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Interior - Aura Restaurant & Lounge, Clive, IA

Aura Restaurant & Lounge

4.6
4.6
216 Reviews
$31 to $50
American

Make a reservation

2 people
9:00 PM
Booked 5 times today
Experiences are available.
  • Great for happy hour
  • Good for special occasions
  • Neighborhood gem
Lively & flavorful tapas along with vibrant cocktails offer a unique shared experience that challenges the traditional. At Aura, it's good vibes only! Our invigorating environment is the perfect place to gather friends & family.

Order delivery or takeout

Additional information

  • Dining style
    Casual Elegant
  • Price
    $31 to $50
  • Cuisines
    American, Contemporary American, Wine Bar
  • Hours of operation
    Lunch Mon–Sat 11:00 am–3:00 pm Dinner Mon–Thu 3:00 pm–9:00 pm Fri, Sat 3:00 pm–10:00 pm
  • Phone number
    (515) 225-6005
  • Payment options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Executive chef
    Jared Walterberry
  • Neighborhood
    Urbandale
  • Cross street
    60th and University Ave.
  • Parking details
    Public Lot
  • Additional
    Bar/Lounge, Beer, Cocktails, Corkage Fee, Full Bar, Gluten-free Options, Happy Hour, Non-Smoking, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Takeout, Wheelchair Access, Wine

Experiences

  • December Delicato Family Wine Dinner

    $130.00 per person

    Prepaid

    Dec 19, 2024 only
    6:00 PM
    We heard you like Christmas movies. Every dish for this dinner will be inspired by some of our favorite Christmas movies. Think Nakatomi Plaza Seafood Tower or Kiss Kiss Bang Bang Shrimp. Each dish paired with some of Cephus' favorite wines from the Delicato Family Wines.
    December Delicato Family Wine Dinner Photo

Offers

  • Happy Hour Everyday!

    Multiple dates available
    Mon - Sat - 3:00 PM - 5:30 PM
    Discounted food and drinks every day 3pm-5:30pm.

    Happy Hour Everyday! Photo

What 216 people are saying

Overall ratings and reviews

Reviews can only be made by diners who have eaten at this restaurant

4.6
4.6 based on recent ratings
  • 4.6Food
  • 4.7Service
  • 4.7Ambience
  • 4.4Value

NoiseModerate

Loved For

  • Iowa

    Best Food

  • Iowa

    Best Service

  • Iowa

    Best Ambiance

  • Iowa

    Best Value

  • Iowa

    Good for groups

  • Iowa

    Neighborhood gem

  • Iowa

    Great for fine wines

  • Iowa

    Romantic

  • Iowa

    Lively

  • Iowa

    American

  • Des Moines

    Best Overall

  • Des Moines

    Best Food

  • Des Moines

    Best Service

  • Des Moines

    Best Ambiance

  • Des Moines

    Best Value

  • Des Moines

    Good for groups

  • Des Moines

    Neighborhood gem

  • Des Moines

    Great for fine wines

  • Des Moines

    Romantic

  • Des Moines

    Good for special occasions

  • Des Moines

    Lively

Review summary

AI-generated from verified diner reviews
Aura Restaurant & Lounge entices with "excellent service" and "fantastic food." Guests rave about its "beautiful presentation" and "attentive staff." The ambiance is "comfortable and quiet," perfect for conversations. Highlights include happy hour specials, delicious cocktails, and a diverse menu. Ideal for both casual dining and special occasions.

216 Reviews
  1. MaryAnn

    Des Moines

    7 reviews

    5.0

    7 reviews

    Dined 3 days ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    10/10. We had a good sized group, with special requests and several separate checks which sometimes cause issues but everything was wonderful! We had both meals and shared plates, all delicious. Very good cocktails and mocktails. Beautiful atmosphere and very nice staff! Definitely will be back!

    Is this helpful?

  2. Elizabeth

    Des Moines

    5 reviews

    vip
    5.0

    5 reviews

    Dined 7 days ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 4
    Our first visit since under new ownership. Seems to have upheld the quality of before. Lots of GF options and clearly marked on the primary menu was nice.

    Is this helpful?

  3. Todd

    Indiana

    6 reviews

    vip
    5.0

    6 reviews

    Dined on November 21, 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    First time, great food, wine, and service. Great to get many tapas items and share. Relaxed atmosphere and will definitely go back!

