Legit Hong Kong food. I am a regular here for weekend breakfast. It's basically comfort food for hk people. My favorite is breakfast D of satay beef with instant noodles. The milk tea is not your typical teabag tea, but made from boiled tea. Decor is hole in the wall but comfortable and clean. There's a large mural of Hong Kong singers and actors/actresses. read more

M Star Cafe - Breakfast. Pork and preserved vegetable noodle and milk tea. - Chinese Near Me - New York, New York

I was excited to try this place after my friend posted this place on social media. We ordered the hk style milk tea, which was good. Not too sweet and has a strong tea taste. We ordered toast with condensed milk and butter and it tasted like it was expected to. I ordered macaroni with spam since I haven't had this in a long time and this is a traditional hk breakfast item. The soup was very bland and the frozen veggies was so hard. I showed my bf by trying to stick my chopstick through it and it wouldn't work, instead the peas and carrots were bending my chopsticks. I put the white pepper powder in the soup to make it have more flavor. We ordered shrimp rice noodles and the dough was very thick. We didn't enjoy this dish. The curry in the fish balls was very thick and wasn't spicy. Additionally, I ordered hot soy bean milk and it was water down. You can sweeten it yourself but it lacked any soy bean flavor. My bf orders the pepper steak with onions and spaghetti and it was also very bland. Overall, the place is traditional but lacks flavor. Not sure if we would be back. read more

Only had limited items from here, but the tell tale for me is the HK style milk tea. It's pretty poor as I can not taste the tea flavor, and not smooth at all like you would expect from real HK Tea House. Very weak. I may give other items at try in the future but not in any rush to go back. read more

Whenever I'm wandering around in Chinatown with no idea where to eat, I always end up coming here, and there's a good reason why. I've been coming here for years and have never had a bad meal. Some of my personal favorite menu items include the Portuguese chicken baked rice, the tomato sauce pork chop baked rice, and the pan fried rice rolls with peanut butter/hoisin sauce. Recently I've also taken a liking to their ham and tomato fried rice after seeing the table next to me order it and making a mental note to myself to order it next time. Also love their HK style milk tea and breakfast sets, which are literally a steal. Huge portions and super cheap prices. Honestly the only negatives are the brusk service and no frills decor but that only adds to its authenticity. My favorite restaurant in Chinatown; there I said it. read more

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My life has been lacking real Hong Kong style cafe food since Coluck closed down and was replaced by a poor knock-off. The ham & egg sandwiches at Cha Chan Tang are just not the same and neither is their condensed milk toast, which is my favorite in any Hong Kong style cafe. The boyfriend suggested we try M Star Cafe, which he used to frequent a lot as a kid. We arrived just in time for breakfast specials, which ends at 11am. He got the beef satay ramen that comes with a coffee or tea and toast. The beef was so tender!! I had the ham & egg sandwich, which was pretty good. The egg was ginormous! There must've been at least 4 eggs in there all folded together. I also got a side of jam and condensed milk toast, which was so good. The only thing that would've made both dishes better would be some good ole Wonder Bread!! read more

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PRO: Pan Fried Rice Noodles - comes with peanut butter sauce. (tell them to put less sauce on this or else its going to be too salty) CONS: Fried Wonton - This was not what I expected. Wonton was super small. It's like the size of a pea with a big flat piece of dough skin. My friend coined this dish the "fried nipple" which gave us laughs but at the same time it really turned us off from eating it. I DO NOT RECOMMEND YOU GETTING THIS. read more

