A unique great unexpected gem! Food presentation lovely. Only open Tuesday through Saturday and closes at 4:30 except Friday open for dinner and must have reservations for Friday night. Makes her own kimchi and you won't find any better! Highly recommend!! read more

This place is amazing! My favorite dinner place! BYOB for a reasonable corkage fee...and great prices and DELICIOUS food!

Use to love this place. Anyone willing to share a picture of the menu? I'm trying to remember the dish I use to get when I lived in Elizabethton. It was so good. read more

It is the worst Korean restaurant I have ever been! I ordered the Soon Tofu Soup. It DOES NOT taste like Korean soup at all. Also, it is super hot and humid inside. The dinning environment is horrible. I did not enjoy it at all. read more

Have eaten there several times and never had anything I would not order again. The people I was with the various times also concur about the great food. Also like the brown bag option. Menu is unlike anything in this area as well. Service was excellent and staff were very knowledgeable. Only reason not 5 stars is they don't accept credit cards which is OK as long as you realize ahead of time. Definitely recommend. Enjoy your meal read more

Red Chili is a wonderful eclectic restaurant in downtown Elizabethton. I know others have been critical of her Korean food, but I think she has done am amazing job of making Korean assessable to an area that was largely new to Korean cuisine, and before every popular place started serving bulgogi and kimchee. I particularly enjoy the Kickin Chicken my kids love the Bibimbop. read more

I love their food. Yellow curry chicken and bi bob bop bowl are great. You must try it. All food are always good and u will walk away stasifed. I know the place is small and cute. read more

Really great hole in the wall! The hours and days are a little inconvenient but it's worth it. You can't go wrong with Blue chicken or bibimbap. read more

What a shame. Great food but horrible service. Don't post you are open until 9:30 pm if you are going to be closed at 8:00 pm.

My wife & I really enjoyed our lunch at Red Chili. There was only one table open out of about seven when we arrived. This is not a large or fancy place. We are not experts on the authenticity of Korean food... but we know good food. I had the crunch rice and chicken and it indeed had crunchy rice served on a hot skillet. If you enjoy local flavor mom & pop places with good food, then I highly recommend Red Chili. (BTW they do not serve chili) read more

This is an odd little place that my husband and his family loves. He brought me there and I was not disappointed. All the food is made fresh and you get a view into the kitchen so you can see it being made. The owner is the one who does all the cooking with her mother and it's so small there's usually only one waitress who is generally quite friendly and attentive. She can answer questions and make recommendations and if it's not too busy the owner will come out and talk too (not sure if it's because he and his mom are long time regulars or if she does it with everyone) which is really nice. Good food, good service, fun people, nice vibrant environment. Love it.... read more

I had to give Red Chili one star in order to rate the restaurant. However, I personally give it no stars since the entire staff walked around my party not bringing menus or getting drink orders. After a while of this, we realized that we would not get served food at this restaurant and left. Service is as important to me as the food I consume, so I will not return to the Red Chili read more

I love love the Red Chicken!!! My boyfriend loves kickin Chicken and crackling rice!!!! App Pork Monday!!! Just bring your Cash!!!! It's the best in the tri cities for Thai food! It's a much we drive from JC to come for lunch on Saturday!!!! read more

Super awesome sort of a hole in the wall place. Definitely worth a visit. Everyone in our party had a great meal.

This is, by far, the most delicious restaurant in Carter County. Although it is not the most authentic Korean restaurant in Tennessee, the taste and atmosphere definitely make up for it! My visit to Red Chili took place on the coldest day of the year. It was excellent. As soon as the doors open, the smell fills your lungs and waters your mouth. The restaurant is confined, and warm, which I enjoy profusely. You are greeted with hard wood floors and bamboo. The lighting is elegant and beautiful. Norah Jones played low in the speakers (which only added to the elegance, and I love her). The ginseng tea is smooth and warm. My food was phenomenal, and cooked perfectly. I recommend this restaurant to anyone I can. Definitely an amazing find! read more

I have loved this place for several years! the Be-bim-bob is always perfectly delicious-I recommend adding a second fried egg! And whatever the sauce is that comes with the fresh spring rolls.....WOW! The service is always super friendly and the food is never anything short of perfection! Definitely one of my most missed destinations since moving last year. read more

Great place to eat! The food is always top notch,anything you order in sure you will be in awe!!

