In June, Anthony Lombardo treated himself to a new set of wheels. No, not a sports car, but an electric scooter that’s ideal for zipping back and forth between his two restaurants: the highly acclaimed SheWolf, which opened in 2018, and his second restaurant, Medusa, which opened in January.
Both located on Selden Street, the restaurants sit about a football field and a half apart. The two-time James Beard semifinalist brought along several longtime team members from SheWolf to Medusa: executive chef Scott Overall, sommelier Javen Servo, and beverage director Brandon Page.
While SheWolf serves a forward-looking approach to Roman cuisine, Medusa is a contemporary Sicilian restaurant. “With Medusa, you should be able to pick it up, drop it in the middle of Palermo or Catania, and it’s a successful restaurant in Sicily, not just in Detroit,” says Lombardo, whose father’s side of the family hails from Trapani on the island’s west side.
Refreshing spritzes pay homage to Sicily’s beach culture, as does the vibrant interior by Patrick Thompson Design. Popular on the streets of Palermo, panelle are warm fritters made from chickpea flour. Medusa prepares panelle with olive oil aioli, Sicilian curry, and Michigan honey blended with Southern Italian Calabrian chilies. It’s a delicious and contemporary take on a centuries-old dish.
In 1861, the newly formed Kingdom of Italy annexed Sicily, but the island’s cultural roots extend much deeper. Sicily existed under Greek, Roman, Arabic, and Norman rule in various periods, and as Medusa’s menu notes, “all left their culinary legacy.”
Pastas — like the rich yet rustic anellini con broccoli — share the menu with Sicilian couscous, an ultra-fine and fluffy delicacy that first made its way to Trapani from Africa under Arab rule. Made in house, the couscous mingles with flavors of the sea in the Trapanese couscous di pesce, soaking in a savory bath of lobster broth with shrimp, scallops, and mussels.
An analogy may be drawn between Lombardo’s scooter zipping down Selden Street and a vespa navigating the streets of Trapani, but in actuality, the scooter represents the man’s dedication to his craft and his insatiable desire to reinvest in it.
644 Selden St., Detroit; 313-798-3498; medusa-detroit.com.
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This story originally appeared in the August 2026 issue of Hour Detroit magazine. To read more, pick up a copy of Hour Detroit at a local retail outlet. Click here to get our digital edition.
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