Show Us That Tootsie Roll

by Elisa Ludwig

Valet parking attendants and votive-lit lanterns are gathered outside the walkway to the door of KeVen Parker's latest venture, the next-door expansion of his Ms. Tootsie's Soul Food Café at 13th and South. The six-year-old Café, which has always been inviting, now has a chichi new sibling. A converted three-story row home, Ms. Tootsie's Lounge opens into a first-floor bar dressed in rich woods and leather, with brown suede banquettes and white pleated drapery.

For now, it makes for a very fancy waiting room for a coveted Café table. (Its dining room only seats 45.) Eventually, patrons will also be able to eat in a second-floor dining area with apple green banquettes and chrome-and-glass chandeliers. (The kitchen's not yet serving in the Lounge, but the full menu will soon be available, along with a bar menu featuring snacks until 2 a.m.) There's also a third-floor "sky bar" with a balcony and another lounge with leather couches and a gallery of sexy photographs.

Together, the two buildings offer the best of both worlds: intimate BYO atmosphere on the one side and Old City-esque dining with DJs, bottle service and the requisite unisex restroom on the other. (Why it would be considered desirable to apply lip gloss with male onlookers, I'll never know.) You may have heard of the trend of two restaurants sharing the same physical space — here, the same restaurant is stretched out lavishly between two spaces, each with its own neo-soul soundtrack.

One house special is Ms. Tootsie's Tootsie Roll, a chocolate martini with Stoli Vanilla, a cocoa-rimmed glass and a Tootsie Roll garnish. But the fancy new libations should not distract you from the homey Southern eats Parker has built Ms. Tootsie's name on: achingly sweet tropical iced tea, fresh greens with chunks of fried chicken and a creamy honey mustard dressing, fried buttermilk-coated catfish, and meltingly buttery cabbage with bell peppers. Cheesy Cheese Macaroni and Cheese, a honeycomb of tender but crispy-edged noodles with a sharp, nutty flavor and tissue-paper-delicate collards are sides that will taste delicious no matter where you eat them. And the enormously portioned desserts, like Patti LaBelle's favorite sweet potato cheesecake, will make you feel like a VIP even if you haven't valet parked.

(e_ludwig@citypaper.net)

Ms. Tootsie's Lounge

1312 South St.,215-985-9001, www.mstootsiesrbl.com

Hours: Fri.-Sun., 5 p.m.-2 a.m.

Appetizers, $3-$10; entrees, $12-$24Credit cards accepted.