The food was good here and this is why I'm giving it a three. However, the service was horrible. The waitress never came to check on us or to refill our drinks. My friend needed something and had to ask for that as well as silverware from another server. Bad bad service. read more

Our date night place of choice! Everything is fresh, served hot, and so flavorful. Very friendly waitstaff! I highly recommend the Kickin Chicken and the ice tea. read more

This family owned restaurant has great food, Clean carpet and I have had the opportunity to visit the kitchen. I have never seen any better. I was actually surprised. The family who own and operate it are very nice. The service is very good. I think I may run over there now read more

I have had completely different experiences than the previous reviewer's comments of Red Chili. First, I have to say that I think the previous review is very unfair. It sounds like she had a bad day and is looking for a multitude of details to back up her poor review. Why is it even mentioned that the husband is caucasian? (As a side note, the husband is a chiropractor with a nearby office, and he spends his days-off in the restaurant.) And why does she assume that there is a shortage of authentic ingredients in this area? I've personally seen the owner at our local Asian market on several occasions. And the reviewer complains that it isn't authentic Korean food (maybe because there's a 'caucasian' in the kitchen? or maybe it's because she also thinks 'rolls and butter' are a staple in Italian dining...) and that classics are missing from the menu, such as kimchee and bulgogi. Maybe she didn't see the entire menu, because kimchee is available in cucumber, radish and cabbage. The bulgogi is on the menu, but it's name is different - I don't recall the exact name because I don't eat beef and have never ordered it, but it's something along the lines of lettuce wraps (description versus classic name). Several of the items on the menu are written in more descriptive, Americanized terms, which are much less intimidating for the beginner, and it makes it easy to order if you aren't familiar with the dishes. I can't vouch for the state of freshness in the food from the previous review, but I do know that in the many visits we've had to the restaurant (20+) we've never had anything but the freshest ingredients. Maybe Joy was there on an off-day. Also, our entrees have always been very generous with vegetables. The owner prides herself on fresh food, and when she isn't cooking, she's personally checking on customers to make sure they are happy. Although they are always busy when we are there, she knows what our favorite meals are, and that the only meat that we eat is fish. She happily makes modified dishes for us with fish or tofu. I've had the 'kickn tofu' version of kickin chicken, and it was delicious. It was covered in crisp-tender red and yellow peppers, baby bok choy, pineapple, mushrooms, onions and cabbage. The noodles were a half and half version of crispy and soft noodles. It was a great combination of textures and taste. The bibimbap is rice smothered in the classic smoky gochuchang sauce, and topped with lots of stir fried cabbage, onions, and meat (tofu in my case). The fried egg on top is optional and highly recommended, and the dish is always sizzling and fresh when they bring out the hot pot. The level of heat is fairly mild, but if you like it hot, they are happy to spice it up a bit. This dish can also be ordered with cold vegetables instead of stir-fried, if you prefer it that way. The sweet potato noodles are another favorite of mine. They are wide, slippery noodles and a little hard to eat, so I don't always order it. But the taste is wonderful. The noodles are stir fried with several stalks of baby bok choy, and lots of shiitake and wood ear mushrooms. The sea bass is delicious! It's two skewers of sea bass, with braised bok choy and rice. The presentation is nice, and the sea bass is excellent and priced very reasonably at under $11. The asian pancake is interesting - in Korean, it's called Pa-jeon. Red Chili has a veggie pancake and an ocean pancake. It's similar to a fritatta, with eggs, flour and vegetables. A tasty sauce made of vinegar, soy sauce and red chili, comes on the side for dipping. The appetizer menu is the last page - so if you want appetizers or some kimchee on the side, be sure and start on the last page of the menu and work your way forward. Kimchee is recommended as a side dish to just about anything you order - the cucumber kimchee is my favorite, and I use it to cool down my sizzling bibimbap! To be fair, nothing is perfect. The sushi, although very tasty, isn't wrapped very tightly and frequently falls apart while trying to eat it. Also, some little appetizer plates would be nice, and maybe some small dishes with the bibimbap - it's served in a metal hot pot, and is literally boiling and sizzling when served. It takes a while to cool down, so we generally save our appetizer serving platter and scoop it out to cool. It's just too good to wait for it to cool down on it's own! We look forward to many more visits at Red Chili. We've never been disappointed. Red Chili is currently open Wed-Sat 11-4. We usually go at an off hour, like 2pm so we have a better chance at getting a table. It's a small place, with 5 4-tops and 2 2-tops. They are very popular and may be full at the lunch rush. Cash and Checks Only! There's an ATM around the corner at Elizabethton Federal, if you forget. read more

Very good food, quaint atmosphere. My wife and I really like this place. We have eaten here at least half a dozen times and have never been disappointed. It is worth the drive to Elizabethton if you like Korean food. read more

Best restaurant in the Tri-Cities no doubt!

