“This is my favorite Chinese restaurant!” says one online reviewer, and this sort of review is not uncommon for China Star, located in Springfield, Illinois. The locals are attracted to the restaurant’s humble and charming atmosphere, fresh food, and affordable prices. Although the 1,700 square foot restaurant can seat up to 60 people, China Star is primarily a take-out restaurant.

China Star

• Location: 1899 E. Sangamon Ave. Springfield, IL 62702-1205


• Cuisine: Americanized Chinese cuisine  (Canton, Szechwan, and Hunan)


• Offers: Dine-in, Take-out


• Signature Dish: General Tso’s Chicken, Sweet & Sour Chicken, Beef with Broccoli, Sesame Chicken  


• Year of establishment: 1993


• Phone: (217) 789-0800 

Freshness Counts

The restaurant’s menu caters to the local residents and offers a mix of American and Chinese cuisines—mainly Cantonese, Szechwan, and Hunan. Stir-frying, deep-frying, and sautéing are the more commonly methods used for food preparation, but steaming, boiling, and poaching methods are also used for those looking for healthier meals. But no matter how the food is prepared, customers can always rest assure that the ingredients are the freshest available. Only high quality beef, pork, white meat chicken, seafood, and seasonal vegetables are used in China Star’s kitchen, and the food is naturally flavored with soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, salt, garlic, ginger, and/or dried chili flakes. However, if customers require their food prepared a certain way, the kitchen will happily make adjustments, per request.

According to China Star’s owner, Mr. Liu, the freshness and quality of the ingredients are very important. He always checks the orders from the distribution company carefully to ensure perfection. The kitchen keeps daily records of sales and the amount of produce used so they know when certain foods are no longer fresh and when they need to be reordered. Additionally, all of the food is stored in compliance with the Health Bureau.

The most popular dishes at China Star are General Tso’s Chicken, Sweet & Sour Chicken, and Beef with Broccoli. Mr. Liu credits the homemade sauces as one of the reasons why his restaurant is so memorable. While the popularity of General Tso’s Chicken is prevalent throughout the United States, China Star’s skillful chefs have really mastered the dish; they’ve made this common dish into an extraordinary one.

Because the experience at China Star is so positive, many of the diners are regular customers. These customers are familiar with the menu and often prefer to order their favorite dishes during each visit. However, sometimes the regular customers are eager to try something new. To address this, Mr. Liu and his kitchen staff are always looking for and experimenting with new dishes to add to the menu. They refer to cookbooks and look for inspiration directly from their customers.

China Star is open seven days a week and catering is also available. The most popular catering items are dumplings and egg rolls.

Service You Can Count On

As China Star is primarily a take-out restaurant, the customer service is limited to phone conversations, packing orders. The staff members are all well-trained, polite to customers, and efficient while they work. Orders are often filled between three and ten minutes. Additionally, the staff is required for keeping the restaurant clean—every member has his or her own cleaning task to complete at the end of each shift.

According to Mr. Liu, the success of his staff is due to self-discipline. He knows he can rely on them to serve customers, clean the restaurant, prepared food, and work together. He never has to put pressure on them and their relationships are built on trust.

Humble Beginnings

China Star has been in operation for the last sixteen years, having opened in 1993. Mr. Liu is proud to say that people he used to serve as children, he is now serving as adults. He describes Springfield as pleasant and colorful and a lot of his customers refer to his restaurant in the same manner. “This is our favorite restaurant in Springfield,” says an online reviewer. “We usually try to hit it up once a week. They ingredients are very fresh and everything is made to order.” Mr. Liu boasts that oftentimes customers will drive up to thirty minutes to get take-out food from his establishment.

According to Mr. Liu, the most important parts of running a successful restaurant are sincerity and perseverance. He is sure to always serve his customers what they expect and do whatever he can to make them happy by providing quality food, friendly service, and a clean and comfortable environment. While running a restaurant is no easy task, Mr. Liu persevered, usually by working ten hour days since the restaurant’s opening. The first thirteen years were very difficult and now all of the hard work is finally starting to pay off. China Star’s customers are grateful for Mr. Liu’s hard work and the restaurant is thriving due to positive word of mouth.

All About Mr. Liu

When Mr. Liu first came to the United States he entered the restaurant industry. His first position was as a busboy and he worked his way up to cook and then later began to open his own restaurants in various parts of the country. Finally, he settled in Springfield, Illinois, with China Star. While Mr. Liu does not currently have plans to open another restaurant, he does intend to keep working hard to improve China Star and keep his customers happy and impressed.