Tiny mom and pop Chinese food with unique home cooked style meals reminds my mom of her days in Hong Kong. Parking is challenging but worth the effort read more

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Don't order their sweet and sour pork spareribs. It's like they carved all the meat off the bones before battering the bones and frying them up to serve. And the fried rib bones still had a weird, stale flavor. Stick with the standard chow fun or fried rice and you'll be ok. read more

Inconspicuous Chinese restaurant located in the Ingleside district. The restaurant is a little dark and dim when you walk in and you wonder whether it's even open. The restaurant is often not busy and is populated by mainly local neighborhood Chinese customers. Most people come here for the rice porridge and rice noodle dishes. We ordered the pork offal porridge which contains a generous serving of pork offals served in piping hot porridge. The pork offal consists of pork liver, pork stomach, pork kidney, pork intestine, etc. It's one of the few restaurants that offer such a wide variety in this porridge dish. The pork offal tastes fresh. Be sure to order a side dish of Chinese donut to go with your porridge. We didn't order the rice noodles today but those are very popular as well. You get to pick from a variety of fillings including shrimp, pork, beef, or vegetarian, etc. and you can add on a sweet soy dressing at the table. I recommend the pork myself. The soy milk is house made and is also very good. Don't expect the cleanest dishes, tables, and service here. You are just here for the food which is fairly affordable based on San Francisco standards. Pro tip - you should wipe your dishes and chopsticks with napkin and a little hot tea like everyone else at the restaurant! read more

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Our 1st visit to this small mom & pop restaurant & 10 of us took the only large table on the floor. We ordered from their $50.- 3 item fixed menu that includes steam rice. We ended up ordering a total of 6 items & another 2 from the general menu. Our favorite dishes were the chicken curry, salt n' pepper pork chops & stir fried slices of cod fillet w/bok choy. The other dishes like stir fried egg plant, deep fried fish w/onions, sweet n' sour pork was not again. Their sauces on these dishes are overly sugar based for my taste & may be suitable for non-Asians b/c knowingly they do seeing the amount of soy sauce they add on their dish. Looking @ all the nearby tables their rice crepe in either beef, pork, liver & chicken topped w/minced scramble eggs is the dish to get here. The only thing is the service is lacking but they only had 1 wait staff doing orders, serving & bussing so that is taken into consideration & I'm not exactly out for blood. It would be nice to request to having our tea pot refilled or more steam rice tub w/o a lid be refilled. Please return w/a lid so the heat stays on the steam rice b/c nothing ruins a meal than rice losing the steam. Thank goodness I topped my rice w/curry to give it back that heated lift. I will return to knowing now what to order for my next visit vs better than the nearby bigger restaurant Golden Coast. For old timers this was the old Emmy's that used to be on Monterey Blvd. read more

I love rice noodle rolls, so I've been going around checking out all the restaurants that make them in San Francisco. Would recommend the food at Joyful Kitchen! I came by for a quick lunch Saturday around noon and it wasn't too crowded. Parking is all on the street, and luckily we were able to find a metered spot right outside. They offer a standard selection of Cantonese dishes in addition to rice noodle rolls, which are served all day btw. I got the veggie chow fun ($14.99) and the pork rice noodle roll ($6 + $1 for egg), and both were fantastic. The chow fun had really good wok hei and the the rice noodle roll was very thin. I liked that they serve it plain and you you can your own sauces to the roll. My friend enjoyed his basic egg rice noodle roll + bean sprouts ($6 + $0.50) as well. read more

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Joyful Kitchen. I went yesterday having dinner. Order 4 items, food were worst in San Francisco. 1. Rice Roll with pork, small bite of meat, soggy. 2. Tofu bowl, 10 pierces braised Tofu, underneath with Big pieces Boy Choy (uncooked) served in clay pot. 3. Briased Duck with dry bean sheet, it was unbelievable dish, meat so tough, not enough cooked, all bones, neck, head. 4. Eggplant/String beans, it's all gravy. Appearance means DON'T EAT. I myself throw out when back home. Total cost $89. Itemized Tofu Bowl $20. Duck Bowl $38. It's pricey, poor food. ADVISE DON'T GO. Unless you like pay HIGH PRICE read more

