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What are you willing to endure for a good meal? Unruly crowds? A crushing din? A sneering doorman? That meal is waiting for you at Koi. Koi's kitchen revels in, and often excels at, reproducing the alluring and inventive sauces and marinades that are the hallmark of its exclusive original outpost in Los Angeles. Here's sushi of superior freshness and clarity, including the kind of crisp, tight, hand-cut specialty rolls that Californians crave with the same gusto they do Juicy Couture. Still, the owners of Koi appear to be at least as interested in chaos as cuisine. A perpetually prowling bar crowd dominates the room, looming over neighboring tables, blocking servers, and raising the sound levels so high that dinner companions have to bark to converse. The house's solution? Make the music louder. It's not easy to eat when your teeth are rattling. — Rob Patronite and Robin Raisfeld

Hamachi fusion, $22; crispy rice with spicy tuna, $16; roasted duck breast in sriracha dressing, $26

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