Starbird Chicken — Restaurant in Torrance

Food Order: Sesame Ramen Crunch Salad (crispy chicken, romaine & cabbage blend, shredded carrots, cucumber, edamame, pickled red daikon, crispy ramen noodles, green onions, cilantro, sesame seeds, house-made sriracha aioli drizzle, house-made yuzu sesame dressing) $13.77 L'il Tender/Nugget Box (2 crispy chicken tenders or 4 jumbo crispy chicken nuggets, housemade sauce, fries, Honest Kids Organic Super Fruit Punch) $7.47 House Fries with Garlic Aioli Dipping Sauce $4.27 Elote Street Corn (roasted corn, cotija, tajin, cilantro) $4.97 Large POG (pineapple, orange, guava) Lemonade $2.97 Churros $3.47

It's (06/23/25) Grand Opening Day... welcome to Torrance, Starbird Chicken. I don't have to trek over to Hermosa Beach anymore for delish (Nashville) fried chicken sandwiches.

This is my first grand opening review! It was hectic but efficient... met Austin, Digital Marketing Manager, who flew in from San Francisco to promote the grand opening & welcome their VIPs; team members were helping with kiosk orders, expediting food orders, & answering questions, etc. It was a cluckin' awesome kick-off!!

Located in Plaza del Amo Center, Starbird sits next door/north of Mendocino Farms with plenty of parking surrounding the restaurant. There's no drive-thru or nearby reserved spots for quick takeout pick-ups. The dining room is small with patio dining available, but not all tables offer shade. There's 2 unisex restrooms in the back that are clean & well-stocked. The only thing I would prefer is a lock that indicates if it's available or occupied.

According to Starbird's website, their Crispy Chicken is never treated with antibiotics, always fresh, never frozen, & individually hand breaded in their secret blend of gluten-free flour & spices. I likened Starbird to In & Out, made-to-order freshness for chicken instead of burgers.

I walked up the a line out the door & just lined up, figuring that someone inside will inform the VIP guests how to claim their free entree. While waiting, Austin stepped out to welcome the new guests in line & explained the process. I waited 10-mins. & was able to place my order on 1 of 3 kiosks. You can also place your order at the counter with the cashier. My order was ready in 12-mins. with a couple dozen customers ahead of me. That's quick!

The salad had some heft to it. It was tasty, light, & refreshing! I didn't feel a food coma coming with so much yummy food. The yuzu sesame dressing was fantabulous! They need to bottle the stuff & sell it as a standalone... I've been on a yuzu craving streak, & this citrusy dressing really hit the spot! The fries were pretty good only because the skin/outer layer wasn't as crisp; they were better in subsequent visits.

I came back a few more times over the next 2 weeks... can't bring myself to order the sandwiches or tenders yet because of my salad addiction. Kids loved the kid's meals: tenders & nuggets, but would have preferred the lemonade fountain over a juice box; older likes the tenders, younger favors the nuggets. The churros had a crisp shell with soft insides, & served with maple syrup; I would prefer if the batter has some spices like cinnamon or nutmeg, or coated with cinnamon sugar after frying. It's the perfect sweet treat to complete their lunch!

Right now, there's 2 more seasonal salads: Avo Cabo Crunch & Creamy Tzatziki Chop that are also on my radar once I satisfy my yuzu kick.

Their soda fountain is anchored by Alameda Soda Co. (lost island ginger beer, olde fountain creme, mango sparkling water, oaktown root beer, cable car lemon lime, hanger 25 cola, hanger 25 diet cola) with a lemonade (classic & POG: passion fruit, orange guava) & iced tea (classic & strawberry hibiscus) fountain. 5 entree options: sandwiches, nuggets, tenders, salads, & wings, with sides & drinks at moderate prices.

Am I a fan of Starbird? Heck yeah!

Recommended: Everything I ordered, especially the Sesame Ramen Crunch Salad!

Tip: Download Starbird's mobile app, spend $10 or more, & receive $10 off...

This place is just okay. Would give it a higher score because the food isn’t horrible by any means but there’s just too many inconsistencies from service, portions, that I had to give this place just two stars.

First you can order your food at one of three kiosks or from someone at the counter. Really wish this place had a large menu outside or somewhere not by the cashier just at the kiosk. Since it’s mostly at the kiosk or counter, most people spend a lot of time looking through the whole menu before ordering holding up the line. I don’t know if it normally like this, but it’s very loud in there.

So we did both dine in and take out on the same trip, two different orders. Oh man what a difference in the amount and presentation of the order, in particular, the Brussels sprouts. I’ll state these were one of my favorite items. When ordered for dine in, plentiful portions, super crispy, and well mixed. For take out, it looked like someone ate half the dish before packing it up. Drenched in the sauce. See how different the two orders are in my pictures.

Their POG lemonade is delicious.

Nashville hotbird sandwhich is fine, good flavors, good spice, but the seasoning is not very well spread out and partly. Chicken is crispy and thick but small, not covering the whole bun, so towards the end you end up just eating buns and sauce.

Tenders are pretty small, nothing special for a four piece. Sauces were good though, we enjoyed the starbird sauce and blazing ranch. The mango habanero is too sweet and not enough spiciness.

Salads were good, big portions, large pieces of chicken. Got the avocado Cabo crunch. Lots of tomatoes and jicama. Hard to mix though when there’s no room to mix or toss it without asking for an extra bowl.

Service is all over the place. The guy near the counter pick up area, just kept giving us blank stares. When I picked up my order, there were no utensils, asked him for some, no response, just a blank stares. He didn’t include our large drink, asked him for my drink cup, he looks at my order receipt, then asks if it’s large or small. Sir, it says large on the receipt.

They could benefit from someone staying near the kiosks too, saw a couple elderly people struggle to order for a while, with no one coming over to help until someone asked an employee to help them. The hospitality is lacking here, they could probably learn from Mendocino Farms when they open up.

On the other hand, the guy handling to go orders was very friendly. Apologized for the delay, gave us a lid for our leftovers, no problem

Overall not a place I’d be craving by any means, and that’s not to say I wouldn’t come back. It’s just meh.

Is it bad that I’d go back to a chicken place for the brussel sprout and...

I think I found a favorite chicken sandwich spot. Staff seems really happy about being here as well as the ordering goes relatively quickly on the kiosks or at the register. The food is incredible the chicken is fresh and not the standard frozen patty kind of idea for chicken at fast food spots. The chicken is flavorful and tender as well as the bread and the pickles that go with it all pair well together. Can't wait to try their aioli dips and others I forgot to get. The drinks are all custom blends for sodas and fruit based mixes. I signed up for the donate a meal if you take a pict of your sandwich option. One HUGE plus for me now is the socially conscious efforts that the chain makes.. Huge fan of those efforts and I will support this business because of that as well as the awesome food. Community Partnerships: Starbird actively partners with organizations like the L.A. Regional Food Bank and SF-Marin Food Bank to donate thousands of meals. "GiftAMeal" Program: They have a program where customers can share a photo of their meal and trigger a donation to a local food bank, generating social media impressions while giving back. Teacher Appreciation: Starbird has celebrated teachers and supported education initiatives through meal donations and fundraising. Support for Black Owned Businesses: They have donated a portion of their revenues to support Black Owned Businesses impacted by events like COVID-19 and recent violence. Employee Enrichment: Starbird offers tuition reimbursement and language learning programs to its employees. Focus on Employee Well-being: The co-founder mentions concerns about keeping their employees safe and providing them with opportunities, as well as giving raises and allowing staff to take meals home to their families. This is how a chain should be run, top notch food along with a moral conscious and happy...