We came here for my birthday dinner and had only been here once before, from my experiences of both dinners, I can say this... The food is good! it's not gonna blow your mind or anything but I can say with confidance that you will enjoy (most of) their food. The other thing I can say with a good deal of confidence is that the service here is.... well....bad! First of all Very Very slow, not much interation, no "how is everything", no "can I get you anything". I need not mention that this is not a good thing when you have a group of 10. Now, I realiaze that this is a small restaurant and it seems to be family owned/ run, but seriously when I call to make a revervation for 12 (2 ppl couldn't make it cuz they were sick) and you get there (on time) and there's no table ready for you, it takes them 10 minutes to even acknowledge that your even standing in their front door!!! It's just BAD BAD BAD! the place was almost full, and there were only 2 servers!!! I think that's all the servers they have. Once we got seated, we were told that since we were no longer a party of 12 we would not get the same "party" ordering method I had discussed with them over the phone, I was not told that it would change if we were less than 12. anyhow, they ended up throwing in 3 free appetizers... which was nice but none of them were enough for everyone so some ppl got stiffed on a few. It took them FOREVER to take our order, a LONG time to get our food, and my guest ending up spending much more than anticipated because of the whole special party menu being changed at the last minute! My guests and I were pretty unhappy with the service, but we all agreed that our everything we ordered was good. So, I leave you with these words of wisedom, do not come here with large parties, in fact keep it to groups of 4 or less...and plan on slow service, so make sure your in the company of ppl you enjoy having great conversations with. I'm not sure if we'll be back. read more

3.5 stars for the food and 2 stars for the weightlifter waiter who couldn't wait to go home. This food is very sweet which is typical for Americanized Thai food and my spicy soup was almost too sweet to enjoy. My braised rib curry was also too sweet but that is how locals like it. I like it less sweet and more like real Thai food. The waiter was a joke tonight with horrible service and his impatience with us. We are the customer and he should appreciate our business as toward the end of the night, our table of 6 were the only ones in the restaurant. I am never coming back as Lanna Thai and Tin Thai have better food and much better service. read more

For Livermore, it's an OK option. For more authentic Thai (although still not great), I'd actually recommend Lemongrass over Star Anise. Star Anise is a true example of what a nice atmosphere can provide over good food. The ambiance is definitely asian chic, but the food left me feeling unsatisfied! Though the restaurant is "first date" approved for someone who wants to make a good impression because at first glance it looks nice... you'll also find yourself making friends with the random couple next to you who is sitting much too close for comfort! Claustrophobics... don't even try it. We ordered several different appetizers and dishes, and everything was SOOOOO sweet! I love coconut milk like anybody else, but the amount of additional sugar they put in these dishes was really overpowering. Maybe I'm a Thai snob because I used to live in San Jose and Krung Thai was aaaaamazing! If you want a better option somewhat nearby, try Sri-Thai in the Hacienda Crossings shopping center. It's no Krung Thai but I've never been disappointed there. read more

Discovered this very chic Thai restaurant while taking a stroll in Livermore on a Sunday afternoon. The weather was great and no problem with parking what so ever. I agree with most yelpers, this place is just all looks. Portions are small at a high cost. We ordered the papaya salad and crispy chicken and both were absolutely too sweet! Someone went Hoisin sauce or sugar crazy in the kitchen! Best thing was the Thai ice tea. I give them props for having a variety of rices though... we had the "garlic" which was excellent and the "sticky" which was a big big disappointment for me. How could you possibly screw up this?! The consistency of the rice was all wrong. read more

This little place has a wonderful setting yet comfortable.A great place for a date...or not. I was glad to have made a reservation, but we still didn't end up getting our own table. Instead we ended up at the counter table which was no big deal. The Spring Rolls were a bust. Pretty flavorless.I have to say though the soup, Panang Beef, and Chicken Satay were out of this world. I can honestly say I haven't had Thai food this good in ages.Everything was wonderfully fresh which is refreshing, and presented as something you would see elsewhere. The price was just right considering the quality of the food, and atmosphere. Delicous...a must try if in the area. read more

An excellent restaurant with incredible service and great food I have never been disappointed any negative yelp post especially the one that was posted 3 days ago should be ignored , I was at the restaurant and these customers were treated with but respect even when their child was fussing . I can see if they did not want to leave a tip but no reason to make a scene . Glad to know they will not be back to the restaurant read more

