Aura Restaurant & Lounge

Great expertise and quick, nice service!

Don't mess with my boy

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 1

Service: 1

I was excited to try this place for dinner last night. The decor and ambiance were excellent. After being seated, nobody came to our booth until I waived them down. The Korean barbecue cauliflower dish was great. My wife’s salmon was overcooked and dry. Her food was lukewarm. My red snapper was just above room temperature. The polenta was the texture of oatmeal that had set and was not soft and freshly plated. It was room temperature. My plate/bowl was itself cool to the touch.The snapper was oddly tough, not like it was freshly cooked or a good piece of fish. I would try this place for small plates. And happy hour and give that a shot. They did not know how to serve food fresh and hot last night, or how to prepare fish, so I would give them 3 stars only because of the appetizer, the smoked old-fashioned, and the decor. I hope they improve.

Being an out-of-town guest to Des Moines I was interested in eating some of the best food the city has to offer and after doing some research I had high hopes for Aura. I left very disappointed and stopping for fast food on the way back to my hotel because I was still very hungry due to the lack of edible options I was presented with at the restaurant.
The pork ginger dumplings were decent and tasty. However, the tomahawk pork chop entrée that I ordered came out very poor. The first try was a lukewarm pork chop served on ice cold mashed potatoes. I was polite in sending it back and agreed that they would make it better . It came back out about 10 minutes later with an almost raw pork chop while definitely improved mashed potatoes. I do not eat raw pork chops. I ordered a medium preparation . It came out very rare. I’m assuming they threw it in the broiler for about five minutes and didn’t bother to check the temperature. I don’t know, but it was horrible for a supposedly upscale restaurant. I was sitting at the bar, the bartender was very friendly and accommodating and so was the server that served my food but whatever they’ve got going on back there in the kitchen is absurd. I wasn’t even going to write a review because I just really don’t write reviews but to add insult to injury I barely made it back to my room which is only 10 minutes away before I began having stomach sickness. Do better Aura.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 1

Service: 4

Old fashioned was great, and the food we ended up getting was good - but they were out of literally 50% of their tapas menu at 7p on a Friday. Disappointing to have to play Battleship when attempting to order.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 3

Service: 5

Hands down my favorite place to eat. A little on the pricier side for my budget, but well worth it. Management is friendly and attentive, and Nick, one of the servers, is a delight. The atmosphere is great, music is on point and not obtrusive, food is amazing, especially the chocolate bomb cake. I just hope they rotate the menu. I try something different each time I go, and I'm running out of things to try!!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Tuxedo Cake, Shrimp Diablo, Chocolate Lava Cake

Amazing place! Authentic people that are just fun to be around. Food was amazing and served at well-timed intervals so as not to feel rushed. Had an awesome interaction with the bartender regarding a new stock item. They really know their stuff! Check em out and I hope you enjoy the experience as much as me and my wife did.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Great food and service was amazing! Always have a great time. Only picture I took was when my daughter move the lava cake. Everything was delicious.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

What a great experience!! We were welcomed immediately by the manager, our waitress was extremely friendly and had excellent recommendations. We ended up just ordering drinks and a variety of appetizers; ahi tuna, fried cauliflower and tomato basil soup. To top it off, they accidentally made an extra fried ice cream and offered it to us. All were fantastic! The ambience was perfect for a date night. What a great dining experience. I would highly recommend Aura!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Good food and atmosphere. Service was lackluster for the price.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 3

This was our first time here and we were so impressed! The food and drinks were very good. We went for our anniversary and the staff had personalized menus and flowers at the table which I thought was very sweet. We were checked on many times and the owner was very nice and made it a point to talk to us before we left. We will definitely be back!

The place is beautiful. The staff were all friendly and humble 😌. Imagine, they closed by 10pm, but they were not rude about rushing us out. We took our own time and had all the fun. They are very understanding and knows how to composite. Beautiful atmosphere 👌

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Hangers Steak Frites

I had a great experience at Aura! We attended a friend’s birthday dinner and they were so accommodating for a large group. The food was excellent, and they stayed open over an hour late to allow us to enjoy the evening. The owner served us cake and the staff were on top of everything.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Great service!! Best in desmoines. Just sooo good food and service top notch

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Excellent meal. The waitstaff was top notch. The Smoked Old Fashioned was excellent. Much better than the other offering nearby.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 5