Review Golden Star Restaurant - Thornhill

Best burgers ever! I’ve been coming here with my family and friends since I was a kid. Quality has not changed a bit and I enjoy every bite of the burger. Their homemade combo is the “go-to” for many, however I haven’t really tried other things on the menu because this combo is just too good!! When I went today, I believe it was $16-17 after taxes for a combo. Not cheap, but you’re getting the quality. They usually get busy during meal times, so you already know that people are willing to spend that kind of money since it’s really good! I would suggest to get the onion rings instead of fries though. Sometimes their fries are a little burnt, but I’ve never had an issue with their onion rings for the past ten years. They hand bread it, so sometimes the rings look stuck together (which is the evidence that they make it from scratch) Fast service, and very accommodating. Not to mention that they also have beer! Great for a small family dinner, ambience is nice and it reminds me of the old movies where they feature a diner. Also one plus: they used to only take cash, but now they take both cash and debit card. Still no credit, so make sure you bring a bank card or cash.

Had the classic homemade burger with a strawberry milkshake, poutine, and onion rings. Food tasted great, service was incredibly fast and the staff were very kind and welcoming. Milkshake was the best I’ve ever had, will definitely be back for more. Update: still damn good

Golden Star is legendary, I've been coming here since I was a little kid in the 90s. But if I'm honest, it's a little disappointing now. I paid $16 for a 6oz burger and average size onion rings. No drink. $16! When I think of a diner I think of two things - no frills but quality, and affordable. The quality is there. The Burger is very good even if only 6oz. Rings were ok, not bad. But there is another legendary burger joint at Sheppard and VP where you could get the exact same thing for half the price. Sadly I think this will be the last time I come to Golden Star. There are just better options and the prices are absurd. Banana for scale. Edit: removing 1 golden star because looking through the reviews I can see people getting onion rings in a paper tray and they get more. I got in the slim paper cup they use for fries. Not impressed.

I was so obsessed with their bbq smokes everyday on my way back home and finally tried the burger! Never regret! but regret why I didn't try this place for long time... You must try if you read this!

I had a pecan butter banana milkshake I think it was the best milkshake ever definitely will be back. Onion rings where so good.

Dropped in for lunch, got the steak on Kaiser sandwich which was decent and the poutine which was great. Service was quick and staff were friendly. Would go back to try the burger out one day.

This was the WORST burger i have ever received (could not eat) My wife and I decided to order burgers for our anniversary, unfortunately one of our friends suggested this restaurant. We ordered a double burger, onion rings, two hotdogs and a steak salad and lemonade. Lemonade delivered in paper cup (like a fountain drink) with lots of ice cubes. We basically received yellow water. How irresponsible these guys could be ? Burgers were overcooked and burned, it smelled like burning oil. Very messy representation. Onion rings and fries were at least for one week ago, very stale and not fresh. Steak salad, it is hard to say, smelled like the most rotten vegetables we accodentally tasted, smelled like garbage. Hotdogs were uncooked and they did not have the toppings we ordered. The whole package went straight to trash can. This order was an insult. I can bet The management are the least responsible people you could find in GTA. I will report this restaurant to food safety department of City of Toronto.

Sorry, don't get what the big deal is. The meat was dry and the bun was standard. The fries were good, though. Milkshake was also decent. For $9 (6 oz burger), I'd say drive a bit more north for Woody's Wood Burger; the beef is juicier and they use a brioche bun. Would have rated this three stars, but they don't take credit (cash or debit only)! BTW, don't feel the need to tip when paying even when eating in; everything is self-serve.

