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If the name of the place isn’t a tip-off, then the bright-red, oversize chili pepper positioned atop a glass pedestal inside the vestibule at Spicy & Tasty is. When the owners closed the original Roosevelt Avenue basement-level space, located in a somewhat seedy mini-mall, fans of the iconic pepper and its multiple Sichuan applications mourned. With its recent reopening in comparatively posh quarters, they can once again rejoice. The food is as good as—if not better—than ever, and the mah-jongg players who hogged the old premises have given way to mostly Asian-American families, their teenage daughters endlessly chatting away on cell phones. You’ll want to turn yours off, the better to concentrate on the kitchen’s complex layering of powerful flavors. A good place to start is with cold dishes like the "jelly Chengdu style," gelatinous but slightly snappy noodles infused with pungent, fiery heat derived from red chili oil, Sichuan pepper, minced garlic, scallions, soy sauce, and vinegar. Familiar classics like twice-cooked pork, "homestyle" bean curd, "dry-cooked" string beans, eggplant with green pepper, pork-stuffed wontons, dumplings, and dan-dan noodles are all exemplary, but that’s barely scratching the surface. — Rob Patronite

Twice-sautéed pork, $8.95; smoked tea duck, $13.95

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