Silver Star Cafe — Restaurant in San Antonio

I am incredibly sad my review had to be a one star for this place because from what I read I wanted it to be good, sadly the reviews failed me.

Starting off I am a new transplant to Texas and have had the opportunity to eat Chinese food across the country and this is in the top 3 worst that I have ever eaten. It breaks my heart as I have been craving Asian for 3 months and this was my experience.

Considering the glowing reviews I read with a lot of people stating the Sesame Chicken is amazing I being a fan of that chose to order that. Lets start with the smell of the food. Vary good smell but does not smell like Asian food im familiar with smelling like I don't really know how to describe it. The chicken itself looked so tasty and I couldn't wait to eat it but I was a little taken back by the "fried rice" because in all my years I have never seen friend rice that looked like it was full of saffron as it had a bright yellow color and not a deep brown im use to. The taste of the yellow rice was bland and boring im betting its not even fried so much as seasoned rice with a tea spoons worth of frozen vegetable added to it. Following that I chose to eat my absolute favorite thing the egg roll and that is were thing really started going down hill for me. The sauce that comes with it a thick orange metallic tasting sauce that reminds me of burnt on the bottom garlic that's been left out mixed with the strangely fishy tasting again metallic flavor of the eggroll left this horrible taste in my mouth that even now I still have this odd metallic taste. Then came the beautiful looking Sesame chickafish I ate. The first bite I had im honestly convinced it was a piece of fried fish wrapped in chicken it was such a strong wishy taste. The sauce itself didn't fair any better as it also had a strong fishy and metallic like taste with definite sighs some of the seasonings were burnt and the cooking pot was not properly cleaned. It was not good at all. That was just the food. Honestly the place itself dose not fair any better with bared of doors and spray-paint being the first thing to greet you followed by the clear age of the building. I don't mind it being a dive as the rest of the area around it is just as old and beat up but I did not expect the food to be worse then the appearance. The people inside all had empty looks on there faces like they didn't want to be there and that just made it all the more real.

Needless to say this place is not a place I will ever come back to and while I can say don't eat here find some place else it seems many others have had far better luck then I have. So I can say to you. If your looking for a cheep meal and by golly this is cheep cost wise to other places you are eating here at your own risk But I know I wont be returning or...

In the mood for Chinese cuisine? Unfortunately, I would not recommend the food here. However, if you decide to ignore this review and choose to dine here, this is what you will very likely encounter, half hearted dishes that lack real love. My most recent visit, the third in one year, resulted in once again receiving the same quality of food. Aside from the natural taste of the vegetables, which were very well cooked, there was a serious lack of seasonings. The same goes for the beef, shrimp and fried rice. The shrimp had zero taste or smell of shrimp. The only noticeable seasoning anyone blindfolded would be able to name is salt. There wasn't even a hint of ginger. Now, to cap off the disappointment, allow me to warn you away from the egg rolls. Perhaps you may think that I am a glutton for punishment. However, my visits here have been merely for convenience and have been months apart because I do not live nearby. So, back to the egg rolls, let me put it this way, anyone from SA knows that the secret to a successful Mexican restaurant is having a great tortilla, right? Well, apparently, Silver Star Cafe doesn't know yet their success depends on having a dam good egg roll. Because, unknown to me until tonight, I was told that their egg rolls are pre-made frozen items. Prior to today, I assumed that their cook was either angry or lazy. The egg rolls I received were either gummy or crispy and also lacking flavor. But, when I was told the egg rolls are pre-made, well that was the deal breaker. Unfortunately, I already ordered and was too tired and hungry to drive anywhere else. In addition, let me add that the shrimp/beef dish I ordered had an excessive amount of liquid. I don't know what the cook did but the dish was swimming and bland. This is the last time I'll order from this restaurant. My advice to you is this, never trust a Chinese restaurant that is so lazy that it chooses to serve pre-made...

I was hesitant to try this place out. I had their chicken with garlic sauce as a reviewer mentioned. It was amazing. I couldn't make out all the ingredients but:

Dark chicken meat (which is a lot more traditional because it's more flavorful and juicy), water chestnuts, shiitake mushrooms, spring onions, carrots, green peppers, and another vegetable I didn't recognize.

The sauce was thickened as they usually are but it didn't taste as heavy, so maybe they used cornstarch. It tasted like garlic (of course), but a bit like sweet rice vinegar, chili oil, and maybe the tiniest oyster sauce.

I don't really like fried rice but even though I didn't finish it, it tasted like it had toasted sesame oil.

The wonton soup was awesome too down to the rice crisps you put on it. The broth wasn't salty but very flavorful from an awesome broth. The meat on the inside wasn't too much but it wasn't made out of left overs.

The egg roll inside was made of blackpepper pork and very finely minced cabbage with something else.

The prices are ridiculously cheap and the serving size is huge too.

... forgot to take pictures...

Oh, and the tea tasted like it was actually brewed there not like the instant tea.

Someone else said that other fancier places charge a lot and serve a lot less. I agree with them. I wanted to leave a super detailed description of the place because I would have never tried this place if my acquaintance hadn't suggested it. The exterior looks run down but the inside and even the restrooms are...