It has been a year since i am not back to this place. I took my brother out for dinner. The kimchi was not as good as before. Hopefully they can make better. It seemly very busy today. I think i will come back to give it a again. Will recommend clean your table after you eat. No server read more

Joy Kitchen - Korean Near Me - Richardson, Texas

10/10 this place is awesome I come here once a week during my lunch breaks. Foods amazing and the service is great.

Food is good! Set up and rules are a little different from your usual resto but that is not an issue because of the good food!

Overall the simplicity of the dishes are not to be fooled, each dish has its own unique taste and flavor. I enjoyed the spicy pork and squid a lot and I recommend it for anyone who is open to new culture. read more

Joy Kitchen - Fish stew and cabbage short ribs - Korean Near Me - Richardson, Texas

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I ordered Ssangsun Jolim, the spicy fish stew, and the flavor was so delicious I didn't care that the fish had bones lol. The lady at the counter was very welcoming and she showed me where I could get a purple-looking rice, barley tea, and the kimchi bar. I was shy to get more kimchi, but she told me "get more!" so I wasn't going to say no XD While I was there, I noticed they answer their phone in Korean a lot, so that just proves this place is pretty authentic in addition to being cozy and casual. I will be back to explore their menu. Hopefully I'll have more time to order a spicy beef soup with noodles that I couldn't order due to time constraints. read more

Terrible service. I got to-go food and decided to sit down and take a couple of bites. This cashier kicked me out saying that "to go food must be eaten to go". Umm ok? Didn't want to argue with her but I definitely regret leaving a tip and felt disrespected, I should still be able to dine in if I changed my mind and want to eat there. read more

Updating my review to 4 stars. The new owners have since worked out all the kinks of taking over an established restaurant and have made it their own. This is one of my fave places to eat Korean food and I usually come here at least once a week. Pretty much everything on the menu is great but my go to's are the kimchi chigae, dak tori tang, dol solt bibimbap, mandu guk and beef vegetable soup. read more

more like kitchen un-joy! there have been too many bad experiences at this location. the food is good but the customer service is rude! one time i came here with a friend but i was full and decided to just keep my friend company while she ate. well towards the end, she told me how good the rice was and i should try it. i tried a little bit and no kidding- this lady actually said i had to pay an additional 3 and a half dollars! yes, thats right- after my friend had ALREADY paid the full price wtf apparently sharing is a crime in this restaurant! well the first time i came to this restaurant, i decided to come here. i tried to just keep my friend company and wanted to just get a drink and this lady said that NO (SCREAMIMG AND RUDELY) that i had to buy food otherise i can have no drink and then when my friend went to go get her drink she went up to my friend scream that she better not even think about charging or she will charge us extra for it brcause i could have no drink! i have never seen anythimg like this. maybe this craz lady thinks she still in north korea amd doesnt know the laws in the usa. she even sneezed on top of the meat yuk avoid this place! save your dignity by not coming here umlesd younlike to be humiliated in fromt of others oh and almost forgot she got my order wrong even though i ordered the correct food! Ughh bad restaurant! there are plenty of korean restaurants out there! do yourself a favor and visit another! read more

Joy Kitchen - Korean Near Me - Richardson, Texas

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First time here. Cute little place. Food was amazing. And to top it off, I had to bus and clean my own table. Self serve and self clean she says...I will be back... read more

Joy Kitchen - The Kimchee here is really good. - Korean Near Me - Richardson, Texas

I've been here twice before, and both times I was very annoyed with the lady. My first time there was with a group of friends (8 people) and 3 of us already ate so we didn't want to order anything. The lady told us that she would have to charge $3 for each person who didn't order anything. Seriously. She automatically charged us on to my friend's card and told her that afterward. The three of us decided to force ourselves to eat their sides since my friend was practically forced to pay for us. I went there a second time and it seems like the service has gotten worst. The sides aren't good, but the meat and rice cakes are. It's probably best to order to go from here so you don't have to deal with the lady's attitude, yelling, and outrageous charge for not ordering. I recommend trying out Korean food in Plano, they have better service. read more

Just came in at exactly 7:30 pm- Thursday and my family and I were turned away. They close at 8 and we wanted to take it to-go too! Super angry and frustrated. Never had this problem when the previous owner was still in charge. There's no joy in this kitchen! read more

Great home style Korean food . Always my go to for Korean food. Love the fried dumplings, spicy pork, and kimchi soup. And purple rice ! Bulgogie is always good read more

