But in its own sly way - in the understated, tightly knit network of cuisines that Molina seamlessly brings together - a dinner at Hippo can also be a startlingly clear window into this nebulous, indefinable, magnificent thing we call California cooking. That’s the draw that would persuade me to drive across Los Angeles. Listen, I won’t blame anyone who devotes his or her appetite primarily to Molina’s pastas. If prompted, he also lets loose on fantastic screeds about orange wines, of which he does offer a few, and the blurry delineations of the natural wine movement. 2472 N Shore Dr, Lowbanks, ON N0A 1K0, Canada 2021 by Hippo's at Mohawk Marina. Ask him to choose an affordable bottle among Old World outliers. Hippo aims to satisfy thirst as well as hunger: The cocktail program is strong the wine service is even better, thanks to general manager David Rosoff. The culinary ambition that sets Hippo apart doesn’t reach the dessert menu: It’s a predictable selection - ice cream sundae, pot de crème - that makes me glad I go hard on the noodles. And there might be the occasional disappointments, such as a salad of haricots verts saturated in an oily vinaigrette. Multiple dinners at Hippo will reveal the nuances at play in Molina’s cooking beyond the pastas. He’s another Silverton acolyte he and Molina worked together at the legendary Campanile, then teamed on Everson Royce Bar downtown before embarking on this star turn for Molina. In the far back left corner of Hippoplex resides Highland Park Wine Shop, run by Randy Clement of Silverlake Wine. I’ll grab a snack of Triple Beam’s slabs covered in things like sausage and greens whenever I’m in the area. Two businesses flank Hippo’s entrance: an outpost of fast-growing coffee chain Go Get Em Tiger and bustling Triple Beam Pizza, Molina’s reunion project with Silverton that serves Roman-style square pizza slices scissor-cut to order and sold by weight.
The restaurant’s name is a loose acronym of the space’s previous resident, the Highland Park Post Office. You will find these thoroughbred comforts in the center of a 7,500-square-foot warren of businesses along Figueroa Street that might as well be called Hippoplex, stacked with pedigreed players who all seem to have some sort of Silverton connection.
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