Flight Plan for Flavor
Peter Chu’s Skyroom Continues to Satisfy with Authenticity…
Along with receiving many accolades over the years and voted best airport restaurant in America by “Men’s Health” magazine, Peter Chu’s Skyroom at the Redding Regional Airport proves through its authentic Chinese cuisine that you don’t have to be flying to another place to have a good meal – Peter Chu’s is a destination in and of itself.
Originally from Taiwan, Chu has spent most of his life in Redding and raised his family here. After 30 years of cooking his favorite Asian dishes at home, he finally turned his dream into a reality by opening his own restaurant. With an experienced chef at the time, he created a menu of meals made in Mandarin, Hunan and Szechwan styles and invented new recipes with main ingredients sourced from around the world, such as Alaskan scallops, Canadian quail, Australian lobster, Mexican Gulf prawns and fresh vegetables sourced from here in California.
In fall of 2023, Chu retired and sold the Skyroom to Yangda Pan, who was a chef at New China Restaurant in Redding for nine years before buying the Skyroom. “Peter’s authentic and unique cooking recipes and talents set the restaurant apart from other Chinese restaurants in the area. Peter Chu’s food is of the type and quality you would expect in a San Francisco or Los Angeles Chinatown restaurant,” Pan says. Coupled with the fact that the Redding airport has grown substantially since Chu first opened the restaurant, and its many more flights and many more travelers puts Peter Chu’s Skyroom on a path of continued success.
“Peter Chu’s is one of Redding’s premier go-to restaurants,” Pan says. His agreement with the City of Redding to keep the space on the second floor of the airport as a restaurant is in place through 2027.
Pan hardly changed the menu when he took over the Skyroom, since Chu had already built a solid reputation. Chu meticulously trained his chefs to make all the sauces, seasonings and dishes the same when he wasn’t there, which carried over into the new ownership. Chu still bartends at the restaurant on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
Jiajie (Jackie) Cai has been the manager of Peter Chu’s Skyroom for two years, having previously worked at Redding’s New China Restaurant. Cai is originally from Mt. Shasta and moved to Redding 16 years ago. He likes working at Peter Chu’s because “my coworkers are friendly as well as the customers who keep coming back,” he says.
Some of the most popular items at Peter Chu’s include General Tso’s Chicken, the dry braised chicken, Mongolian beef, sauteed chicken prawns and scallops with vegetables. Since the change of ownership, a spicy lemon scallop has been added to the menu. When asked what his favorite dish is, Cai replies, “I have a lot! The spicy dry chicken, the golden beef, the Peking beef, the kung pao chicken… I like spicy stuff.” •
Peter Chu’s Skyroom
Second floor of the Redding Regional Airport
6751 Woodrum Circle, Redding • (530) 222-1364
Hours: Tuesday through Saturday 11 am to 2 pm and 4:30 to 8:30 pm; Sunday, noon to 2:30 pm and 4:30 to 8 pm; closed Monday
www.peterchusskyroom.com
