Neo-American Bistro Cannonball Lands in South Pasadena
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When Hippo chef Matt Molina and operating partner Joe Capella came across the space that would become Cannonball in South Pasadena, they had no delusions of grandeur. “We didn’t come in with any sort of bravado, like the block was lacking,” says the award-winning chef. “The restaurant was available. We saw the space and figured this could be our next little spot not too far from what we’re doing at Hippo. That’s all we thought.”
But given the restaurant’s instant success and the team’s track record for delivering hit after hit — by seemingly understanding the exact wants and needs of the neighborhoods they’re in — you could be excused for thinking otherwise.
A brief recap: When Everson Royce Bar opened in Downtown Los Angeles’s Arts District in 2015, there were no upscale bars in the quickly changing area. It filled that gap with classic cocktails, natural wines, and some of the best bar food in the entire city. Three years later, they launched Triple Beam Pizza and Hippo on another rapidly transforming block in Highland Park — instant hits that drew fans from across the city and have settled into permanent neighborhood gem status. The two Cal-Italian spots are still as bustling as ever.
Likewise, Cannonball, which is housed in the former Piccolo South Pasadena space, is the splashiest South Pasadena restaurant debut in years. Though the walkable neighborhood is home to many dependable eateries and cafes, the biggest opening for the area, Katsu Jin on nearby Fair Oaks, was back in 2023.
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Since Molina and Capella launched in early May, reservations at their two-story, neo-American bistro are regularly booked up. “We’ve been fortunate in that we’ve had a really good response and people have been coming,” Capella says. “And we always find ways to squeeze people in.”
None of this is a surprise to those in the know. Capella and his front of house team are widely praised for their unpretentious brand of hospitality. And Molina, who took home a James Beard Award for Best Chef: Pacific while working at Osteria Mozza in 2012, has become one of L.A.’s most beloved chefs for his non-fussy-yet-delicious farmers’ market fare. Here’s everything you need to know before heading over.
The menu blends Everson Royce Bar’s greatest hits with Molina’s Cal-Med sensibility.
The burger, an ERB staple that’s frequently cited as one of the best in town, is Cannonball’s best-seller. The $23 single prime chuck patty is seasoned with just salt and pepper, topped with Tillamook cheddar and Dijonaise, served on an egg brioche bun with a side of crispy fries.
The $12 flaky buttermilk biscuits with honey butter, another carryover from ERB, are the second most popular dish. Back in his 2016 review of the bar, late L.A. Times critic Jonathan Gold described them as “excellent: tall, crisp and just a little tart, separating into a series of steamy, crunchy-edged leaves like a biscuit form of puff pastry.”
While those perennial hits are always available, the rest of the neo-American bistro menu rotates according to what’s available and in season. The shaved celery salad features medjool dates, walnuts, mint and piave vecchio cheese. Right now, the very popular pan-roasted ocean trout is served with cranberry beans and cherry tomatoes with a squash blossoms vinaigrette.
Other dishes lean more into broader California flavors than Molina’s other restaurants. Take the yellowfin tuna crudo: Served with a chilled yuzu ponzu, togarashi chile, scallions and cilantro flowers, it takes its cues from L.A.’s widespread Asian-influences. “We live in the city where Nobu and Wolfgang reign, and where Eastern culture is huge,” Molina says. “They’ve influenced how I cook at home and I wanted to bring that here.”
This simple yet soulful sensibility flows throughout the entire restaurant. Rather than go for a chef-driven concept, the team took a more lighthearted approach. “We want this to be a place where you can have a full-on dinner experience with big wines or sit at the bar or a table for an hour-and-a-half and order by the glass,” says Molina. “The food is a bridge to bring those experiences together.”
The beverage list is full of hard-to-find steals and creative cocktails.
The beverage program boasts a similarly thoughtful yet casual approach. Esteemed bartender Wolfgang Alexander, who previously worked at influential speakeasy The Varnish, created a well-priced cocktail list that combines bespoke concoctions with new takes on classics, like the Thunderbird, Cannonball’s riff on a martini, which combines gin with white vermouth, house-pickled onion, and a twist. Its Manhattan variation mixes bourbon with Amaro Lucano, Pedro Ximénez Sherry, and mole with a cherry garnish.
Well-curated wines by the glass are priced around $13-17. The long bottle list offers steals on highly allocated selections — oftentimes priced lower than retail. “Part of it is my wine store background,” says Capella. “The standard markup you would take at a wine store is way less than what you’d take at restaurants. We want people to drink stuff: we don’t want a trophy bottle on the list that would sit there until maybe one day someone will come in and buy it.”
Focusing on what he refers to as “unmanipulated wines,” not necessarily falling into the natural or biodynamic categories but that often follow a similar philosophy, the list features lauded producers from around the globe. Burgundy’s Chanterêves and famed Domaine de la Romanee-Conti (DRC), Judith Beck out of Austria, and La Clarine Farm B-Sides from the Sierra Foothills are just a few of the rare finds on offer.
The vibe is French-meets-Eastside chic.
The expertly compiled wines and unpretentious fare is all tied together in a cozy, brick-covered turn-of-the-century building. The brasserie-like vibe is a stark contrast to the industrial feel of Hippo and the team’s other spots. It boasts vintage lighting, bucolic landscape art, lots of greenery and sleek but comfortable chairs sourced from Sunbeam Vintage in Highland Park.
Soaring windows at the front of the space look out on the street, where diners can watch the trains pass and passersby wander in and out of neighboring businesses. “It’s incredibly charming,” says Molina. “People come to Cannonball and are like, ‘I had no idea this cute street existed.’”
That’s part of the goal for the team. Just as Molina and Capella have managed to develop a loyal following at Hippo and Triple Beam—a couple of Metro stops away—their aim is to bring their existing base to the new space while welcoming their new neighbors into the fold. “We hope to create a community in South Pasadena the way we did in Highland Park,” says Molina.
If the past is any indication, this Cannonball will certainly land.
