Starlite Room

Our home away from home! Old time atmosphere and great prices. The waitresses are some of the best in town.
I love there food. My opinion they have the best burger in town, juicy and very flavorful. The jumbo chilli dog is more than a meal! Great bar with great bar food!
Prices are great. My wife and I will order the burgers share a side (sides are large) and drinks and we have never paid more than 25 $ for our bill!
Old establishment that I hope will be around for many years to come!

I drive by Starlite room a lot, because I’d rather drive on C than on 1^st, and the turn onto 33^rd is a lot faster than 32^nd. Each and every time I pass by, I look at each of the signs boasting «the corridor’s best burger,» and I wonder if the burger is truly that good, or if they just need a hook to lure people in.
I finally had a chance to stop in and try the super burger. While I can’t speak to the entire corridor, I can say that the super burger warrants inclusion in any discussion about the best burger in Cedar Rapids. I think that the biggest determinant of whether a person will consider it the best burger in town is whether people like standard toppings, or exotic toppings. If you like standard toppings, I think you’re going to have a very tough time finding a better burger than this. As someone who makes burgers a fair amount at home, I think the most important decision is the fat percentage, relative to the cooking surface. I find that ⁷⁵⁄₂₅ is ideal for a backyard grill. I’m not sure what ratio is best for a restaurant flattop. Starlite room seems to have it figured out, however, as the burger was perfectly juicy, without being greasy. The burger was also cooked evenly throughout, without being overcooked on the outside. That’s not easy to do with a burger as thick as this one. I didn’t read any description of the burger on the menu, if there even was one, but it tasted to me like it was an all beef burger, as opposed to being a blend with some amount of pork in the mix. The only part of the burger that wasn’t better than expected was the pepper jack cheese. I’m not sure whether I was mistakenly given the wrong kind of cheese, but I didn’t pick up on any level of spice being added by the cheese.
I was pleased with the fries, as well. I don’t remember them as well as I remember the burger. So, I can’t really provide a lot of detail. I do remember liking them, though.
I would definitely come back here for another super burger, and would recommend Starlite Room to anyone else who likes burgers and has a decent appetite.

I don’t understand how this place is a favorite burger place. We’ve tried it three separate times now and the burgers are abysmal. The patties are preformed, frozen, over-​fried and slightly rancid. I do NOT recommend them at all. The sides are fantastic though. Perfect fries, delicious onion rings, and the mushrooms are to die for. The popcorn is complementary, always fresh, and we have always had really good service, but the waitresses argue amongst themselves loudly and on the floor in front of the customers. The entire place needs a good scrub down as its pretty dirty inside. We decided on our last visit that we will never eat another burger there… but will absolutely come back for the fried apps when we want to indulge. If you’re looking for a good burger, don’t waste your time. If you want to throw caution to the wind, get an extra large order of onion rings, a cold beer and sit back to enjoy the floorshow the waitresses put on with their bickering.

Giving one star not on the food but on the service. The food was excellent. The waitresses were too busy fighting amongst each other to serve us or anyone. While checking out they were yelling at each other and it was extremely uncomfortable. I have two brothers and have never spoke to them the way they were yelling at each other.

The burgers are very good like the sign says. The total disregard for management is very apparent and the «we have good burgers so we don’t need to do anything else» attitude trickles down through the staff.
It’s pretty dirty, or so the outdated interior makes it seem. Very limited bar and the keg cooler is clearly either too full or set too cold (that’s why you can’t pour the beer without it being pure foam, you’re welcome) and doesn’t pour properly and the bartender made a point of it being a long term issue. Not much going for it besides the burgers which are where all of the stars come from. Always sad to see a place fall into complacency, I’d kill a hangover here but that’s about it.

My husband and I were in Cedar Rapids for the weekend visiting family who took us to Starlite for a quick lunch. I gotta say, we were all pretty happy with our orders. My hamburger was very tasty and I was extremely satisfied. I look forward to eating here again when I find myself in town again.

So here’s the thing, if you don’t love a Starlite Burger than you aren’t human, go there all the time, but the service tonight was unbelievable. The girl that first came to our table at 8:02 pm, gave us menus and took our drink order. NEVER SAW HER AGAIN UNTIL SHE WAS WALKING OUT THE DOOR FOR THE NIGHT!!! At 8:11 pm, I told my daughter we were leaving, then a server, I think her name was Michelle asked if anybody had helped us. She immediately took our drink and food order and had us drinks within seconds, Michelle kept us there. At 8:30 pm, a different girl brought us 1 basket of old fries. No sandwiches or chili that we had ordered. At 8:35 pm, Michelle came out with the «rest of the order» & said, «oh there’s your fries!» The food was good, which was fortunate because I was not happy. We placed an order for more fries at 8:45 pm, got them at 9:00 pm, never did get our check. Thank you, Michelle for working your tail off, your co-​workers could take a lesson. Service needs some education about how important the customer is.

