Starliner Diner

We discovered this gem while on our travels to our home base (Michigan), looking on Google and saw Starliner Diner. With that name, you gotta check it out! It's a Cuban based food restaurant. My wife had Cuban French Toast (topped with powdered sugar and fresh fruit) and very good but a little too fried for me. As for me, I had Mofongo Omelet. YUM! If you happened to be in the Hillard, Ohio area, stop in! Also, a shout-out to our waitress, Suzanne.

This is a review that pains me to write. I have loved Starliner Diner for years and hoping this was just an off day. The Cuban French toast is flavorless. The French toast is fried crisp (which usually I love) but not even the syrup can help it. The fruit was delicious so that was a plus. The Sandwhich was good according to hubby. The Ropa Vieja was a pool of mostly sauce. Stated brisket but was small pieces of pot roast. The sauce lacked dimension and the rice was cold in places. We did get the platanos and their salsa which is always FIRE. They are chewy with bits of crispy, sticky deliciousness and accompanied by the salsa....YUM. Chili Rellenos are my favorite. As a South Texan, I have standards. The sauce was decent and of good consistency and depth. They weren't cooked long enough. The cheese was barely melted, and the plate looked barren.....I was so excited to come back here...only to leave moderately disappointed. The waitress was wonderful. There's always the possibility of redemption next time.

This is everything a diner should be! They have a mostly Cuban-influenced menu along with breakfast staples and hints of southwest diner cuisine. They don't skimp on flavor one bit; the yucatan chicken and Cuban roast chicken have exceptional flavor and nothing on the plate is boring. The roast chicken was super crispy too. Service is lightning fast and you get more than your money's worth. Check their IG account for daily specials. There's plenty of diners out there than need to take notes on Starliner!

We went here for the 1st time today. Upon entering we had 2 servers walk past us and Noone spoke. They didn't appear busy. The hostess did come over after a couple minutes with a smile and asked how she could help us. We were seated in a booth with seats that were loose. My 6 year old fell through the seat (it came off completely) he wasn't injured but the server said it happens all the time 😬 She quickly put it back in place. The atmosphere is strange and unique but definitely nostalgic. I wish the jukebox worked. Our food took quite some time ro arrive and I never got a refill on my coffee. My order was missing cheese on my potatoes, no big deal they corrected it right away and my son had a burger but the server put it in as a cheeseburger (he can't have cheese). Sent back no problem. She said it was only her 2nd day. She brought our food and we didn't see her again until she asked if we needed a box. It wasn't the best experience but not the worst. The food was lukewarm when we finally got it (20 minutes). They do have a bar but I didn't partake. For our first visit it was just meh and I left unimpressed. The nostalgia was the highlight for me but food and service was underwhelming. The bill was less than $20 for myself and my 6 year old. Plenty of parking, nice location. I'm not here to bash but just giving our honest review as a 1st time guest and being as informative as possible.

OK, so here’s the deal, when I’m traveling around anywhere and I see chile rellanos ‘s on a menu I have to try it. It’s essentially my culinary litmus test! So here at the Starliner diner I have uncovered, or rather my friend Jay has uncovered and showed me the best damn Chile Riano I’ve ever had the privilege to stick in my face hole! The chef, Orlanzo, actually grows the poblano peppers for these at his home! These are a deep-fried version but it seems that they are somewhat flash fried it’s a corn batter that is crispy to perfection and not oily or greasy in the least. I also partook in the Mofongo Omelette with home fries and it was absolutely slime and every texture every flavor was separate and distinct and the smoked pepper sauce was some thing to write home about but seeing as how my mother probably wouldn’t eat it I’ll just write about it here! 100% would eat here again and probably will before I leave the Columbus area! Excellent excellent excellent