Cosmopolitan restaurant offering refined, artfully presented takes on classic Thai dishes.
I moved from the area and have not been to Star Anise in a while. I was psyched when I found myself in the area for lunch, as it is an excellent restaurant I've patronized for years.
I was greeted by Ball, a relatively new server and recently arrived from Thailand. Ball was super friendly and we enjoyed tasting a beer new to the restaurant, TomKa Beer. It was tasty.
The patio is very calm and peaceful at lunch.
The food was EXCELLENT as it always is.
Ball was an attentive and informed server who made the experience a pleasurable one.
Decent Thai restaurant in the area. Usually order takeout, but decided to try a sit down weekend lunch. Not too busy, however they did mention being short staffed. There was one waiter handling all the tables, but he was very cheerful and checked on us. I liked the appetizer plate since it is great for sharing and can try different things. My favorite dish is pad thai and their portions are quite large so I always have enough for another meal. Pad see ew was also good and flavorful.
I had an amazing dining experience at this Thai restaurant. The Chicken Puffs were a fantastic starter, setting a high standard for the meal. The Pad See Ew was undoubtedly the best I've ever had, and the Chicken Fried Rice was equally delightful. To top it off, the Coconut Ice Cream was a unique and delicious dessert choice. The ambience and service were top-notch, making it a five-star experience that I highly recommend.
The service sucks! Avoid this cheap Asian massage parlor of a Thai food place...
I've eaten at this place multiple times, and each time, the service has been terrible. It's unfortunate because the food is actually good.
This last time takes the cake, though... the service was so terrible I decided not to leave a tip. As I'm leaving, the waiter had the balls to chase me down for a tip!
I couldn't believe it. We won't be back.
Anyway, avoid this place. Unless you enjoy being treated terribly. There are plenty of great thai food places in the area and this isn't one of them.
As an alternative, the Lebanese and Indian resturant in the same shopping center are both fabtastic.
I almost broke my tooth on the rock hard bitter mango. I eat here at least once a week and I always ask ahead of time if the man goes ripe before I order mango sticky rice for dessert. At lunchtime, they always tell me the truth. But tonight they served me a rock, hard unripe sour mango and would not refund it. I’m so pissed! I cashed in my reward points and I’m done with this place.
Great food, good people, and friendly. Atmosphere feel very welcome.
The service sucks! Avoid this cheap Asian massage parlor of a Thai food place...
I've eaten at this place multiple times, and each time, the service has been terrible. It's unfortunate because the food is actually good.
This last time takes the cake, though... the service was so terrible I decided not to leave a tip. As I'm leaving, the waiter had the balls to chase me down for a tip!
I couldn't believe it. We won't be back.
Anyway, avoid this place. Unless you enjoy being treated terribly. There are plenty of great thai food places in the area and this isn't one of them.
As an alternative, the Lebanese and Indian resturant in the same shopping center are both fabtastic.
I almost broke my tooth on the rock hard bitter mango. I eat here at least once a week and I always ask ahead of time if the man goes ripe before I order mango sticky rice for dessert. At lunchtime, they always tell me the truth. But tonight they served me a rock, hard unripe sour mango and would not refund it. I’m so pissed! I cashed in my reward points and I’m done with this place.
Updating my review today, 01/30/25, after a truly disappointing experience. I’m really saddened by how I was treated. The staff was incredibly rude—I ordered ahead and was told it would be ready in 30 minutes. When I arrived after 40 minutes and politely asked about my order, the staff yelled at me, saying I had to wait. It was such a disheartening experience. I hope the team can learn to treat customers with more respect in the future.
We went for lunch there. I felt skeptical about the waitress attitude since we were seated and also I found hair on the table where I was seated. We ordered Thai ice tea and fried rice. The thai ice tea was diluted in and fried rice was okayish. I was not very happy so I didn’t tip. The waitress asks me are you going to leave tip on credit card or cash since I don’t see any. They need to learn some hospitality and since when people are forced to tip. Needless to say I’m never going there or ordering food from there.
Overly sweet and lack of flavor pretty bad Thai food.
Delicious food Thai food.
We had pad thai, ton kha and yellow and everything was delicious!
An excellent place for family dinner.
