Stars Grill

The stars are unfortunately not aligned at Stars Grill.
Upon entering the place, the bartender greeted me nicely. As it turns out, she wasn’t the bartender. She was the server, and then the bartender arrived from wherever he was. It was roughly 5 pm, so right in time for happy hour, though the restaurant had few people in it, and as I’d find out, doesn’t have a happy hour.
The ambiance at Stars Grill is strangely similar to one of its predecessors, Bollywood Bistro except all you have to do is remove the photos of Bollywood stars and replace them with Hollywood stars. Boy, the spots in this space really like to milk the fact that they are by a movie theater. It’s very obvious that the restaurant is in a strip mall as the interior has a strip mall feel to it with little visual appeal.
Anyway, I ordered a beer. I chose hummus as an appetizer. Considering the place was dead and I was alone, the bartender seemed open to striking up a conversation. Unfortunately, the bartender was extremely bizarre. At times, he seemed interested in talking to me, but other times, he looked at me like I was an idiot for being pleasant and cracking a joke. Look, I don’t mind if a bartender doesn’t want to talk (I’d be fine just watching «Judge Judy» on your TV), but if he’s going between being talkative to then seeming annoyed that we’re talking, I’m not sure why we’re doing this at all. My point: he established that he was pretty socially awkward, which isn’t exactly the best quality for a bartender. As I’d find out, this would only get weirder.
Anytime that a new customer would enter Stars Grill (which only happened a couple times while I was there), the server and bartender would ask each other, «Are you going to take them?» This is very bizarre and doesn’t come off professional. It’s one thing if it’s an extremely busy, huge restaurant, but this is an intimate venue where everyone could hear their conversation. The fact that neither of them knew organizationally how to handle the room nor that either seemed positive about taking the lead to service customers was a concern.
Things continued to get odd. As I was waiting for my food, I noticed that multiple individuals at the restaurant were returning food to the kitchen. The back of the house, who also seemed to just be hanging out in the doorway most of the time, had little to no reaction to their food being returned other than they would have to make it again. The server, who seemed nice, also was pretty frustrated and looked to be having a bad day, which gave me the impression that this might be a regular occurrence (at least that day).
It got even more bizarre. An individual returned a drink to their bar for some reason. It’s unclear what their issue was, but then my socially awkward bartender proceeded to just go ahead and drink the returned drink in front of me after taste testing it. Look, I don’t care if a bartender enjoys a drink or takes a shot behind the bar. But, to take a returned drink and then kind of flaunt it in front of me as being okay to drink once again just comes off unprofessional. As I mentioned, it probably didn’t help him that he had already socially alienated me by this point.
My beer was fine. I then received my hummus, which I didn’t think it was possible to mess up hummus, but the slowly dimming light of Stars Grill managed to. It was unimpressive, and considering you are just blocks away from numerous excellent Mediterranean restaurants (Panini Opa, Shish Kebab) with fantastic hummus, this doesn’t bode well for this restaurant.
It somehow got stranger. Someone returned a bottle of Stella Artois. I guess it was skunked. No clue. I was told by another bartender that bars in the area have had issues like this with the Stella distributor, but nevertheless, this was just an additional weird thing that happened in the odd one hour that I was there.
I’m hoping for the best for Stars Grill as there has been constant change in that space, and perhaps this was just a bad day for them, but my experience seemed like something out of «Kitchen Nightmares» and made me uncomfortable enough that I won’t return. I could look beyond the food if the service was good, but it was unbelievably disappointing. As I mentioned, the front of the house needs to be far more versed on how to deal with customers in an appropriate and professional manner. They just didn’t seem to have any joy for what they were doing, and it showed. Or, they were just completely socially awkward, and perhaps should pick a different profession that doesn’t involve them dealing with people. The back of the house didn’t seem to be much better. Sure, it wasn’t busy, but that doesn’t mean you’re not still working or showing care and passion for what you’re doing. I didn’t see that at Stars Grill, and if the staff doesn’t have motivation to be there, why would I as a customer?
Good luck to Stars Grill. If there’s a star that represents my experience at Stars Grill, it’s Pauly Shore.

We had dinner here last night. Wow, what a diamond in the rough. Its not what I expected considering the somewhat funky location next to the dollar theatre in Carriage Place shopping center. But the food was great, service was great, beer was great, and all at a very affordable price. The Juicy Lucy Burger was one of the best I’ve ever had. I highly recommend.

