Great Thai food! Really creative large menu and food presentation has a wow factor. For the most part the service is good but slow. They need more than one server and that's all they have! I don't know how she does it. Great downtown location but allow enough time for slow service if you want to go to the movies or Bankhead theater next door. read more

The food is consistent, beautifully presented and delicious. We eat there often as well as do take out.

Best Thai food in Livermore with a nice ambiance! I learned to cook Northern style Thai food in the 90's. From beginners, intermediate and advanced courses...restaurant here in the USA tend to cook more sweet than the traditional balanced flavors. So I just correct the seasonings to my liking. They give you big serving to for lunch under $10.00. Best thing for me I request their special Thai sauce and they make it for me! I eat here once a week and still have left overs. Love eating here rather than Chinese or Vietnamese food...oily and hardly enough food! read more

Star Anise - PAD THAI - Thai Near Me - Livermore, California

I would not go back to this place nor will I recommend it. Their service was horrible and the waiter and the people who worked their were rude. read more

Had a wonderful lunch this week. The bar b q pork was delicious served with a yummy papaya salad. Great place for a fun lunch with my girlfriends read more

I love the lamb kabobs! I love this place for their Thai food. Although they need to add a person to serve. And they do take the downtown clubcard. read more

I don't really enjoy Thai too much so this is really a review from my family (one of which is very picky about good Thai). We all had dinner here one night. The ambience is great. Very modern. Everyone loved the food. All different entrees were ordered and everyone shared. I got the lemon chicken and it was very good. Chicken was breast and juicy and the sauce tasted yummy and fresh. read more

Star Anise offers an extensive menu that is value priced and absolutely delicious! I go out a lot and will select this wonderful restaurant every time if my friends and clients are willing! The service can be slow at times (otherwise I would give a 5 star rating) but the food and presentation of each plate more than makes up for the extra time spent. This is a wonderful restaurant choice for lunch and dinner. If you have plans after (a movie, etc.) let them know and they will make sure you meet your time line. I am going again tomorrow for lunch! read more

sevice is slow and only 1 waitress, short tempered, hard to reach when I need something and almost seemed frustrated to take our order after we waited for about 20 mins. I had the apple salad ( sliced fresh apples, fresh greens, grilled chicken, pine nuts and a little parmesan cheese) with a coconut dressing, I'm trying not to have fattening foods and they have a mayonnaise based dressing for it, so I chose the dressing from the grilled eggplant salad. my apple salad was drenched in dressing so ask for the dressing on the side. service for food, for 4 people, was moderate. all in all it was okay. read more

I love coming here! I've brought my family here multiple times and I not only appreciate the variety of delicious dishes, but the consistency of quality. Great food and great ambiance! read more

Favorite Thai place in town. Love the pumpkin curry and green papaya salad. Pad Thai is not sweet like some places but still flavorful. Service seems to go in cycles but typically is ok. read more

This is my favorite Thai restaurant in the area. It is a bit more expensive but it is totally worth it because of the food quality.

Beautiful decor, small intimate setting. Food was delicious! We started with crabcakes, they were crispy and moist, with a sweet dipping sauce. I had a red curry tofu/vege dish and my husband had crispy chicken. We also had an order of fried rice. Everything was very tasty and the ingredients were all very fresh. Presentation was nice as well with carved vegetable garnishes on some of the dishes. Service was fast. We will definitely return! read more

I love Star Anise - one of my favorite restaurants in Livermore. The yellow curry with Jasmine rice is delicious...nice wine selection, too. read more

This is some of the best Thai food I have had. I like Thai food and have sought it out when traveling on many occasions from Hawaii to northern California (I don't try too hard when in places like Fargo ND). Of course, Thai cuisine and atmosphere can vary a lot. Star Anise is above average in both respects. The menu has some unique offerings. I went there with my wife and a couple of friends so we shared several items. The one that stands out in particular is the Panang Beef and the Seafood Clay Pot. Though I live near Sacramento, I frequently travel to the surrounding area and have discovered downtown Livermore for dining options as I try to avoid peak traffic through Altamont and Tracy. Star Anise and the Firehouse Bistro are my favorites so far. I look forward to trying other (non-chain) options in the area. Not that I have a problem with chain restaurants when there are no other options, I just prefer the unique nature of the smaller, owner operated restaurants. read more

