wed,thu,sun, 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM ยท Hippo, Northeast L.A., Los Angeles
$10 cocktails, $9 wine, $12 pastas, $6 drinking snacks
Under a soaring bow-truss roof in Highland Park, Hippo nails that sweet spot between polished and unfussy. The Cal-Italian menu swings from crudos to housemade pastas, with bread so good it steals focus. The room hums with date nights and group dinners, all bathed in warm light and wood. It feels buzzy but never try-hard.
Handmade pasta filled with sweet corn in butter, mushroom, thyme sauce
Royal hamachi, kumquat relish, Prosecco, serrano chile, olive
Pillowy Parker House rolls baked fresh, finished with sea salt and served with honey butter.
Dark rum, tropical juices, lime. Tiki-inspired.
Vodka with floral botanicals, elderflower, citrus.