Food is ok, on the expensive side for what it is, but service has to be the worst of any place I have been. One thing is to be incompetent but other to purposely be offensive, rude and mock your clients. See below<br/><br/>For the first time in 10 years I’ve lived in Canada (the country that I still feel is the most inclusive and wonderful in the world), I felt offended, disrespected and humiliated.<br/><br/>Last Saturday I went with my parents (who have recently come to Canada) and my husband to this place and what I got was the most unpleasant and uncomfortable moment.<br/><br/>This is that type of place you must first pay and then indicate what you want on your hamburger.<br/><br/>From the beginning the manager and owner who was taking the orders, had a not very kind attitude and seemed distracted and for some reason decided to take the order from a person who was behind us in the line first. Distraction?... maybe.<br/><br/>However since we just wanted to have a pleasant family time we ignored this situation not knowing that the worst was yet to come: my dad began to ask for what he wanted in his hamburger (he is currently learning English) and the lack of patience and empathy of the staff who prepared the food was evident, their face of annoyance trying to understand My dad was quite uncomfortable. Let's be honest how complicated it could be for an employee to understand words like tomato, onion and cucumber? And if you are in that job, the least you should do is be patient and polite.<br/><br/>At that moment another of the workers approached from behind, and visibly annoyed probably because it was taking a few more seconds than usual, and probably thinking that we were not going to understand, made a mocking and disrespectful comment: “No one speaks English here?” Not only did he ironically laughed, but when my husband respectfully confronted him because of this comment, he refused to answer and much less apologize for the insult, disrespect and act of intolerance. A clear discriminatory comment based on the fact that someone doesn’t speak English perfectly.<br/><br/>I was in shock and thought of leaving but didn’t because I did not want my parents to feel worse. With the same attitude of annoyance and trying to ignore the situation the other guy finished my order. Needless to say, I couldn’t eat my food.<br/><br/>When leaving, we decided to address the owner of the place to tell him what had happened, but we received from him the same indifferent and rude tone. Focusing more in confronting us by they way the complaint was made (I will elaborate on this) than in sincerely trying to alleviate the situation; in fact he seemed as annoyed by the situation as all of the members of his staff; yes when making the complaint and in the frustration and confusion of the moment my husband mentioned that a “racial slur” was made , when what he was trying to express was: “a mocking and discriminatory comment was made”. I want to make this very clear, so it doesn’t become the centre of discussion on the response the owner is probably going to make on this review. <br/><br/>Lastly, when leaving and seconds after the complaint was made, we turned around to see both (the owner and the employee in question) laughing; what where they laughing about? I don’t know and will not speculate. <br/><br/>This was the Second (and last) time I’d go to this place; the first time, even though we were not disrespected, the atmosphere and attitude of the staff was the same, unfriendly and annoyed.<br/><br/>These should not happen as it does not speak to what Canada is about: tolerance, respect and inclusion. What if other citizens or tourists come with out knowing perfect English? Would they also be disrespected?<br/><br/>They should not continue to run a business this way. I join the many complaints I read when writing my review, asking for some of the staff members to resign due to the arrogant and rude attitude; the unfortunate thing here is, that it is the exact same one from the management/owners.<br/><br/>I just hope this review is an alert for people who want to go to this place and hopefully prevents them from the unpleasant and humiliating moment we had with my family.

For a burger joint that's been around since 1965, it has to be doing something right...but my return visit was a bit underwhelming for this Thornhill institution. The last time I had a Golden Star burger was in the 90s and I had good memories of the place, but the fun of nostalgia aside, the burger was average in flavour and the fries were undercooked.

We went tonite , after a couple of years, and ordered the Combo#1.<br/>What a disappointment! <br/>The burger is a 4 oz. (but it is not advertised).<br/>We ask an employee about the size, and he assured us it was on the menu board. No, it is not. It shows a 6 oz.only.<br/>Agreed, the price was right, but NOT for an adult meal.<br/>We felt cheated.<br/>We will not go back.

Golden Star Burgers on Yonge, north of Steeles has been attracting The Hubby’s attention for years. Each time we drive why, he scopes out the number of cars in the parking lot and we debate on whether or not to try it out. The Hubby loves a good charcoal grilled burger and the craving hits me as well occasionally. We finally stopped by Golden Star this summer, hoping to find a new burger spot close to home.

Just a happy place with old school burgers the size of your face. Golden Star is a Thornhill favourite with great burgers and fries the way you like em. It can get pricy if you order combos but the amount of food you get in return is enough for two meals. Order carefully!

