Joy Yee's Noodle Shop

Before I called Chicago home, I would make a near 60-mile pilgrimage to Joy Yee's Noodle Shop via the Metra, to the Red Line, & finally to the Cermak/Chinatown stop on a regular basis. It was that good. The restaurant was once this tiny store-front, packed with tables one on top of the other, & you had better believed there was always a well-worth wait to be seated.

Fast-forward in time, & the Joy Yee's Noodle Shop we have today still offers their excellent, all-encompassing menu (this is one of the few Asian fusion places in the city where I can order perfectly prepared miso soup, Vietnamese spring rolls, Pad Thai, & a tapioca smoothie all in a one-stop location...) but they have expanded their space in more ways than one.

Joy Yee's opened-up the back-room to diners, with a bright atmosphere overhaul of the entire establishment, & casual seating. The restaurant offers perfect people-watching views in the bustling Chinatown Square Plaza.

Joy Yee's Noodle Shop also offers something very unique: a front area, to-go smoothie ordering station. Perfect on city Summer days, you can choose your smoothie ingredients, & the friendly smoothie professionals pass your fresh concoction to you through a window. (My favorite? Green tea tapioca smoothie!)

horrible service. they literally let you stand there in front of the register and ignore you for minutes while they talk to other employees, or write something down, blah blah. It wouldn't kill you to say "Excuse me for just a minute".

Came here 2 days ago and ordered their popular beef cubes tomato rice. I have been ordering this for years and most of the time it is good. Although, it has been good on more times than not, this time was by far the worst I have ever had. The beef was different. It was chewy and when you bite into the meat, it is red. I complaint to the server and I didn't ask for another one, I just asked them to cook it some more. They brought it back out and it was just a little better, still chewy and red. I just took it to go and threw it away when I got back home after throwing it in the microwave and it still didn't taste right. Also, we ordered the Pad Thai Chicken and Shrimp. This was below average for the most part. Nothing compared to authentic Pad Thai. Like I have said before, this place is definitely overrated... I won't ever come here to eat, unless my friends come here and I am too lazy to pick a place.