91-year-old Golden Star Cafe has lunch specials for $10 - mySA

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We know San Antonio loves a deal, especially when it comes to good eats! $10 Taste is a series from MySA where we look for the most affordable and tasty meals across San Antonio that are 10 dollars or less. 

Golden Star Cafe has been serving great food on San Antonio's Westside since 1932 and last year celebrated its 90th anniversary. Last week, I visited the Westside staple for the first time since I was a kid in the early 2000s, hoping to write a new story for my $10 Taste series. As a food writer, my main goal in visiting was to sample the lunch specials, but as a born-and-raised San Antonian, I also wanted to see how the restaurant held up after all these years.

Golden Star was a favorite of my grandpa's, so I built many fond memories around visiting the spot with my family. When I walked in on a Thursday afternoon, immediately, I noticed some key changes. For one, the restaurant is set-up with apparent COVID-19 protocols, with the dining room roped off by yellow chains and the flow of traffic directed by tape on the floors. The Area 51-themed video game and the chicken egg prize machine were both gone from the front entrance, as was the jukebox near the bathrooms that once taught me about No Doubt and Lauryn Hill.

A Spurs banner hangs in the dining room at Golden Star Cafe.

Polly Anna Rocha

Despite all this, Golden Star remained more or less the same. Servers still wore red polos, the dining room was still full during lunch, the booths were still that specific shape of beige, and dragon motifs still hung along the walls. When the host greeted me and allowed me to pass through the dining room entrance, I found myself a booth and waited patiently for my server. 

Once I was brought a laminated double-sided menu, my eyes began to scan for the lunch specials. I could either choose from the Thursday deals, which included Mongolian chicken and beef and broccoli, or from the everyday specials, with classics like sesame chicken and shrimp lo mein. I decided to try the Mongolian chicken, which came with fried rice, a choice of egg roll or cream cheese wontons, and a tea for a total of $10.29. Slightly over the $10 mark, but with the drink included, that's a price I was willing to pay.

Mongolian chicken at Golden Star Cafe.

Polly Anna Rocha

When the food arrived, I was a little surprised to receive my meal already inside a to-go container. However, the food was steaming hot from being freshly prepared and it smelled delightful, so I got past the presentation pretty quickly. The chicken was surrounded by all kinds of vegetables, like celery, carrots, and peppers, and it was covered in a savory garlic-based sauce that I inevitably doused over my rice for added flavor. 

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All in all, it was more than enough food, including the egg roll, which I saved till the end like a dessert. The sweet tea was the icing on the proverbial cake, so I left feeling satisfied on the meal front. The physical changes were a little jarring but understandable. You don't get to 90+ years without making some adjustments, but one thing was clear, the food remains a consistent, affordable centerpiece for Golden Star Cafe that warrants the occasional visit.

Find it:  821 W. Commerce St., San Antonio, TX 78207

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91-year-old Golden Star Cafe has lunch specials for $10 - mySA
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