The avacado sea bass and pumpkin salmon were amazing... I don't remember the last time I tasted combinations of flavors the way they put it together, but whatever they did, they did it right! Great plate presentation too... I wish this place was closer to home. read more

The best Tom yum soup I've ever had. Spicy, salty and sweet! Mushrooms were great and chicken tasted so flavorful. Pad Thai was superb with just enough tang. Will definitely be back. read more

If I could give no stars, I would so I'd have to settle for one star. The food was decent, but when I commented to the server that the BBQ pork was overcooked and too tough, he didn't do anything to try and correct it. Not an apology, no offer to take it to the kitchen, and have a new dish cooked. When I received the bill, a quick glance revealed a much higher total than I expected (I usually keep a running tally of the bill in my head), and thought to myself that I must have misread the prices on a couple of things, and thought nothing more of it. We got the bill paid it, but had to ask for the itemized bill back when it didn't come back with the change. I was trying to figure out how much tip to leave and glanced at the bill again only to be surprised to see that an 18% gratuity had been automatically added. Hmmm... what?! It bothered me, but I didn't want to embarrass my family so we left. Except we had to go back because my son forgot something. Since I was back, I went ahead and looked at the menu again to see if they disclosed automatically adding gratuity. They did! Except it was for a group of 6 or more. Specifically, it was disclosed that "An 18% gratuity will be added to parties of 6 or more." I was willing to let it go only because I was with my kid. Went back to the car and mentioned it to the partner. We left the kids in the car with grandma while the partner and I went back to ask about the "automatic gratuity" charge. The server's reply: "We do it all the time. 5, 6, or 7. Don't matter." I stressed that the menu stated only for groups of "6 or more." I asked if anybody has complained, and he said no. Somehow I don't believe this. Getting home, I found at least a couple of reviews that mentioned shady gratuity practices. When the partner mentioned that this is deceiving to the public and the restaurant could lose their license, the server then offered to give us our money back - an offer we accepted. On principle we still left a tip - no matter how bad the service, we always leave a tip. Do take note of the advise given by another yelper, be aware of their shady gratuity practices. Ask for an itemized bill and scrutinize it before leaving a tip. Or else, you might be a victim of a "double tip." The food was not that good for my family to go back and ignore their shady practices and the horrible service. read more

I came here for lunch today and ordered their lemon-grass bbq pork rice plate, and my friend got the orange chicken rice plate.. I think they were both around $8-11 per plate.. Star Anise serves surprisingly large portion sizes for the type of thai restaurant that they are.. The atmosphere is more casual up-scale (think big prices, small plates.. but in reality it's average prices, big plates) and it's very intimate since it's such a small restaurant.. My rice plate came with a double stack of chicken breast strips, a carrot and red cabbage salad, white rice, and green papaya salad.. The taste was pretty standard and no different from any other thai restaurant's bbq pork, but the serving size is what shocked my friend and I.. It wasn't a ridiculous amount of food but definitely enough to have some left over for later.. For the price they charge I think it's nice that they offer such a generous portion.. The service was great as well! Our waiter was kind enough to replace my papaya salad because I had a lapse of memory and forgot to order it sans peanuts.. He was probably peeved at my request but I'm very appreciative of his efforts (extra tip for you!) [: The only odd thing I would have to say about this place is that both of our lunch plates came with a spoon (no fork or knife).. My friend and I both had a confused look on our face as soon as the waiter put the food down.. We both ordered chicken and mine was in strips so I definitely needed a fork for that.. The waiter soon realized this and brought over two forks for us.. All in all it was a pleasant experience dining inside their restaurant for the first time and I would definitely return.. read more