OMG, Joy Kitchen was really mind-blowing. The atmosphere, the service, the menu. Amazing food, Beef Bone Soup was great without a doubt. This Beef Bone Soup was done just perfectly. And workers were really pleasant and helpful. Anyway, they have a good thing going here and I'm glad I stopped in. read more

There is potential with the restaurant as it does have good flavor and decent sized portions. However the rice was kept in a rice cooker but was dry and crunchy because it had sat there. Fresh rice would have been ideal but the fresh food was tasted. read more

Prices went up a bit but that doesn't matter because the food is delicious. Stopped by Joy Kitchen for lunch today and couldn't be happier. The menu is right on the wall and everything is around 10$. There were four of us and we got the spicy pork and squid stir fry (9.75$), seafood tofu soup (9.75$), Gam ja tang (9.75$), and pan fried mackerel (9.75$). Joy Kitchen is a self serve restaurant where you order you food and wait for you number to be called. What special about Joy is you can eat all the kimchi, pickles radish, purple rice and jalapeño you want but you just have to serve yourself. I thinks it's the only restaurant they allow you to do that and it's all so good. After a 10 minutes wait, the food came out hot, bubbling, and tasted excellent. Everything was seasoned just right and the portion size was fair. With all you can eat bon chon side dishes, you can't really complain. They also have sweet rice drink that was refreshing and yes you can drink it as much as you want. Just clean up after yourself when you're done. read more

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I've been to this place many times, it was my go to place for korean food. I have brought a lot of my friends and family here because I would tell them that it's so good they have to try it. Usually when I come there are 2 older ladies watching the shop, and it's usually not too busy. Today I came with my dad and little brother, and there were two younger girls cashiering. I told them I wanted 2 bulgogi's and I wanted to share one of them since there was 3 of us. They told me that we would have to add $4 to share, but it sounded like they weren't really recommending it, so I said whatever it's fine since my little brother wasn't going to eat that much, maybe less than half a bowl of rice and the bulgogi I paid for. The place was packed, there was no place to sit and my dad wanted to leave because what happened if the food came out and we had no where to sit? Mostly everyone looked like they just got the their food, so I went up to the cashier and asked her if I could cancel my order, and she asked why, there are seats for us to sit in to wait for an available table. But mind you, someone was sitting there already so we didn't want to bother them and ask for the chairs. The place is really small so even if we did ask there was no where to sit... lol. There was one couple who just got their food but decided to leave, so we sat down and I got everyone a bowl of rice. As we started eating, the cashier comes back up to us and tells us we need to pay $4 for the rice my little brother couldn't even finish. It was barely anything! He could barely even eat the meat cause he didn't like the food. After this happened, I paid them and I wasn't in the mood to eat anymore. Probably never coming back. And for those of you who are gonna say that it was my fault for coming and knowing it was busy, they should have told us to wait to order food. I didn't think they were gonna make us stand there and wait. And as for paying extra, my little brother barely even ate anything. Rice isn't even worth the $4 we spent on that small ass bowl. read more

Go here if you want fast service and great homemade Korean food! I get the bulgogi dish every time. read more

Hands down the best kimchi jjigae I have ever had. So tasty and flavorful.

So good!! Great little family run, authentic Korean kitchen! With daily specials and a regular menu you're sure to find something for everyone. Small buffet of purple rice and various kimchi pairs nicely with any of the main dishes you might order. Friendly staff and easy going atmosphere. I've loved everything I've tried so far. read more

Joy Kitchen - Chicken and potato stew. - Korean Near Me - Richardson, Texas

Fast food Korean style? Yes please! It's a no fuss place so you get your food but everything else yourself. Pick out what you want based on the photos, they have specials on the left, others on the right wall. I happen to think it's cute but that's me. You tell the cashier what you want and grab a tray for your kimchi side dish, barley tea or sweet rice drink( don't let the appearance fool you!), utensils, and must not forget your purple rice! The kimchi was fresh and not too tangy which is great with your rice. I didn't know that bok choy could be fermented as well. I had the radish kimchi which is 1 of my faves. My bf was shocked that there was a bucket of ice which I told him was the sweet rice drink. He was quite skeptical but he liked it! As for his opinion, the place was not as clean as he liked. We ordered the kimchi stew (me) and the chicken and potato soup. Poor bf is still trying to debone things so that was a challenge. Being the great gf I am, I didn't help him. He still enjoyed his soup tho! I might come again when I'm in the Buckingham area but I never go there so we'll see. read more

Arrived at 7:30 pm on Thursday and we were turned away - closed. Business hours are until 8 pm. Boycotted, I will never return.

