waterloo star in Waterloo

170 University Ave W, Waterloo, ON N2L 3E9, Canada

★★★★☆
(277 reviews)
Categories: Restaurant

About

Relaxed strip-mall eatery serving hot pot, BBQ & other Chinese dishes in a contemporary space.

Website
waterloostar.ca
Address
170 University Ave W, Waterloo, ON N2L 3E9, Canada
Plus Code
FFF6+4W Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
Time Zone
America/Toronto

Business Hours

Monday
11 AM–10:30 PM
Tuesday
11 AM–10:30 PM
Wednesday
11 AM–10:30 PM
Thursday
11 AM–10:30 PM
Friday
11 AM–10:30 PM
Saturday
12–10:30 PM
Sunday
12–10:30 PM

Services

Service options
Delivery Takeaway Dine-in
Accessibility
Wheelchair-accessible car park Wheelchair-accessible entrance
Dining options
Lunch Dinner
Amenities
Toilets
Atmosphere
Casual
Crowd
Groups
Payments
Debit cards
Parking
Free of charge street parking Free parking lot Parking

Photos

Reviews

3.7
★★★★☆
277 reviews

Most Mentioned

chinese food (27) average (7) portion sizes (6) university (5) chili chicken (3) green beans (3) translation (3) shredded pork (3) steamed pork belly (2) ikan bakar (2)
5 stars
105
4 stars
72
3 stars
42
2 stars
21
1 stars
37
★★★★★
December 6, 2024

The menu and environment has been changed. New menu is cool. Chinese rice bowls and noodles taste pretty good.

September 25, 2024

Food is below average and price is not cheap. Tempura shrimp is those frozen product u can find in most Asian grocery stores and they are not deep fried. Served with some weird sour sauce, grant it the worst tempura shrimp I have ever had IN MY LIFE. Rice is super sticky, either overnight or put too much water when cooking.

★★★★
January 5, 2024

Good food, nice atmosphere. Loved the dining area, power outlets to charge as I eat, and easy to read menus. Price is good for the portion sizes and the restaurant's location. It is also transit accessible and within walking distance of ION's University of Waterloo streetcar station. There is a bus station at the University's Transit Center, also within walking distance. Bathrooms were good and seem to be maintained decently.

December 4, 2023

Rude servers. Poor quality food. I ordered green beans with shredded pork and the second photo is what I got (compare it with the menu-the first pic). I tried my best to dig in to find more pork and there was nothing more. I asked the server if this looks correct. They said what's in the menu is what exactly they are serving and tried to argue with us. They clearly new that we didn't speak Chinese but didn't take that into consideration when communicating with us.

★★★★★
October 20, 2023

Food tasted great and authentic. Servers were very nice. Rice was portioned based on how many people at the table, but it was unlimited refill of rice.

★★★★★
September 7, 2023

Amazing restaurant. I've been coming here for over 7 years. I recommend the crispy chili chicken (boneless), griddle pork intestine, braised lamb noodle soup, hot & spicy pot with your choice of meats/vegetables, mapo tofu, beef fried rice noodle, steamed pork belly. There's many great dishes here, give it a try! The staff are also nice and very friendly people!

★★★★★
August 7, 2023

Really good food here. Prices are good too. I was honestly surprised the food was this good. Even just a simple green bean dish was so tasty. And they are open late! They also have a lunch menu until 5pm. Recommendations: - steamed pork belly and preserved veggies - Stir fried Green beans with shredded pork - sliced beef with spicy mixed sauce The steamed pork belly is by far my favourite. Close second is the green beans and shredded pork.

★★★★★
July 26, 2023

My mom and I came here for their famous fish dish and ended up ordering some side dishes too. Very authentic Chinese food and excellent service. Great portion sizes too. We really enjoyed our meal here and will definitely come back for the same dishes (because they were so good!)

★★
Local Guide
November 23, 2024

This place is mid. Mystery box is offered is a friendly price. However, their beef briskets/tendons tasted really burnt. Tomato + fried eggs is worst dish that I have eaten inside the place and it is also the worst one I have eaten in my life.

★★
October 23, 2024

Food is expensive and taste is below average, not recommended

October 23, 2024

Try to go different places for meals, too slow to serve the meal

★★★
September 23, 2024

Tongdeyuan, you are so confused...the newly opened menu has made me no longer even interested in eating there. After all, I have paid wrongly these past few years...

