The Way of the World

Thank you, Aaron J., Pasadena, CA, for your review of Hippo in Highland Park, CA.

You think seven ravioli as a restaurant entree is too few?! Okay, Mr. Rockefeller, not everyone grew up rich.

By the look of your attachment, a weird screenshot of the photo you're trying to crop...

... where you measure the to-go container with a 30 ft industrial-strength measuring tape, the ravioli actually looks pretty generous in size for restaurant ravioli.

Here's the thing: I'm not saying it's right, but for my entire 37 years of eating as much pasta as possible, the restaurant portion of ravioli has been laughably pitiful - like 3 or 4 pieces TOPS. That's just the way of the world. Also, why I never order it. And I say restaurant portion because, in my house, the serving size is one bag of ravioli per person. Which is, I don't know, like 24 ravioli.

Making pasta takes a lot of time and effort, especially ravioli. It is about quality over quantity, and this place is not Olive Garden. Here they make it very fresh. Would you complain about this to the Italian nonna in the back of the kitchen pouring her blood, sweat, and tears into your dinner? I wouldn't. She'd probably throw her rolling pin at you.

When I studied abroad in Florence, Italy (I know, I know, eye roll), my Italian professor, a chain-smoking, incredibly chic, very small, wrinkly woman, used to say, "Ravioli... she's elusive. What's inside? We don't know until we take a bite. Ravioli is the woman you leave your wife for - a mistake because she'll never be able to give you everything you want."

Just kidding. She said Americans eat too much.

All I'm asking is that you adjust your expectations and stop posting on Yelp like a little b*tch.

One out of five stars.

See you next Tuesday.