REVIEW: Savour the heat | QingDao Red Chilli Restaurant, Sale

QingDao Red Chilli on Tatton Road opened in late 2022. It’s a family-friendly Chinese restaurant that specialises in Beijing and Sichuan cuisine. 

Crispy pork belly and vermicelli noodles - © Life in Sale

Long-term locals will be very familiar with the interior of QingDao Red Chilli. In fact, it looks exactly the same as its predecessor Jitrada, the well-known Thai restaurant that closed last year. While the interior might be familiar, the menu is very different from before. 

Red Chilli Chinese restaurant is located on Tatton Road in Sale - © Life in Sale

What to expect:

A warm welcome, a family-friendly environment and a diverse range of Beijing and Sichuan dishes. The atmosphere is cosy and comfortable, with plenty of seating options, including large tables for families and small tables for more intimate dining.

The menu at QingDao Red Chilli is extensive, with plenty of options to choose from. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by a large menu, but the staff are on hand to help you pick a dish you fancy. The restaurant’s manager, Raymond Lau, who many of you will recognise from the Jitrada years, told us that the roast meat options (served cold) are proving particularly popular with customers since opening. And we can see why. The crispy pork belly we had for our main course was well-balanced, with its crackling skin providing crunch and texture and the interior of the pork bringing together salty and slightly sweet flavours. 

If you're craving something with a bit of heat, there are several chef's specials that are likely to hit the spot.

What we ate: 

👉 Steamed pork and prawn dumplings (£5.50)

👉 Satay chicken skewers (£8.50)

👉 Crispy belly pork (£16)

👉 Singapore style vermicelli with roast pork and prawns (£13.80)

👉 Pak Choi in garlic (£11)

The standout dish? The satay chicken skewers, which were delicious. 💯

Sale has no shortage of Chinese restaurants, but with Red Chilli’s size and the experience of the team, it has real potential to become a food hot spot in M33. Could its interior decoration do with a bit of a facelift? Absolutely. But if you can look past that and are keen to try an authentic Chinese restaurant, you’re unlikely to be disappointed with Red Chilli’s selection of dishes and friendly service. 

Where to find and opening times:

📍 QingDao Red Chill, 11-17 Tatton Road, Sale M33 7EB

🕓 Open Monday-Saturday, 4.30pm-10pm (closed Wednesdays) | Sunday, 12-9pm