Joyful Kitchen - Receipt - Cantonese Near Me - San Francisco, California

We came here for the rice noodle crepes and were not disappointed! Located in the heart of the scrappy Ingleside neighborhood on busy Ocean Avenue, here you will find attentive friendly service in a very casual no-frills atmosphere where the focus is on the food. Lots of menu specials on each tabletop.. On the standard menu are all the usual Cantonese Chinese restaurant staples: pan fried noodles, noodles & soups, rice plates, and of course the rice noodle rolls that we came here for. For the rice noodles: Decide on a meat (minced pork, BBQ pork, or veggie main filling, and any additional veggie toppings are an additional 50 cents each. My BBQ pork filling wasn't bad but I wish the BBQ pork pieces were a little les on the lean side. The texture of the crepe-like noodle skin was on point - thin, nearly translucent and springy flexible on your chopstick. I prefer the standard minced pork filling plus bean sprouts which works better for me here. Yes, I wouldn't mind coming back, perhaps to try out their fried noodles or congee on a blustery cold day - pretty much any day is like that on this side of town! read more

Joyful Kitchen - Special Rice Noodle Roll with BBQ Pork (with lettuce & bean sprouts added) - Cantonese Near Me - San Francisco, California

Came here for lunch and got seated immediately! There's ample seating and can fit big and small parties. The servers are quick and took our order and got us our food fairly fast. We ordered the shrimp and beef rice rolls and these were so butter and soft. My favorite part is also the sauce and they have bottles of it on the table so that you can put as much as you want! We also tried two of their porridges and these came out piping hot, which was perfect for the chilly day. read more

Great chinese food here with no thrills. They make the rice noodles in house and everything is fresh hot made to order. You cant go wrong with their chicken salad here either. Yes it comes with skin and thats the tasty part. The salad is shredded but they also put the bones on here and im not sure why. They also have lunch special for quick lunch and appetites. I love this place read more

Joyful kitchen may not be a fancy spot but it's actually one of the underrated gems on Ocean. Love love love their rice rolls! Some notes - - They're cash only (or venmo pay) - Their signature rice roll has more stuff but it's way more expensive than their single ingredient rice rolls so... just get those! - Congee is good - Fried wings are fire - Folks that are whining about service... it's a chinese resto... what do you expect?? haha read more

We found this restaurant by chance when we were looking for fresh made rice noodles. We were amazed at the quality of it and for the price, you do get alot. Regardless if you get it to go or eat there in person. Their other dishes are quite good as well. Such as congee of all their varieties. I would recommend this place for the food! Happy eating! read more

Please save your time and money. Do not come here. Food is overpriced and NOT good. Barely edible. I was so disappointed. I had a long week and was craving Chinese food. I have a few go to spots in SF, but since I was in the neighborhood, I figured I would support a local small business and check out Joyful Kitchen. I ordered a couple of simple items, as it was my first time here. Usually, an order of shrimp and egg over rice and an order of salt and pepper pork chops are my standard safe dishes to get. The pork chops at first glance looked good but it was a small portion. I figured if they were tasty, I could overlook other issues. Sadly, they were SO SALTY. Even paired with the rice, I was unable to eat it. :( The shrimp and egg over rice was a small plate of slop. It looked (and tasted) like it came from a local school/hospital cafeteria. The frozen carrots and peas were the first thing that threw me off. Once I opened the container, I knew instantly that this was not going to be a fresh dish. Additionally, the shrimp were tiny. I was so disappointed. Like the pork chops, I still gave it a shot and took a couple bites, hoping that the flavor would make up for the lacking in aesthetic. It did not. Overall, I am extremely disappointed with this place. I will not be back. I would not recommend. Oh. And lastly, two of these items alone were close to $50! A total ripoff! If I didn't live so far away, I would have brought the food back. Instead, I just trashed it. read more

Joyful Kitchen - Shrimp and Egg over rice - Cantonese Near Me - San Francisco, California

If you like your shrimps this small than you're not getting your moneys worth. The House Special Pan Fried Noodles was not so special at all. Portions was not much. Neither was their Hot & Sour Soup practically all tofu less the other ingredients usually included in a good hot & sour soup. The only thing good was the flavor & spiciness of the soup as well as the consistency. read more

Joyful Kitchen - Hot & Sour Soup not as expected. More tofu less of the rest ingredients usually in the soup. Consistency/spiciness of the soup perfect. - Cantonese Near Me - San Francisco, California

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There was a pest/bug/insect in the pork and preserved egg porridge in my order i found the next day read more

Joyful Kitchen - Porridge with pork and preserved egg - Cantonese Near Me - San Francisco, California