Authentic Korean food. Everything on the menu is so consistently delicious! But if I would have to recommend some items, the Kimchi Jeyuk (stir fry kimchi and pork), Dakdolitang (spicy chicken and potato soup), and galbi tang (beef soup). It's self serve so pour your own water, portion your own rice, and get your sides. For dessert, try the sweet rice drink! It's a traditional Korean drink that is made with rice. read more

The spicy bulgogi is delicious!! I got medium spice and it was perfect.The kimchee was also very good. Purple rice, kimchee, tea and a couple other things are self serve, which is great. I will return for sure! read more

People told me to tried to place and I'm so glad I did! I love their rice drinks! I think I've tried 9 things from their menu? And I have never been disappointed. If you're looking for good Korean food, come and check this place out yourself! read more

After putting this place off for about 2 months (somehow it always shows up on my android app), I finally went to this place. I LIVE RIGHT NEXT TO HERE!!! So exciting. Anyways. Interior is a no frills type of place. It's about eating food and getting the hell out. Per recommendation of the other reviews, I got the Potato-chicken soup and beef bulgolgi. Both were EXCELLENT. The chicken was really tender and the broth was mmmmmmmmmm. The beef bulgolgi was of the most stellar variety. So tasty. Meal came out to $16,00 before tip, so $8 a dish. Not too bad a price. Open kim chi bar? F-ing bad ass. Their regular cabbage kim chi is the best kim chi I have ever had. (Sorry Jinho, but it beats out yo mommas.) Love how I can get all the rice and kim chi I want. Will come here again. Right down the street, fast, filling, decent price. Not much to complain about at all. TRY IT! read more

It's always a good sign when the restaurant is full and everyone is Korean. This is about as authentic as it gets. No frills. No fuss. You know it's authentic when the only drinks they serve are water and Korean tea. Got the bulgogi, bibim bop, beef marrow soup, and cold noodle soup. All were comparable to my moms, which is how I judge a Korean restaurant. The buffet style all you can eat side dishes and rice were great. We are always requiring more rice and kimchi. And here you can get all you want. Oh yeah and last but not least, the bill for all four of us was $32!!! Where else can you feed a family of four for that? One warning, for those that want ambiance, Korean "fusion" food, or Korean "like" food, don't go here. But if you want to eat what real Korean people eat, this is the place. read more

Living honestly 3 minutes away from Joy Kitchen, we always get take out from here. Most Korean parents don't really trust the cuisine of Korean restaurants, probably due to being spoiled with their own parents cooking. Being korean, I can attest to this. I don't care If a chef's bulgogi wins a Nobel prize, it's never gonna beat my mommy's. The fact that my parents frequently order take out from Joy Kitchen should mean something. The food is great and price is very affordable. They have the sweet brown rice water drink that can make any guy squeal after drinking it during a hot Texas summer day. Everything is made right when you order so freshness is not a question. The menu varies every day, so it's always a good idea to go on different days to try things out. I usually stick with the bibimbap. Their rice is also purple with grains and beans and stuff. It's weird but for some reason it tastes great. Joy Kitchen is what every korean would consider good home cooking. You could say it's like Country Barrel for white people, minus the racism. Also stop by Donut Depot next-door, if you want some ballin donuts and kolaches, also from some koreans. read more

Probably the only thing I don't like about this place is they close their restaurant pretty randomly and somewhat frequently (when they're supposed to be open). Or at least on two separate occasions for me...maybe this love between Joy's kitchen and I was just never meant to be. For me, it takes about 40 minutes to drive here...but well worth the drive. You can eat as much kimchi and those little korean dishes as you want. Purple (healthier) rice. A special soy sauce blend you can mix yourself...and the Chicken & Potato tofu soup......*drools* on my keyboard as I'm writing this (no, really my saliva started to come out). Their pan-fried squid thing, sorry I forgot what it was called...is amazing too. Usually everyday they have lunch specials. Very good value I'd say for the food you get and the unlimited kimchi. Service is decent too, the ladies are quite nice...although one of them didn't speak English too well and it took a while for me to order one time until another lady came out to save the day. read more

Best korean food I've tried. It's a very simple restaurant ran by a middle age korean couple. They don't serves food, and you will get the food, rice, water by yourself. But the food really, really, really delicious!! read more