    Is this helpful?

  4. Fred

    Minneapolis

    3 reviews

    5.0

    3 reviews

    Dined on November 18, 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Had a fun time at happy hour at Aura. Good drinks and small plates. Loved the roasted Brussels sprouts.

    Is this helpful?

  5. Brett

    Des Moines

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on November 16, 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Food was great, the happy hour offerings were fun and a great value too. The atmosphere is great and the staff was super.

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  6. Dave

    Des Moines

    13 reviews

    vip
    5.0

    13 reviews

    Dined on November 10, 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Everything was truly wonderful as always! Amazing, relaxing ambience, great service and food very good with reasonable price point. Highly recommend! Keep up the great work, we will be back to see you soon!

    Is this helpful?

  7. Hal

    Kansas City

    100 reviews

    vip
    3.0

    100 reviews

    Dined on November 3, 2024

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 4
    Our overall experience was good. Food was good, but nothing was really outstanding. We were later on a Saturday evening and were almost the only ones in the restaurant.
    Aura Restaurant & LoungeResponded on November 9, 2024
    Good morning, I'm Cephus, one of the owners. I was there that evening. I'm sorry that we didn't live to your expectations or my own. I addressed the crispy onion issue with our chef. That is really good feedback on that product. It allows us to get better. We are always happy to correct problems like an overcooked steak in the moment. It is just not our standard to have sent that out in the first place, for that i also apologize. I would love to invite you back in the hopes to really knock your socks off. I believe we are progressing in a very meaningful way and without your comments, it's harder to understand where to improve. Thank you so much for the review and I hope to see you sooner rather than later. Cheers, Cephus Wright II

    Is this helpful?

  8. Laurie

    Des Moines

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on November 1, 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Went here with friends for my birthday dinner and was treated like a queen! Great service (attentive, friendly and knowledgeable but not ‘hovering’) wonderful wine service (the owner is also a Sommelier) and inventive dishes won us over. Also, love the classy decor, the subtle, mood-setting lighting (often underestimated at most restaurants) and location. We look forward to making this our local ‘go-to’ ‘Cheers’ hangout!
    Aura Restaurant & LoungeResponded on November 3, 2024
    Thank you so much for joining us last night! I'm glad you enjoyed yourself and our wine program. I take a ton of time every week trying to find gems. Let's look forward to next time!

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  9. shane

    St. Louis

    6 reviews

    2.0

    6 reviews

    Dined on October 14, 2024

    1. Overall 2
    2. Food 2
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 4
    Walmart moscato that costed somewhere around 40 dollars for the whole bottle. Also adding a gratuity when your products your selling is are cheap is insane. Would say more but I think Walmart moscato is good enough especially when the bill was around 400$ or more. Fancy prices not so fancy food

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  10. Lu

    Des Moines

    34 reviews

    vip
    5.0

    34 reviews

    Dined on October 14, 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Wonderful food, service and ambiance . So glad to have a local restaurant of this caliber.

    Is this helpful?

FAQs

Aura Restaurant & Lounge offers takeout which you can order by calling the restaurant at (515) 225-6005.

Aura Restaurant & Lounge is rated 4.6 stars by 216 OpenTable diners.

Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable.

Make a reservation

2 people
9:00 PM
Booked 5 times today
Experiences are available.

Order delivery or takeout

Google Map for Aura Restaurant & Lounge

12851 University Ave 400, Clive, IA 50325-8254

Additional information

  • Cross street
    60th and University Ave.
  • Neighborhood
    Urbandale
  • Hours of operation
    Lunch Mon–Sat 11:00 am–3:00 pm Dinner Mon–Thu 3:00 pm–9:00 pm Fri, Sat 3:00 pm–10:00 pm
  • Price
    $31 to $50
  • Cuisines
    American, Contemporary American, Wine Bar
  • Dining style
    Casual Elegant
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Parking details
    Public Lot
  • Payment options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Executive chef
    Jared Walterberry
  • Additional
    Bar/Lounge, Beer, Cocktails, Corkage Fee, Full Bar, Gluten-free Options, Happy Hour, Non-Smoking, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Takeout, Wheelchair Access, Wine
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