired octopus, pork belly al pastor with an ancho chile pineapple glaze and an old-school walking taco served in a Frito bag.

While I was visiting the restaurant, Wright sent out his tuna tostada for me to try, letting me know it was his favorite dish on the menu. I get why. The lime-juice-marinated tuna has a smoky chipotle kick and beneath its flour tortillas I found a foundation of cilantro and corn crema that was so crunchy and fresh that I used my fingers to mop up the plate until it was gone.

Wright told me he originally intended to make the tortillas in house but, given the number of tacos Golden State was selling during its first two weeks open, he knew it would be a challenge. Instead, he's using locally made corn tortillas from Tortilleria Garcia. I mean, if you’re going to outsource your tortillas, you can’t do much better than that.

704 Wooster Pike, Terrace Park, 513-831-8226, goldenstatetacos.queencityhospitalitygroup.com.

Sichuan Bistro, Mason

I have only had "authentic" Sichuan cuisine twice in my lifetime. The first was at a Sichuan restaurant that I visited after a funeral in the outer reaches of Brooklyn’s Chinatown, simply because it was near the church. I felt guilty for allowing myself to enjoy such a spicy, decadent dinner of dandan noodles while my fellow mourners grazed on finger sandwiches and potato salad nearby. But, as I had learned the hard way on that frigid winter evening, you only live once.

The other time was in Pittsburgh's Squirrel Hill neighborhood, where I dined alongside three famous food writers at Chengdu Gourmet. Maybe it was because my expert companions knew exactly what to order, but it was literally one of the best meals I've ever had.

That said, the moment I took my first bite of the vegetarian mapo tofu lunch special at Sichuan Bistro recently, I started thinking that I might be able to relive both dinners whenever I want. The only thing it'll require is a 20-minute drive to Mason, where the restaurant is located in a strip mall alongside several other promising restaurants I haven't visited yet, including Sura Korean and a Jet's Pizza location, and one, Phoenician Taverna, that I already have.

The star of the show at Sichuan Bistro is the huajiao pepper, the dried seeds of the Sichuan prickly ash tree that is indigenous to China (here we refer to them simply as Sichuan peppercorns). They are magical little things; aromatic and citrusy, with the power to numb your tongue just enough to endure the heat of Sichuan cuisine, which usually combines the peppers with toasted red chile and garlic. The flavors of Sichuan dishes aren't just about the heat. The way that heat hits you, and the stages in which each dish's accompanying flavors hit you, are best described as something along the lines of a psychedelic experience, instead of, well, dinner.

On another visit, I tried the meat version of the mapo tofu (with minced pork), which almost made me weep with its magnificent flavors of garlic, toasted chile and peppercorns. The hot and sour soup was also magnificent; the lush, spicy dan dan noodles, revelatory.

I’ve only started to scratch the surface at Sichuan Bistro. The menu is complex and enormous enough to make me want to rent an Air B&B in Mason just so I can eat here every night.

7888 Mason Montgomery Road, Mason, 513-770-3123, sichuanbistro.com.

Fillo Greek Restaurant, Over-the-Rhine

I've already written about Fillo, the excellent Greek bakery and cafe in Over-the-Rhine. I raved about their fried feta, which is wrapped in phyllo dough, drizzled with hot honey syrup, sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds and spiked with red pepper flakes, cayenne and mild Cholula hot sauce.

Just recently, though, Fillo started offering dinner service, which has turned this casual lunch spot into an elegant full-fledged restaurant.

I went there on a recent Friday night with my wife, Amy, and our daughter, Sylvia, who, full disclosure, was not in the mood for any restaurant that didn’t serve cheese pizza. Unable to stay in her seat, I walked her across the street to look at the logo depicting the time our hometown president got stuck in a bathtub (a myth that doesn't actually hold water). True or not, the anecdote seemed to cheer her up enough to resume our dinner.

Back at Fillo, the dining room was abuzz with the energy akin to an opening night. I watched as plates of house-cured olives and Aegean anchovies were delivered to tables. And I noted when chef and restaurateur Jean-Francois Flechet, owner of Taste of Belgium, took the seat at the bar with his girlfriend to share some moussaka. It's always a good sign when the chefs show up.

I started off with a potent fig-infused old fashioned that settled me right into a night of excellent food that lay ahead. The fried feta is still on the menu (it's the first thing I ordered). though it was almost outdone by the saganaki, a nutty Greek farmers cheese that maintains its form when fried and turns firm on the outside and nice and gooey and nutty. It arrived at the table a mouthwatering golden brown, served in the cast-iron skillet in which it was prepared and garnished with a thick, juicy slice of lemon meant for a tight squeeze.

The grilled shrimp I ordered was cooked perfectly and served on a bed of pearled couscous sprinkled with chopped chives. An appetizer of earthy roasted beets over creamy, pungent garlic dip and a heavy pour of olive oil was superb; the grilled lamb chops were herby, salty and tender.

While Amy decided to walk Sylvia, by now in a much better mood, to Graeter’s for dessert, I stuck around for something a little more interesting: an exquisite milk pudding flavored with mastiha, a liqueur seasoned with the piney resin of the mastic tree, once used to make chewing gum, and topped with a floral hit of orange blossom syrup and crunchy chopped pistachios. I enjoyed it with the appropriate digestif, Greek grappa, and proper ya mas! to one of Over-the-Rhine's newest dinner destinations.

1505 Race St., Over-the-Rhine, 513-873-1995, fillogreekbakeshop.com.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Golden State, Sichuan Bistro and Fillo: Here are 3 restaurants to try