The food is great as long as you don't mind it being served with a heavy side of bad attitude. I don't know why he works there, but the man who seems to always be working the front of the house must be related to the owners or something because he acts like he's working there instead if being incarcerated. The name on our check said our server's name was Aim, but that might be the name of the girl who was busting her butt doing just about everything from greeting guests, seating people, serving food, refilling drinks, taking payments, all while her male counterpart just wandered around sluggishly looking irritated that they were getting good business. He took our order but I sure hope our gratuity went to her instead. I'd like to say I'll be back but it's hard to enjoy your meal and experience when all you want to do is shake your waiter and ask him what his problem is when all you wanted was another drink or spoon for your soup. read more

We were initially worried that it wasn't gonna be anything spectacular because there was no wait when we called; No wait on a Saturday night at 7pm? But that was no indication of how this little Thai fusion restaurant/bar would earn it's 4 star rating that I've given it. For starters, we ordered the Fried Calamari & Crab Cakes. They were both delicious, although somewhat small portions. We ordered an array of entrees, including Pad Thai, Shrimp Fried Rice, Lamb Kabobs, Chicken Satay and last but not least, the Panang Beef. Without favoring any one dish morethan the other - THEY WERE ALL GREAT!!! However, I happened to like the Panang Beef the best...It was a medium size chunk of beef short rib, tenderly braised to perfection in a medium spiced red curry, hinted with basil and...Anise. We also complimented the meal with the refreshing Young Coconut drink. All of this was followed by 2 desserts - Sweet Sticky Rice w/fresh Mango & a scoop of Coconut Ice Cream and the Fruit Lumpia & Coconut Ice Cream. Needless to say, both of them were equally delicious. We were also very impressed by the look of the place, with it's Traditional Asian decor meets modern flair. It's a small place, so it's pretty cozy. great place to go on a date, unless you have a wait time...then it may be a little crowded. read more

If I could, I would give this place negative stars. The waiter is the icing on everything. You would never suspect it, but he's the owner/mgr or at least he claimed to be when finally confronted. Today was the worst service in the history of any restaurant, not just Thai, which is my all-time fave cuisine. Today was the 4th time I've been in. I've ignored "Aim" or whatever the server-slash-mgr's name is because that was the indication on the bill....anyway, i've had to IGNORE him because his aura, presence, attitude, or whatever is ignoble. He is the epitome of dastardly customer service. I brought in my daughters and a client today. We were NOT greeted, and it took a full ten min before he came over and took our orders. He must have been super greedy because he gave us the dinner menus instead which had much higher prices. When asked about the lunch menu, he said dinner menus were appropriate because today was a holiday. In WHAT country??!!! Today is the 23rd of Dec, and not an official holiday. He was under the impression that he could trick his customers into thinking that they should pay more for his repulsive service and now, I must add, disgusting fare. He had the balls to argue with me which really set the tone for the rest of the less than stellar experience. Anyway, we finally had the chance to order from the lunch menus. In the past, I really liked the crispy chicken and beef w/asparagus entrees here; however, today, this poor excuse brought us under cooked beef. I ended up eating only the scanty amt of asparagus because it was the only thing properly cooked, and I left 90% of the beef that was served to me on my plate so this server could see that there was something awry with it. He did NOT once even come over to check if we needed more water or if our food was okay. It took almost an hour before he brought the bill over while he attended to his other clients with fervor ...Finally, when I had the chance to let him know about the disgusting meat, he rolled his eyes and said I shouldn't have eaten the food if that was the case...I said, well, I didn't eat the meat, although, I did eat the asparagus (reasonable, right?). I told him it would be better if he got me the manager, and he just looked at me and nodded. Ten protracted minutes later, I asked him where the mgr was??? He said, "I AM the manager..." And I was like, " Why didn't you communicate that with me before?" We went back and forth because he refused to resolve the issue or even apologize that the food sucked. He said that many people have ordered this and never once complained. I told him that I really didn't care what other people's opinions are because my experience is not contrived and indeed, the beef tasted weird today. The meat definitely did not taste right and I was not about to risk my health by eating it ...and besides, my point was this: I came in starving in his restaurant, so why would I deprive myself from eating this entree that I have previously ordered and enjoyed if there really wasn't something wrong with it?! He was so contentious. He raised his voice to me and then, I dished it out to him. I think it was finally fear that drove him to give me a refund. Talk about pulling teeth. He kept asking, "what do u want me to do?!" I asked him, "Are u the mgr? Do u have a degree?...well, then you figure it out..." I wouldn't negotiate on paying for even half off the entree because that is simply ridiculous...my lunch, experience were ruined...but honestly, I loved the look on his face when he found out that he couldn't bully me. He has one of those permanent scowls...his apology was definitely perfunctory and ill begotten... He is soooo annoying! Unprofessional and rude don't cover it! PLEASE - I've warned you - do not patronize this place, unless you don't mind being treated like crap. If I wasn't so nice, I'd call the Alameda County Environmental Health - Food Safety for Restaurant Inspections. read more