Came here once with some coworkers it’s a nice little dive bar/​restaurant. The burgers are really good, but that’s about it the fries and other side dishes were not that great, nothing that really stood out from other restaurants. It does look like a fun bar at night.

If you want a burger, this is the spot. It’s a great dive kind of place. You know as soon as you walk in that you are going to get some great food. I decided on a burger, which was amazing, and I think I’ll try the pork tenderloin instead. I hear those are pretty tasty as well!

In looking at all the restaurants Ive reviewed over the last several years I’m amazed I have not included the Starlight room since I’ve been there probably half a dozen times if not more. The other night my girlfriend and I wanted a late night dinner and really didn’t want to spend any excessive amount of money nor effort to find a decent place to get a decent meal. Well I came up with the Starlight room. Let’s start with services it could not have been any better or any more attentive we had at least two waitresses constantly at our call. The waitress always ensured we were well taken care of and that we were enjoying our meal. For dinner that night I had the pork tenderloin which was huge my girlfriend had the hamburger, or rather the cheeseburger we had fried mushrooms for an appetizer and onion rings during our meal. Though this meal was a cholesterol nightmare in my diet, for some reason I truly wanted all this fried food obviously a deficiency in my otherwise healthy diet. Haha. The tenderloin was excellent nicely breaded more than adequate presentation the mushrooms were hot and not greasy the onion rings were hot also not greasy and my girlfriend enjoyed her hamburger. I would strongly suggest this restaurant. It’s not fancy it’s simple it’s late night food and it fills the bill

Located on 1^st Avenue in the old Kenwood neighborhood The Starlite Room is a decades old Cedar Rapids staple. It’s basically a combination greasy spoon/​dive bar and has a very casual relaxed and friendly atmosphere. As you enter the establishment there is a small bar area, booth seating, and a pool table. To the side is a larger dining area with a big screen TV. Starlite is locally famous for their Superburger. I always get the Half Pound Supercheeseburger and it is delicious! (never thought I’d say that about a fried hamburger) It comes with mustard, ketchup, mayo, and onions (you have to request lettuce and tomato, but I prefer it without). This greasy burger is quite flavorful and all that taste just melts in your mouth. I often eat two of ‘em, but one is sufficient for most. They have great onion rings too (most places under cook onion rings — not here). I’ve heard they also have good tenderloins and chili, but have not tried them as I always stick with the Super Burger. The prices are reasonable, but my one complaint is that they do not itemize the cost of the food and drinks ordered on your bill — for that matter they don’t even write down a total amount owed. You don’t find out the exact amount to pay until they ring you up; this can be confusing for large groups ordering many drinks for one another on seperate tabs; I’ll take off one star for that, but otherwise a great place, I enjoy eating there and will continue to do so.

A neighborhood landmark. Just a plain old bar/​burger joint. You can’t expect anything fancy, but you can expect good sandwiches, hot fries, and fast, no-​nonsense (but friendly!) service. We just recently moved to the area, and we’ll be walking down here often for a good meal at an excellent price.
Update: since last I wrote, I turned vegan. BUT this place has a house salad that is mighty tasty for just a bunch of veggies in a bowl. Very fresh and not from a bag. And the fries are still great. :)

Perfectly what it is — a no-​frills, greasy burger joint with good service and good burgers. Think diner meets dive bar, with friendly servers and a great mix of people.
Love the ‘rotating server’ set up as it means that service is fast, attentive, and friendly. New diners are met promptly with a server and a bowl of popcorn. The servers are some of the friendliest and most efficient I’ve seen in Cedar Rapids.
The other reviews are correct — there are only 3 beers on tap. But what other beers would you want to drink at a place like this? For the full effect, a Miller or Bud Light seems like the only logical choice.
Burgers were great –several sizes and toppings to select from. Yes, it’s also true that fries come separately — but the size options are perfect for sharing.
If you are looking for fine dining and fancy cocktails, this is definitely not the place to go — but for a casual, no-​pretense, in-​and-​out burger stop, this is a great option.

I eat at the Starlite Room on a fairly regular basis and for a reason! The Starlite Room is traditionally known for its great burgers and tenderloins but anything on the menu has its own special feel to it and is definitely not lacking in taste and can also be found at a great price. I am always greeted when I walk in the door and have never had a problem being waited on when I eat here I highly recommend this place to anyone!