M Star Cafe - Pan fried rice noodle - Chinese Near Me - New York, New York

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M Star Cafe stays true to the aesthetics of a classic HK-style diner, also known as cha chaan teng. The tiled floors, checkered tablecloths and lime-green chairs transported me to Kowloon. This is the type of establishment where I'm not entirely sure if the scuffed walls are part of the artistic element, or simply just scuffed walls. The service at M Star is pretty decent. I did not have any issues with communication; the staff speaks Cantonese and English. Since I came in the afternoon, I didn't have to wait for a table, though there were several tables already occupied. The menu, printed in English and Chinese, is pretty expansive and covers everything from congee to pasta (and don't get me started on the variety of drinks!) for a reasonably low price. We ordered a HK-style milk tea ($1.65), Ribena with lemon ($2.50), Four Ball Noodle Soup ($5.75), Baked Ham and Bacon with Tomato Sauce and Egg ($6.25), and HK-style Steamed Rice Noodles ($2.25). Loved my Ribena, which was not overly-diluted with ice, and the steamed rice noodles, which came slathered in peanut butter/hoisin sauce and topped with sesame seeds. The noodle soup came with meatballs made with pork, chicken, beef, and fish-- I recommend ordering this with thick egg noodles. The baked spaghetti dish was not my favorite, but to be fair, this dish caters more to the HK palate which includes a sweeter, creamier, thicker tomato sauce than a regular marinara as well as a fried egg topping the pasta. Cha chaan tengs play a really important part in the cultural heritage of Hong Kong-- I think it's worth it for people to come check out M Star Cafe (or any other iterations around Chinatown). You will not be able to find more unique, eclectic dishes like soup macaroni or baked spaghetti or HK-style French toast elsewhere. read more

Their pan fried rice noodle rolls alone are worth five stars. Everything is here is delicious and inexpensive and I always enjoy my meals! Get their sandwiches, Singapore curry noodles, French toast (they're so generous with the butter!) and the classic Hong Kong mix coffee with milk tea. If you're looking for attentive, friendly and smiley service though, you won't find it here. The waiters are quick and efficient though. Knocked off a star for the one waiter yesterday who had INTENSE BO though. And one new waitress who just didn't want to be there lol. But all in all, I just want my delicious hk food and they get you your stuff quickly! read more

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Food is pretty good. Expected to wait abouy 10 to 15 mins for your table. I came on a Saturday afternoon. I ordered baked pork chop on rice with tomato sauce and a cold Hong Kong style milk tea. read more

Always a fan of their club sandwiches and have been eating these since I was little. I'd say the quality has deteriorated over the years but still manages to give me that childhood feeling. read more

M Star Café is difficult to find, difficult to find the location and also to find open. For NYC, they close really early, around 9pm. In my never-ending search to try as many Hong Kong style diners as possible, M Star is the pinnacle of a cha chan teng. So much so, that famous Hong Kong celebrities are painted on the wall, making M Star the place to go and take a photo in front of the mural just for kicks. They are famous for their rice noodle rolls, covered in sweet hoisin and peanut butter sauce. You will see little old white ladies that have been coming here for years just to eat these chewy rolls, that are the perfect balance of salt and sweet. The texture is difficult for some to handle, but once you are hooked it is over. No meal is complete at a Hong Kong style diner without a HK milk tea. The tea here is quite lovely, brewed super strong and served over those tiny ice cubes that you would find at the best soda fountains. I love it when tea is treated with the same love and care in the US as coffee. Because to me, tea just tastes better. I love the tea at M Star and usually order at least two glasses! They serve typical over rice and over pasta saucy entrees, all of which are delightful. And, everything here is very inexpensive, portions are massive, and made to share. My favorite though, is any version of their stir fried ramen noodles. I cannot wait to try their pineapple fried rice one day. After you eat, there are some great tong sui shops in the area for dessert. Interesting fact: You can come in off the street and use their restroom, which is very clean. However, it will cost you $1.00. The sign is clearly posted on the door, and there is a line of servers standing in the vicinity ready to stare you down. To me, the $1.00 is totally worth it in emergency situations. read more

M Star Cafe - Chinese Near Me - New York, New York

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Hey yo. I've heard of this place for a while, but never made the effort to come here. I've never been to Hong Kong, but M Star brought Hong Kong to me! Service is quick (almost surprisingly too quick) and easy. Within 10 minutes or so of ordering food, I was ready to chomp away. Chomped: 1. Rice noodle roll - covered in peanut and hoisin sauce, topped with sesame seeds. Brings back memories of when I used to order this from street carts. 2. Hong Kong Style French Toast - this is French Toast on roids! I had this for the first time and was surprised how crispy the coating was - the texture reminded me of Chinese cruller/churros (油條). I would suggest eating this in moderation. I researched the recipe and apparently the ones served here don't have a filling. 3. Baked Short Ribs w/ Fried Rice - a little underwhelming. The whole dish was covered in some watered down orange-looking tomato sauce. The short ribs were also too fatty for my liking. I would hit up Cafe Hong Kong or Cha Chan Tang for baked dishes. read more