Great menu, simple atmosphere. I crave the waffle fried chicken and the sauerkraut balls appetizers. Kids loved the Mac and cheese stuffed burger. I love the brussel sprouts. Wife likes the salmon BLT. Service is really friendly. They are definitely off to a good start.

I guess when you order a burger it doesn’t come with fries anymore which I pay 9.95 just for a burger only. They should change there menu because it say it come with it. Pay that much should of want to Wendy and get a full meal.

A friend and I lunched there yesterday. This place is as good as it gets! Great variety of foods, plenty of vegan and vegetarian options. Food served hot and fresh. The fries are the best I’ve ever had. They make their own veggie burger with avocado and a delicious sauce.
Christina, our waitress was professional and friendly. She was attentive but not intrusive. Service was better than much more expensive restaurants

Food received was all good, with the soups (chili and a tortilla soup) being the best part. Sandwiches were good and the side of tater tots being spot-​on. I stop short of five stars as we didn’t have anything that stood out as exceptionally unique, but maybe I’ll find something on my next visit to change my mind.

This place is so good! Poutine was amazing. Jon had the Hollywood burger and declared it his new favorite. The Bacon– Brussels sprouts were definitely worth trying. We will be back.

Excellent food and presentation, with interesting combinations of seasonal vegetables. The maple and bourbon glazed salmon was very good and the portion was generous. Prices are very affordable considering the quality and quantity of the servings.
Two minor issues: the kitchen was quite slow in preparing our food (but it was worth the wait); and the ventilation system may need attention since my clothes carried the restaurant aroma home.
Overall, I would highly recommend Stars Grill with its very good food and nicely casual ambience, as well as bargain prices compared to many restaurants serving such entrees.

Stopped for a late lunch today and was pleasantly surprised. I ordered the Pot Roast and a side salad and all I can say is WOW. The salad was fresh and the dressings were made from scratch, delicious. The Pot Roast was served atop mashed potatoes and sautéed Kale topped with crispy onion straws, and so tender, no need for a knife. We will definitely make this a regular place for lunch and dinner so we can try everything on the menu. Stop by for a bite, you won’t be disappointed!

I was very pleasantly surprised with this place and how they solved my fall pumpkin fixation. I ordered the pumpkin soup, pumpkin marinated pulled pork sandwich, and sweet potato fries. This all came to around $ 16 with tax which isnt bad for the taste.
I really enjoyed the pumpkin soup and to be honest that was enough for lunch. I probably should have just stayed with that but I had already ordered everything else. My daughter loved the sweet potato fries as she ate and ate from the basket. For $ 3 – 4, it wasn’t a bad portion of fries. The pumpkin soup was very tasty and I would highly recommend it but with a disclaimer: «I think this was the first time I have ever had pumpkin soup.» The puller pork was very good as well. It was tender and not dried out. The fries had a good crunch and seemed to have some brown sugar on them.
My only complaint was the oddity of bringing out all the food at one time. I ordered the soup and fries right away. About five minutes later I decided to also order the sandwich but yet they all came out together. I was ordering the pumpkin soup and fries to eat while I wait for the sandwich. The soup took over 5 minutes to eat so my sandwich was a little cooler than I would have liked. I ate only half of it and it was pretty good a few days later. The waitress also wasn’t into multitasking too much. I was trying to get her attention to get my check which took a bit of time. She was very nice to me just not super attentive. She was sweet to my daughter so I guess that helps. I would like to head back here while pumpkin is still in season. This place was than the other places I have tried in this location.

We would not recommend this place. Went on a Friday night and it wasn’t very crowded but got a little crowded after we sat. Only one server so service was slow. For an appetizer we had the nachos and they were awful. They were cold and were pretty pathetic. They had cold black beans, some tomatoes and it looked like they started with shredded cheese and ran out so they glopped some cold cheese sauce on top. Most of the shredded cheese wasn’t even melted. No salsa or sour cream. Pumpkin pulled pork sandwich was very good. Pork medallion was fair. Pot roast was a clear standout — it was delicious!
Apple crisp was not hot and was just ok. All things considered, prices were too high and food was not that good, with the exception of the pot roast and pulled pork sandwich.