I think I just caught this place on a bad night. There was only one waitress covering the entire floor. The bartender wasn't around much even though there were people sitting at the bar. We thought about giving them another chance when there would be more waitresses but after getting our meals we decided against it. We ordered drunken noodles and pad thai, both with chicken. The pad thai came with tofu and we didn't see the waitress for a while after she dropped it off so we just accepted it so we could get out of there. The drunken noodle was ok but not nearly as spicy as it should have been. The highlight of the meal was the spring rolls, they were presented beautifully and tasted great. read more

Food - 3 stars. It wasn't real Thai food it was a white washed version but the food wasn't terrible for what it was. Got Tom Yom and it was so sweet it was disgusting. Also got the Pad See U (lol wtf?) And that was alright but also really sweet. They added so much sugar to everything it was insane. We got the coconut mango sticky rice and it came with icecream and it had buckets of honey on top as if it wasn't sweet enough. Gnarly! Service - 1 star. The waitress was hella curt with us and never smiled. He also took forever to get us water and forgot parts of our order even though there was only a few people in the restaurant. Clean bathrooms though. read more

Food: Greasy. Portions are large, though. Bad Service: Not refilling drinks unless you ask 2-3 times. Any request is taken with a grim frown. Not willing to change anything about the dish, not even a simple substitution. Would not come back or recommend to anyone. read more

This is my favorite Thai food restaurant. Fancy place for a cheap price. The ambiance is great, the lights aren't too bright which makes it romantic. The food tastes wonderfull and the presentation is so beautiful. Every plate has some veggies made into flowers or other designs. The pumpkin soup is to die for. We always get the clay pot seafood or the green curry seafood. They also have great fried calamari and papaya salad. Absolutely love this place. We used to go to lemon grass which we still like but Star Anise is a little fancier and more romantic and the prices are about the same. This place gets packed so make sure you reserve if you want to have dinner there on a fri or sat night. read more

This is the first negative review I've ever written on Yelp. I'm giving this place as high as 2 stars only because my dining companions enjoyed their lunches. Thai food is almost alway my first choice when dining out. My entree was labeled in the menu as mild, yet it was so spicy that I couldn't eat it. When I brought the problem to the server's attention, his response was to shrug his shoulders--he wouldn't take it back, replace it, comp it or even apologize. All I had to eat for lunch was brown rice and the small luncheon salad that came on the plate with the entree. I far prefer either Lemon Grass or Tin Thai Kitchen for Thai food in Livermore. Neither is as fancy in appearance, but both have far better food and service. read more

Don't even know what to say other than the service was horrible and the food was disgusting. We sent back the Orange chicken it was like eating leather. The prawns were left untouched because we were too embarrassed to send back another plate so we paid for the bowl of ok thai coconut soup that had chunks of brown chicken cartilage, gummy rice and prawns and left!!!! I don't see how people loveeeee this food it literally left me sick to my stomach. I wish we went across town. Never again. But if you want to have bad attitude waiters, ask for refills and disgusting food have at it! read more

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Average food, probably won't be coming here again. It isn't bad at all, but we eat out so rarely that when we do it better be awesome! Don't let this dissuade you though. read more

Pros: Good food, nice atmosphere, good location Cons: Slow service I don't get some of the low reviews for this place. I thought the food was really good here. The portions I thought were typical of any Thai restaurant. Anyway, I went here with my girlfriend and her parents. We ended up getting 2 appetizers: roti and the calamari. Both were really good. The roti had a green curry sauce that was delicious. The calamari was the typical lightly breaded kind with a side of sweet and sour chili sauce. We shared the entrees family style. We got the roasted boneless duck, yellow chicken curry, green seafood curry, and a somewhat spicy scallop and prawns dish. Overall, they were all very flavorful and had decent sized portions. I especially liked the yellow chicken curry. We went on the weekend so we didn't get to order any of the lunch specials. Overall our bill for the 2 appetizers and 4 entrees and sides of rice ended up being around $75. Not too bad in my opinion. read more

The food here is pretty damned good... The interior is sleek, and the bathrooms are clean... The service was disheveled. We were told to hurry and order because the kitchen was closing, but then the server seated three more tables after the fact... read more

Tried this place out in search for a good Thai restaurant in the area. We walked in on a Thursday night and there was not a single person inside!! I was worried it was because of the food but I couldn't have been more wrong! The Tom Yum may have been the best I've ever had! And then my boyfriend and I got the Two Lovers Prawns and Scallops and the Spicy Beef... they were both amazing!! So happy we found this place! read more

Star Anise - Two Lovers Prawn and Scallops. It was magical! I've never had more tender seafood in my life! Perfectly cooked. - Thai Near Me - Livermore, California