Local Guide
September 23, 2024

The Waterloo Star restaurant has closed and has been replaced by Dine Stination Chinese restaurant.

★★
September 23, 2024

Tongdeyuan, you are so confused...the newly opened menu has made me no longer even interested in eating there. (And the poor man s package is so much more expensive) After all, I have paid wrongly these past few years...

★★
September 23, 2024

Had lunch on Sep 6th, good. So come back on Sep 12th, ordered same dish. This time the rice and pork is half cold, giving me a feeling that rice is overnight. Soup is barely warm too. Had diarrhea in the afternoon. Wont go again.

September 23, 2024

The soup is really salty

★★★★★
September 23, 2024

Food was delicious, great service, and quick. Tried the meat balls for lunch and they were cooked to perfection really amazing. Great value for a delicious meal.

★★★★★
Local Guide
June 23, 2024

great place for authentic northern style Chinese dishes

★★★★★
May 23, 2024

My BFFLs and I fangirl over Waterloo Star. If you re a student in Waterloo with good taste, it s a must go. We almost wanted to gate-keep, but here we are enlightening the general population. Stay blessed, stay cute. Peace and love always. Kid-friendliness: Would bring my kid here.

★★★★★
February 23, 2024

Good food

Local Guide
February 23, 2024

How should I put it? It is not an exaggeration to say that it is the most unpalatable and unauthentic dry-fried beef river I have ever eaten in my life. The rice noodles are wrong, there is no pot flavor, and the side dishes are actually soybean sprouts.

★★★★★
Local Guide
January 23, 2024

Quick to serve the dishes, it only took 5 minutes and was the fastest serving of any restaurant Ive been to. Recommend to you if you also want to save time like me.

★★
January 23, 2024

Food was okay. We ordered seafood fried rice, to our surprise it came only with eggs and shrimp. Although, the photo of the seafood fried rice on the menu had so much variety of seafoods. Waste of money.

Local Guide
December 23, 2023

The food is SUPER salty and their servers are very rude.

★★★★
December 23, 2023

Lunch specials are very affordable

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2023

I had a Singapore mein Feng with extra chicken and was the best tasting mein Feng Ive had from any place. I absolutely loved it! 5 stars!

December 23, 2023

After changing the chef, the quality of the dishes dropped and the service was poor.

★★★★★
December 23, 2023

Bring me back to my childhood. I am tearing up as I am writing this, for the food is so gastronomically superb. I nearly cried eating here. The atmosphere, service, vibes, and food are perfect. Come here for authentic Chinese that will bring you back to your mothers kitchen. Simply sublime. Waterloo Star leave me with happy heart and full belly !!! Food so good almost make me cry when eating because it so good . I highly recommend Waterloo Star to anyone who eats food.

★★★★★
December 23, 2023

Came for lunch and got the braised pork lunch special they have on weekdays. Great food for a good price!

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2023

Amazing hot pot. Will definitely go back for more!

December 23, 2023

Dined in for their lunch specials that included a soup and soft drink. Soup was really bland and cold, all of soft drinks were flat, watered down and the 7up tasted like sparkling water. We got the chilli chicken and rice and a braised pork and egg on rice. Chicken was really sweet and was very gooey and bland. Braised pork and rice was very oily and very salty. Both dishes could not be finished.

Local Guide
December 23, 2023

Bad service, terrible food. Never come back this place.

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2023

Great place for Chinese food. The food tastes a little more authentic and less catered towards Western tastes as compared to some other Chinese restaurants. The portion sizes are excellent for the price, and the lunch special is especially worth it.

★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2023

Pretty average - wish the service was a little more attentive.

December 23, 2023

horrible service.

★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2023

Pretty average Chinese food

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2023

Nice spot for some great food. Had the spicy chicken and black pepper beef fried rice. Had me looking like a gremlin w my baguettes de bamboo . Strong 7.

December 23, 2023

I ordered a bowl of rice. nmd gave me half a lunch box. Are you kidding me?

December 23, 2023

Bad service.that Middle age woman make up like a gho* *.

