By, Ashley Lee
AN UPDATE: Joyful House closed on Tuesday, September 27, 2022 after 27 years in operation. You will be missed.
Located in Chinatown off of Decatur Blvd. and Spring Mountain Rd., this restaurant is known for serving one of the best Chinese dishes in Las Vegas.
Awarded the Best of Las Vegas in 2014 for Best Chinese Restaurant, Joyful House remains a popular place for locals and tourists alike.
My History With Joyful House
I was introduced to this restaurant when I was a toddler. This place has been my family‘s favorite Chinese restaurant ever since we moved here from Los Angeles in the early 2000s.
Now, I don’t know which member of my family discovered or was introduced to this place, but regardless, we’ve been customers for over ten years.
Joyful House is like the other Chinese restaurants I dined at in Los Angeles. However, let me be clear with you when I say this, but these Chinese restaurants I dined at are NOT like P.F. Chang’s or Panda Express.
No, these restaurants that I go to serve dishes like Peking Duck, Hong Kong Style Crispy Noodles, Fried Flounder (whole), Salted Fish and Chicken Fried Rice, etc. They use spices that neither Panda Express or P.F. Chang's uses. These spices are probably native to China.
What I Usually Order
I don’t know if I ever said this but to confess- I’m a picky eater.
As a result, I don’t eat things that a lot of people usually eat, and pork along with other kinds of seafood (minus fish) are examples.
Soups
Going in, I favor two kinds of soups- Chicken Corn Soup and Westlake Soup.
Chicken Corn Soup has eggs, cut up pieces of chicken, and corn. It’s a little sweet due to the corn, but I find it to be good overall.
Westlake Soup is another story. There’s pieces of beef, cilantro, and egg whites. Once you mix those together and take a sip, you'd be amazed at how tasty this soup is.
Noodles
Shown to me through my parents, Hong Kong Style Crispy Noodles are egg noodles with gravy, carrots, bok choy, and chicken. This dish has been a favorite of mine growing up, and I remember eating this when I was still living in California.
Soft Noodle with Chicken is my mom's favorite noodle dish. Not much gravy compared to the crispy noodles, and there's more vegetables.
Braised E-Fu Noodles is another noodles dish my family would order when we would meet during dinner. From my understanding, these noodles are a symbol of long life. So it's best to order these noodles on your birthday.
Beef Chow Fun in Black Bean Sauce was a favorite of my dad's. These noodles are completely covered in black bean sauce gravy with beef, onions, and green peppers.
Fish
I first ate Fried Flounder Fish in California. This fish is accompanied with soy sauce and green onions on top. If you don't want to go for fried flounder, there's always steamed flounder.
Sometimes when I’m there, I would order Rock Cod Filet in Sweet & Sour Sauce (separate the sauce please or I’m not eating it). Then I realized (quite late) that I can order the alternative Rock Cod Filet in Sweet Corn Sauce (which I favored more).
Rice
Another favorite plate of my family’s is Salted Fish and Chicken Fried Rice.
You may be unfamiliar with this kind of fried rice as you may had tried other kinds (i.e., with pork and/or shrimp) but this kind of fried rice is what I grew up eating. You may not have heard of salted fish in your rice, but I would say give it a go.
The salted fish (in my opinion) is what makes the fried rice taste good in the first place. The flavor by itself (given that its dried and fried) stands out, but when you mix it with the chicken, lettuce, and rice along with it’s spices, your taste buds could be amazed at this dish’s creativity.
Explore the Menu
If none of these dishes look appetizing to you, then that’s fine!
I mean this restaurant has a menu consisting of various dishes that you can choose from. Joyful House serves all kinds of Chinese dishes aimed at challenging your taste buds.
Think of this way: you’re an adventurous eater and look to try new things; Joyful House sees that and decides to help you out by serving you authentic Chinese food that you never ate before.
In the end, it's a win-win situation.
Last Call
Overall, I give Joyful House a 4.3 out of 5 stars. The remaining 0.7 stars was deducted due to some of the plates I tried and didn't like (in the past), but I want you to know that this is based on my own taste buds. You will have a different opinion than mine, and that's definitely acceptable!
Joyful House is located at 4601 Spring Mountain Road in Las Vegas.
Click here to see the menu.
Photos
Link to cover photo: https://postmates.com/store/joyful-house-chinese-cuisine/I8q1vaYHRp-YripVES93DQ
Remaining photos are originals. Please do not use nor reproduce without my expressed written consent.
References
Link to Joyful House: https://joyfulhouselv.com
Closure of Joyful House announcement: https://www.facebook.com/joyfulhouselv/
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