The meat itself is so juicy that the bun becomes soggy. So i would let the burger rest a bit before chowing down. Usual toppings, pretty good choice for uptown burger.<br/><br/>RM

Homemade Allstar Burger + Cheese = Yum!!<br/><br/>Some things don't change and shouldn't change. Golden Star has kept people coming back for many years by making good burgers. <br/><br/>The one thing I would like them to change: accept more than just cash as a method of payment. That wouldn't change the quality of the burgers, would it?

There is a reason Golden Star has been around so long - because it's excellent. You want a hamburger and fries and don't care about a fancy place? This is it.

First time here. Not a Thornhill resident, BEST BURGERS EVER although it's a diner looking place and you would drive missing it completely, make the stop and order the house burger!

Golden Star gets 5 STARS.. I've been coming to Golden start for years and enjoyed tons of different options. I then became a vegetarian and I am always so impressed by this old-school diner. I've made it a mission to try the vegetarian option at every burger joint, yet this place still exceeds my expectations. ALWAYS MY GO-TO.

Better times. Used to frequent 'THE STAR' a great deal growing up. Took my wife and child there recently. Not what I remember. Food okay, and I understand that prices go up, but service by cashier was horrid. I remember the rhyming cashier, who could be annoying to some, but at least he was friendly. I guess they think they don't need to care with new condo customers all around??? Watch out 'Star' there are better, friendlier, new burger establishments ready and waiting to take your place. Disappointed because I really wanted to have the family like the experience as much as I had so often the past.

Best burger in TO!. I just had a Golden Star Burger! It was the best in i've ever had in Toronto!

HORRIBLE SERVICE. EXTREMELY rude managers. I hate this place, it feel like people who work there hate you and you are not welcome. <br/>I'm not coming back

Been coming here since the 70's. Love this place.

Terrible. The buns were soggy, toppings were not fresh and the burger was dry, thin and tasteless. The fries were extremely greasy and soggy, and the combo for around 13 dollars is just a horrible deal. Save your money and head to burger king if you want the same experience, at least burger king as better fries.

Great Burgers, Great Atmosphere!. I love the burgers here! Great family owned business! I go there almost every Wednesday, i call it Golden Wednesdays!

Horrible experience. Fish on a bun was raw, fries were soggy, buns were not toasted. Overall, a terrible meal. All of their food items are left out in the heat of the kitchen (including raw beef patties and mayonnaise). The burger itself was nothing too special, a bit on the dry side.

Mister. Always enjoy going to Golden Star. Have been going there for years. Always fresh,juicy burgers, terrific fries, excellent service,pleasant staff.

Good burger, lousy fries. The homemade burger is large, sloppy and well grilled; good but unremarkable. If you don't live relatively nearby, don't make a specific trip for it.<br/><br/>The fries are always lousy and satisfy the three S's: Short, Soggy & Shriveled! If you want baby food, visit your local grocer instead. You won't find proper fries here.<br/><br/>Interestingly enough, the onion rings are usually good. Crunchy and with decent flavour.

I'm a regular at this place. And it's been a Suttle slide downhill in the past few months, they have two very immature boys on the grill who are always trash talking customers, they should probably pay attention to their undercooked Frys .and eat their mouths around customers .

Love the burgers, fries are pretty soggy though (especially if with gravy/poutine)

Absolutely nothing special about the burger. I've had way better burgers at barbq's. <br/>For the total price of $13 after taxes for the home burger combo, I would have to be brutally honest and say that's the WORST combo in the city for the price. <br/>Still can't get over the price and it's a week later....

Great spot. Tasty burgers with housecut fries. Beer and wine available makes it even better. Staff genuinely cared about me having a great experience. Well done.

Kinda Gross. Not good. If you like this place, then you've never been to The Burger's Priest, The Harbord Room or Marben. <br/><br/>I had higher hopes because of Urbanspoon's rating (85% - really?), but this was a lame burger, and too expensive. <br/><br/>$11.70 for a crummy burger and fries (no drink) is a rip for the quality this place delivers.<br/><br/>PS: My stomach hurts<br/><br/>-----<br/><br/>UPDATE: 7 hours later and my stomach hurts even more, and I'm very gassy.

