For 26 years, Ricardo's Italian Cafe (1931 Park Avenue; 314-421-4833) was a mainstay in Lafayette Square, serving heaping plates of pasta, chicken and steak that felt a bit old-fashioned in 2015, even if they were quite tasty — manicotti, chicken spedini, veal parmigiano. Now it has closed its doors.
The closure seemed a bit sudden: The restaurant's website is still up, there is no sign in the window, and Dining Circle was still accepting reservations as of this weekend.…