It's hard to find good, affordable Chinese food in London and was wondering if it was the same for New York. So when my friends suggested 'the best [cheap] Chinese in Chinatown' I was a little dubious.
Arriving outside Joe's, I noticed a crowed of people queuing to get a table - this had to be a good sign. We took a ticket (like you would find at a deli counter) and was told that we had a 45 minute wait, so we went to Apothéke, one of New York's hidden bars. Visit here to read my review.
We made our way back to Joe's, before our 45 minutes were up, but our table had already been called. Advice from the waitress 'don't ever leave once you have your ticket', but they kindly gave us a new ticket and we were seated within ten minutes. Unless you are in a group of eight, you will be sharing a table, not that it matters as there is lots of room.
Joe's is not a fancy place, it's tables, chairs, plates of good food and nothing else. Service is fast, so I recommend you popping in a grabbing a menu to look at while you are waiting to be seated. I noticed that everyone had soup buns on their tables, I was told by my friend that they were amazing and cheap ($5 for eight buns). If you've never eaten soup buns before, be careful! They are hot, and unless you want a swollen lip from the steam I would suggest you waiting (although I did quite enjoy having Angelina lips for a brief moment).
The 'lip enhancing' dumplings
My friend had been there so many times she knew what she wanted without even looking at the menu. We had two poultry dishes, one prawn (shrimp) dishes and two vegetable dishes. The stars of the meal were the Kung Pao Chicken, Citrus Shrimp (this wasn't on the menu, my friend asked for it and I recommend you do too) and shoots of the snow pea, which were so tasty and not on the menu (it's worth asking your waiter what they recommend). It's also worth pointing out that you shouldn't order rice off the menu as rice normally comes free (which is normal for most restaurants that serve dishes with rice) or very cheap, so make sure you ask if rice comes with it first.
We were in and out in less than an hour and I really felt satisfied. The portions were huge, and I didn't feel like you were eating lots of food colouring and salt. Joe's is a great place to take your friends and it's cheap. Without a tip the meal cost $70.00 for four people (that's £47.00 based on the exchange rate when I wrote this), at just over £10.00 a head I would say that we got a really good deal.
If there is one place to eat in Chinatown it's Joe's, just make sure you have a flask ready to keep you warm while queuing.
Average price per person: $20.00 / £15.00 including tip
9 Pell Street New York, New York 10013
www.joeshanghairestaurants.com
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