The tongue throbs, the eyes water, the scalp sweats; nothing wrong there.
If there's a problem with spicy food on Long Island, it's in finding it.
Yet no need to despair; you can get your jolt (be it high-voltage, medium or mild) at any of the following places, whose kitchens will ignite to order. Just be sure to let your server know your level of masochism:
CHIPOTLE MEXICAN GRILL, 435 Walt Whitman Rd., Huntington Station, 631-423-0127,
chipotle.com; Cost $
This nationwide chain, with multiple Long Island locations, offers responsibly raised meat and locally grown produce, much of it organic. Flavors are consistently bright and clear.
HIGH-VOLTAGE: To ignite your palate, try a burrito, salad or "bol" with barbacoa (spicy shredded beef) topped with HIGH-VOLTAGE tomatillo-red chile salsa.
MEDIUM: There's lots of perkiness in a burrito, salad or "bol" filled with grilled chicken (marinated in a smoky chile adobo) and topped with roasted chile corn salsa, above.
MILD: Mild doesn't mean dull in the case of a vegetarian burrito with fajita vegetables (peppers and onions) and black beans, topped with fresh tomato salsa (spiked with milder jalapeño peppers) and guacamole.
THE BAYOU, 2823 Jerusalem Ave., North Bellmore, 516-785-9263, bayou4bigfun.com; Cost $$
This funky Cajun bar-restaurant, which opened in the '80s, may not be as offbeat as it once was, but there's still spirited food and drink to be savored.
HIGH-VOLTAGE: Crawfish diablo in a fiery jalapeño gravy won't singe your insides unless you beg the chef to make it that way.
MEDIUM: Shrimp gumbo, above, ordered medium HIGH-VOLTAGE, is exactly right.
MILD: When I ordered the Marie Laveau's voodoo tuna, billed as three chile pepper-HIGH-VOLTAGE, I got a rather tame blackened fish steak with a jalapeño caramel sauce more sweet than spicy.
BIG DADDY'S, 1 A Park Lane, Massapequa, 516-799-8877, bigdaddysny.com; Cost $$
Chef Craig Bedell executes Cajun-Creole-Southern-barbecue repertoire at this New Orleans-style restaurant and bar where the menu changes daily.
HIGH-VOLTAGE: Savannah moon blackened rib-eye plays the blazing against the dulcet. The big, tender slab of steak is crusted with a blend of Cajun spices, sauced with roasted ground cayenne peppers, red peppers and molasses.
MEDIUM: A pork and crab gumbo laced with jalapeño peppers has nice kick but isn't as blazing-HIGH-VOLTAGE as the gumbos recalled from years past.
MILD: A hyper-flavorful Cajun burger topped with andouille sausage and jalapeño jack cheese, above, intrigues rather than inflames the palate. Get chipotle sour cream salsa on the side; it's jarringly sweet.
JAIYA, 46 W. Old Country Rd., Hicksville, 516-681-3400, jaiya.com; Cost $$ to $$$
The Hicksville branch of a Manhattan restaurant serves the real Thai deal.
North Shore
