Flying Star Cafe

Oh Flying Star! I would never say the food is cutting edge or exciting, but it’s consistently good and dependable. And some ingredients are sourced from local farms. I understand that you get what you pay for, but I still wish the food were slightly more affordable.
I don’t know the whole story, but about a year ago, they changed the menu, eliminating several items. This really didn’t bother me, since I often felt overwhelmed when trying to figure out what to get. They also changed their diner rewards system so now you need to download an app onto your smart phone to earn points. Kind of unfair to those who don’t have a phone.
But let’s talk about the food. They have burgers and fries, but you can also get snacks, soup, salads, burritos, fish tacos, and seasonal specials. Everything always tastes fresh. The desserts are beautiful and delicious. I can’t count how many times I’ve relied on their baking skills for birthdays and dinner parties.
The service is always with a smile too. I once sent fries back because they came out cold. I brought them up to the pickup window, and they happily replaced them with piping hot spuds!
So in short, I don’t find myself having uncontrollable cravings for Flying Star, but I have come to rely on them when I need something healthy and satisfying, or if I’m short on time.

Unhappy looking employees. Almost every time I’ve been in…
Also, dog friendly claim is not applicable if you alone and are unwilling to leave your dog unattended outside. They don’t go outside to take your order and you get yelled at if you go inside! So I guess they don’t know or acknowledge that its against the city law to leave your dog attended, especially in a public place.
Anyway, thats it for me. They clearly don’t need or want my patronage.

HAVE AGAIN: Huevos Rancheros was very good. I added bacon also very good. Very friendly and a great place to go.
NOT HAVE AGAIN: very disappointing that they changed their frequent diner rewards program. Too bad. My family said they do not go as often because of the program change.

Good, simple food… and a lot of healthy choices to boot! Hubs had the fish and chips and it was ample and lightly breaded and fried… not too greasy or heavy. I had the Jean’s Greens and loved it… filling and they did not skimp on the ingredients or the dressing. Other guests are fans of the Buddha bowls and they were not disappointed. The desserts… oh my, the desserts!!! Really fabulous coconut cake AND carrot cake (I have carrot cake WHEREVER I go and measure it to J. Alexander’s carrot cake). This carrot cake did not quite measure up to J. Alexander’s but it was better than good. The wait staff behind the counter were efficient and courteous and the staff who brought our meals to the table were so friendly. GOOD ONE! Come here to eat!

We met my daughter and new son-​in-​law here for dinner. It is a relaxed atmosphere. Jeans are very appropriate. It is a good place to eat. Nothing fancy and not pricey at all.
I had the fish and chips and they were very good. My wife, daughter, and son-​in-​law had the Buddha bowl and were satisfied with it. Overall, it was very good food at a reasonable price.
For desert, we split a piece of coconut cake and it was very good. They had so many deserts in the display case that it was hard to decide as all of them looked great.
The biggest down side was the heat. We sat on the level that has the kitchen and it was very warm. Other than that, it was what one would expect from a café with good food!

My cousin, a lifetime resident of Albuquerque, recommended the Flying Star Café tonight, and I’m glad he did. We wanted a good place that was casual, with a lot of choices for salads and entrees, close to our hotel, and this fit the bill perfectly in all those categories.
I had the Chicken Mediterranean Salad, which I greatly enjoyed. The chicken was perfectly cooked and seasoned, the lettuce, cucumber and cherry tomatoes were all very fresh, and the dressing was just right. Garbanzo beans and a nice sprinkling of feta cheese complemented the flavors beautifully. The only thing I disliked were the croutons; too hard and crunchy for my liking.
My husband had the New Mexico Chile Beef Stew, with green chilies. He thought it had great flavor and was pretty spicy, but he likes it hot. It came with 2 huge and tasty flour tortillas.
Our only major disappointment was dessert. We love lemon, so shared a large slice of Lemon Cake, which was priced at half off. We found out why; the cake itself was very very dry, and really should not have been sold. The best part was the lemon filling layers, which were very moist and sweetly tangy, but were just a very small part of the cake. The cloyingly sweet white frosting (buttercream?) was hard and basically flavorless.
Overall we liked this restaurant and would return. We just won’t get anything that’s priced at half off!

