Joy Luck House

Just had milk tea but it was good. One of the few Chinese places in Chinatown. It wasn’t busy but service was a little slow.

Ate here for lunch and the service was quite and to the point. Once our order was in it was out within 10 minutes (depending on who you are this may not be a good things). The décor was so so but that not the main focus of a Chinese restaurant. Would come here again if in the mood for quick food.

He tried the coconut bun and soybean drink. The look on his face repelled me from wanting to taste either, though we had just walked a few miles through the city.

Overcharged me by almost 40 dollars, and the clerk had no idea/​did not tell me.
The food is always delicious– but I’m a repeat customer who may not be back. Last Friday I was charged 7.32 for pastries (2 dollars above what I should have been charged according to the menu in any case). My card was run, and apparently re-​run 5 times. The woman behind the desk (very nice in general, so no shade!) told me I still owed her cash. She had run it five times. Called and emailed yesterday. Have not heard back. Disappointed by a lack of professionalism. Will update if this is resolved.

I went to pick up a few bakery items for my kids… Maybe I am spoiled by the wonderful bakeries in Toronto… In addition to being overpriced the sesame bun was so greasy and tasteless I am afraid to eat the other items I ordered.

Ask any Asian and they will regale you with their, «Where are you really from?» stories. This confusion is compounded when you’re from Taiwan like me and people are like «What?» or «Do you mean China?» or «Oh, I love Thai food.»
Walking into Joy Luck House, I find myself asking the questions. Staring at one of their buns, I see that it has a «Joy Luck House» label… but… *squints eyes* «Where are you really from?»
I ask because the demand in DC’s Chinatown is low so the turnover is low and nothing seems that fresh. The curry beef bun filling had an overwhelming alcoholic/​preservative taste. The savory buns in general were course and dry. But the sweet flavors tended to hold up better and the taro and mochi bun was a mini-​revelation.
Their entrees were all decently satisfying (yay congee!) and much cheaper than nearby options, making it a great spot for a fast and casual dinner. Just don’t expect Paul Hollywood and Mary Berry to confer any «star bakers» here anytime soon.

We ordered, waited for thirty minutes, then the staff said they had no record of our order so we left. I think one must pay first, and it would have been helpful to know that. Having never been there before, we thought if we told them what we wanted, the food was ordered. But that is not the case apparently. Instead, they sat there looking at us, and when we asked what was wrong and why the food had not come out, the staff said, «the chef is very busy.» But we were of course alone in the restaurant. Never going back.

After walking a couple of miles enjoying the cherry blossom and much of the D.C. sightseeing in the morning, we were tired and hungry. We stopped by the highly rated China Boy but quickly exited out of the door — that place is pretty much just a takeout place, tiny with only 2 tables. We needed to SIT. We desperately found the nearby Chinatown Express, however, it had long lines waiting through the door. So we had to settle for Joy Luck House, which is right next door.
Food: We ordered 4 noodle dishes: Bean Sauce w/​Meat, Pork LoMein, Beef Chow Fun, and Beef Noodle Soup. All were $ 9.45 and that’s about as high as one can price these standard takeout dishes. While they were all OK, they weren’t good enough to stop us having second thoughts — that we should have waited in line for the Chinatown Express next door.
Service: You order and pay food at the counter and they bring to your table when ready. The same lady did both and she was friendly, did nothing beyond her duties, though. An older man would periodically come out of the kitchen and clear the tables where necessary. He’s either the cook or the owner or maybe both. He’s very grumpy. We could hear him grumbling as he went about doing his thing. Not good for the business! One surprise was that this little Mom & Pop operation accepted credit cards!
Bottom line: If you can afford to wait in line, go to Chinatown Express next door which is Zagat rated, cheaper for the same dishes; the long line has to be for a reason. I give it a reluctant 3 stars, though I suspect I might have given it a 2 if we weren’t so hungry.

The service is terrible and unpleasant if you need anything beyond a bare bones transaction. I found the server reluctant to properly prepare/​heat food that you’ve purchased or discuss extras for larger orders. As others noted, the prices are high.
The scallion pancake was greasy and flavorless. The egg and coconut tarts were heavy and not fresh especially considering the cost.
At a minimum, the walls need a couple coats of paint. I will avoid this place in the future.