The food is good - don't get me wrong ... but the atmosphere and dining area leave much to be desired. Every time I have gone the dining room has been too hot for my comfort, and the waitstaff go out of their way to discourage you from making special requests in your meal. I get that the chef "knows best" when it comes to what tastes good, but there are times when someone just doesn't want X ingredient. read more

After reading the 2 star review, I can't help but to think that Red Chile has come a long way in the past 3/4 years. I have been several times and have virtually no complaints. I ran into the nicest Korean lady and her daughter eating there a couple times ago and asked whether or not the food was authentic; I was told it's Korean with a San Franciscan influence. Whatever the influence, this is not your run-of-the-mill Asian takeout or buffet. The food is always fresh and delicious. I've ordered multiple dishes and all are wonderful. The prices are very reasonable as well. It is on the small side, and I've had to wait a few times for a table, but the time spent waiting is nothing compared to the taste of the food. I always relish the opportunity to go! read more

Great food! They have moved around the block and are now located in the Bonnie Kate theatre.

I've been here a few times and generally like it. The biggest problem I have is that I think the food is somewhat expensive. I have eaten at almost every Korean restaurant in Manhattan and the prices there for lunch are about the same as this place. That is probably because there are so many restaurants there, they are more competitive with the prices. If this place was cheaper, I would eat here more often, so I am not sure it is to their benefit to charge as much as they do. Compared to the restaurants in Manhattan, I do like this place and I find the food to be a bit more wholesome and homemade. The food in Manhattan often is the same in every restaurant and tends to be rush prepared in a particular homogeneous fashion, whereas this place is somewhat distinctive in its style, while still mostly preserving the authenticity of the cuisine. A couple of things I did notice were that I did not receive any banchan (side dishes) with my order, as typically can be expected from a Korean restaurant. I also noticed with my dish, when it was not as spicy as I wanted, that the traditional Korean gochujang (hot sauce) was not available. So I think it's a little off mark in terms of authenticity, but at the same time the uniqueness makes up for that to a degree. I would also remark that I found the portion size somewhat inadequate for my large appetite. Despite my complaints, I found the food to be very tasty and recommendable. read more

Their customer service is terrible. I found a bug in my food and they did nothing about it. And the time before that they forgot to make half our groups food. read more

I was really excited to eat here, but i was sorely disappointed. The meat dish I ordered was sickly sweet as if honey had been poured all over it. In addition, the meat did not taste fresh, as if it were on the verge of going bad. The portion size was tiny especially considering the price. Service was subpar, as both waiter and owner were incredibly rude. read more

My new favorite restaurant! The food was amazingly delicious and they will adjust how spicy they make the food. I had the red chicken and my bf had the teriyaki chicken. I got full but wanted to keep eating. Our waitress was also so sweet and knowledgeable. We will definitely be back! :) read more

For some reason all the positive reviews for Red Chili are now in the "filtered" area. The only review in the "general" area is a 2 star one. The filtered ones are all 5 star ones. Hmmmm? You can read the "filtered" ones by clicking on the word "filtered" even though it is grayed out, it still works. read more

One of our favorite treats for lunch is a trip over to Elizabethton to eat at Red Chile. The food is always fresh, hot and tasty. The owners are great people that always stop but our table to see how we enjoyed our meal. While it may take a few minutes longer to get your food the wait is worth the hot meal. read more

Have only eaten there one time but it was very good, something different & lots for the money. Will plan to go there again.

My husband and I had lunch at Red Chili yesterday for the first time. The food was absolutely fantastic BUT it didn't disguise the first 10 minutes when everyone could hear the cook in the kitchen yell and cuss at the sweet waitress. I've never heard someone belittle and curse someone so much in the span of 10 minutes with everyone in the restaurant shocked into silence. To top it off, she then started yelling at the waitress for crying. What a piece of crap that woman was. Absolutely inexcusable behavior. The only reason that waitress probably didn't quit right there is because she needed the job. Anyone else would have walked out. Had it been me...well let's just say they'd have had to call the cops...and it still would have been worth it. You just don't treat people that way. read more

Red Chili offers the freshest ingredients available. Presentation is definately a priority. If you're willing to wait ( only one woman does the cooking) you'll not find a tastier place. P.S. the Rolled Chicken is the best. read more

Yep. 5-stars in the category of restaurants serving carefully prepared, interesting dishes for less than $10. No Kidding. Almost every entree' is $8.95, and at that price, it gets 5-stars. Yes there are some draw-backs: they don't take plastic, so bring cash. The seating area is small and a little funky, there's no liquor, and the hours are odd (11-4 Wed-Sat). The upside: the food. It's prepared by a talented chef who shows her talent and creativity with an artful flair for spices and good presentation. I'm a fan and a regular customer. Highly recommended read more

