CityPlace will soon get a little bit sweeter with the addition of popular Italian ice company Rita’s and specialty cupcake shop Sugar Chef to its mix of more than 100 restaurants and retailers.

Known for its fresh and flavorful Italian ice and creamy frozen custard, Rita’s will open a 1,000-sq.-ft. space on the north end of the property near Lost City Cigars and Vorizon Wireless in early summer. Founded in Philadelphia in 1984, Rita’s now operates more than 550 locations in 18 states. The company was named one of 25 “franchise high performers” by The Wall Street Journal’s ‘Startup Journal’ in 2008, and is ranked number two in the Top Ice Cream/Custard category in the 2009 Zagat fast-food survey.

Rita’s will serve its customers from a rotating list of Italian ices with more than 40 flavors – all made fresh daily – including classics like cherry and mango to favorites like cotton candy and mint chocolate chip. Cones, custard and other sweet treats are available at Rita’s, such as Gelati and the signature Misto® and Blendinis™ creations. Rita’s also offers its “Light Line” menu, a comprehensive offering of frozen dessert options including sugar-free Italian ice and the Slenderita, a creamy and delicious fat-free soft-serve. As an extra treat, the CityPlace location will offer one free regular size Italian ice to all guests during the first week of its opening, and the first 100 customers at the grand opening will receive free ice for a year.

Another sweet spot, Sugar Chef, will open its first retail cupcake and cake shop and studio in a 640‑sq.-ft. location under the Harriet Himmel Theater in early May. Chef Jennifer Ladisky has operated the original Sugar Chef cake studio in Delray for three years, and will use the CityPlace location as a specialty carry-out cupcake and custom design site. The store will serve scratch-made gourmet cupcakes in 15 flavors baked daily, including black-and-white, carrot cake and red velvet.  Several premium filled, quarter-pound cupcakes will be offered on the menu each day, with rotating flavors like the blackout cheesecake, which is made with Dutch cocoa, filled with homemade cheesecake and topped with Italian buttercream icing. Call-ahead and online ordering and gift boxes are available for the cupcakes.

Chef Ladisky brings nearly two decades of experience beginning with the Johnson and Wales Baking and Pastry Arts program and some of the country’s top restaurants and resorts, as well as honors from the James Beard House, to her business in order to produce her custom creations. Though the shop’s focus will be its cupcakes, Sugar Chef will offer special occasion cakes, with an on-site “cake concierge” during peak times for consultations to help clients select and design personalized cakes in three-dimensional shapes to fit any theme. Sugar Chef will also stock hard-to-find craft cook goods, pastry tips, pastry bags, dragées, aprons and other utensils and ingredients for purchase.

“We’re excited to bring in two more options for sweet treats at CityPlace,” said Ryan Hallihan, general manager of CityPlace. “Rita’s will open just in time to cool off our visitors from the Florida heat, and Sugar Chef is a perfect element to pair with our growing event capabilities at The Harriet.”

Other new shops and restaurants that have recently opened at CityPlace include B.B. King’s Blues Club; Wild Olives Café by Todd English; McCormick & Schmick’s; Apricot Lane; Solstice; Lost City Cigars; and Run & Roll.