If only they put the quality of the atmosphere into their food. Not sure how you can screw up rice... probably an off night for them. High prices for so-so food. read more

I have been going to Star Anise since they were newly open and I moved away for a couple of years. I just went back yesterday and the food and service was as good as day one !!!! I have read the review about the young server questioning about the tips that the customer gave. I am also working in restaurant business and most of the time when server asked about the tip it's not to get more tips but they wanted to know what went wrong with the food and service. The tips amount is the expression of gratitude. Low percentage of tip means that the customer is not happy. I would encourage the server to find out what went wrong so that they can improve the service. Some people might be offended by this because they are embarrass that they are cheap but if the server just keep quiet, the customer will not get acknowledge that they are unsatisfy. Oh yes you can complain in Yelp but be brave. Since the server asked, I suggess you talk to the manager or tell the server what went wrong (whether you are cheap, the service suck or food is bad) so they not left wondering why they get bad tip. Anyway, I enjoy dining here and I always will come back to this place. This restaurant is small so please be prepare if you have big party. Call ahead and make reservation especially on weekend. read more

How do you say suck in Thai? Let me try this...SUCK! I think this is the third or fourth time I've been to the restaurant and it's progressively gotten worse. Can I get a drink here? Sure, about 30 minutes after I sit down. Can I have a rubber band in my desert? No problem...apparently. Can I get into an argument with the waiter? Absolutely! They'll even throw in a frown, an eye roll and a little disgruntled sigh because we're taking up too much of their time. To be fair, i guess, my friends and family like this restaurant. I guess all that curry (every dish tastes the same to me) is a winner to some. But taking the food out of consideration, much like they take the customer out of consideration, this place is horrible. read more

I have to adjust my rating due to a terrible meal last night. We were very disappointed in the quality of food. Maybe it was a "Sunday night thing" but still it was not amazing. We tried this restaurant last week and were simply amazed of how good the food was. We enjoyed the atmosphere as well which is modern and laid back. The service was very good. The sticky rice was so yummy we are going back for more next week! read more

My friends and I ate here before watching a show at the Bankhead Theater, which is right around the corner. After reading the previous reviews, I have to agree with everyone who said the service was the worst part of the dining experience. Yes, the waiter did roll his eyes a couple of times during service, and had vacant looks on his face whenever we tried to put in an extra order of rice or drinks - as if to say, "why didn't you order all this at the beginning, who do you think I am?? a waiter?? duh" That being said, everything we ordered at the beginning of the meal arrived quickly and promptly. At any rate, THE FOOD IS THE HIGHLIGHT of this place. It's more of a contemporary spin on thai cuisine, but with all the flavors! We ordered panang beef, which was very tender. Also, the eggplant with the chicken was very tasty. I order duck curry at every restaurant I go to, and this one had a great flavor to it. I absolutely would go back for the food. I think you just have to expect that the service will, as one person has said, suck. Go for the food, not for the service. read more

We keep going here and telling others. We only like it more each time. The Food and presentation remains consistently great. Oh yeah, they accomodate vegans happily. Now, If they only turned off the TV.... read more

I've tried this place now 3 times all with different outcomes. One thing that is consistent is the service is terrible. 1) aweful service - ok food, 2) aweful service and terrible food, 3) service was ok at best and food really good. Even though the restaurant is small they should not have only one person for the entire dining room! The food is ok - I've had better else where but the decor is fabulous. This is a really pretty place in a great location. If they could just get more attentive waiters who actually want to talk to you and more of them - it might truly help this place. read more

Not sure why anyone would write a bad review of this place... it's my favorite Thai restaurant anywhere! It's priced just like any other Thai place would be. The pumpkin curry.... yes. The corn fritters.... yes! The pad thai.... yes!!!!!! Everything there.... YES!!!! You get the point. mmmm I think I might go there for dinner tonight. Oh yeah, one more thing..... the decor is way sweeter looking than your average Thai place and they do a great job on food presentation... it looks expensive. read more

We've just moved here from the South Bay, plus I've been to Thailand a bunch of times. The food here is okay. Their Pad Thai was good, however my review is one star because their curries, one of the Thais signature dish, has been extremely soupy/running. Nothing close to the satisfying thick curries I've had in Thailand or, frankly, any other Thai restaurant in the US. In addition, their Nom Tok (steak) salad has been inconsistent, tender once, tough twice. read more