Joy Kitchen - Korean Near Me - Richardson, Texas

Joy Kitchen is the epitome of a hidden gem. I'd seen it for over a decade and a half before I actually tried it and man, was I missing out on some good mom and pop Korean food. Like I said, this is a "mom and pop" self-serve Korean restaurant. Don't come up in there all high maintenanced, expecting a fancy setting and some waiter to serve you. Go in there, look at the board to your right, and order yourself some delicious Korean food. The menu is good, it's not extensive, but it should have what you want as it has the popular and main korean dishes. The prices are cheap (think $7.50) and you get a bang for your buck since the friendly owner pretty much makes all the food and they come out fresh in steaming hot pots. You get your rice and side dishes yourself. The rice is purple, has beans in it, and is healthy, filling, and most importantly, tastes really good. There's several picked/spiced veggies to satisfy your side dish cravings and she makes an awesome sweet brown rice water. I've referred over 10 friends here and they're regulars now. So if you're ever craving Korean food or just hungry, get yourself some Joy Kitchen! read more

One of the better korean restaurants in the plano/richardson area. They have different dishes they make every day of the week and I always end up going on a Tuesday just because that's when they make the chicken and potato stew. I've been to almost all of the korean restaurants in dallas and they make the best of this dish and its cheap and perfect for 1-2 people. The downside is that sometimes they can make it a little too sweet so it can be a hit or a miss. Some of the other dishes I thought was good is the soondae soup, potato stew, mackeral.. fish stew?, and the spicy pork stir fry dish. Also remember this place is really a hole in the wall. By that I mean it's self serve rice, kimchi, drinks and pay at the counter. Also, I wished they would renovate their interior and clean up their kitchen but I guess it's the taste of the food that matters, oh wells. read more

Not open on Saturday and Sunday. Now, this is not your service restaurant. Self-service is what best describe the setup of this joint, which is purely genius. When you enter the restaurant, you will see two walls with menus on them. On the left is your daily specials from Monday to Friday with pictures and minimal text description ( Well, I think I should say no text description at all, so just put your Korean Senses on and imagine what it's going to taste like. No matter what your choice is, I'm pretty sure it's going to 1st Spicy 2nd Salted and somewhere between taste explosion and gourmet nirvana). On the right is your a la carte menu which you can order anytime of the week when the restaurant is open. I happen to adore this joint dearly. Not because of its decoration (TBH there is actually no decoration at all), not because of the service, and definitely not its location. However, coming from a country that put the food itself as the number one criterion when rating a food joint I found how American culture have changed me over the years. The thing is- we are often pampered with top notch service and mediocre food but when we look at the pretty decoration that the restaurant put up we forget how bland and mediocre the food was, how the food lacks soul, and how great a food joint can be with minimal decoration and superior food. read more

I went here yesterday and I am so glad I did! This place is going to be one of my favorite hole in the wall restaurant. How chill is this place? Total self service ( self pick up, self clean, etc.) but you get free kimchi, cabbages , soup, purple rice , fermented rice drink (Makgeolli) and brown rice drink all for $8.50!!!!! I ordered an Osam ( was really hungry so forgot to take a picture but trust me you won't regret it). On top of it all, the owner lady is super sweet! FIVE SUPER STARS!!! read more

Joy Kitchen - Steak and Squid - Korean Near Me - Richardson, Texas

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Not much more than I can add outside of the other reviewers. It is self serve on the complimentary rice, some sort of beverage, and various types of kimchi. What a great value for under $10. The only beef I had is when I ordered a menu item bibimnaengmyun and was advised that it would take over 20 minutes and that I would have to come back after lunch hours to indulge. read more

Went here last night to grab some dinner but I had to choose from Spicy kalbi roast or Kimchi boodae stew. I went with the spicy kalbi because I wanted to try something new. But I made a wrong choice the food had something in it that made me sick. I won't go into details of what happened but I was sick until this morning. I've never had any bad experience from this place and it was one of my fav places to eat korean food. My usuals are normally chicken dori stew or potato stew w/pork. I will have to give them a try again because maybe I was just unlucky that day. Plus the lady knows me and is nice to me so it gives me another reason. Btw everything cost $7.50 read more