Decent spot for porridge and cheung fun! Cheung fun - 3.5/5, we got pork and egg, shrimp, bitter melon and shrimp, and liver. The rice noodle itself was very good, super soft and delicious with soy sauce. The shrimp they use is much smaller than what you would typically find at dim sum places. Fillings were alright. Porridge - 4/5, we got pork organ, chicken, and century egg. The regular size is quite large and can feed 2. They gave lots of toppings, especially the pork organ. read more

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My buddy clued me into this place for the fresh made rice rolls. Not too many spots where you can get steamed rice rolls to order in the city with meat choice and other toppings. Normally to get rice rolls you have to go to a dim sum spot and get shrimp or beef or whatever they have. Here you can pick, have both add other toppings like corn, bittermelon, onions, veggies. Been here twice now and I think a meat with the egg is the best option depending on what you feel like. Both the beef and pork are solid and obviously made fresh to order. Went on a weeknight and it was ready in under 5 on a not busy night. Stopped by on the weekend and it was a full house and still only took about 10 mins. All the tables inside were full. Only tried the rice rolls so can't say much about the other food but looks like people enjoyed the mix of noodles/ fried rice based on what I saw on tables. Almost guaranteed everyone had at least one type of rice roll so you know that's the main draw. As of nov 2023 it was about $8 for a roll after tax so pretty decent and one order is good for lunch I would say. TLDR; made to order steamed rice roll spot in the city. More variety than the standard stuff you get at dim sum. read more

Joyful Kitchen - Special Rice Noodle Roll with Corn & beef Special Rice Noodle Roll with pork and egg - Cantonese Near Me - San Francisco, California

I've only had takeout from here but I love their porridge with pork and preserved egg and the fresh made to order rice roll! The porridge comes with an abundant amount of preserved egg which I love. For the rice roll, I had shrimp, egg, and lettuce and it was delicious. I think this is my top place to get rice rolls and this specific porridge from now on. read more

Joyful Kitchen - Porridge with Pork & Preserved Egg - Cantonese Near Me - San Francisco, California

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Delicious! Tried this place several times via delivery. I believe this place is on Ocean Avenue and nearby the City College main campus. We enjoyed the porridge (jook), Chinese donuts and the steamed rice noodles. The noodle texture is good, smooth and not too thick. Even the cold lemon tea was enjoyable. read more

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They open so early it's great! Chinese food for breakfast is the best and they are open around 8am! Chicken wings 5/5 String bean in spicy garlic sauce 5/5 Sweet corn with fish filet over rice 5/5 this is my absolute favorite so I'm always glad to find a restaurant that makes this dish. read more

Joyful Kitchen - String Bean in Spicy Garlic Sauce - Cantonese Near Me - San Francisco, California

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Cash or venmo only! Lots of rice noodle rolls, rice, noodles and congee options! You can add eggs, scallions and other things to your rice noodle roll, which is unique compared to other places. Ordered the shrimp rice noodle roll, pork liver rice noodle roll, house special congee and youtiao (fried Chinese donut). The rice noodle rolls were soft and thin. I usually prefer them a bit thicker, but it was still delicious. The shrimp was big, crunchy and fresh. The congee had a variety of meat and seafood (wish it had more century egg). The youtiao was fried well, not too greasy and was a great addition to the congee. Overall, a solid place to get traditional rice noodle rolls and congee! Also, glad the rice noodle rolls are served all-day even tho they're typically a breakfast food! read more

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Their beef crispy noodles $17 is not very good. The consistency of the gravy was too watery, as well as too much of it. The crispy noodles quickly became soggy. The beef was not tenderized, chewy and rough. I didn't like pieces of ginger mixed in. Ginger slices are not something that is in Hong Kong style crispy noodles. At least the food came out fast and service was excellent. Joyful Kitchen was busy at 7:30pm on a Wednesday. They were already out of chow fun. Emmy's Restaurant next door is still closed for indoor dining. Maybe that's why Joyful was busy. Joyful is more known for their breakfast dishes and not dinner dishes. read more

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We came here for a weekday dinner. Between the two of us, we ordered the shrimp changfeng (steamed rice roll), the string beans with black bean sauce, and the tofu and salted fish clay pot. The rice roll was good, but they didn't have the sweet soy sauce that is usually served with it. The clay pot dish was solid, but for me, the string beans with the black bean sauce was the star. The ambiance is your typical Chinese restaurant - the servers were actually quite friendly. They are cash only or venmo. read more

