Hot Joy
| Address: | 1014 S Alamo St, San Antonio, TX 78210, USA |
| Phone: | +1 210-368-9324 |
| Site: | hotjoysa.com |
| Rating: | 4 |
| Working: | 5–10PM 5–10PM 5–10PM 5–10PM 5PM–12AM 5PM–12AM 5–10PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 5
CO
Cody Jackson
Its hard to tell what is offered here from the outside, as it blends in with the rest of the restaurants on the block. Since it is downtown San Antonio, in the historic district, it could be anything, but you might expect Tex-Mex or BBQ, as that is what the other places offer. Once you enter, it is a definite Chinese motif; it actually reminded of my visits to Hong Kong, so I expected more traditional Chinese items, rather than the normal Chinese-American cuisine found across the country. When you view the rest of the interior, it continues with the Chinese decorations, reinforcing the idea of Chinese food. Yet, when you look at the menu, you realize that it is one of the new-fangled "asian fusion" restaurants, not authentic Chinese. The menu consists of Chinese, Japanese, Hawaiian, Korean, etc. combined in weird arrangements. I wouldnt have a problem if it was a variety of Asian dishes in separate categories, but dumping a bunch of things together doesnt always work. For example, I ordered pork buns as an appetizer. Normally, these are minced meat and vegetables enclosed in a dumpling, which is what I expected. What I got were dumpling tacos: flat dumpling dough was wrapped around the meat and vegetables. I lived in Japan and visited China, so I know it doesnt take long to make true dim sum dumplings. The time it took to make these was as long, but probably longer, than making authentic ones, yet the results were something I could put together in five minutes. The fried rice was essentially normal fried rice but half was covered with Kewpie mayonnaise (a traditional Chinese/Japanese condiment) and the other half was some sort of Polynesian sauce. It was okay but not what I expected. The twice-fried chicken wings were, in my opinion, overcooked. There was a lot of breading, kind of like ordering fried shrimp, where it takes a bit to get to the meat. The sauce flavor was fine but the fact that there was a puddle in the bowl was a little disappointing, since it means that very little actually stuck to the wings. A little cornstarch or other thickening agent might help it stick to the wings. Service was fine. Even when the restaurant got crowded, we were attended to. However, I may not have noticed how frequently the staff came by, since we had already finished our meal and were just talking, so we werent waiting on anything. The prices were, IMO, slightly overpriced. The "dumplings" were $8-$9 for two of them, the fried rice was $12 for a large plate (I believe), cans of soda were $2.50, etc. Overall, I was disappointed. After living overseas for eight years, I abhor asian fusion cuisine, especially if it incorporates American food, like the pork dumplings having cilantro. I have had fusion food several times now, but I was never impressed. If you want to try something different, then give it a go. If you want more authentic, traditional Asian food, go elsewhere.
AN
Ann Hua
overpriced asian fusion for the wannabe-hipster scene. i was super excited to try out hot joy and arrived to a packed restaurant on a friday evening. unfortunately, the service was as horrific as that of an authentic asian restaurant (actually maybe worse, and we were sitting at the bar, right in front of the employees), the food resembled poorly thought out experiments gone wrong, and the prices were that of a nice american dining establishment -- definitely didnt match up with the awkward asian brothel-y vibe. we got 4-5 dishes and the only thing that was really edible was the ramen. everything else was saturated in salt. the ramen was surprisingly decent compared to everything else, but came in a giant bowl that was only 1/4th filled and was definitely a rip off for the price. the highly-anticipated wings that were raved about on yelp stank of fish sauce and my husband sent them back after one bite. the menu said they had crab fat caramel, peanuts, and cilantro, so not sure where that stench came from. dan dan noodles were far too spicy and the flavor was completely off. the tater tot chaat sounded interesting but turned out to be gross frozen tater tots you could probably buy from heb (they were alphabet ones and i got a bunch of "L"-shaped ones). we wanted to try a fried rice but seriously, $12 for some fried rice?! bon appetit rated hot joy the #7 best new restaurant in america. no clue how that happened. i can see how hot joys concept has potential, but it did not deliver. will not be back...
RO
Roslyn Rosales
Great cocktails and great food! Everything is family style which allows you and a friend or date to sample a lot of tasty dishes. We started with the Edmame which comes with a honey miso butter and togarashi salt for dipping. Then moved on to the Southern Fried Chicken steam buns. The chicken is fried to perfection and the rice buns are nice and fluffy. We also ordered the Brussel Sprouts, which are vegan, and they were phenomenal. The sprouts are tossed in a peanut butter & sweet chili sauce and its a hearty portion. If you have a vegan friend looking for a filling dinner, the sprouts would definitely be the way to go. Then we finished with the Spam fried rice which really hit the spot. Its topped with kewpie, which is a Japanese style mayo, and even the small portion was a decent size. As for the cocktails, they have fantastic house drinks and can definitely do classic ones, too. I had the Pool Honey which is served over crushed ice, cachaça, coconut milk, pineapple juice, and a house yuzu blend. Its garnished with an orange and a dusting of freshly grated cinnamon. If you like the falvors of piña coladas but want something with a little more depth, this is the cocktail to try. Cant wait to go back and get a tour of the rest of the menu!
JU
julia roubtsova
The manager was actually there and I was amazed that she was more than ok with how her customers experience went. Lets recap. Get there at 945pm. Host says were next to be seated. Doesnt take our name, cause, were next to be seated. Tells us that for the next 15 minutes. Tells us that when we do get seated well get the late night menu. Why? Doesnt know, were next to be seated. Finally takes our names. Get seated at 10:18. Regular menu still on the table. Waiter who really couldnt be bothered with us comes by. Yeah you could sit here but it will be another 30-45 minutes before he could put the order in. Why? Doesnt know, those are the rules. Does your host not know these rules? Doesnt know and really doesnt care, were very busy and hip to worry about how were treating you. Does he maybe offer us a comp drink or a snack? Hell to the naw, thats not the rules. May I speak with the manager? Sure, she was there watching the whole thing all along. Didnt phase her whatsoever. We turned around and went to liberty bar. Full menu and we were treated like human beings. I know this is a successful restaurant and therefore can afford to mistreat riff raff like us - just didnt know this would be made so obvious to us.
DE
Dennis Cao
This little hot mess of a restaurant can be found deep in a nice little area of downtown San Antonio. The decor is a bastard child of eclectic colors and 80s Asian pop references. Their food is a combination of old recipes revamped for those who like a kick in their mouth of taste. Before coming here, previous reviews all raved over their twice fried chicken wings. What they should have said in those reviews is that these are some giant ass wings that are enough to fill a normal persons appetite. They were extremely tangy and crispy, but be warned that they do use some MSG on it so after eating it youll definitely need to quench your mouths thirst. I had their stir fried pork krapow, which essentially is stir fried ground pork with lots of seasoning. The pork was extremely tasty and its saltiness along with the strong Thai basil really works with the bean curd skin mending the two flavors together. Youll really be glad that they serve it with rice, otherwise youll be asking for water non stop.
