Ocean Star Seafood Restaurant
(626) 308-2128
145 N Atlantic Blvd
Monterey Park,
CA
91754
34.063
-118.1344
Neighborhood: Alhambra
What People Are Saying About Ocean Star Seafood Restaurant
The Editor
Martha Burr
Citysearch
In Short
The weekend din of this huge banquet hall fades as you hear the squeal of the dim sum carts approaching your table. Hong Kong stunt guys, kung fu masters, culinary pilgrims and families celebrating special occasions journey east from L.A. proper to Monterey Park for a sumptuous feast. Even if you're an authority on pork buns and shrimp dumplings, Ocean Star will likely surprise you with possibly the widest variety of dim sum in town. Hong Kong natives may even experience some firsts here, like sole wrapped around black mushroom and Chinese sausage, Chinese squash stuffed with ground pork and fried shrimp dumplings dipped in a delicate broth. Crab and scallop standards like shao mai and har gow are fresh and fried taro melts on the tongue.
User Reviews
Lovesdimsum
June 24, 2009
Lobster at $3.99 each! What's not to like about that, especially when its preparation is so tasty? A friend and I went to Ocean Star to celebrate Girls' Night Out and ordered the lobster special (and a scallop & vegetable dish that was delicious). We were (1) disappointed and (2) outraged. What we got for $3.99 was the end of the tail (where it fans out), the end of the head, part (and only part) of a claw, and the body part. Almost nothing to eat. When we asked about where the rest of the lobster was -- specifically the meaty part of the tail and the claws, we did not get a satisfactory answer. All we were told was that it was a small lobster. Hello! The good parts weren't there. The Chinese couple next to us had a lobster, and the amount of lobster on their plate was twice what we had. We'll never go there again, which is a pity, as the flavor of the food was good. And I used to love their dim sum.
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CityMember
June 15, 2009
About 1 1/2 years ago we went to Ocean Star based on a friend's recommendation and liked it a lot. The service was good. The food was excellent. We had a great time. Since then, we've returned twoce and both times have been amazingly disappointing. I don't know if we just got crazy great seating last time or the right hostess, but service has been utterly slow to non-existant. The food we got on our second visit was actually cold when we got it and not very tasty. I'm going to give them one last chance, but for now I'm going to stuck with the Empress Pavillion.
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rainbowland
March 28, 2009
a very poor rating due to service! I don't know if I had bad service due to me not being Chinese but based on the reviews I think it's across the board. When I first came in and was brought tea, the white tea container was spotted with tea leaves and was obviously dirty. I actually wanted to leave right then, but the place was pretty crowded around 10:30 a.m. so I thought I would still give it a try. The cart girls were very nice. I did NOT have any customer service issues with the cart girls...BUT the MALE waiters,, ALL OF THE MALE WAITERS are very rude. In the end, I asked for to go containers and one of the male waiters kept on saying ok you pay me now, you pay me now $15 you pay me now VERY VERY RUDELY and he rolled his eyes, as I was packing things in my hand. I asked him can I pack my food first. He said because we are busy, you pay me now. I will never come back ever again do to the service!!!!!! The food wasn't too bad, but not great!!! All of the individual portion size were way too small leaving the texture of the food mostly of rice wrappings. The only positive I would say is the price. I think many people come back because the price is very reasonable but I would never compromise price for service!! Or lack of...
read full reviewThe Details on Ocean Star Seafood Restaurant
The Extras:
For dinner, don't miss the fresh seafood. But be prepared for the waiter to bring a live specimen to your table for approval before the kitchen cooks it.
When to Go:
Huge crowds descend on weekends, so arrive before 11am.
Category:
Restaurant Management, Restaurants
Payment Methods:
American Express, Visa, MasterCard
Catering Services:
Cuisine:
Smoking Permitted:
No