Definitely some of my favorite desserts. I highly suggest the southwest bennie, the mac and cheese, Buddha bowl, or the éclair.
This place is definitely on the pricey side (expect to pay ~$ 15 – 20 per person) for lunch and a drink.
This particular location is dog friendly though! (Your pup will have to stay outside while you’re inside ordering food-that’s understandable though.)

Flying Star has terrible customer service. We waited for 15 minutes in a cluster of a line before Kirsten (who was a trainer) skipped over us and took the order of a larger party. When she realized her mistake (after I complained loudly mind you), she did not even apologize! Instead she tried to recruit someone else to take our order. Alas, everyone else was busy so we waited about another five minutes to have our order taken. They were out of several items that I wanted to order, so I settled for the grilled chicken sandwich. Food was average. Although, they did not bring out our entire order at once. At our seats, I could see multiple plates of food waiting for a runner to take them out to their proper tables. I watched our food sit out for five minutes before being brought to the table– and we were still missing our onion rings. Still no apologies for terrible service.
The staff really needs more training ASAP.

Love the trendiness of this restaurant. They do not have a kids menu per say but they have a mini size order of Mac n Cheese or grilled cheese that was just perfect. The salted Carmel blonde was out of this world even though I only got a taste since my daughter ate it all. Little pricey but all good quality.

This restaurant was good. It had a little bit of everything to satisfy everyone’s preferences. The staff was friendly and the food was decent. We came here on a recommendation from Sue at Cinnamon Morning B&B.

I’ve come here more times that I can count over the years. Who else remembers Double Rainbow???
I love that they have pet-​friendly patios (aka «petios»), free wifi, and their food is not exceptional, or even especially delicious, but it is solid diner fare. Coffee’s not bad, either. It’s a great place to study and read when the noise level isn’t too bad.

I’m not sure why there aren’t already 5 stars at this place, but this needs to change! We came here while vacationing in ABQ, and decided to come because everything else was closed New Year’s Day. Already had a great impression given it was open. As we walked in, seeing that it was connected to a bookstore, it got even better!!! My goal in ABQ was to have everything green chile-​fied, so I got the green chile stew… SO GOOD. Seriously the best thing I’ve had in ABQ, hands down. I love the vibe of this place. Seems like a great place to meet friends or sit on your own and read a book or do work. The guys at the counter were so nice and helpful.

Excellent, healthy food, generous portions. You can never go wrong by going to Flying Star Café where the food is handmade, and a lot of consideration goes into creating each dish. From salads, to hearty soups, and other main dishes –you think that’d be enough. But where Flying Star entices people in is with their baked goods. Pies, cakes, brownies cookies –they’re excellent, and as good, if not better, than their entrees, sandwiches, salads, and soups.
The Flying Star on Rio Grande has a mostly retired, older clientele, who bring their dogs in on the patio to share in the bounty. Be sure to check out the bookstore next door, as well as Lily Barack, for incredible deals on handmade jewelry and other local goods.

Had a delicious breakfast with eggs, potatoes, bacon and toast.
I really enjoyed the mango iced tea.
This place has a great outdoor seating area where you can bring your dogs.
Great ambiance and good service.

Let me get this right. You add the price of the tip to the dishes and there’s no table service?! This place is a local monster/​chain and way overpriced. Basic.

Not our first time at Flying Star. Ordered the blueberry pancakes for breakfast. They were ok. Very dry. My boyfriend ordered Huevos Rancheros and they were decent. Service wasn’t too great. We asked for tabasco sauce and ended up going up to the counter to retrieve it since our waiter never returned with it. Also the busboy wiped down our table for us and told us how he was currently sick and fighting something. Why is the coffee so darn expensive!?!