Passing by Dallas on our way in Houston, we were hungry and looking for a place to eat. I picked Korean since being from Arkansas, our Korean choices are limited. This place has high mark on Yelp, but I do not trust Yelp in regards to Asian restaurants. But, my GF convinced me because most reviewer are Asian, and a white guy reviewed it high just cause he saw a lot of asians. We were definitely not disappointed. Old Koreans eating. Check. Shabby looking place. Check. No fancy decors. Check. I could not understand what to do. Check. Price are reasonable. Check. This is the place for me. So, their banchan is selfserve. They only have 4 selections, but they are definitely good. Their specialty drinks are free. Do not waste you money of soft drinks. Better try the sweet rice concoction. If that is sweet for you, mixed it with the other drink which I think is tea. We ordered the Kimchi soup and bulgogi. Each dish is 8.50. I thought that it is pricey, but when they came out, that is 8.50 well spent. The serving is big for the price. And, the taste is one of the best I ever tasted. The bulgogi was tender and very tasty. The Kimchi soup was flavorful. They even have so much meat in them. So, if you are looking for a Korean restaurant in Dallas area, better visit this place. It might not look pretty on the inside, but their food is heavenly. They focused on the food and not on the frills. read more

No fuss Korean dining! This is a "walk-up" ordering kind of joint. You order at the counter and wait for your food to come out. There are only a couple of side dishes here (pickled radish and cabbage kimchi) which you have to grab yourself. Rice and tea is also self service, but that's why it feels like its your own house. It's all about the main dishes here. My friends love their bulgogi and squid dish and I prefer the bibimbop. Bottom line, this is a great place for lunch, definitely coming back. NOT OPEN SUNDAYS ( I have made this mistake many times......) read more

We've been here a dozen times, and are always greeted by the scent of bulgogi cooking in the back and Mama Kim's inviting smile. Okay, I don't know if her last name is really Kim, but I do feel like I almost have a personal relationship with her. She is always watching Korean television, but as soon as we walk in, she immediately draws all of her attention to us. As soon as we order, she's in the back preparing our food. While we wait, we help ourselves to the self-serve rice and banchan. Someone did mention that there were only three banchans, but honestly with a self-serve station I wouldn't want more than three. It would be inconvenient to make several trips carrying four plates in each hand. We usually come around mid-afternoon and the place is almost always empty, but don't let this sway you from coming. They have daily specials, but we always order the spicy bulgogi and kimchi jjigae, which is usually more than enough for the both of us. If you want kimbap, come early because she usually sells out by the afternoon. The food is always SO good. It is always made fresh and comes out sizzling. I've had bulgogi at other Korean places in Richardson, but Joy Kitchen will always have my heart- it's the best. The kimchi jjigae is so good on a cold day...a hot day...any day. The environment is very homey. It's not overly decorated, there are simple tables with a small flower on them. All of the attention goes to the food as it should be. The dining area is always spotlessly clean. There are never any dirty dishes left out. It's as if you really are in her kitchen. In addition to self-serve tea, there is a self-serve sweet rice drink. IT IS SO GOOD. It's in a big container with huge chunks of ice and a big ladle. It's so sweet with such a good flavor. It's the perfect way to finish your meal. And it's self-serve, so maybe help yourself to that second glass. When we're at a loss about where to eat, we immediately think of Joy Kitchen. Even now, writing the review we're dreaming of Joy Kitchen. We can't recommend it highly enough. We have nothing negative to say. Go there- you won't regret it. tl;dr - GO TO JOY KITCHEN! read more

Joy Kitchen - Spicy Beef Bulgogi and Kimich Jjigae - Korean Near Me - Richardson, Texas

I came here with low expectations, not because of the hole-in-the-wall appearance but because I've never found Korean food super appealing... (I'm sure I'm gonna get some haters for that statement) but Joy's def converted me! My biggest complaint with Korean food is that they usually make it so spicy, you can't really taste the other flavors, but at Joy's they made it so that the spicy doesn't overpower. The tofu soup and the "oh sam" (?) were both amazing. The oh sam is served on a sizzling plate and it fries the rice cakes super crispy! The tofu soup was spicy but I could still taste the seafood in it. Joy's has definitely made me into a believer! Would recommend! read more

There are so many reasons to go to JOY KITCHEN. 1. It's the real deal. It's so difficult to understand how to order that YOU KNOW it's authentic. 2. Portion size. I SAID PORTION SIZE. 3. Usually, everyone in the joint is Korean. That's called STREET CREDIT. 4. FLAVORS. 5. Unlimited kim chee to provide your co-workers with an endless barrage of noxious butt burps, all the while strengthening your intestinal fortitude with probiotic bacteria. 6. Everything is like 8 bucks and you serve yourself so your tip is nominal. All they need is a jacuzzi and one of those rooms with the dirt and crystals and I'd fucking live there!!! WOOOO!!! PS Fuck bulgogi. Bibimbap is what the players crave. read more