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Came into this cha chan tang on a Sunday afternoon at 1 pm and saw that they were full. This is a good sign as cha chan tangs should be full on a weekend afternoon. Unfortunately, the food wasn't as good as the full house would lead you to believe. The cold yuanyang tasted very diluted as there was too much ice and water. It tasted like watered down coffee with no tea. The HK milk tea tasted ok. It was passable as long as you added sugar. The cherng fun was decent. The texture was a bit soft but at least they didn't drench it in soy sauce like Joe's cheung fun on Canal street. The preserved egg and pork congee weren't bland, but the pork didn't have too much flavor. Also, it seemed like they skimped a bit on the amount of pork and egg they put into the mix. The french toast was just bad. We had peanut butter french toast which they put in the middle of the toast, it was over fried, too oily and the first bite left a mouthful of peanut butter stuck to the roof of your mouth. Lucky I had my watered down coffee to wash it down. The bread was not as fluffy as other places. Only the syrup made it editable to eat. I would not recommend coming here as there are other places in the near vicinity. read more

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Probably one of the best HK cafes in Manhattan for nostalgic HK style food. Definitely a hole in the wall type place. Service is okay. Would highly recommend the HK french toast, hot milk tea and spam and egg sandwich. read more

A good HK Style Cafe serving set meals for easy orders on Sundays. My fav...Breakfast Set D: Instant Noodles (Doll Noodle) with Satay Beef, toast with a hot beverage (coffee, milk tea or HK milk tea, extra for iced). Not enough...try their Soy Sauce Pan Fried Noodles (single/large), the Pan Fried Steam Rice Noodle with Peanut Sauce (peanut, soy and hoisin sauce) aka "Wan Jiang Cheung", the Salted Fish and Chicken Fried Rice, or the French Toast. This is what I usually order when the fam meets up at my pop's place for brunch. I haven't tried eating at the Cafe, but it still taste good from the time I pick-up and arrive at my pop's place (approximately 15 minute ride). I can't vouch for the other stuff on the the menu since I'm a creature of habit ordering the same stuff everytime I swing by, but I do see others enjoy their meal when I'm there to pick up. read more

Ugh the soup is sour......... weird taste . Shouldn't taste this way. Wouldn't come back again. read more

M Star Cafe - Combo c - Chinese Near Me - New York, New York

Having been to a bunch of cafes in Hong Kong, I'd say M Star is pretty up to par! My family and I ordered a bunch of different breakfast specials -- the macaroni with ham, satay beef noodles, preserved egg & lean pork congee, french toast, rice roll, and waffle w butter, pb & condensed milk. The specials came with toast & milk tea / coffee. Quick service, good place for a classic HK breakfast! read more

M Star Cafe - Satay Beef noodles & HK rice roll - Chinese Near Me - New York, New York

My wife and I went in last night and order some food, it tasted fine and we even order more to go. Final bill came to $48 which is fine and all except in the middle of the night, actually just 20 minutes ago I woke up with upset stomach and throwing up everything I eaten there. There is something wrong with the food here. I urge you not to eat here and will call the department of sanitation or whoever is behind all this. Don't come here. read more

Nothing could beat if a store would like to give you a whole salted lemon in salted lemon 7 up. It just recalled my memory with the good past time. Very appreciated and enjoyed it. read more

M Star Cafe - Salty lemon 7 up - Chinese Near Me - New York, New York

Came here for lunch, the service was quick. We ordered Fish filet with corn sauce on spaghetti and Breaded chicken with cream sauce on rice. As we ordered, the waitress did tell us that the breaded chicken will take 10 minutes to cook. The portion of the dishes was generous. The fish filet was tasty but the sauce was lacking seasoning. Breaded chicken was very flavorful and crispy, it was thoughtful of the cook to not but the sauce over the chicken. read more

M Star Cafe - Breaded Chicken with Cream Sauce - Chinese Near Me - New York, New York

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My favorite go to for quick Chinese breakfast ! Their food always hits home. I recommend the waffle with condensed milk and peanut butter! Their satay instant noodle breakfast special is also one of my favorite choices. read more

Good Hong Kong style breakfast options in Chinatown in the East Village. Had congee, instant noodles, and HK style rice crepe breakfast. Cash only business but the food is good and there is indoor seating which is hard to find in many Chinatown restaurants in New York. Service was good but best if you can speak Mandarin. read more