Nice little local eatery for all those Chinese comfort foods. I was craving won ton noodles, something soupy, not fried or greasy, as I was trying to get over a cough. Parking was easy to find for a Sunday morning. The place was packed with families, seniors and couples. A local favorite for Chinese comfort food. I noticed a lot of ppl ordered congee and it came in a big bowl, big enough to share. We ordered wonton noodles, fried oysters and beef noodles. The noodles was good and definitely satisfied my tastebuds. The wontons were a little flat in shape and not rounded like the ones I had in other places but the taste was there. The oysters were good and came with a sweet and sour sauce. Piping hot and crispy, slightly smaller in size but still tasted good. The beef noodles came with lots of veg, in quite a big dish. Delicious to eat and great for sharing. The time we went, there was only one staff waiting on all the tables. It's hard to find staff during these pandemic times, so add a little patience when you visit. The food was still good. read more

This place is great. One time I was around the area and I asked to use the restroom and they graced me with the opportunity. Fast forward 2 weeks my friend actually recommended the place. I don't know what others experienced but I had some really good noodles here. Picture shown below. Quality was EGGSALENT! (Excellent) read more

Joyful Kitchen - Cantonese Near Me - San Francisco, California

Rude cashier - place was loud so it was hard of hearing when my order was being called out. After getting order she remarked to me in Chinese, "open your ears, called your order a few times..." - wow, really? read more

5/5 for the shrimp rice roll with egg. Would return for the rice rolls and try the other meats! 3/5 for the house porridge, salt and pepper chicken wings and soy milk were all fine but under seasoned for me. I would have like more salt for the porridge. I added the soy sauce for the rice rolls to it. Not a fan of battered chicken wings and again underseasoned for me. The soy milk I would have liked sweeter. Service is average. Got my need met. read more

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Their rice noodle rolls are fresh and tasty. If you're close or already eating or ordering there, it should be on your don't pass by list.

Great spot for your classic Cantonese breakfast situation. They offer a variety of fillings for your made-to-order rice rolls though I believe it's worth mentioning that they used to be better when they first opened years ago. Their rice rolls are still good now and really hits the spot but just not as good as before. Other favorites are their porridges that always bring in the good feels for when you're a bit under the weather. They also have an extended menu of familiar wok dishes that's great for lunch or dinner. Overall, my first choice for comfort food in the neighborhood. read more

Ordered from a Wechat group purchase. Taste ok, the beef flank one taste good but wish more ingredients. Also wish there are veggies inside as the canton style. read more

Joyful Kitchen - Cantonese Near Me - San Francisco, California

Joyful kitchen, the Cantonese food here is great better than other bigger Cantonese restaurants. They have flavor in their cooking. I don't know why they have so much bad comments. This family owned is better than those American Chinese foods out there. This place is more favored to Cantonese taste. Don't ruin family owned. read more

Joyful Kitchen - 1/2 Homemade Special Duck, Roasted Pork with Bean Curd and Oyster Pork Intestine with Ginger and Green Onion in Iron Plate, Fried Rice - Cantonese Near Me - San Francisco, California

stumbled upon this place accidentally had the Mongolian beef with the rice. It's absolutely delicious. Highly recommended. I'm gonna come back here. read more

Joyful Kitchen - Mongolian beef - Cantonese Near Me - San Francisco, California

This is a no frills mom and pop Chinese restaurant that serves delicious food at a reasonable price. Went here for dinner with family recently and enjoyed all the dishes that we ordered. Portion sizes are big and was overall really happy with the food and quality. Some favorites included the garlic pea sprouts. Definitely recommend getting if they have this. The honey walnut prawns were great and we also liked their salt and pepper pork. We also got a mixed mushroom and beef dish that came with green beans. Everything was flavorful. Yes a tad salty and a little greasy but that can be expected. Would definitely come back! Cash only but they also accept Venmo! read more

Joyful Kitchen - Rice noodles with beef and egg, mixed mushrooms with beef, honey walnut prawns and garlic pea sprouts. - Cantonese Near Me - San Francisco, California