YUM! I'm so pleased we decided to try this place. We (hubby and I) loved every single thing we tried. Started off with the veggie fritters which were hot, fresh and beautifully presented. We moved on to Tom Ka with shrimp for me and Tom Yum with shrimp for him. The Tom Ka rocked my world! It was complex, rich, sweet, creamy and a little spicy. EVERYTHING I wanted it to be honestly. Hubby really enjoyed his Tom Yum as well. For the main entree we split the Basil Minced Chicken. When it arrived I wasn't sure if I'd like it because I don't normally like chicken that looks like it's been ground. After one bite I decided I didn't care! It was super yummy and a bit spicy. For dessert we had Sticky Rice with coconut ice cream. We gobbled that up happily too. Just the right amount of sweetness from the coconut milk but not overwhelmingly so. The decor was nicely done and the service, though not the friendliest, was efficient. We'll be going back again and again I'm sure. The price wasn't too shabby either. For all that we had plus extra jasmine rice (which kind of sucked that they charge for it) and a coke it was around $36 before tip. We even had some basil chicken left over to bring home. read more

I thought my very hardworking Daycare teacher needed to be treated. I found out she was a veggie so I thought the menu here was just what we were looking for. We started with the special of the week on the appitizer menu. Fried sweet potatoes and tofu with sweet and sour sauce. It was very good. I thought it needed to be thinner cuts or fried longer but not bad. Our entrees came out very attractive. Red Curry seafood so yummy and she had a spicy talapia that was not super spicy but it was also a delight. We decided on dessert to go to share with the critters at home waiting for us. ................. Here is the part that guarantees I will never come here again. The food 4 stars the waiter this husky boy comes to me as we leave. "Excuse me why was I only tipped 10% ?" I dont make a bundle but I tip according to service. I can talk about the food all day but if the service was over the top a better tip would have been granted. I would recommend this place for the food so get it to go. The husky waiter. He is in the wrong business. I would never tell a friend or family member to come here to sit and enjoy a night. The place is pretty but the request for a larger tip and in front of my guest. Poor poor business. read more

We made a reservation for Star Anise through Open Table, which was very easy. When we got there, about 10 minutes early, the restaurant was very full. Two tables had just left. The one and ONLY waitress for the entire restaurant saw us come in, came over after 5 minutes and asked us how many. I told her that there were 2 of us and that we made a reservation, she turned away and went to another table and took someone's order!! Then she went to another table to take their order and then finally cleaned up the tables. She even sat another table ahead of us!! When we finally sat down, she took very long to take our order, she was busy so it wasn't her fault, but more of a management problem. The waitress tried her best, but it was hard to get over the greeting we were given. The food was good, but it was pretty expensive for Thai food if you ask me. Overall, I gave this place 2 stars because the service was SO horrible! read more

