Bites Nearby: Mu Lan

Open since last March, this Taiwanese/Chinese restaurant is already a fixture in Waltham. It's a worthy successor to the Beijing Star, which occupied the same location for many years. In a way, Mu Tan was already a success, since it has a busy sister restaurant in Cambridge.

What to eat: The choices are many; but the menu is well-organized, so it's easy to find what you're looking for – whether it's noodle dishes, chicken, pork, seafood, duck, beef or vegetable dishes, moo shi (dishes wrapped in pancakes), hot pots, dumplings, or a half-dozen kinds of soup. There's an impressive selection of lunch specials (served until around 3 p.m.), which are served with soup, rice, salad, sauces and generous entree, all for $6.95. No wonder the place is typically busy with customers even in mid-afternoon.

The vibe: Pleasant, clean, and quiet, despite its location on busy Main Street.

Cool factor No. 1: As soon as you sit down, one of the waiters brings over a large pot of jasmine tea and bowls of hot-and-sour soup, roasted peanuts, and pickled cabbage.

Cool factor No. 2: The space is simple and elegant: the tables aren't crowded together and the walls are decorated with just a few Chinese landscape paintings on scrolls.