This place's pad thai absolutely slaps. Will be exploring their menu 😛👀
I moved from the area and have not been to Star Anise in a while. I was psyched when I found myself in the area for lunch, as it is an excellent restaurant I've patronized for years.
I was greeted by Ball, a relatively new server and recently arrived from Thailand. Ball was super friendly and we enjoyed tasting a beer new to the restaurant, TomKa Beer. It was tasty.
The patio is very calm and peaceful at lunch.
The food was EXCELLENT as it always is.
Ball was an attentive and informed server who made the experience a pleasurable one.
Best dinner choice we made. We had to tell our server, Ball, that this was a top notch experience. The food was so well seasoned and had a surprisingly “clean” or “fresh” taste. Portions are pretty generous too.
The service was also so genuine. Ball was excellent at taking care of us and having some delightful conversation with.
I’m planning to take more friends and family back here whenever they visit San Diego!
The food is very salty. Waitress attitude is never friendly. I don’t know why she treat us like who own her money. Food delivery speed is not stable, sometimes 10mins, but some times can over 40 mins. But it is can be called a clean restaurant.
I don’t know how this place even gets 4 stars cuz it’s pretty terrible overall. I came in with my family and the guy gave us a table for 2. My sister said table for 3 and the middle aged waiter (who looks like the older, uglier, and more decrepit version of the male actor circled in the attached picture) told her “chill” 🙄. Is that really the way to talk to your customers? We order tom yum soup with seafood, beef salad, pad thai shrimp, pineapple fried rice, and thai basil with shrimp. The tom yum was super sour, the beef salad with too salty, the pad thai was overly sour, and the thai basil was just meh. We were wondering when the pineapple fried rice was gonna come out, but we didn’t bother asking about it because the food was just so bad. The same rude waiter that took down our order never even gave us the food; it was some younger Asian guy. The entire time, nobody refilled our drinks or even asked us how is our food. It was our first and last time. Highly do not recommend cuz the food was super bad (and expensive) and the waiter I mentioned above was super rude.
Edit: management asked for time and date. I believe it was 08/14/24 around 7-8pm. We were sitting a table of 3 all the way in the back of the restaurant.
We really like Star Anise and it’s our favorite Thai place to get to go. They make it super easy to make dishes vegan, if eligible, such as most of the noodle and rice dishes.
DO NOT ORDER from here - hair will be found in your food!
Awful service. And very rude. Won’t be back !
We found a clump of hair in the Tom soup. The shrimp was not cleaned, and still had the black veins/poop in it. Everything about this place was disgusting.
I will never order takeout from this place again. When I called to discuss the order, the person kept interrupting me before I could finish my sentence.
One of the best Thai food places in San Diego! Their prices are very reasonable ($13-15 for a big plate) and their food is absolutely delicious. 10/10 would recommend this for lunch or dinner.
אכלנו בשבת , הגענו למסעדה בשעה 14:25 והמלצר, הודיע לנו שהמסעדה נסגרת בשעה 15:00 ושאל אם אנחנו רוצים לקחת או לאכול במקום. אמרנו שנרצה לאכול במקום.
הוא הוסיף לומר שהמסעדה נסגרת ב 15:00, עוד שלוש פעמים, וכמובן שזה העכיר את האווירה וכבר לא היה נחמד לשבת שם.
ההרגשה היתה שאנחנו לא רצויים ,
אומנם המלצר חייך כל הזמן אבל היה הרושם שזה מזויף וש
האוכל הגיע מהר והאוכל בסך הכל בסדר טעים וטרי. המקום די סטנדרטי ולא מטופח במיוחד. חבל שזאת הייתה החוויה
.
Pad Kee mao its yummy and of course tom yam soup. Authentic taste like in Thailand and mango sticky rice
Good local option for Thai.
Food is delicious. The service is fair in general except once I had an unpleasant experience. When paying, the waitress held the POS machine tight and faced the screen to my side. While I was trying to take the POS machine, the waitress refused to release and said “please sign below and press ok button”. The tip was preselected as 18% and the other options were 20% and 25%. I was not able to think about the service and the tip amount due to the pressure the waitress was applying to me, and signed and paid the default amount. I felt offended and uncomfortable. If tipping is so mandatory, why not just raising the price?
