Hippo's — Restaurant in Fenton

Let me just start by saying THIS is the kind of place that us Michiganders have been needing! Hippo's has the kind of menu, that implores you to keep coming back to try it all (and I've only visited on this one occasion!). I had the pleasure of meeting & talking with the owner John, during my visit, and learned more about this establishment and his passion. John is a former military service member (and for that alone I am grateful), and now He puts his heart & soul into the food that he's crafted here. The centerpiece at Hippo's (to me), are their ribs. Let me tell you, one of favorite things of all time are ribs! However... Finding a place near me that has GOO-OOOD ribs, is near impossible... Until now. John's ribs are what I'm TALKIN about! Fall off the bone, smokey flavor goodness, barbeque sauce that will blow your ever loving mind, and JUICY (not dry) ribs. I'm about 20 minutes away from Hippo's, and I ain't even mad. I'll drive it! The wedge fries here are reminiscent of Rally's/checker's fries except they're BETTER (in my humble opinion), nice crispy outside, seasoned perfectly, and light and fluffy inside! I also sampled the chicken fingers. Perfectly battered, and WOW was it flavorful and not overcooked! The chicken that Hippo's uses is not frozen, and it's also non hormone/free range local chicken. And let me tell you, it is game changing. Hippo's also makes most of their dips in house, one of my personal favs is the "old man sauce". From that to their ranch, I was in chicken finger dipping heaven! If you're passing by, shopping in the area, or live locally, you better get yourself in here, and get some of this deliciously crafted food. We need more proud business owners like John, to remind us just how good food can be, when it's made...

The pizza was pretty decent. I wouldn't go out of my way for it again. The portions are very good. If you're just looking for food to fill you up without costing as much as some other local places, Hippo's works.

If you want the best pizza, breadsticks, chicken tenders, and/or salad, I cannot recommend this place.

If you want good communication from the staff about your order if there's a problem, I cannot recommend this place. We were missing an item but weren't charged for it. However, I was just left to figure that out for myself.

The bread is definitely "jumbo," but it's kind of boring otherwise.

The salad was so wilted and mediocre that we threw half of it out. The dressing was bland and not appropriately portioned for the size of the salad. I had to add my own homemade dressing to make it even taste like a Greek salad. The pepperoni added did not add to the salad. It was just odd. I'd rather have chickpeas, spinach, or higher quality feta added, personally.

The chicken was okay. It was decently moist and tender. The breading wasn't especially crispy or flavorful. However, there was plenty of it. If I were in the area and looking to fill up for cheap, I'd just get 2 or 3 pieces of chicken and dipping sauce. The garlic buffalo sauce was tasty.

For fried chicken, I'd rather go to Holden's party store. For pizza, I'd rather have Big Poppa's. For salad, either homemade, Red Olive, or even Gus's. For breadsticks, Gus's or Guido's.

We eat a lot (too much) pizza, bread, and salad. This place was overwhelmingly mediocre. We probably won't...

You found it! It's literally surreal, being here. Not only is this place the most affordable I've eaten at in years, it's quality food, with generous portion sizes!! And what the other reviews say about the service is spot-on, we were checked on, the owner came out and saw my old man sauce was empty and gave me a new cup, and even taught me how to change the music, inviting me to do so!!! i seriously feel so important and well-fed. The purpose of a restaurant is to let someone leave feeling refreshed and restored, and I've forgotten this because so many of them just leave me feeling drained. What a wonderful place this is. Please check it out!!! (It was so fun to listen to Tool while dining out!)

/// We ordered the 3-piece tender meal with orange ginger sauce, ranch, and old man sauce. It came with breadsticks. We also ordered a calzone, which alone would have fed both of us! All of these things were among the Top 3 of their class, out of everywhere I've eaten. The only thing we didn't like is the mac and cheese. We absolutely will return next time we are in Fenton, and may come out here just for it! I'm interested in trying the big ugly burger and/or a Hippo's iteration of the...