New Jersey has the most diners in the world. When this diner was Five Points, it was among the very best. Now, as Seven Star, it has fallen into the Dime-A-Dozen category.
One thing that has been improved is the building. They put a lot into a renovation and it now has a bar area which is quite nice. The interior of the building is very good for a diner and much better than many franchise restaurants. I'd give it five stars for simply the interior, but I would much prefer five star food.
They also have a bakery case which used to be a waiting area. Their baked goods are quite good, but unless you're stopping to eat only a sugary, fatty concoction, keep looking.
The food is not bad, but it is not better than average. I ordered Linguine and Meatballs. No one orders Italian in a diner and expects it to be first class, but one does expect it to be at least average--my expectations were not met. The linguine was done al dente, which is perfect for me. The meatballs seemed to be only ground beef and egg. There were no spices, and if there were, get rid of them because they are tasteless. The marinara sauce was tasteless, but not revolting. Thank goodness for the parmigiana cheese left at my table.
One thing most diners do well is give you two days worth of food--and they did. The meal was simply boring.
I chose the onion soup for the cup of soup which came with the meal. If you wanted cheese, it was $1.50 extra, so I opted for naked. The soup was decent, a step above average.
One thing the former Five Points Diner did well was their bread. They should've gifted this to the current ownership. I received a small piece of crumbly, tasteless cornbread. The other piece I initially thought was a dry roll was actually a dry roll with two bites of a sweet creamy cheese mixture located at one end--so I'm guessing it was supposed to be a cheese danish. This is what you would serve to someone who has ordered Linguine & Meatballs? I know it is the gratis "bread basket," but when one can't identify one of the basket's contents, you're missing your mark.
The price of $13.88 including tax, no drink, was nothing spectacular. This is average in my area, but again, the portion was enough for two days--but again, so are most diners. I could pay around that to a decent Italian restaurant in the area and had a much better meal, and depending on the restaurant, maybe less leftovers.
I do have a pet peeve, which is waiting in a long line to pay the bill. While the cashier was speaking to what I gather a customer on the phone, the line built to pay to around five people. It's nearly the proprietor saying, "I've already got your money so customer service is no longer necessary." What I find truly amazing, though, is when I call a proprietor, I'm put on hold until they're finished servicing their current customer.
I initially was going to rate this as three star because of the interior and the satisfactory waitress, but the food was so blah and the checkout lacking, that I could not give what I consider an "average" rating.
Skip this diner. You have thousands more you can visit in the state. read more