Red Chili DOES NOT claim to be an authentic Korean restaurant first and foremost. I feel from reading the last review that only gave 2 stars, that she is completely misrepresenting and misunderstanding Red Chili. Although, I do believe in critiquing as well as having an opinion I also believe that critique's should be knowledgeable, credible, and fair. I am half Korean as well as lived in Korea for 10 years. I lived in Johnson City, TN for 8 years. If you live in that area you know that it is not very diverse, especially when it comes to food. However, in 2006 Red Chili opened and I had heard it was an asian restaurant that offered Korean food. You have no idea how ecstatic I was about hearing this. I immediately went to the restaurant to find out that she had some funky hours(wed - sat 11-4) and was closed. I was pretty bummed out about it but didnt let it bring me down. I returned the next day right before closing to find that Bi-Bim-Bop was on the menu and was so excited. I was sold on that alone, but looked over the menu. It's seasonal like Korean food tends to be, with a summer and winter menu. She does have bulgogi on the menu all year round (it's called Lettuce Wrap #4 typically, and FYI: Bulgogi is just marinated, thinly sliced beef with onions, typically and it's also found in the bibimbop, and any of her beef dishes.) , and at the time she did have Kalbi(barbequed korean short ribs) BUT it's off the menu now due to the difficulty of getting the short ribs. We were the only one's in the restaurant, and Minae, the owner who was also our server at that time, came out to talk to us. She knew we were Korean and immediately "warned" us that her food is not authentic, 1. because she simply cant get the authentic Korean ingredients, 2. cost effectiveness, 3. catering to her location, 4. high standards with freshness and quality and 5. that she just flat out likes things a bit sweeter than most. Also she told us that she doesnt serve panchan's (which are a variety of side dishes typical of Korean restaurants)or give out kimchee for free unless noted with the dish. But kimchee is on the appetizer menu. I did order the dolsot bibimbop and my friend who had lived in Korea his whole life ordered her spicy pork. We were pleasantly surprised at the presentation, portion, and spices. We had finally found an Asian restaurant that did not drench the food with soy sauce, and although it was sweeter than the norm and there werent many veggies in the bibimbop; we were prepared and truly enjoyed our meals. As far as spicy goes, Red Chili has a scale of 1-10. Minae has no problem "burning/spicing you up" if that's what you want but be warned...this woman's got some heat and not afraid to use it! ;p Korean food is usually spicy. I am one of them but I like it spicy enough to burn but enjoyable at the same time(which would be about a 7 @ Red Chili). Things have definitely changed over the few years she has been opened- more menu items, more Korean inspired dishes(stressing the "inspired"), BUT her quality, prices, environment, even portions have not! Now, to give you a "behind the scenes-intimate" look at RC. It is a hole in the wall restaurant that seats like 25-30 people...but if you are from or visited Korea or even small towns, you know that those ma and pa, itty bitty places are the best. It may not have the ideal situation, they do try(A/C unit, fans, and 2 autoheaters). It is a privately owned restaurant by a husband/wife duo. Minae is the owner and the ONLY cook/chef at Red Chili, her husband Roger, is a Chiropractor, with a practice in the Carter County area. With Minae as the cook, Roger, and one server (two on Saturdays), PATIENCE is a must. All of her creations are cooked on a 4 eyed electric stove top (believe it or not) and everything is made to order...so if you are on a time constraint, not the best choice. It is cash or check only so heads up(even notes it on the front door..lol). Everything is $8.95, and for the price,homemade preparations(literally, she does all the prep and EVERYTHING herself) fresh made to order meal, and well portioned at that, it's truly a steal for us. Nothing comes premade, precut, or pre-seasoned. All dishes on her menu are her creations. Some creations are Korean inspired, some Japanese, and some Korean-Chinese. Dear, 2 star rater: She recommends dining in, over take out especially with bibimbop or anything served on a hot skillet. HER bibimbop consists of bulgogi,onions,cabbage,rice,red sauce and egg(opt). if you want more veggies you want this dish cold. If you dont ask or request, you get what she serves(w/spicy and sauce) Kickin ckn doesnt have pineapple,sticky ckn does.Kickin is like Lo Mein.Not best for take out b.c of lack of crunchiness to noodles. spicyness upon request.Sauce was terriyaki. Other dish was "Sticky ckn" w/pineapples. Ckn comes as tenders and isnt cut like redmeat is; If you want authentic you have to know and order it! read more