I have eaten at Star Anise several times over the past couple years. Yesterday's lunch visit was not up to par. There were 3 of us. Around 12:30. (1) there appeared to be only 1 person working the front. We waited a few minutes at the front desk before anyone even came out to seat us. Hmmm. Maybe he is the cook too?? (2) I made it clear I needed GF options. He showed me which items could be GF. ( Suggestion: why not mark with an asterisk on menu those items that are GF or can be made GF. Saves time as well as being GF friendly) Anyhow ... he brings out a little cup of soup as the lunch starter. Before he leaves I stop to ask him ... "this is Gluten Free... right?" he looks confused and then says ... "oh no. You can't eat". Takes it away. Just like that. Jeez. That is a BIGGGG goof. No apology. No offer of something else to replace that part of lunch menu. His english was not very good, but it was good enough so no excuse for the fumble, considering the restaurant was only 1/4 full. Now I'm wondering if I should have asked about the salad dressing too being GF. (3) I ordered the Pumpkin curry which I have had before for dinner. It was wonderful for a dinner entree ...served in big pumpkin bowl. But for lunch it was served on a flate plate with rice and salad all together. Hmmm. This is a curry. It should be in a bowl - not a flat plate where everything runs together. Hmmmm. There wasn't much in the way of the yummy curry sauce. But it still tasted greate - albeit presented poorly. (4) a friend had their spicy Green curry. It was served in a bowl. Rice and salad on the side. Unfortunately, with her salad ... there was hardly any dressing on it. Undressed salad I guess. (5) 3rd friend had their sexy shrimp ... coconut shrimp. It was over kill with the coconut and frying. Too heavy. Not well done. Plate had too dipping sauces. No sides of rice or salad. What has happened??? This is not the Star Anise I always thought of as the best Thai food place in Livermore. I can understand if that day was understaffed - but warn us, apologize ahead and afterwards, ask for forgiveness. I get that. Don't just provide bad service and mediocre food. Honestly, the server disappeared so often I think he was also helping with cooking. Better to close your doors for the day and wait till fully staffed. read more

Green Curry with Seafood and Pad Thai are both extremely delicious. First time eating here and my husband and I can't wait to go back.

What's happened to Star Anise? I've been a fan for months - until this evening. The restaurant wasn't busy but the food and service didn't come close to its usual standards. Our entrees took almost an hour to arrive and the food was unevenly heated. Even after two attempts, my Pad Thai was cold, greasy and tasteless. In an attempt to rescue the dish I asked for soy sauce, but it never arrived. Because of Star Anise's past performance, and in the spirit of hope for the new year, I'll give it one more chance. Here's hoping Star Anise redeems itself. read more

This restaurant is gorgeous inside! It's tucked in Downtown Livermore, next to the Bankhead Theater. The presentation of the menu and food are aesthetically pleasing, and the food is full of flavor, as you'd expect it to be by its looks. We had the roti and avocado spring roll appetizers - both were tasty, but I wish the roti portions were larger. Their green curry for the roti was fantastic. (Roti is hard to find at Thai places in this area.) What I liked about the menu is that it had unique items you don't typically see on Thai menus. I had the pleasure of trying their mango chicken and shrimp fried rice. They know how to cook the mangoes perfectly, and I loved the rice! It could have afforded more than 2 raisins, but that's okay. The prices are a tad higher than I'd normally feel comfortable paying, so I would only come here once in a great while. This trip was worthwhile because we had friends visiting from out of town who only get to eat Thai once a year when they visit us (and they really enjoyed it here as well). read more

ordered take out mango and sticky rice, was AWESOME ! They snuck in an order of the best coconut ice cream I have ever tasted. Next time we want thai we'll be there read more

I hadn't been to Star Anise for a couple years because we are devote Lanna Thai customers but we were going to a movie and were in the mood for thai so we thought we'd give it another try. I am glad we did. We had Yellow Curry Chicken and Basil Minced Chicken. The Yellow curry was the best yellow curry I have ever had. We got it spice and it was perfect. Also, a very large plus is the heavy pours of the Wente Riva Ranch in chilled glasses. I am also a fan of the decor in this restaurant. read more