Their attitude is really rude and they refuse to refund for missing items we ordered. I called them and they only said you can drive (30min) back and pick up or provide missing items. I am very disappointed on this place.
Decent Thai restaurant in the area. Usually order takeout, but decided to try a sit down weekend lunch. Not too busy, however they did mention being short staffed. There was one waiter handling all the tables, but he was very cheerful and checked on us. I liked the appetizer plate since it is great for sharing and can try different things. My favorite dish is pad thai and their portions are quite large so I always have enough for another meal. Pad see ew was also good and flavorful.
Sorry but this is the worst thai food I ever had. Very much AMERICAN Thai. Practically inedible. Never again.
What kind of service attitude is this? Don't come here.
Worst service in a while combined with bad food, and getting mad when I said I wasn't going to tip? The entitlement is crazy. Not to mention the default tip is 20%
Good quality at good prices. Love the Tom Yum
Great underrated place for Thai food. The service was pleasant, the atmosphere clean and comfortable, and the food is flavorful and they give generous portions (although I might ask for a bit more spice in my next meal).
Food was tasteless and full of nothing.
Waste of money and time
Was good overall
Thai cuisine is famous worldwide for bold aggressive flavors and aromas, so with a name like Star Anise one would expect an aromatic and spicy experience. That was not what we encountered. The flavor palate seems to be squarely aimed at the US circa 1965. Not bad per se, just very bland compared to what one might encounter in a restaurant targeting Asian diners. For what it's worth the elderly members of my party were quite pleased with their dishes. I wouldn't rule out returning just for this reason, but I'd caution you to ask for Thai level spiciness. Other than that, the ambience and service were fine.
This is the best Thai food around,always so fresh and delicious. The Papaya salad is the best I've ever had. There is a hidden little garden retreat at the back of the restaurant that you have to see it's part of the condo complex.
Love this place. Always good food.
Awesome food, nice wait staff. Needs dim lighting and maybe some soft music.
Don't bother! Lunch soup side was half full and lunch portion size is small/overpriced. Better Thai options are available elsewhere..
Fantastic Thai cuisine served in a cozy and modern setting. The dishes burst with flavors, and no single spice overwhelms the taste. We requested a spicy level, and it was perfectly balanced. The portions are generous, featuring an abundance of vegetables. The staff is exceptionally friendly and helpful.
Can never go wrong with 🌟 star
I ordered chicken for takeout, but when I got home, I realized it was tofu. That said, it tasted good.
Food was alright. The waitress literally just stole tips. The default option for tip is 20% which is also the lowest one available on the screen. She held the card machine away from me and refused to let me take it. When I wanted to customize it, she firmly just asked me to sign it.
The food was just okay. I ordered the Green Curry and it lacked flavor, there was no curry flavor at all. There were huge chunks of fibrous bamboo shoots and mushy red peppers. It was loaded with and overpowered by the Thai Basil.
The restaurant's atmosphere had the typical Thai restaurant feel
This is my favorite Thai place in San Diego. The Panang curry is amazing. My wife and I love having dinner on their back patio!
I haven't eaten and I'm already pissed at the service. The server looked so pissed at us for nothing. When getting our order, she asked what protein we wanted between chicken, beef or pork, we were hesitating for a few seconds, and I'm not lying when i said literally few seconds. Then the server asked us are u guys actually ready in a bad tone, like we were wasting her time. Bruh, there's only two tables seated including us, what's the rush?
I had an amazing dining experience at this Thai restaurant. The Chicken Puffs were a fantastic starter, setting a high standard for the meal. The Pad See Ew was undoubtedly the best I've ever had, and the Chicken Fried Rice was equally delightful. To top it off, the Coconut Ice Cream was a unique and delicious dessert choice. The ambience and service were top-notch, making it a five-star experience that I highly recommend.
Really great thai cusine with a warm service, especially Jarm!
Excellent food!
Place is great and atmosphere is good. Didn’t dine in. Just take out. Ordered a drunken noodle. Noodle is under seasoned and adding the greens (choy sum) doesn’t go well with this dish. Choy sum itself has a bitter taste and doesn’t blend in well to drunken noodle. Usually this dish comes with broccoli, carrot and bell pepper. Overall, I feel it’s pretty average and there is room for improvement.
