Dining: Star Seeds
Stop in, fill up 24 hours a day at Star Seeds
By Dale Rice
American-Statesman Restaurant Critic
Web posted: Nov. 24, 2004
Sometimes food is all about the sensory experience. Sometimes it's just about the fuel.
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Photos by Ricardo B. Brazziell/AA-S Star Seeds offers wireless Internet and round-the-clock service, with basic food that still tastes good, like the veggie omelet, left, and delectable pancakes. Star Seeds Cafe 3101 N. Interstate 35 (512) 478-7107 Rating: Forks up. Price: Cheap. Nov. 25, 2004 Reviews: • Monica's 701 • Star Seeds More In Restaurants: • Complete Restaurant Reviews • Austin360 Foodie Board • Girl Walks Into A Bar |
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Open 24 hours with wireless Internet service next to Days Inn on the Interstate 35 access road, Star Seeds has an extensive menu, some of which is acceptable and some of which is quite good.
Items in the acceptable category include the chicken cordon bleu, the burger and the Philly cheesesteak sandwich.
The chicken cordon bleu ($6.95) featured a fried chicken breast topped with thin slices of ham and melted Swiss cheese. It was served with two sides chosen from many options: steamed spinach and a side salad of iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, carrots and red onions.
The hickory burger ($3.95) was a basic burger with barbecue sauce, accompanied by a side of home fries ($1.50), small cubes of crisply grilled potatoes.
The cheesesteak ($5.95) combined thinly sliced beef grilled with green peppers and onions and served with cheese on a hoagie-style bun.
The best dishes, though, came from the breakfast lineup.
The omelet ($5.95) enclosed sauteed mushrooms, onions and cheese inside a generous fold of eggs. The side of fruit, however, was a throwaway -- unless you like frozen blueberries and strawberries over sliced bananas.
The "sunrise breakfast" ($5.95), with two eggs, bacon and two pancakes, presented the most outstanding element of all: the pancakes.
These blueberry-pecan cakes, nearly the size of the dinner plate they were served on, were beautifully browned, with a hearty portion of berries in the center and finely chopped pecans throughout.
While some of the items may only stoke the furnace, the pancakes at Star Seeds demonstrate that fuel can taste good, too.
drice@statesman.com; 445-3859