It was decently prepared food but came up short with respect to Thai flavors: no fish sauce or lime. And dishes were too sweet. Kind of expensive tho the portion sizes were pretty good and ambience was nice. I would've raised it to 3* or maybe even 4 if they just hadn't short changed the flavors. read more

Decor and ambience is nice. However, food is mediocre at best and service is lacking, delivered without a smile. Next time, I will go to the less fancy restaurant Thai place down the street. read more

Great Thai food at reasonable prices. The atmosphere is upscale and the service is excellent. I have eaten here many times and love it!

As many of reviews have said, the food is very good here - certainly above average (although some of it was over-sauced and over-dressed) - and the prices are quite reasonable as well. The decor is also extremely stylish and warm, save for the out of place TV (which thank goodness had the volume off). Even the volume level is perfect - not too quiet, but you don't have to yell to have a conversation like you do in a lot of restaurants these days. When we walked in, we thought we had chosen a great place to eat. Then our waiter sat us down and literally tossed a few napkins/silverware sets and plates in front of us and walked away. BAD! The thing that really just kills the experience is the ABSOLUTELY HORRENDOUS SERVICE. I haven't experienced such a poorly managed place in ages - it was right out of Kitchen Nightmares. One waiter was serving the entire restaurant by himself (seemed to be 12 or so groups of 2-6 each). We came in and were seated immediately and while we were there people who came in and had a reservation were asked to wait - awful. Numerous people complained or flagged down the understandably and obviously miserable waiter demanding to order or asking what was taking so long. He ignored half the people and just walked on by them or told them to hold on a minute. Our food was brought in odd clumps rather than the typical salad-appetizer-entree sort of sequence. We thought maybe they were just understaffed that night and had underestimated how busy they would be during the week between Christmas and New Years when we visited. Reading the other reviews here, it's clear that's just how they operate. This place has some good things going for it with the location, ambiance, and food, but it isn't long for this world if it continues to treat its customers so poorly with bad management and service. read more

I'm torn to write about this place because I don't want it to become too popular that it becomes over crowded. The green curry sauce is amazing. I want to jar it up and pour it over everything and everything. The roti appetizers also has the green curry sauce. That's a great place to start if you want to try the sauce. It seems like there is one guy there that is the whole show. He does an amazing job. read more

The family and I were in the mood for Thai and had heard good things about it from our neighbors, so we decided to try it last night. We arrived right after 5pm, long before most around here eat dinner, especially on a Friday night. We were the only dining at this time. The restaurant was clean and the two working the front were still getting prep done for the evening. We ordered appetizers (dumplings) which were brought out fairly quickly. The apps were good, not overly special. My wife ordered the basil chicken, my son the shrimp pad thai and I ordered a beef dish from the special menu (at our servers recommendation). The food was fairly slow to arrive but arrived hot and looked good. The food was served family style (like most Asian style restaurants these days). Each of the 3 main dishes were really excellent. I can't remember the name of the crispy beef and cashews that I had but all the family loved it. My wife's standard basil chicken was really good and quite spicy. My son's pad thai was excellent. All in all, we enjoyed Star Anise more than Lemongrass which is just down the street. read more

This is one of most favorite restaurant in Livermore. The food is fantastic..........better than fantastic. Not only does it taste wonderful it looks impressive too. The Chef plates everything to the max. Some of the dishes look to pretty to eat. I have never had a dish that wasn't cooked to perfection as well as looked magnificent. The service is a bit slow but, that is just part of the charm. read more

This place was empty at lunch time on a Sunday. Not surprised at all. The waiter/bartender had a terrible major attitude. He was so unfriendly and rude. Terrible service. Will never go there again. 1 star is too many. read more

Excellent food. Service was a little slow, but they were very busy so I'll cut them a break. Nice atmosphere, great food.