(This venue is closed.) Ms. Rita opened her doors in late summer; her Southern-influenced comfort food seems perfectly timed for fall. Baked chicken (with two sides, $10) is moist and mild in the company of collard greens, which are piquant with bits of red pepper. Mac 'n' cheese, very creamy except at the pan edges, is superb. Shrimp await a return visit — perhaps fried for a po' boy, perhaps (during weekend brunch only) well-spiced atop cheddar grits.
Also shown: the approach to Ms. Rita's, just down the block from a prominent if faded ad for an automatic washer. The tagline, "For cleaner clothes Bendix prescribes All," dates to the mid-'50s.
Ms. Rita's Place
349 East 109th St. (First-Second Aves.), Manhattan
646-918-7296