Huge breakfast burrito that you can make vegan. It is pretty good. Close to where we were staying in ALBQ we ended up eating here twice. The second time we asked to split the burrito with no cheese and both sauces. Sadly it came out with cheese on top and inside it so it was inedible. I felt really bad about sending it back but they were nice about it and remade it quickly and although we only sent back my half they brought the other half for my husband, which he preferred anyway so that was nice.
Or recipe didn’t show our order so we couldn’t check it there, but when we ordered we got verbal confirmation that he heard us say no cheese, so I didn’t feel totally rude. I hate sending back food.
The burrito was good, but was the only thing on the menu that looked interesting to me that was vegan. I could see myself going there every so often if I was a local, but it made me sad that they have you pass all the sweets and none are vegan.
Outside seating is really nice!

My niece calls this place «the poochieo» which I think is totally a perfect description.
You can sit on this huge patio with your doggy.
The food was good too.
Everyone was so friendly and all the doggies seemed to be having a wonderful time.
I would definitely come back for breakfast :)

Three of us came to this breakfast diner one morning after having taken a walk at a nearby farm. The inside was strikingly modern, colorful, and filled with large windows and comfortable booths and chairs at every turn. The protocol starts with a line that leads to their glass case filled with fresh baked goods. Eventually we got to the ordering counter before finding our own seating. The environment was casual, family friendly, and a good place for people watching. There were college students seated at various corners who were plugged into their laptops and the free wifi. We too, had the same intentions to make progress on an important project. The staff was friendly and periodically would come by to refill our water.
Before pulling out our laptops, we had an ambitious agenda to conquer their menu. We started off with the Breakfast Hash ($ 10.99) that came with basted egg layered on top of a mix of quinoa, mushrooms, two types of sweet and savory potatoes, red peppers, red and green onions. The ingredients were fresh, and the combination of flavors was inspired by the egg yolk overflow that nicely coupled the sharp, sweet, and savory contrasts.
The Southwest Bennie ($ 12.99) came with two poached eggs, turkey green chile sausage, cheese and chile sauce, and grilled English muffins. Great kick coming from the chile. The sausage was lean and the English muffins were nicely charred to provide the subtleties.
The best dish we tried was the Egg Florentine ($ 12). It comes with two basted eggs, applewood smoked bacon, spinach, mushrooms, grilled polenta cakes, and feta. I love polenta so it made all the difference.
Lastly, this was the first time that I tried Flapjack ($ 4.59). It was an acquired taste for me with the combination of brown and rice flours, millet, and pumpkin, sesame, and sunflower seeds. I’m probably biased to compare it to pancakes, but would be interested in giving it another try.
Overall, on the counts of flavors, freshness, and consistency, the experience was a pleasant surprise. This diner still will not compare to the best and the most fancy breakfast places, but it had many characteristic and elements that made the visit enjoyable. The only complaint I had was the presentation and its greasy appearance. Prices appeared high but portions were sizable and satisfying. 3.5 stars. I’d be interested in visiting their other locations in the area.

I think Flying Star is consistently good. I have a few friends who don’t like Flying Star, but I probably come for a meal every couple of weeks. I particularly like this Flying Star on Rio Grande. The outdoor patio is one of the best (dog friendly) patio’s in the ABQ. I love sitting outside surrounded by trees. But, that’s another story.
I had the Spanish Frittata, an egg dish with potatoes. My mom had the Huevos Rancheros. Both were tasty. This isn’t food that is going to win a James Beard award, but it is consistently good.
I really like that they try to source local products and lean towards more organic, humane meat sources, etc. They also have a few gluten free dessert options. I only mostly eat gluten free, because I try to reduce or avoid carbs, so I very rarely would eat a dessert, and if I’m jumping off the deep end and into sugar, I’m gobbling up the Éclair.