Star Stage Diner

This place is awesome! Just the place I was looking for in east willamsburg. Food was great service was great and the price is way less than all the others out there. Walk over and try this place you won’t regret.

I agree with every negative review written about this establishment.
If I could rate this restaurant with zero stars, I DEFINITELY WOULD.
It took literally 2 hours for my food to arrive and when it finally did arrive, the food was cold. (Mind you, I only live 1 mile away.) Upon arrival, I called on multiple occasions for answers and the employees completely shun me away with no solutions and try their best to get me off of the phone.
Also, the food was cold.
DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME OR MONEY ORDERING FOOD FROM THIS ESTABLISHMENT, THANK ME LATER.

If I could give this place zero stars I would. They took almost three hours to deliver to me. THREE HOURS. And I live 5 blocks away. I called three times to see what the hold up was and the «delivery guy just left, he’s on his way» was their response each time. When my food finally arrived it was cold, soggy and tasteless. The cheesecake I got for dessert was revolting. It tasted like chemicals and was completely inedible. Do not order from this place, total waste of time and money.

Best honey mustard ever. Quick delivery food was still hot. Good quality diner food. Win.

The Star Stage Diner is an establishment that hasn’t yet decided what it wants to be when it grows up. The sign outside advertises «sushi» and «pizza» and also identifies it as a diner. I would not order sushi here. Given that you are two blocks away from Tony’s and Carmine’s, there is definitely much better pizza to be had in the neighborhood. However, the «diner» food is good. Not amazing, but good, and better than the other diners in the neighborhood.
I had a spinach and cheddar omelette — the spinach was fresh, and the cheddar was tasty. The home fries had a nice crunchy crust to them, and a good flavor. My husband had a grilled cheese with bacon, and he enjoyed it.
The service is friendly, attentive, and quick.
The space used to be a Khim’s Millennium Market, and the current owners didn’t do much to the outside to change the look — there’s a dilapidated awning and risers for plants/​flowers, but nothing on the risers. Once you get inside, the front right side of the place is still a bit of a bodega, they have a refrigerated section with some groceries. The «diner» part is on the left. The décor is pretty much what you would expect to see if a T.G.I. Friday’s ran into a fish shack owned by a former Rangers player.
Ultimately, the diner food is good, but if they don’t clear up the identity crisis I think they’re going to have a hard time getting people in the door.

Okay, I think I’ve sufficiently recovered.
Let me start by saying that I’ve been a hopeful cheerleader for this place for a while now and was thrilled that they seemed on track to open.
First some history. Since Khim’s Millennium Market vacated this place, and since the Leaning Tower of Pizza that housed Motorino was razed across the street, I’ve been really curious about what would go here. Especially because the plywood that went up for what seemed like years was such an eyesore.
Finally a plywood awning went up. Then it came down several months later. Then another went up and stayed and warped and dried out for what seemed like years. Then tar paper went up over the warped dried awning. Then the tar paper was painted orange and I was thinking «at least they’re treating the wood before the real awning goes up. No. THAT WAS THE REAL AWNING. Tar paper and orange paint. Then came the outside sign showing nearly the entire menu and I thought «Great, but what happens if they stop serving one of those items? Will they have to buy a new sign?» Also, and more importantly, with so many things going on, can any one of them really be any good?
Then the flowers. Cool, but overpriced.
Now to the inside. The layout is divided in two, really. On the right is, in order of appearance, ice cream, beer, sushi and takeout asian, gelato, desserts, cheese, meat, chafing dishes full of meat items (and lobster ?!) that seem to sit there all day, soups and pizza. On the left of the right-​hand section are a selection of items that you’ll find at nearly every bodega in the neighborhood, plus what seems to be freshly baked bread.
On the left is the diner section. I’ve been twice now. I really like the kitschy décor. There’s also red carpet and plastic tablecloths.
The first time I went I ordered a cheeseburger and fries. There was fresh bread brought as an appetizer. Really good, but unsalted. Then the burger. It was a really large patty served with diner fries. A really decent filling burger. I thought «not bad.»
Then came the second time. I went with a friend and ordered a turkey burger. Holy crap. It was inedible. It was like someone took unsalted chicken salad (only it was turkey) made of mayo and celery, formed it into a very large patty the size of a yarmulke (only it was about 1 ½ inches thick), fried it up so the outside was golden brown. The inside was around 60 degrees. I put my finger in and it was not even warm. WTF? Just a white gooey lukewarm mayo-​ey unseasoned mess. I sent it back after a single bite. I never send things back. My friend had a Monte Cristo which was fine but also undercooked (the cheese was still hard and cool).
I also had some friends go at around dinner time and waited an hour for a raw burger.
I should give a shout out to the waitstaff, who seem friendly and professional, but a little wary (understandably).
I don’t understand how owners can have such a complete lack of common sense when opening a new restaurant. It’s as though every decision made has met the standard of «How can I make the worst possible decision regarding nearly every single aspect of my new endeavor?»
Just looking at this place from the outside (the slapped together awning, the hand-​scribbled signs saying «open 24 hours» that make my high school election signs seem like fine art) should tell you all you need to know.
I don’t take any joy in writing this review. I wanted this place to be awesome. It isn’t.