★★
December 23, 2023

The food was 7/10, pretty good and tasty.However there is a middle-aged woman who is very rude. Hitting the machine to us and act like we owed her money. I won t come back again until she s fired

★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2023

Food consistently good, timely. But -- check your bills that you have been charged properly, do not hesitate to ask for english translation if mandarin is not your strong suit. They have an oh so small sign on the right side of the cash register that let you know they will charge a bit more for credit. It is hard to miss. Note: When ordering rice, it is charged by headcount for the table and they will serve bowls plus a shareable larger bowl of rice, which is refillable. They also do not have extra plates so ask for extra bowls if you need extra dishes for whatever reason. Just plan ahead and set expectations before going for the least frustrations. : )

December 23, 2023

Terrible. Chicken wasnt cleaned - lots of bones chunks and barely no chicken. To top it off, the rice and vegetables had lots of tiny bones in them. Couldnt eat the meal at all and it cost around $15.

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2023

Spicy vegetable dishes are really good

★★★★★
December 23, 2023

Most authentic Chinese food i ve tried in KW!! Tastes just like the food my mom makes :) I would recommend the green bean with shredded pork dish, and any of the eggplant dishes. My favourite restaurant in the plaza!

★★★★★
December 23, 2023

Very good food And good prices too Not complain at all Food : 5/5

★★★★★
December 23, 2023

Consistently great food and great prices! love their fried rice so much!

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2023

Very good food, fast and the best thing is a quiet place

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2023

Their lunch special is really good value and tastes great.

December 23, 2022

Its too bad. This chef should either change or use fat meat to make the shredded pork in Beijing sauce. If you dont have the right meat, dont make it. Its a profit after making this dish. I was so disgusted after just one bite of this dish that I will never do it again. Went to this store .

December 23, 2022

The food was really poor no taste..or seasonings. I was quite disappointed and felt sick all night

★★★★★
December 23, 2022

I ordered more spicy Mala Xiangguo. It tasted great and the portion was generous. Recommended

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2022

Really good food but portion sizes are small, especially compared to other Chinese restaurants.

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2022

The cooking style is not overpowering like some of the other Chinese restaurants in the plaza that tend to be too salty and greasy. The owner is nice and always there, but the servers sometimes just bury their faces into their phones or are just straight up blind.

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2022

This has been the best chinese restaurant at the UW plaza for multiple years now

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2022

Before I didnt like authentic Chinese food. This restaurant is the reason why I now love Chinese food. Now I eat here everyday. The owners and the restaurant workers are very polite and I genuinely feel good after eating here. Reminds me of home

★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2022

Food is OK, but the service sucks. The waiters are rude and once even forgot to give us water and ask us for our order.

★★★★★
December 23, 2022

Memories. Food is still great and very generous portion size! Taro rib. My go to dish back in uni days.

★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2022

I don t know if their chef has changed or something. I ate it often when I was a freshman and thought it was okay. Now I just ordered a braised beef brisket and a minced meat braised eggplant. The food is really not delicious. The braised beef brisket didnt even come out, it just smelled like the braised beef brisket in the cooking bag. Eggplant-made Shuigu Nangji, I thought it was a stew at first glance I remember there used to be a chef in Shenyang who was pretty good, but now this dish is just mediocre and not as delicious as the cooking bag.

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2022

Only Chinese restaurant in the area with enough choices to keep me satisfied. But a couple times Ive gotten dishes that are not super fresh

December 23, 2022

today is my first time to order, find piece of steelwool in the dish.

★★★★★
December 23, 2022

Delicious food and very accommodating staff! I m a proud Asian!

December 23, 2022

The food tastes pretty good, but the service is subpar. When I asked for 10% of the purchase price when I checked out, the waiter who took the payment immediately made a face. It really affected my mood.

December 23, 2022

The radish in the lamb casserole was bad. Very nauseous after eating

Local Guide
December 23, 2022

Dirty washroom, more the half-hour wait for just tap water The dishes were not clean, ask the server to change them, pretty sure she bring back the same one. and both two female servers are really rude and ignore you on purpose

December 23, 2021

Went here a few years ago and the food was amazing. Now .. not so much. Maybe they changed chefs. Worse food + smaller portions + more expensive = No thanks, will not be returning.

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2021

Really good food and respectful staff. I loved it every time I ate there.

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2021

I just loved.

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2021

Likes

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2021

Decent Chinese food

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2021

Very good authentic Chinese food. Me and my girlfriend love eating here and the staff is reasonably polite.