My favorite burger joint

I'm from etobicoke so am insanely biased towards apache burgers -- but if you like apache or burger shack. (And I love them both) you will like golden star too. I would stop by if up north. (especially with kids) .

Burger was terrible. I don't understand how this place rates so highly.....OH THAT'S RIGHT- York Region.<br/>This lace is a step above McDonald's and the burger is mediocre at best. Fries were saggy and nasty and the cheese they use on the burger is very low grade.

Best burger in the city. I've been coming here for about 20 years. It's hands down the best burger in the city. The fries with gravy, YUMMMM!!

I'm not a burger fan at all, but I did enjoy my all-star burger with cheese and my choice of toppings. My partner (the burger fan) loved his all-star with bacon. Homemade lemonade was good, but I'll skip the fries next time. Very quick service too!

My favourite burger in the GTA that everything else gets compared to. Mediocre fries though. Definitely worth checking out if you live in the area. Order the homestyle burger... I can't vouch for anything else.

Overrated. Everything is decent. This place is way too hyped.

It's a good old school burger but nothing extraordinairy. The fries are really good. You taste the potato, not the salt and oil.

Overpriced, average burger with terrible service. I used to come here as a kid all the time and loved it. Somewhere along the way, though, the original owners left their business to their sons (I assume) and it's gone downhill. I came back here last week and was accosted at the register by a really rude employee and when I got my burger, it was average. The house sauce is amazing, though, I must say.

Good Burgers and Fries. Good Burgers and fries. Home burger can be a little salty. Decor is all shabby, no chic. Don't drive out of your way for it, but if you're in the neighborhood, it's worth dropping in. Portion size is pretty good.

Historic Thornhill Burgers. This is where we got our burgers when I was in high school. That was back in the 1980's! The place still makes the same great burgers all these years later. Go figure. It is not pretty or fancy but the place is clean and the quality is high. They also have huge, tasty onion rings and limited parking out front.

After reading the raving reviews I was excited to come visit. Service was from a very sweaty cook who seemed a little annoyed that we didn't know the menu, I ordered 2 bacon cheeseburgers he then asked if we wanted frozen or fresh patties, fresh obviously, with fries and 1 piña colada and 1 black cherry shake, $30 for both combos, oh no debit here, after finding an ATM I returned and paid. So discovered a fresh patty meant one that was made and cooked earlier and then heated on the grill when ordered along with the bacon that had previously been cooked and then refrigerated. Very loose term fresh patty! They offer tubs of free gravy if you ask. Burger was not juicy at all, I believe the juices ran out several hours earlier then it was actually cooked. Fries were ok, kinda like the ones at Swiss chalet, gravy was icky, thick and fake tasting, glad it was free. Our milkshakes were very weak flavored tasting faintly like there names. Would I drive an hour from home to visit again? Ah no.

1St. To Go There!!. They were the best burgers when they first opened and to this day, STILL the best. <br/>There is no one who can copy the taste.<br/>It was, and I hope still is, run by a lovely family who enjoyed making and selling good food.<br/>We were teenage girls @ the time and thought how cute the sons were.

Great food! Customer service pretty good for a place that is always busy. Great place to eat

Warning! This will get messy! This is like a better version of Harveys! the place is a little old but its one of those places where you know they've been around for a long time for good reason! Make sure you ask for the fried (sauteed) onions that you can get on the burger for free! Gravy also comes for free as well!

Closing time? Yea right.. OK so we sent as a company of 4 ppl at this restaurant at 10:40pm without knowing what time they're closed at. We asked when they're closed at and they didn't properly answer, just concentrating that they'd get the money from the dishes we ordered. We got the burger at 10:50pm and 5 mins after they were asking each of us if we'd finished the meal, and 11pm straight they switched off the light. We thought it was kind of rude so we wrote this review together. It is unacceptable to treat customers like this, and they should've told us to just get the dishes to go and not taken at the restaurant because of the closing time. The burger quality is alright however but quality of satisfaction is under average. Would not recommend.