Slow service for take out. Seems they are often understaffed. That said, we really enjoy their food!
Extremely rude front staff. Everything about the order was wrong. I asked for vegan fried rice and red curry and they added egg. I asked to add fried tofu and paid for it and they forgot to add it and won't refund. Never gonna order from here. Disappointed with this place.
Came here last year when it sucked. Still sucks. Service is bad and the food is super bland. They put Tofu in my Pad Thai, I only asked for chicken. Waiter is unfriendly. Somehow they made bad Pad Thai, which is difficult.
Thai curry taste okay, not the best in town
The interior is not very Thai. The service is alright. The chef’s specialties are not very creative or surprising. The dishes are well cooked but the pork and chicken are a bit dry. Thankfully, the crab is fried well but a bit expensive. Therefore, it’s above the average of 3 but unlikely worth the price in terms of the taste. 3.5 rating to be precise and fair.
This is one of our go to Thai restaurants, their food is great, we love it. The only problem we have and we think the owner really should be paying attention to, is that waitress! The one with the glasses and big teeth, she is the only issue in this restaurant. She is so rude and should not be working in the service industry at all. We have encountered her several times in different times we dine in, every time she is the problem. I can't detail everything that happened but she is not treating the customers well and she does not know how to be a waitress. She is entitled too. I wonder if she is the owner's relatives working there, but she will take his restaurant down if you keep her there.
Just one word, Panang curry, you have to try it, it’s unbelievable. This place is great
Tip starts from 20%, excuse me?
bad service
This place is the definition of greatness.
The lunch specials are really good and even though they are short staff they have really good customer and the food is really good and fresh
Couldn't believe how good the food was! Definitely coming back!
The driest Asian food we ever had, and not much flavor. Sweet and sour was like a broth, and neither sweet or sour, and pineapple stir fry was so dry and unseasoned we had to ask for salt. Asking for salt in a Thai restaurant was almost embarrassing.
The reviews were so good and I was extremely disappointed. I’m half Thai. I find it hard to find good Thai but this one was definitely not. Everything was delivered hot tho which was great with delivery services.
I love Tom kha coconut soup ALWAYS to one degree or another and I like it with Tofu and/or veg. The broth wasn’t bad but it wasn’t good either. The veg didn’t go well. Not sure if it was the kind of what but it was disappointing. I nearly ordered a large bc it’s a top favorite of mine but since I hadn’t been there before, I changed my mind! I’m soooooo thankful that I did bc it was yuk.
Ordered fried egg rolls for my mom. Came hot which was great since ordering egg rolls and similar fried appetizers can be precarious. The filling was mushy and not good to me at all. Its llld you HAD to dip them to improve the flavor over the mush in a Krispy roll.
Last but not least, ordered the pad see ew type noodles with pork and mild spice since I was feeling poorly. It was OK. Lots of Chinese broccoli hardly cooked but I prefer under then over bc the microwave can resolve that. Noodle texture was nice. I found it under flavored as a whole. Pork is typically the best to go with outside of shrimp or something but the pork was so lean, i dolt imagine it really added to the flavor. I noticed tbr soup had slme oil that was drawn to the top.
The noodles didn’t taste oily however, I was unpleasantly surprised to find a very slippery coated container at the bottom that was definitely oil.
I won’t ever try this place. My order was high. They do give you a nice portion of noodles. I had 2 meals out of it. I had hoped it seasoning would improve with time away but umm no, it was exactly the same
Maybe it was all a bad moment but I wasn’t happy at all and was sad I lost so much money ordering it and through a delivery app too. Double pay and not tasty.
More than one hour wait for phoned in take out lunch order. No food is that good. Worse than mediocre services. It’s not pandemic time anymore. Please get it together.
I have had about 10 different items from their menu and they are all great. Once I tasted the panang chicken curry that is all I get! I like it very spicy but they cater each dish on your spice preference. Great restaurant.
Update 2 years later. Still amazing!!
Very tasty food.
10 out of 10 loved the food and service. Everyone was very nice and the food was very good. I would definitely come back and recommend it to everyone!!
I cannot find hours on the website
Their pad Thai is the worst I’ve ever had.
I love their Yellow Curry and the peaceful outside dining area.
