The chef at Atlas Kitchen, Kaiyuan Li, was born and raised in Hunan, and his easy familiarity with the cuisine, and enthusiasm for getting creative with it is not surprising. While the menu at this elegant restaurant aimed at Columbia University students and faculty traipses all over China’s many regions, including nods to Guangdong and Shanghai, the origin of dishes like steamed fish head with chiles, and braised chicken wings, feet, and gizzards in vinegar sauce, are unmistakable. Among the chef’s inventions, don’t miss “pork scoop” — a bouncy orb of fried pork saturated with sweet-and-sour sauce.

This happy-go-lucky spot continues the tradition of great Chinese restaurants on the far northern verge of the Upper West Side. Lacking the elegance of Atlas Kitchen, Happy Hot Hunan seems like your typical neighborhood Chinese carryout — if that carryout happened to be in Hunan. The pork belly with smoked bamboo is prodigal in its smokiness, and mung bean noodles, rife with crushed peanuts and bits of meat, comes with a thick red sauce on the side — pour the whole cup over for some of the best noodles in town.

A stone’s throw from Trump Tower, this wonderful restaurant had trouble getting the attention of customers passing by nearby barricades and throngs of security guards when it first opened during the last presidency. It takes its name from a Delft-blue crockery pattern popular a century ago in China, and the interior reflects that retro stylishness. The menu runs to a tart tofu casserole dotted with red chiles and green scallions, a stir fry of pork belly and fresh green chiles, and a pickled spare rib soup with rice noodles.

This agreeable fast casual spot in Long Island City presents classic Hunanese fare in the $10 to $15 range. Dash in and order at the counter, then make yourself comfortable for a longish wait, since all dishes are made to order. Yes, there’s a mellow Chairman Mao’s braised pork belly, but most choices are spicier and more sour, with lots of pork and beef. Dishes are presented with rice noodles or rice, and there are further locations near Times Square and Union Square.

This nondescript spot is overshadowed by Han Dynasty on the same East Village block, a Sichuan import from Philadelphia. Despite Han Dynasty’s popularity, the food at Hunan Bistro is much better: bright with hot-and-sour flavors, bringing on a full component of dried and smoked ingredients, organ meats, and an impressive level of heat from a variety of chiles generously used throughout the menu.

The last decade has seen many Chinese restaurant appear in the East Village, and this is one of the best. Like the others, it partly concentrates on noodles in individual servings, hence the name Slurp Shop. The noodles are known as mifen, and the chef-owner Chao Wang matches them with peppers and pork, pickled string beans, and roasted duck. Larger dishes, sans noodles, are even more interesting, including the “flaming frog,” winter melon with fermented black beans, and smoked pork belly stir fried with bean curd.