Szechuan Mountain House

Wooden beams, bamboo and an indoor koi pond set the scene at this East Village outpost of a Sichuan chain that started in Flushing. The kitchen leans into the region's numbing chilis and peppercorns: mapo tofu gets an extra hit of black pepper on top of the usual chili base, and the la-zi chicken arrives buried under a small mountain of dried red chilis. Servers communicate by headset to keep up with a room that gets loud and full fast, more amusement park than quiet dinner. Reservations open a day ahead and are worth grabbing, since walking in can mean a half-hour wait.