Star Anise is a treasure for the UTC area! The Panang curry is delicious and i've never had an appetizer here I didn't love. Their lunch specials are a really good deal, you can get a soup/salad, curry, and a couple moneybags for $10. Awesome flavors, really nice staff, and amazing value makes this one of our go-to's for a lunch run in UTC.
Delicious and very kind service.
I'm so fortunate to have this place only a short walk away from me! The dishes are flavorful and the staff are kind. My favorite is the Crab Pad Thai and my partner loves the Yellow Curry. Thai Tea is also a must!
One of the best Thai places in San Diego over the years. I've had several different friends from different places in San Diego take me to this as their favorite Thai place. It never disappoints, always good food, staff is attentive, and it's tucked away in a pretty spot in this shopping mall so your view out the windows are trees and flowers. Definitely recommend.
The best Pad Thai in town. Wholeheartedly recommended!
Tried the Thai place close to our house. Soul was served within no time. And our lunch was on table within 5mins, Drunken noodles with chicken was just the right spicy and flavor s. And so was Thai coconut curry but I liked my noodles more. Since I love spicy food.
Food was average. I have had better chicken satay. The fresh rolls were okay with the sauce. Pad thai was tasty but a little mushy. The server was grumpy and said things like "you can sit outside but there are no lights or heating"... when we asked for silverware (they don't give knife or serving spoons) we got "if you want something tell me at once" that was unexpected!
If at all I may do a take out and not eat in there again.
One of my favorite Thai restaurants that I ordered delivery for padThai several times. Now finally visited and dine in for the pineapple fried rice, it’s not bad but wouldn’t say the best.
Some of the best Drunken Noodles I have ever had so much flavor. And if you want spice you can get it! The shrimp and chicken fried rice is also delicious. The shrimp is big enough in the dish to be a whole meal. The portions may look small but it is a lot. The fresh rolls with the gummy rice paper are like a bland salad but the sauce makes it so much better. Give this spot a try.
This is my favorite Thai restaurant by far. Excellent food, excellent staff and excellent location.
Absolutely wonderful, great service and food.
Beautiful place ,excellent food, great service. I tried to shrimp rice fried with cucumbers it was a excellent meal, served warm to hot with garnishments, places is clean ,covid-19 protocols in place, prices is reasonable, great atmosphere when dining in, I will be back.
Good food and service.
I used to live in Thailand and this is the best Thai food I've had outside of Thailand. Hands down. I had seafood pad gra pao (hot basil stirfry) and som tam (papaya salad) and it was extremely authentic. Spot on and delicious. Really truly a delight to discover this restaurant. I'm eating the leftovers now and it's even better the second time around!
Amazing place
Robust dishes packed with spice and flair - I loved pairing the pad thai and pineapple fried rice with peanut sauce. Star Anise's selection is perfect for a hearty dinner on a Friday night.
good service
Great food and service. My friend was ordering soup and eggplant dish. When we got our bill, they charged us for extra vegetable on both entrees, even though she didn't specifically ask for extra vegetable.
Delicious food..😊
Really great Thai food! One of the best spots in San Diego alongside Lannna & Bahn IMO. Their Panang curry is so good — has eggplant which is unusual but so delicious. Their eggplant stir fry is also amazing and their pad Thai is also one of my favorites. Perfect level of sweet and tangy. Star Anise is hard to be in the area.
Great curry
Very east to order take out from here in COVID times. They set up a table at the front of their restaurant and pick up was fast and convenient at 5 pm on a weekday.
NOTE for some reason their online menu doesn't cover everything. Call to see what else they have (I really wanted pad thai but it wasn't on the online order form - when I called they had it).
The furry was fantastic.
Yum! We looooove this place
Best Thai food I’ve found in this area. Great service.
I visit this restaurant every week and they never fail with the quality of their cuisine.
Great food! Tasty and great portions
Unique Thai food, not the regular one as you used to know.
Awesome Awesome Awesome! I had the Pad Thai with chicken. One of the best Pad Thai dishes I have had.You can sit outside but inside is closed down for now. I will be back again and again.
Third time ordering Panang Curry here , this time I ordered it medium “ as I always do and it was very bland almost flavorless , called to inquire & person answering did not seem to care at all , very disappointed ! I spent almost sixty dollars , the satay and the yellow curry that my friend ordered were as requested,,just wish that some attempt had been made to fix the situation. I want to support local small business but she did not seem at all concerned about my dissatisfaction .