Super friendly service. The guy who is likely the owner made sure my Singapore rice noodle was super spicy pet my request. The food was very good with large portions. The restaurant is divey no doubt. Really has a Chinatown, NYC feel. I’ll be back.

This is a go-​to spot near downtown for a quick pastry. The selection is not the widest, but the items are super cheap and reliably tasty. It’s quick and I like supporting the couple that runs the joint. You can’t go wrong with any red bean paste item.

Stop here if you are in the area and want a little treat TO-​GO. I wouldn’t bother with anything else or eating inside this place. We ordered mochi and a lotus bun. Nice and hot on a cold day!

I love going to this hole in the wall place for baked Chinese goods. Makes me feel like I’m in NYC with the grungy corner store — grungy is too harsh of a word, but I can’t think of another. Their moon cakes are beautiful and the filling is quality. I like the red bean but I also like the ones with salted egg inside as well. Their bubble tea is really good too the tapioca is not overlooked and the milk tea is not too sweet. They have very authentic food too!

Whenever I’m in Chinatown for lunch, I usually make a stop here for dessert to purchase Chinese baked goods. They have a variety of buns and tarts, in addition to boba tea and hot milk tea.
I like their Portuguese egg tart and their buns aren’t half bad. However, their prices are higher than other spots in VA and MD, most likely due to being in DC. I’ve also had breakfast here once (they have different types of congee here), and it wasn’t impressive. I could make better congee at home.
I’ve always had friendly service here. They also accept credit card with no minimum purchase amount.

Stopped by here during work twice due to the proximity. First time I got a spring roll and bubble tea, and was expecting something larger than what I got. But it was a measly 3 inch, skinny roll. The tea wasn’t bad then.
I came again afterwards and got a Taro bun and another green tea bubble tea. This time, the bun that was supposed to have red tea paste inside had something totally crumbled and not very pasty looking. It tasted mediocre. The bubble tea had hard to chew bubbles (not fully cooked) and was super diluted with ice. I couldn’t get that aroma, let alone concentrated taste of the matcha. Considering it’s chinatown, I’m sure there are some other places where you can find a quality food and bubble tea. The guy is friendly so I give it 3 stars, else it’s a 2 on my end for the food and drinks.

The store is owned by a middle eastern man.
He had trouble communicating with his kitchen staff, who are Chinese.
I had the misfortune to hear them argue and see the owner shove one of his employees. I also had to translate a little due to my Chinese skills.
Service was slow.
Milk tea was subpar too.

Authentic, good dim sum is hard to get in DC Chinatown. Going to the burbs in VA or MD would be the best solution, but here are a couple of places in Chinatown where you can pick up certain dim sum items, and at Joy Luck House, that would be the Chinese Egg Custard Tart in HK style or Portuguese style (bruleed top layer of the custard). Both are very good, and the Portuguese style version is actually just as good cold the next day. Prices are a little high, but that’s expected when supply and demand are somewhat low.

Food is okay… drinks I will pass!
If you want chx/​veg buns or sesame balls with red bean and taro, $ 1.99 for each is fine. It’s best to get them in the morning otherwise they’ll be sitting out all day.
As for bubble tea/​pearl tea/​boba/​etc, it was okay. If you have had good boba in your life, then this will sadly not pass the bill.
FYI: They take card :)

Tasty mooncakes, but not a particularly scenic interior.
The moon cake was a nice texture — not too firm, not too dry, but fully cooked — and neither the dough nor the red bean paste was too sweet, which is my usual complaint about moon cakes.
The item we chose was nicely fresh; some of the others looked less convincing.
I’d try this place again, but cautiously.

Please ban this place in Chinatown!
When you walk in, it smells like urine and the food doesn’t look fresh. I ordered a bubble tea and they went to the back to make it. Granted that perhaps the machine was back there, I’m not sure what other crazies they do back there…
Not only was the food on the «unsanitary» side. The owner? Was the not nicest of person to his employee. She was asking him politely to ring me up and he was just gibbering away on his cell phone. I then asked him to help the poor women out and all he did was yell at her and to get out of his face (when she was clearly five feet away) please!, this is not the right way to treat your employees or coworker. Once I got the bubble tea… I looked back and I saw the poor women just crying…
Don’t come here! I was too scared to drink my bubble tea and I regret even accepting it/​paying for it. Never stepping foot in this place again.