I remember this place to be wonderful, in terms of service and in terms of food, but that was many moons ago. The years definitely wore down this place and the restaurant looks like a dump. However, the wall of HK stars are still in pretty good shape, so that's still an attraction for the eatery. The food, on the otherhand, is flat out not palatable. Employees seem down and about, and have no desire to be there. Sad, this place had a lot of potential for improvement decades ago but it plummeted out of control. The only item I recommend is the rice rolls/cherng fun with heavy duty sauce aka soy, peanut butter, and whatever else they have back in the kitchen. The HK milk tea is strong so that's my extra star; I love a good cup of HK milk tea, even if it's from a place that have subpar dishes. read more

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Good stuff so gooooodddd I'll be back Yum so good for lunch I love it Come again HK style YES YES AFFORDABLE THE WAIT THO read more

M Star Cafe - Yum - Chinese Near Me - New York, New York

Old school Cantonese (Hong Kong & Macau) style breakfast delights with Portuguese influence. Stuff like this is getting increasingly harder to find! I tried the Portuguese chicken myself and it certainly hit a great and odd comfort despite not being Cantonese myself. Server with heavy creamy egg sauce. Just goes to show there are still some hidden gems to explore in places like NYC Chinatown to fill every little niche of subcategories under the large umbrella that is Chinese cuisine. read more

M Star Cafe - Chinese Near Me - New York, New York

Their rice rolls have definitely gone down in quality since they fixed their steamer. The rolls are dense (not in a good way) and dry. Wouldn't get it again read more

A taste of HK that hits the spot. Fast service. Nice staff. This is a great spot for smaller groups.

This restaurant has gone down the drain. Gone are the days when food was delicious here especially the fried oysters! Now, the fried oysters that they serve is so bad (its under the title called APPETIZERS, # 145A. So , I ordered this because they were so good the last time I ordered, but when this fried oyster was put on my table it looks different , it has that orange color fried flour with tiny bits of blackish oyster inside. It tastes terrible , does not taste like fried oysters at all.This costs $ 18. After we ate I told the cashier and the 2 server ladies about this, that this fried oyster is dry, that the coating of this oyster tastes like old flour and this is not the same fried oyster that they served before. The three ladies did not say anything about this. I was wondering if they even speak English. Their toast w butter is good, HK style fruit salad was also good, the fried spam with rice is good with the scrambled egg, but tell the server do not put soy sauce on the White rice and the scrambled egg because it ruins the taste of the rice and egg. This soy sauce was put on my scrambled egg and the rice, the server did not asks me if I want it like this, its upsetting. Also their toilet is in an awkward area, you have to go in the small counter where the toilet room is located, not properly cleaned, floor is damp , with no window, it is unsanitary. Please improve your food and the toilet so that customers will eat here. read more

Cheap delicious food with tasty drinks? - what more could you ask for? Pork chop with spaghetti and chicken Portuguese style over rice with some H.K. Style milk tea Very filling but if you get a baked dish, it will take a little longer than you expect. This place is usually very full so for large parties it might be difficult. But, if you're alone or with a friend, you could easily get 2-3 dishes and share, and wash it down with some flavorful tea. Come with a hungry stomach and enjoy! read more

M Star Cafe - Chinese Near Me - New York, New York

I was eager to try this restaurant as there are many good reviews. I was too late for breakfast so these are what I ordered: Plain cheung fun with peanut butter and hoisin sauce was a bit too salty. If you can, order the sauce on the side. Jook with lettuce and fish paste was delicious. French toast with butter and condensed milk would have been better if they had used unsalted or sweet butter. The butter was very salty and didn't go well with condensed milk. Portuguese baked chicken rice was just OK, a bit too bland. Will I come back? Maybe. read more

Literally non existent service. There was no hostess and our waitress looked like we were being a bother when we ordered. Food and drinks were served in plastic utensils. Save your time, money, and calories and go literally anywhere else. read more