A CR staple since??? The place has been at this location for as long as I can remember, right off 1^st Ave ‘uptown’. They advertise their burgers, chili and pork tenderloin on a big scrolling sign out front. They apparently also have a large room for bigger parties available in the back somewhere.
As for the place itself, when you walk in you face the bar directly, a sort of U-​shaped thing with wood paneling from 1970 and a worn top. Only 3 beers on tap :{ and one was out each time I’ve visited. When I’ve ordered soft drinks it’s been served from a can or bottle, the waitress claimed they were ‘out of syrup’ but I’ve been there several times over 2 years and it’s always been out… this screams poor management or outright cheapness on the owners part (even though it costs a lot more to purchase 20oz bottles and cans). The beer itself was cheap but don’t bother asking for anything but domestics — even the bottle selection reflected an outdated mindset of ‘what customers want’. The booze selection is also pretty slim, and without proper mixers a rum/​jack n coke isn’t even possible. One star for the ‘bar’ portion.
As for food, the burgers are in fact well-​seasoned and tasty, but nothing worth going out of your way for. Hard to say if they’re handmade or not, the buns are typical sysco-​style straight buns (nothing fancy). The breaded pork tenderloin was large but arrived dry and overcooked, a shame since Iowa grows more pork than anywhere else in the country and if it;s local it’s being mutilated. As for the fries, they’re mushy and bland. Once I stopped in to massage a hangover and, enticed by the promise of the ‘best chili in cedar rapids’ from the sign out front, decided I’d order some chili fries. Initially the server said ‘we don’t have chili fries’ and seemed perplexed about how I might get some. So I ordered a bowl of chili and a side order of fries (lol) and had to send the fries back because they were undercooked. It wouldn’t seem like such a hard thing to do but I guess frozen, unseasoned plain fries from Sysco are difficult to cook properly.
Most of the time my service has been acceptable, if a bit slow, but on two occasions I had to go to the bar to get another drink because my server was nowhere to be found. The girls are pretty but they vary in ability to serve.
Summary: if you’re not too picky, and don’t mind feeling like you’ve stepping into a 1970’s era basement den, the food is priced about right for what you get. Probably good for families and larger groups if you aren’t in a hurry.

I want to start off by saying hands down the best bar burger in town. Not even a question for me, and I get burgers pretty much everywhere. That being said, not the cheapest place to eat. The burgers don’t come with fries or anything so the price may initially seem cheap but it ends up being pretty average. The fries are nothing to brag about either.
Probably the most limited draw selection I’ve encountered. Only 3 on tap. You can’t go wrong with a bud light, but I’d like some more options.
Pretty typical bar environment but their dining room is actually quite spacious.
All in all, the burgers will keep me coming back, but that’s about it.

The Starlite Room accomplishes exactly what it sets out to accomplish. Cheap beer and bar food. They have great fried food and charge about what I would charge if I were running a bar out of my kitchen. I probably wouldn’t want to hang out with anyone who wouldn’t enjoy this place.

Once every year or so, I venture out to Cedar Rapids to visit extended family. I don’t know who it is in my family who is into this place, but I’ve been to Starlite with them a few times. It’s pretty decent. Dive bar! Arcade games! Cheap, greasy food! Don’t expect much more or less. The breaded mushrooms were a little too breaded the last time I went. You can ask for the pork tenderloin sandwich to be split in half, ’cause it is gigantic and can easily feed two people, especially if you’re also getting a side.
I was very impressed with the people-​watching opportunities the last time I was at this place.

starlight? I know a lot of people from this area. I’ve been here a few times with friends. The food is typical dive bar greasy fried everything. The burgers that so many rave about are the grossest burgers you’ll ever eat. if you’re drunk and smoking cigarettes, you’ eat anything– I think that’s he only way anyone can stomach these things. the best way to eat them is to put ketchup, mustard and a pickle on top, then toss it in the trash. the taste is something like rotten meat, mixed with liver and cooked on a filthy grill. these make white castle (also nasty) taste like the best burger on the planet.
beer is pretty cheap.
family oriented; any single women in here will be pretty rough.

Even though it’s a little too dive-​y, this is a cheap place with quality food. I love grilled cheese and since I don’t enjoy tomato or anything else on the sandwich, I refuse to pay upwards of $ 7 for one. At Starlite, however, it is $ 3 & delicious. The bottled beer selection is also fairly impressive considering the surroundings.
Watch out for the creepy old lady in the corner, especially due to the mirrors.