A Michigan Restaurant Inspired By Old Rome Serves Mouth-Watering Italian Food And A Royal Experience

The preconceived notion of traditional Italian food is being changed in a very unlikely location. This restaurant trip isn't just a Italian meal to fill you up, it's a dining experience to savor. Tucked between buildings in the midtown section of Detroit's culturally creative metropolitan area lies a popular innovator among the growing food scene in the Motor City. After researching treks to Italy and working in some of the most noteworthy kitchens in the U.S., Chef Anthony Lombardo set out to create a tribute here to his time and labor as a butcher in Italy. Thus, SheWolf Pastificio & Bar is his brainchild and the menu and culinary creations are his modernized plays on old Roman cuisine.

Beyond a journey through the tastebuds, diners step inside SheWolf and immediately feel like royalty in every sense of the word. In Detroit, Michigan, of all places, SheWolf is setting itself apart as an Italian food destination that delivers on a uniquely sophisticated and regal dining experience from start to finish.

Upon arriving at SheWolf, the vintage red awning welcomes you into a sleek and contemporary design. The open design from kitchen to table lets diners in on all of the action at this Detroit pasta factory, that is as much an experience as a gathering place. Full length windows showcase the hustle of midtown as the aromas of Italy fill the 90-person dining room. Reservations are recommended, but the U-shaped bar is always full of action and offers open seating. This spot is also closest to the fresh pasta-making action happening nightly. Prepare your appetite as the staff at SheWolf mills heritage whole-wheat flour in-house for a fresh quality pasta that is unmatched in the area.

Additionally, the staff is known to be very gracious but not overbearing according to reviewers, at your royal service and offering the right amount of knowledge for any dining occasion. "I can't think of one thing that we didn't love about this restaurant," wrote one guest on TripAdvisor. "The service was phenomenal. The drinks were great. The food was absolutely fabulous. The desserts are to die for. The atmosphere is wonderful. I would return again and again and again."

Their unspoken elegance and efforts to tailor every meal to the diner help give guests that feeling of being a king or queen, even if only for the night. 

SheWolf's menu might make guests feel as if they're on a culinary tour of the freshest flavors of Italy, starting with a range of Antipasti dishes to share like the carpaccio with wagyu beef. From there, guests are taken swiftly through the composition table of classic Roman pastas to a rotating set of freshly made dishes available to any dietary stipulation. Visitors love the flavor of the classics like cacio e pepe with tonarelli and their Carbonara made with fresh rigatoni. "We ordered the Cucina Curata, which is essentially a heavenly selection of many dishes, and added their rib eye," another visitor shared on TripAdvisor. "We also added chef's risotto with truffle. From starters to the sweets at the end, the flavors were outstanding."

The "Secondi" section of the menu features more robust entrees like their Manzo, a 24-oz. bone-in ribeye or a braised lamb shank (above) served over mushroom risotto. If you're looking to splurge, they also offer a 5-course Cucina Curata chef's menu where the kitchen takes control of your dining experience and serves all of their favorites to the table.

The greatest Italian dining experiences are often paired with wine, and SheWolf's in-house sommelier has created a list that is filled with Italian classics. As the aromas and tastes have you thinking you're eating at one of the best restaurants in Italy, remember that it's only for the night in the heart of Detroit.