Aurora

10/23/09

NOT 4.5 Stars. Apparently people don't care about tasty food

by IKnowFood

I know food, and Aurora has missed the mark. Why get so fancy when you can't even cook the basics? No salt and pepper on the table and guess what, none in the food either. I don't care if they don't use salt, just use something that gives taste. Ratings out of 10:

Food overall = 4

Focaccia = 9; Regular bread = 5

Cod fritters = 5 - missed terribly on the bland sauce!

Meat plate app = 5 - Give me 5 minutes and I'll beat the crap out of this lackluster meat plate

Butternut squash dumplings = 6 - great texture, missed again on the sauce, BLAND taste

Chestnut pasta with wild boar ragu = 3 - didn't get a lower rating because it was edible. Again, got fancy with the boar but lacked any kind of taste. Filled me up and I felt robbed

Pasta w/ mushrooms = 2 - This dish outraged me. My Stepdad described it as "light." Yes, it was light, and even lighter on taste

Tiramisu = 3 - I order this desert EVERY time it's on the menu. It is my "go to" desert at Italian. Sloppy texture, too creamy, missed on taste, not enough alcohol or coffee, served in a square glass (WHAT?! why so fancy pants?). All in all, a total disaster.

Panna Cotta = 4 - slight improvement from the Tira but still a miss. Good texture but again, it's about the taste!

Service = 4

I used to work as a waiter, so I know it's difficult to be in a good mood all the time but it was early in the night and our waitress was cold. She didn’t come when I waived to her, she didn't answer my question about beer that I asked her twice. She didn't even know the 7 beers they carry and which ones were dark. She got relieved at the end of the meal for whatever reason and that waitress totally whiffed on my Stepdad's desert. When I asked for salt, I got big-chunk sea salt. FAIL! The food came super fast, which boosts their rating.

Atmosphere = 7.5

They are so close to a 10 but they don't even know it! How do you miss fine details like this is beyond me, it almost makes me angry. Why are the tables so small? The lighting scheme needs serious work. Only got to peek at the garden but it looked nice. Why are you not accepting credit cards?! Cheating on your taxes? Boneheads!

Overall, it gets a 5/10 average between the 3 categories. But I erred to the side of 2 stars because they butchered their deserts and 2 of their 7 beers were 750 ml and nothing on tap. Extensive wine list but whatever! Every decent restaurant has some wine to choose from. Ultimately we come to eat... and Aurora, get your act together y'all.

• Pros: Decor, focaccia
• Cons: Food, service, lighting, tables... what else is there?

04/19/09

Organic Italian --What the Heck????

by Smith775

First of all its supposed to be located by the waterfront. Not the case. Its actually up the block in a deserted area where the garden is shielded by what looks from the outside like an abandoned parking lot.

We were taken to the garden on a warm day and what is suppose to be an outdoor garden is covered by a plastic tent, no ventilation no open doors...the tables are dimly lit with candles covered by small paper bags! How Frugal.

Most importantly, we passed on the bottled water and were served warm tap water--no ice! We tried the octopus --three small tender pieces on a very large plate and the scallops--5 very thin slivers of scallops covered in garnishes. For the main course, the seared salmon was served in a plate of green water and empty mussels the salmon was slightly undercooked on one side. No sides served with main course. The short rib, was a piece of tender albeit blubbery steak served with polenta sauce that tasted more like grits. A side of potato or asparagus was an additional $5.00. The margarita, too strong on the tequila and very bitter not quite what I remember a margarita to be!!!! Overall, the most enjoyable part of the meal had to be the bread basket. Too much focus on presentation and too pricy, very small portions and who the heck ever heard of organic Italian??? This is not keeping up with tradition...would NOT recommend at all. We had to go back to Manhattan and have dinner there the same night.

• Pros: Healthy grub
• Cons: Pricy, prententious, very unconventional cuisine

12/09/08

My favorite italian restaurant in the world!

by olivier77ny

Well, if you have a date, this is totally the place to be. Book a table in the winter garden. And make sure you share a couple of antipasti!

• Pros: Try the burratta