Star Anise is a very modern Thai cuisine restaurant located in downtown Livermore. The restaurant is very modern and chic, it was very nice. My hubby took me there for Mother's day lunch. We had spring rolls, chicken satay, spicy prawns, seafood green curry, pad thai and thai iced tea. The food was very delicious. read more

All the Thai restaurants I've ever been to try to make you feel as if you were in Thailand with their furniture, or statues of women and elephants (not that it's a bad thing). Star Anise completely abandons this idea by utilizing a modern decor with a little Asian flair. The results is a very inviting and upscale looking restaurant. The food is delicious, but I would say it's definitely more of a fusion taste, rather authentic-- just like their decor. Another con is that for the prices, they are rather shady with the portions. We had the fried calamari and roti as appetizers. We also had Pad Thai, and beef fried rice, which was good, and a basil chicken that was a little on the salty side. Another reason to take off a star is that they make the Pad See U with regular broccoli instead of Chinese broccoli. I'd really give them 3.5, if I could. Another thing to note is that this place is really really quiet. I don't know if it was just the night I went, but you can hear a pin drop in there. I felt like i was eating at the library, and the restaurant wasn't even close to empty! read more

The first thing is the looks. Very modern Thai restaurant and probably the best non Thai looking Thai restaurant in the bay area. 5 stars for the looks and the atmosphere. Now, I was expecting a Thai fusion and expected a non Thai taste but to my surprise the food tasted quite good. I am not saying authentic and did not expect one but the food looks great and mostly tasted good. A little too salty on a couple of dishes (we had a table of 10 and had 8 different kinds of dishes) but overall all of us were very pleased. The place was clean and, the bathroom was also clean and dry. We ordered - 2 pad thai - crab fried rice - shrimp fried rice - beef panang - bangkok beef - clay pod soup - chicken satay - Thai samosa (did not like this at all) - 6 Thai ice tea - 2 Singha beer - 6 individual order of rice - and one other dish.. don't remember. Total with tax came out to be $225 Negative were - the length of time of the wait after we have been seated. Granted we were there at 6:30pm on a Friday evening (we had reservation) but took them 15 minutes to serve us any drinks is a little too long a wait. We didn't get the first food until 30 minutes after seating.. a little too long. - I wished the waitress would smile a little more. - They almost forgot one dish and had to be reminded. Thus making the experience a 4 stars instead of a 5 stars. Overall, I would go back again if I am around that part of town. read more

What a great surprise to find a good Thai restaurant in Livermore. I've been all over the bay area at many Thai restaurants and found only a few that were especially good like this place. When we arrived, we did family style with 6 different plates and found that everything was above average. They also stored my birthday cake I brought for my friend in their fridge for later. When we were ready for the birthday cake, they brought it out with their fried banana and homemade ice cream dessert for us. We were stuffed and couldn't believe they added this special addition to our dinner. I would recommend this for any Thai-food-loving patron. read more

Two words: Cheese Delights. This appetizer is BOMB. My favorite. Also, the peanut chicken off the grill is amazing. Never had a bad meal here. Also does food to-go, which is always a plus for me. Never was a fan of thai food until I dined here. Only bad part is I usually wait 10-15 minutes at least to talk to my server after being sat. Good wine selection, only have four or five different bottled beers though. read more

Service: 4 Food: 5 Value: 5 OVERALL: 4 This visit was my niece's pick to celebrate her birthday. Reservations were made early, right when they open at 12pm. Service - We were seated quickly and our orders were taken within a few minutes. I asked if we could get any nuts removed from the dishes and served on the side instead, because some of the kids have nut allergies. She said that wouldn't be a problem at all. Food was served in timely intervals and she was always very pleasant when we needed assistance with something. Food - Every item we ordered was delicious and plating was gorgeous. However, after the first few plates arrived, we could see cashews in the food. We informed our server immediately. She apologized, took the plates away, and later brought back new dishes sans nuts. We enjoyed every dish we had: Calamari, Lumpia, Chicken Satay, Buddha's Delight, Himapan Beef and our two favorites: Pad See U (OMG amazeballs!) & Ma Ma Mango Chicken (Fantastic!) Value - I have to say that I was expecting this meal to be on the pricey side, especially with all the food we ordered (some of the dishes we double-ordered to make sure there was enough for 8 of us). But I was very happily surprised that it was not nearly as expensive as we guessed. Happy dance, happy dance! ;-) The only reason I'm rating 4 stars instead of 5, is the snafu with the nuts in the dishes. Although the kids with nut allergies have epi pens, it could've turned this meal into something disastrous had we not noticed the nuts before chowing down. Otherwise, I would've happily given 5 stars for our delicious meal here. Even though Livermore is far for us, we'd definitely make the trip back to eat here again. There are a lot of Thai restaurants where we live in the south bay / peninsula area, but I have to say this is the best Thai restaurant we've been to in a very long time! ** I've actually been here twice now. Although this review was written after our first visit, I just wanted to add that I still stick with the 4 stars instead of 5. Mostly because of the service. It was pretty slow. We probably sat for a good 10 minutes before our order was taken and then another 5 before we even got water (we had to ask twice). Dishes came out slowly, but surely. This time we got: Fresh Spring Roll w/ Duck, Pad See U, Sea Bass & Apple Salad. The food was yet again delicious! But, the only thing I wouldn't order again is the salad... boring. Otherwise it was another yummy visit. read more