I just came here for the first time this week and had the pumpkin soup and the chicken blta. Both were amazing but the soup was my favorite. I will return to this place because I received awesome lunch service. and I want to try the other things on the menu. My only complaint was that there are no «lunch» prices. Even though the food will keep me coming back for sure!

server forgot to put in ²⁄₆ orders. We were the only table in the restaurant. Had to ask for a refill, and go get cloth from them when someone accidentally spilled and she was watching.
Apps were bland, but burgers were good. Brought wrong dressing for salad.
Based on training of owner/​chef I expected better service and better attention to starters.

My wife and I have eaten here 3 times and will continue to go back. The corn soup is a traditional east coast broth, not creamed corn. It was appropriately spicy and flavorful. We have had 3 versions of the hamburgers and they were served as advertised and cooked as ordered. I had the pork dinner and found the meat moist and nicely seasoned. Stars has its beer licensed and the seasonal beer on tap was a great compliment to the burger. My wife wishes they would drop Pepsi and shift to Coke; I wish she would stop drinking soda. Whoever found this place expensive must eat at White Castle. The sophistication of the cooking for the price is incredible. I agree the décor could use some tweaking. Service has improved dramatically since our first visit. You will wait a little while for you food, but it is cooked to order. Anyone who likes food owes it to themselves to try this new venture.

This is the first time I have submitted a restauraunt review on Unilocal ! or any other site.
I am doing so because Stars Grill deserves far better than the reviews currently posted on this site, and because Columbus food fans deserve to know about this unassuming place .
I am fond of saying «It’s all about the food».
This establishment has some of the best made from scratch food around, all at very reasonable prices.
My wife ordered Fried green tomatoes, which were the best I have ever tasted anywhere. My appetizer was a delicious chicken chili.
We both ordered pot roast, mine with a side of braised greens. This dish was outstanding, with high quality ingredients. My wife stated this dish was comparable to memorable meals served by the restauraunt just down Bethel Road which for many years has widely been considered the best restauraunt in Columbus.
The chef introduced himself to us, and earnestly explained his creative concepts and vision for the future.
Columbus has been blessed with many great restaurants. We should support this young establishment, which holds great promise for lovers of homemade comfort food.

Out of full disclosure I am friends with the chef and owner’s sister. Finally decided to stop in after giving them a solid month to get on their feet. What I thought would be easily under an hour for dinner took nearly 1.5 hours. Luckily we weren’t in a rush but if you’re going to a movie, might wait until after the movie to stop in for a bite. Their house salad is really delicious and colorful. Loved the herb vinaigrette! Boyfriend thought their version of poutine would have benefitted from larger-​sized and more fries. Also lacked the white sauce he was accustomed to but the beef was really good a flavorful. I had the grilled cheese and ordered the pork belly add on. It came with beef and did not have the apples or arugula on the sandwich as listed on the menu. also they gave me fries instead of a side salad which they fixed. My boyfriend was the one who told me it was beef not pork but I was so hungry I didn’t care. I didn’t realize the apples and arugula were missing until we had left. Overall the menu is strong — lots of fantastic choices just need to make sure all food items come with the meal before it’s served. Décor wise please rip off the old dirty fraying curtains. Also consider either putting a high gloss finish on the floors (concrete floor painted matte black) or dark lament wood floors. Windows need blinds or shades — sun was blinding me. The window tint is not enough. still needs some tweaking but worth a visit. Will try it out again in another month or two to see what their fall menu brings!

I stopped here for dinner this afternoon. It’s a nice enough looking restaurant just down from the theater a bit. However, the place was deserted when I got there about four o’clock. A while later a couple came in and ordered dinner.
I saw the corn soup on the menu and immediately ordered a cup. After a longish wait, the waiter brought my soup and NO CORN. Just a broth with a few pieces of carrots inside. I immediately sent it back. Then I ordered the house made hummus. This came with a half dozen pieces of dried out pita bread. It could be that this was mistake but my next option to order was the pot roast and I wasn’t going to gamble $ 15 om whether it would be any better so I paid my bill and left.
And Michael’s «great food» sounds like SPAM to me. Only one review and a cat as his avatar…

Great food, nice atmosphere, and if go around back, plenty of parking. The steak frites is the best I’ve ever had.