Local Guide
December 23, 2021

I vomited after eating it twice. I havent vomited since middle school. I felt uncomfortable twice after eating this food. . . . .

★★★★★
December 23, 2021

Great service and loved the food the lamb was so good and the short ribs

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2021

Very good chinese foods

December 23, 2021

Used to be my go-to restaurant until they changed chefs

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2021

Its not bad, its very similar to what you can make at home, but sometimes the waiting is just too long. If theres a guy in there whos pretty good, Ill give him one more star. The main reason is that there is really nothing delicious nearby, and Waterloo is too deserted... By the way, I have eaten plastic at Yu Xiaoshan. If this didnt happen, I would recommend that restaurant.

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2021

Great food at a great price

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2021

Snowy bean paste is super delicious! ! The Guobao Pork tastes very authentic, but the meat slices are too thin! Basically you cant see it, there is no meat at all in some slices, just flour. I wish the meat could be thicker and the price could be a bit more expensive!

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2020

Might be the best restaurant in GTA area. My girlfriend and I went to Waterloo to do business found this place to have lunch together. She was graduated from the university. She knew the place like the back of her hand. Price: cheaper than Toronto. Dish: two peoples portion. You can take out the rest. Taste: those people know how to cook. If I live in waterloo, I will come back every week. :/

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2020

cheap price and large variety of good food

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2020

Good food, but I think they might ve recently changed chefs. Been going to them for years now, but recently had a change in taste, not for the better.

★★
December 23, 2020

I got sick eating a vegetarian casserole dish here. Guessing it wasn t ordered often and the veggies went bad. If you want to be safe, only order the popular dishes!

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2020

I often buy my aunt s steamed buns and dumplings! I ate dine-in once and it tasted pretty good!

★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2019

Food is average but inexpensive. They also offer lunch combos. But the quality of the food is not that great and the environment is not really clean.

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2019

Good food and good service

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2019

Great Chinese food. The Lamb casserole and Mapo tofu are good

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2019

Extremely quick service, wonderful food, amazing prices for the size of the portion (the portions are really big!). Very nice, calm atmosphere in the restaurant and very authentic tasting food. I extremely recommend everyone to come eat here whether it be alone, or with a group of friends.

★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2019

Hygiene is worrying, food is OK

★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2019

I visited with a group of 6. Food was decent but the portion sizes were a bit on the lower side. When we ordered rice, the waiter assured us that we ordered enough to fill 6 bowls. We only had enough rice to fill 4 bowls. When we asked the waiter about this, he told us to purchase more rice. We didn t get any service after we ordered our food.

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2019

Good Chinese food. Very enjoyable atmosphere and pleasant staff.

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2019

Very good food and reasonable price Need to improve service though

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2019

Best in University Plaza

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2019

Their xiang guo is to die for, but wish there was an English menu for it. As of now, you can only ask for the xiang guo (Mala is the best option) if you can speak/read Mandarin, so a lot of people dont know about the best thing they have to offer!

★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2019

Just common chinese restaurent in university plaza.

★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2019

Food is undercooked, spicy is not a concept for them, and they never get the right order. Both times I have went, and order has been mistaken.

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2019

Great food

★★
December 23, 2019

Too salty and not tasty

★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2019

Service was pretty slow. It took awhile for someone to take out order but the food came at an appropriate time. Interesting atmosphere - Chinese food, Korean music, and Japanese anime on the three TV screens. Price was okay, a little-wee higher than other Chinese restaurants. Food was also okay. The big plus is that this place opens later than most of the restaurants in the area, great for late night feeding.

★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2019

The service is actually not too bad, considering they just have some your kids doing service. But the whole place is not well-maintained and the bathroom is dirty as well. The beef plate we ordered is mostly just egg/tomato and doesnt taste good either. Not a good experience there at all!