M Star Cafe - Chinese Near Me - New York, New York

The breakfast here really makes this place shine. While you can refer to my prior review for a holistic understanding of this place, I'd like to write primarily about breakfast this time: the breakfast here is one of the best (as far as breakfasts go) in all of Chinatown. Open at 7:00 AM sharp-ish, this place primarily services those who live in the area who are up early for breakfast, so expect a 100% Chinese clientelle. This is important, because this is one of those Chinese restaurants which incorporates the idea of table sharing, which means if you come in and there are no seats available, they may sit you next to another party at one of the larger tables. They have a couple set breakfast meals here, all at $4.75 as the base price. Some of the sets can go over the aforementioned price, for instance, if you want to add an egg (which is + $1). Most of the breakfasts sets, as featured in the photos, give you a beverage option, buttered toast, and a main dish, such as instant noodles, oatmeal, congee, etc etc. They are all very good, and I think you get quite a bit of food for what you pay. The service is very quick, and the food is of decent quality. They don't charge tax here (or, well, I guess the tax is incorporated into the price already), so all you need to do is pay a little tip, say, $1.25, and your breakfast total will come to just $6.00. Like I said, a great deal. read more

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The hard part about Yelp reviews is it very much depends upon what the reviewer is expecting and what he/she has heard about the place prior to visiting. If you come to this establishment expecting amazing service, a) you need to remind yourself you're in NY Chinatown and b) get over yourself. That being said, don't let that dissuade you from coming and experiencing everything awesome about M Star Cafe. Situated in the deep heart of Chinatown, this affordable and HK style cafe has none of the frills of the Canal Street Marketplace but more of the heart of what one would expect when looking for a taste of Hong Kong. Hardly any of the food items are priced over $6 making this extremely affordable. Food is what you would expect.....in Hong Kong. HK style milk tea as it is supposed to taste and steamed rice noodles with peanut sauce and hoisin is every bit as soft and flavorful as you might expect. What a great find and experience. I expect to find myself back. read more

I have been to the place for many years. It is convenient and the price is great for a set meal. You can't expect too much but the food is okay. Service is okay too. read more

Hong kongnese rice roodle with peanut sauce is excellent here. Coffee and tea hk style are nice too. Creamy and not too sweet. The rest of the food: fried rice, baked pork chop, noodles are good but not extraordinary. Prices are reasonable. Service is ok. read more

M Star Cafe - Hong kong style milk tea - Chinese Near Me - New York, New York

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We went for the breakfast time around 9am it's already packed! There menu had the combos. We choose combo A,C and E. It includes like toast, with Sunnyside eggs, ham, and ur desire of peanut rice noodles which is very good and must get! The sauce is amazing. It has soy sauce, oyster sauce and peanut sauce. Then choose of thousand egg congee, French fries and macaroni soup. There's definitely more other choices to choose from in in their other combo set. Every combo comes with a drink free of ice tea, or hot milk tea. Since I had my niece with me they give us milk too. Lastly we even order another dough rice noodle. It was definitely delicious and cheap! read more

M Star Cafe - Chinese Near Me - New York, New York

Very good Hong Kong style breakfast combos. Their HK milk tea is great. The staff is friendly as well.

Throughout my elementary to high school years, I used to come here all the time and have literally been through their entire menu before. I'm not sure if my tastebuds didn't exist until this visit or their food have just gone to crap. I haven't had such a disappointing meal in such a long time. M Star Cafe was always my go to for Hong Kong style breakfast sets. $5. Cheap. Simple. Quick. I ordered the thousand year egg pork congee with a side of soy sauce noodles. Both items arrived at my table in under a minute. A giant WIN for those on the go. BUT the congee was lukewarm at best. The noodles were COLD, not to mention also oily and tasteless. WHAT HAPPENED HERE? read more

If you just looking for Asian food. It does the job. Taste wise very far different from expectation. Do not expect very great food serve. 6 persons ordered - set A, Set C, ham noodles, and all drinks. Pretty disappointing to be honest. read more

*steamed rice noodles (omg, yes please!! They put peanut butter, soy sauce and sesame seeds on top. Now I am only used to peanut sauce on top but that melted warm peanut butter is a new player in this steamed noodle game. I loved this and finished the plate in about 5 minutes) *preserved egg and pork congee (blah! super cheapy with the preserved egg, it was cut into pieces for babies to eat. pork was also very limited.); Hong Kong style milk tea (yum! the tea has a rich flavor and leaves that sensation on your tongue when beverages are tannic. loved this) This place is kind of a hole in the wall restaurant. Menus are below the glass on the table. Food is decent. Service is like every other Chinatown place: rude, brash but quick. You can tell there's definitely regulars hitting this place up on the weekends. Not sure if I'd come back again but that peanut butter on the steamed rice noodle might give me second thoughts. read more

M Star Cafe - Steamed rice noodles with peanut butter and soy sauce - Chinese Near Me - New York, New York

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