Great burgers, make sure you get their sauce that they make and their home burger. Their fries are very good as well

The best place to be going for lunch or dinner. Golden Star has the best fries in Toronto. If you go you should get the burger. The staff are very friendly people.

Used to love this place.. So overrated in my opinion. I used to frequent this place as a high school student and I loved it. Quality must have gone down or my palate has changed because I think it is not that good. Burgers are nothing to celebrate and the shakes are mediocre.

Great Burger. I love to go to Golden Star and have a great All-Star Burger with fries and gravy. I know it's terrible for me, but it tastes so good! The staff are really friendly too. Great choice if you want a great burger!

Golden Star, not to far, go by car. Another old time burger joint but with better food than "Johnny,s burgers". Old style burgers at fair prices.

Stumbled upon this place. Fantastic. As good as Burger Shack. Better than Apache Burger. Staff very good. Classic diner/greasy spoon. Highly recommend & will definitely return.

One of my favorite steak on a kieser bun. It's not overpriced and they make thier own BBQ sauce!

The best food ever

Love it go their not slot of money

Best burger for the money hands down.

Golden Star seems to be the most overrated burger joint in toronto. Although the fries are good the burgers are made with very low quality meat and are way too greasy. Golden Stars popularity is mainly the result of the fact that it's an old diner style restaurant with a long history that people love to tell others they know about. A couple of other things to note are low quality condements and the cleanliness of the grill area. All this said, I have to admit that the staff are vey friendly and do a good job of making you want to go back.

Probably the best in the city. I grew up just blocks from this fantastic greasy-spoon and it isn't just nostalgia that fills me up when I think fo Golden Star -- it's ravenous hunger. The Banquet burger is fantastic, the garvy for the fries -- heavenly (as are the fries -- fresh cut and crispy good). You have eight milkshake choices (though I've never strayed beyond the Big 3) and an old fashioned diner charm that you can't fake -- or rebuild. If Dangerous Dan's isn't the best burger spot in the city -- then Golden Star is. Forget those "gastro" burgers -- as good as they are -- this is what chuck was meant to be.

Though the fryer oil could be cleaner and the burgers shouldn’t be cooked for as long the food at Golden Star is three or four rungs above what one can expect from its chain cousin.

Golden Star serves 100% beef patties and is a family run dinner with super old school decor, what more can you ask for?

The well done burger was fantastically juicy, which is a rarity in Toronto, and which I definitely appreciated.

I don't really care for burgers but when I do have a craving for the juicy minced beef patties I head over to Golden Star. Located close to Yonge and Steeles, this is the place to head to if you want 100% pure beef homemade patties. It's a relaxing environment where people of every type just come to enjoy a good meaty burger. The staff is very friendly. They always welcome you with a smile and make you feel just at home. In the summertime they even have a nice little patio to sit so perfect for an outdoor lunch date or just getting some fresh air. Me and my boyfriend arrived pretty much close to closing time and the staff didn't rush us at all. They even told us to take our time and enjoy our burgers. Now that's what I call customer service where customer satisfaction is a top priority. We ordered one cheeseburger combo and a double patty cheeseburger on the side. My cheeseburger was char-grililed to perfection and the patty was juicy and full of beefy flavor. It's not a burger unless

This hidden gem has been around forever and I hope they never go away because then I'd need to find a new favourite burger joint. Don't stray or explore when it comes to the menu. Just stick to a home burger with cheese (be sure to add those yummy sautéed onions) and your set!

This place is a very no frills, old-school burger restaurant. But it is first-class! They make a homestyle burger that is exactly how a burger should be. <br/><br/>***Warning: I wouldn't recommend getting a burger combo to go, the burger and fries can get a bit soggy and are much better enjoyed in the restaurant.<br/><br/>Anyone who wants to have a delicious and simple hamburger, do the needful and try this place out.

One of the most famous burger joint in North York, Thornhill area. This place has been standing here for several decades that alone proves the success of their burgers. The burgers are huge, patties are juicy and thick and they are not cheap on toppings. It's definition of classic home style burger, must try!