★★★★★
December 23, 2019

Amazing food

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2019

Probably the best place for cheap, authentic, and filling chinese food for lunch

Local Guide
December 23, 2019

Not good

December 23, 2019

TL;DR Horrid boss, food wasted I usually love coming here with my boyfriend for hotpot. However, I wont step in to this place again because of what happened tonight. My friend and I went for hotpot and had left over. The portions were big so we had half of the uneaten meat, veggies, etc. still boiling in the pot. We didnt want to waste it so we asked for a container to take the rest home. Mind you, we have done this at this place before. The kind young man who served us gave us a bag and container but the older gentlement (maybe the boss?) told him, in mandarin (I think he didnt know I could understand as I was speaking to my friend in English), that we couldnt take the food home because we had too much left over. He said it right in front of us and the young man apologized and said it was company policy. I told him no worries. The old man kept a close eye on us for the rest of our time there and even inspected our table before we left. We felt like we were being surveille the entire time. What a horrible experience! We had left food over that could have been eaten the next day and we had paid for it! He is such a horrible person! He even said to the young man serving us to make sure we didnt leave with any food. Date night is going to be someplace else next time.

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2018

The grilled fish is live fish to order and is genuine.

December 23, 2018

Ordered a takeout and waited for more than half an hour when the restaurant is almost empty. Even people came after had already finished. And they didnt even bother to apologize. Guess I will never eat here. And will NOT recommend to anyone unless I really hate him.

★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2018

Affordable restaurant for students

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2018

This is the real deal, went with my Chinese buddies and had enough awesome food for a week.

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2018

Food is reasonably priced and tasty. This is my usual late night go-to spot for Chinese food. In my most recent experience, the staff were way more friendly than usual which made my experience that much better. The only thing missing is better English translation on the menu and more dishes!

December 23, 2018

I didnt have much hope and tried it once. After the trial, I was not disappointed. It was really not good. This kind of cooking can only be obtained by KW with national food stamps. Chef, can you make some snacks?

★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2018

I bought beef rice bowl twice and the bottom of the rice was mushy. I didn t know whether it was rice or rice paste.

Local Guide
December 23, 2018

No service..

★★★★★
December 23, 2018

By far my favourite place for Chinese food at Waterloo. Their prices are good too, especially during the week day lunch specials

Local Guide
December 23, 2018

I ordered a lunch special (sliced beef on rice) and tried their free soup / fountain drink. The soup was cold and tasted bad, there was no gas in the fountain drink machine. The food was very bad quality (smelled bad, tasted bad and was too salty). Its the first time in Waterloo I couldnt even eat it and just gave up on the plate. Staff refused a refund and acted arrogantly. I think its the worst place to eat in plaza. Very disappointing

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2018

Reasonably priced food in the place. I like their steamed fish, its tasty and fresh. They have free pop at lunch too.

★★★★
December 23, 2018

Inexpensive place for lunch

★★★★
December 23, 2018

Love the food and the prices! Visited almost every week

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2018

Food food. Very crowded at noon. Great place for student to grab cheap lunch.

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2018

Never ever over the years have I had stomach issues after eating here, this place is the place to go if you want sanitary Chinese food. Place is pretty average overall, has a few decent dishes and price is not cheap. But at least I can come here, eat, and move on with my life not worrying about when the next explosive diarrhea is going to hit. For that alone, being in university plaza, deserves five stars. Thank god this place exists.

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2018

Food is nice. Free drinks are awesome!

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2018

Service was a bit slow, though it was pretty busy

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2018

Great for groups that like to share dishes! Good variety of dishes, many of which are spicy. A must try is the crispy chicken! They also offer unlimited white rice refills as well! Fairly priced for the portions and taste. Service is good but it helps a lot if you dine with someone who can read Chinese because the menu is not well translated. Other than that, Ive never had any issues!

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2018

Tastes like good food.

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2018

Stri fri

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2017

One of the best chinese places on campus.

★★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2017

The food was above average in the plaza. Service is the best among all Chinese restaurant in the plaza.

★★★★★
December 23, 2017

The food and service both good. It is much better than other Chinese restaurants in plaza. The large plate of chicken casserole and grilled fish are both delicious.

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2017

Good food, decent prices.

★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2017

First time to eat here. Decent price, foods are okay-not spectacular, service is okay. Atmosphere needs more lights during the night and toilet is dirty and needs more lights as well.

★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2017

Does its job for the price. Nothing impressive. Cheaper but portions are kinda smaller too.

★★★★★
December 23, 2017

Like the fish-flavored shredded pork

★★★★
Local Guide
December 23, 2017

Decent Chinese food with large portions at a great value. Service is just okay and food comes out quite quickly. The restaurant itself has an inoffensive atmosphere and is not too noisy. They also open pretty late so thats a plus.