I've been to Star Anise twice, and enjoyed it very much both times. The first time I went I had the chicken with yellow curry, which was very, very good. On the most recent visit we had salmon in red curry with pumpkin and a slightly sweet chili chicken dish, the chicken dish was a wee sweet, but Ive never had that dish before, so I dont know if thats the norm. Like other posters have noted, it is more fusion than authentic Thai. Unlike other posters, I didnt feel shorted on the portions. Everyone in my party left feeling pleasantly full. On a side note: I had the sweet sticky rice with coconut icecream with mango for dessert, sooo tasty. read more

LOVE IT! Great portions, super friendly service, fantastic Thai Iced Tea. Fortunately or unfortunately, it's usually pretty empty when we go on Sunday evenings so waiters are very quick and attentive. I hope they stick around for a long time! read more

Star anise was a gem of a find. The aromas will delight your olfactory senses once you walk through the doors of this beautifully and professionally decorated establishment. The food did not disappoint, but was rather a home run. The garlic rice is a must; it paired well with the minced basil chicken..... But before you gobble down your whole meal, which trust me, is tempting to do, save room for what was probably the most heavenly dessert on earth: the sweet sticky rice topped with a generous dollop of coconut ice cream . People it was simply divine! read more

I had never been to Star Anise, but am so pleasantly surprised by their excellent service. My husband is home with the flu (the real flu, not just a cold), and his favorite thing to eat is Tom Yum soup. I called Star Anise while they were closed between lunch and dinner to ask if I could get some soup for pick up. They were very helpful and let me come in while they were closed to pick up the soup, which my husband said was delicious. Thank you so much Star Anise! read more

This downtown Livermore restaurant was one of the places we wanted to try for a long time. As we entered, we were welcomed by a very nice upscale, but still cozy place. Ordered corn fitters and Thai samosas. Very tasty. The waiter was alone and obviously overwhelmed with all the patrons pouring in. We had a 3rd appetizer that was quickly scrambled together. When doing a remark about that, the waiter reacted very snappy. Then the main dishes came ... at least a few of them. Ways too sugary. Couldn't finish. We even asked in the beginning to recommend non sugar dishes. We have been to Thailand multiple times and there is no sugary dishes in the Thai cuisine. Bu that was too much. Another dish was still missing and came when all other in the party already finished and were ready to hit the road. Could not finish that one either. So much sugar that leaves a cupcake tasteless. Unfortunate since the restaurant is very nice and good location. Cannot recommend this place for your health and taste buds. read more

Love the great service and the delicious food! I highly recommend their pad thai and their seafood green curry - they really know how to cook a scallop to perfection! read more

This place is really nice and the food is delicious!! The ambiance is really nice with dim lighting, flowers, plush booths, great for dates or catching up with a friend. The food is all super fresh and they have a small but good wine list too. I recommend the stuffed shrimp appetizer to start with. The Peanut Sauce dish is pretty good (I usually sub white rice for the vermicelli) and the lamb kebobs are amazing! A few things to keep in mind though: they fill up on Thursday through Saturday nights so reservations are a good idea and the service is a little slow sometimes since there is often only one or two servers. The ambiance and the food are worth it though as long as I have my wine and something to munch on in the mean time! read more

Wow! I was surprised at how great the food was. In Livermore??! Really?! I ordered the beef salad and it was so flavorful. I was so happy with it. Tons of beef and tons of flavor. Wish it werent so far away. Seats were cushy. Loud on a Friday night had to yell to talk. read more

Brought friends to this restaurant and everyone absolutely loved it!!! Great thai restaurant menu, presentation, atmosphere and service!!! My go to thai restaurant...!!! read more