It's okay. Kind of bland and tofu taste like seafood. Been here a few times and never been impressed with it. Portions are a decent size. Parking lot is a pretty designed, good luck parking during lunch time.
The medium spice level was a bit too spicy for me. Overall a good restaurant.
Always excellent food and service!
I've become a regular!
Some the best Thai in the area. Their Tom Kha is so good, definitely using authentic galangal.
Just finished eating here and I have some mixed feelings about it.
Food is not bad. A little on the pricier side for Thai food. I'm used to it being pretty cheap as well as delicious.
My boyfriend got the Spicy Pad Kee Mao and it was yummy and spicy. I wouldn't say it was amazing but won't say it was terrible either. It was just good.
I had the lunch Khao Mun Gai. I thought it was very yummy! The rice was cooked well and the sauce on the side was also very flavorful. For lunch they give you a hefty portion. It also came with two fried wontons filled with curry and a choice of salad or soup. (Along with soup that comes with the Khao Mun Gai).
Now, I was between giving them 3 stars or 4. I would like to give 3.5. The main reason I would do this is because I think my chicken was raw :(. I didn't have the heart to say anything because I was scared LOL. I ate a good portion before I came to the conclusion it was probably still raw and I didn't want to be that person who complains after eating half of their meal. (But here I am writing a review because I'm a little bishhh.)It wasn't raw to the point where I saw pink meat but it was raw in which the chicken didn't shred easily and it was sort of crunchy? *Shivers* the rawness was also more to the middle slices of chicken rather than the ends. I wish I said something but that's ok. I packed the other half I didn't eat home and I hope warming it up more will fully cook the chicken because every thing else about the meal was good.
Service was also nice and attentive. Don't have any complaints about that. Thai tea was also just ok...
So with all this combined I decided to do 3 stars. It was mainly the raw-ish chicken that got to me. I'll still give this place one more chance before I completely write it off. Sorry Star Anise!
Nice place... Good food. Quantity less than spicies-of-thai.
The food wasn’t nasty but it wasn’t good.
Fish and entries were really good, nice place
Excellent vegetarian and vegan food options.
- 18 photos
- 200 reviews
- 4.1 Health Rating
- Contact: +1 858-535-1668
- Website: http://www.staranisesd.com/
- Location: 8935 Towne Centre Dr Suite 115, San Diego, CA 92122, United States
- Map: 32.8677227, -117.2058744
- Thai restaurant
- Asian restaurant
- Health food restaurant
- Monday: 11 AM–3 PM–5–9:30 PM
- Tuesday: 11 AM–3 PM–5–9:30 PM
- Wednesday: 11 AM–3 PM–5–9:30 PM
- Thursday: 11 AM–3 PM–5–9:30 PM
- Friday: 11 AM–3 PM–5–10 PM
- Saturday: 11:30 AM–3 PM–5–10 PM
- Sunday: 11:30 AM–3 PM–5–9:30 PM
- Outdoor seating: Available
- Delivery: Available
- Takeaway: Available
- Dine-in: Available
- Fast service: Available
- Great tea selection: Available
- Lunch: Available
- Dinner: Available
- Solo dining: Available
- Wheelchair-accessible car park: Available
- Wheelchair-accessible entrance: Available
- Wheelchair-accessible seating: Available
- Wheelchair-accessible toilet: Available
- Alcohol: Available
- Beer: Available
- Coffee: Available
- Comfort food: Available
- Healthy options: Available
- Vegan options: Available
- Vegetarian options: Available
- Wine: Available
- Lunch: Available
- Dinner: Available
- Catering: Available
- Dessert: Available
- Toilet: Available
- Casual: Available
- Cosy: Available
- Romantic: Available
- Trendy: Available
- Family friendly: Available
- Groups: Available
- LGBTQ+ friendly: Available
- Transgender safe space: Available
- University students: Available
- Accepts reservations: Available
- Credit cards: Available
- Debit cards: Available
- NFC mobile payments: Available
- Credit cards: Available
- Good for kids: Available
- High chairs: Available
- Free of charge street parking: Available
- Free parking lot: Available
- Parking: Available