Delivered w Uber eats Everything came very fast, and items were delicious. 5/5 Homemade soy milk - not too sweet 5/5 Beef chow fun w satay 5/5 Noodle rolls w shrimp 4/5 Japanese tofu w mushrooms mix - not enough mushrooms / tofu hence 4 stars, but I would've otherwise given a 5/5 5/5 Salted fish - can definitely taste the saltiness from the fish in every bite Probably one of the more authentic tastes/dishes that reminded of when I was growing up in Asia. Total reviews shown here doesn't reflect what I just ate, so I'm not sure where the mismatches here. I'm usually very picky with Chinese food, especially when a lot of them taste very assimilated. read more

Joyful Kitchen - Cantonese Near Me - San Francisco, California

No nonsense Cantonese food. The rice rolls are freshly made and the soft, smooth textures reflect that. The filling is lacking, as the char siu was minced really small and the scallops were tiny as well. The beef chow fun was tasty but the beef was slightly chewy. read more

Joyful Kitchen - Cantonese Near Me - San Francisco, California

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Party of 7 had an array of dishes. Highlights were braised beef brisket claypot, special house cooked duck, chow fun vegetable which had no noticeable oil, more steamed which I greatly appreciated, lamb on sizzling plate with lots of green onion and garlic. There's one friend who always needs to order an exotic dish and he ordered the pig tongue dish which was chewy and my least favorite dish but he liked it. Good service, fresh hot food, and a complimentary dish of rice noodle with shrimp and bb'q pork which was simple yet pleasing. They had some "huge" watermelons around and as I hoped they cut us large slices to finish with. Nicely priced for overall good food and service. read more

Ordered for takeout! We got the thousand year egg and pork porridge, shrimp cheng fun and bbq pork cheng fun, beef and pan fried noodle, pork intestines, string bean in garlic sauce, and chow mein. The proportion of meat to carbs is lacking, especially for the cheng fun. Also a nitpick but they don't fold the meat into the rice noodles, they mainly sprinkle them on top. The food is ok in terms of flavor, does the job if you're craving chinese food and if you're nearby but otherwise not a destination restaurant to try. read more

Quick service with generous portion size! I think they are know for their cheungfan (rice noodle roll) and man they were delicious!! There are many different variety of the rice noodle and it's quite filling and reasonable price! We ordered 4 things for the two of us and it was more than enough! Satisfying meal with leftover as well! read more

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Restaurant opens at 9am! The rice noodle roll with egg, pork, and BBQ pork ($8/order) was the best I ever had in SF. There are many different filling options that I will be trying next time. My daughter loves the chow mein w bean sprout and soy sauce ($15.99). They also do catering which i will try salt and pepper chicken wings next time. read more

Joyful Kitchen - Catering menu - Cantonese Near Me - San Francisco, California

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Support your local Chinese restaurants during this time! This spot is known for their crepe rolls. We always ordered through Doordash for their chasiu and shrimp crepe rolls, and normally they are done well! This time it seemed kinda careless as the meat fillings weren't even really in the roll, but rather tossed on the side. Still tasted good nonetheless. For the pan fried noodles, the sauce actually comes in a large soup container which was quite nice, while the noodle nest comes in a separate plastic box. There was plenty of gravy that I poured and mixed into the noodles in the dish pictured. 8 wings for the salt n pepper chicken, and they were super flavorful, though I wish they were bigger in size or at least more to go around (a bit pricey). All in all, a small local Chinese restaurant that you should support with some tasty food options! read more

Joyful Kitchen - Hong Kong Style Milk Tea, Salt & Pepper Chicken Wings, Chicken Pan Fried Noodles, Special Rice Noodle Roll with BBQ Pork/Shrimp - Cantonese Near Me - San Francisco, California

ordered porridge and add special instructions says no scallions, its a Chinese restaurant so I even write with Chinese, when I picked up the order came home and check it has scallions, not too bad since I just don't like the taste of scallions. But think about it if someone is allergy to such as peanut, they says no peanuts in their orders and this restaurant doesn't care/ pay attention to the customers' special instructions, it will be very dangerous, sooner or later this restaurant will get in trouble. Please be careful if this is applied to you. 下单的时候注明"走葱"，回家发现没有走葱，非常不负责任的商家，我只是不喜欢有葱，还可以原谅。试想一下如果有客人是例如花生过敏的，下单时注明不能有花生，厨房不留心在食物里加了花生或者花生酱让客人吃了，是有致命的危险的。如果你有任何食物过敏，千万小心因为他们不care. read more

Joyful Kitchen - My special instructions for the order - Cantonese Near Me - San Francisco, California