Joya — Restaurant in New York

I found this place on Yelp and this was the top ranked Thai place. So we headed there. Everything on the menu is under $10 bucks. That's a great reason to at least try this place.

It's spacious and getting a table wasn't an issue, although I suspect that coming here later than we did could set you up for a long cue for a table. We arrived around 5:30 PM. I noticed between 6 and 7 it was getting crowded with people waiting for a table outside. There's a nice outdoor space to dine. There's an open kitchen, which can be a bit tricky. You don't want to come out smelling like fried chicken, which we didn't thank goodness.

Let's get to the food. So my GF ordered the BBQ wings, but they didn't look like BBQ wings, more like baked, which is a good thing. I ordered the tiger shrimp rolls. She liked her wings. I had a problem with my shrimp rolls, the shrimp wasn't deveined! I hate uncleaned shrimp! She told me to eat the shrimp, which I reluctantly did. It took away from the taste for me. The shrimp were actually good, but they were not cleaned! Ugh!! I can't recommend getting these, but if you like uncleaned shrimp then, well, order them. At $5 bucks it's good deal.

The entrees were a different story. She ordered the Chicken Pad Thai, I had the spicy chicken with wide noodles. I can't recall the Thai name. Both dishes were fair. The dishes were tasty, but I didn't taste much spice. The plates were messy and chaotic. Looked as if they just threw the food on the plate. The main point here is getting the food to you as quickly as possible. I have no real issue with that, but a nice presentation can do wonders for good food. I have to say I've had better Thai. There are 100 Thai places in this city and I'm sure there are serious top notch places, but this is not one of them. There popularity here is obviously the cost. Its affordable just like Sea or Spice. The service is good and the food comes out pretty quickly, which are huge pluses! I maintain that Republic is better than most of the places I've tried. There's a reason why that place has stood the test of time! The entire meal plus 2 sodas (I was gonna get a Chang ($4), but didn't) was $32 not including tip. You can eat well here for about $40 bucks.

One fork for the food, one fork for the service, one fork for the price, minus a fork for the uncleaned shrimp, minus a fork for the chaotic plate presentation.

There are nearly 600 reviews for this place and it averages about 4 stars, but I can't go higher than 3.

3 forks! I would recommend, just ask them to...

On Friday March 1, 2024 around 9:45pm my family and I decided to visit Joyas restaurant for a casual evening out. However, what was supposed to be an enjoyable experience turned into a disappointing one due to the unprofessional behavior of the bartender. Upon our arrival at Joyas, we opted to sit at the bar and enjoy a few drinks. However, when the bartender approached us to offer a table, we politely declined and expressed our preference to stay at the bar. It was at this moment that we noticed a sudden change in the bartender's facial expression, as if he was annoyed or disgusted by our choice. To our surprise, instead of placing the menus on the bar in a courteous manner, the bartender threw them onto the table, causing them to scatter like playing cards. This lack of basic etiquette was not only unprofessional but also disrespectful. Understandably, my brother-in-law was upset by the bartender's behavior and decided to speak with someone who appeared to be a manager or shift supervisor named Glen. He approached Glen and expressed his concerns about the bartender's attitude, emphasizing that his intention was not to get the bartender in trouble but rather to highlight the need for better customer service. Unfortunately, Glen's response was far from satisfactory. He dismissively asked my brother-in-law what he expected him to do about it, suggesting that the bartender's behavior was acceptable and should be tolerated. Appalled by Glen's reaction and the overall lack of professionalism displayed by the staff, we made the decision to gather our belongings and leave Joyas restaurant. It was disheartening to witness such disregard for customer satisfaction and basic courtesy. Our experience at Joyas restaurant was marred by the unprofessional behavior of the bartender and the dismissive response from the supposed supervisor. As customers, we expect to be treated with respect and courtesy, regardless of our seating preference. It is unfortunate that our visit to Joyas was overshadowed by these negative encounters. We hope that the management takes this feedback seriously and addresses the need for better training and customer service within their...

I really wish I could give zero stars but that isn't an option unfortunately. Yesterday 10/29/17, myself and my youth group went out to eat and we decided on Joya. As soon as we walked in, we informed a waiter that we are a group of 10 adults and two small children and was taken to an area with tables pushed together. The first problem was when we requested a booth instead of tables because we were with TWO SMALL CHILDREN and was told, "No. We don't put large groups in a booth" ???? I've never heard this in my life as booths are usually reserved for large groups but after trying to explain why we need a booth and the host not budging, we decided to let it go. ALSO, this was at about 5pm while it was POURING RAIN and the restaurant only had about two other customers, why couldn't we be accommodated? Second problem was when we asked for a booster seat/high chair for the kids and was told no. The host then argued with the father of the child and told him that he never puts his own kids in a high chair. Um ok? Cool story bro but we like to put our kids in high chairs/booster seats lol. FINALLY, the host realized that we were one person short and refused to let us sit and demanded that a group of 9 adults and 2 young children should just stand by the door and wait. I would understand this policy if the restaurant was actually packed but it was EMPTY. We told the host that our last guest was literally walking to the restaurant but of course, refused to budge and and instead kept yapping about "policies". I honestly felt like the host didn't want to deal with a group of African-American people and the whole experience left a horrible taste in my mouth. We had no choice but to go back into the rain again and head up the block to LEMONGRASS GRILL. And let me just say, it was a MUCH BETTER EXPERIENCE. We were accommodated immediately and treated with actual respect. PLEASE AVOID JOYA IF YOU CAN, THEY DON'T HAVE THE FRIENDLINESS OR HOSPITALITY REQUIRED TO RUN...