No doubt swaying Avner Samuel to do away with his penchant for importing the best of the best regardless of cost was quite a feat. And no doubt convincing the man that sourcing locally was not an admission that the struggling economy dictated a compromise in his culinary beliefs wasn't an easy sell either. But, based on a few visits since Aurora decided to worry about their carbon foot print not all that much has changed at the venerable Park Cities spot. And that's a good thing.
As we said in our initial review, we were skeptical when Aurora opened its doors on Oak Lawn a few years ago, concerned this would be yet another Avner spot that would receive great reviews but would shut its doors in the first year or so. But with no outside investors and, therefore, no safety net if the restaurant failed we've become silently confident that Avner and Celeste Samuel would find a way to keep Aurora on the map. Now with the brutal summer months behind us and a somewhat more price friendly menu, Aurora is poised to maintain their rightful spot as one of the elite dining spots in town.
Know that Aurora won't pull you in from the street. The unassuming outside, noted only by their logo blazened above the door, gives way to a small, elegant dining room that sets the tone for a genuine strife for perfection. Only a dozen or so tables and two (highly coveted) crescent shaped booths fill the space. The walls are a luxurious taupe suede. The open kitchen is sleek and is fronted by an incredible glass sculpture of Auorora, the Roman goddess of the dawn, seemingly reaching for the heavens. The small bar almost looks makeshift with only a few stools for seating and none of the creatively lit display areas that have become so common. Of course there are several intricate Baccarat bottles holding the precious Louis & Remy cognacs but even these are inauspicious and a bit nonchalant as if to say, “we’re here if you need us”.
Aurora set the trend in Dallas with their water service offering Evian or Voss Sparkling gratis and now has taken it a step further with the green friendly Natura water system in house. This system gives you still or sparkling purified water without the need for plastic or glass containers. Again, just another small touch letting you know no corners will be cut in this dining experience. Further proof is the use of Limoges china for each serving, sterling silverware, and Spiegelau stemware for the wine service.
Avner's signature egg custard Amuse Bouche is still there. Instead of a brown egg imported from France, he sources brown eggs locally. American eggs have never tasted so good! This yankee version still has the same sultry consistency and still comes topped with delicacies of his choosing from truffle to caviar and beyond. The method for this seductive little dish is to clip the top of the egg, drain the contents, mix the egg with cream and bake (I may be oversimplifying just a tad!).
We profile the chef's lunch tasting menu below from a few months back. And they're still doing that or can work in foie gras if that's your thing with the lunch service. But when I heard you could have lunch at Aurora for $20, I had to go check it out. Celeste told us that JuHa farms literally delivers their chickens to the back door of the kitchen. So, as hard as it is for me to order chicken in a restaurant of this stature, I trusted my gut and am so, so glad I did. The half chicken was crispy and absolutely succulent. The same can be said for the striped bass. A perfect lunch sized portion that was just cooked through and separately effortlessly with just the slightest push from my fork.
The chef's lunch tasting is what all tasting menus used to be - the chef's whim based on what he had fresh and felt like cooking that day. So, you won't find a pre-printed lay out of what the kitchen will send your way. The last time we opted for this, here was the lineup:
The Amuse Bouche was lovingly kissed with truffle oil and maple cream with Perigord black truffle shavings crowning the top. This doesn’t technically count as a course by the way.
Next was a pillow of mouselline potatoes with lobster chunks. The mouselline potatoes are Yukons mashed and mixed with heavy cream to form a perfectly rich, lump free consistency and served at room temperature. The potatoes were topped with a heaping mound of Iranian caviar complete with a mother of pearl spoon. Served along side was a granny smith apple sorbet which struck me as an odd pairing. My waiter urged me to mix all of the components together for each bite so I obliged. What a perfect marriage of flavors. The saltiness of the caviar with the tartness of the apple with the sweetness of the lobster meat and the smoothing texture of the potatoes was absolutely superb. Paired with a glass of Veuve Clicquot yellow label, this was a phenomenal start.
If you don’t like foie gras and/or truffles, let them know up front because they will overload you with both if permitted. From where I sit, that’s a pretty good thing so I wasn’t disappointed to see round two arrive. A lobster dumpling was topped with a foie gras medallion and served in a shallow bowl. The server revealed a French press with tarragon consommé and slowly poured it around the dish. Foiled perfectly with an Etude Rose this dish again harmonized many strong flavors into a seamless culinary concerto.
Next came a simple yet exquisite dish of perfect al dente risotto, united with just enough saffron to give the rice a yellowish glow. On top? How about 15 (yes I counted) black truffle shavings, each the size of a half dollar. Avner told me he paid over $2,000 a pound for this year’s crop of Perigords so by my math I was eating what seemed like a $100 plate of rice. I’ve always struggled to find a perfect match for truffled risotto but the team there served it with a simple Australian Sav Blanc that surprisingly worked wonderfully.
Now I’m a big fan of gnocchi to the point where I’m a downright snob when it comes to the texture. Avner gets high marks for the two flawless little clouds mounted atop a ragout of wild mushrooms circled by an ultra rich veal jus. The Patz & Hall Pinot Noir proved an excellent companion.
I started to pant when my server brought a glass of Sauternes knowing I was most likely in for another round of foie gras. This medallion was topped with carmelized beets with a beautifully sweet fresh fig sauce beneath (I’m literally starting to salivate as I’m writing this). This dish is where decadence meets indulgence and I was thrilled to be sandwiched between the two.
The sorbet serving was a very refreshing champagne flavor served in a funky, cone shaped vertical glass. The scoop of sorbet rested on a layer of fresh mint. Palate is clean and I’m ready for the finale!
Simple, yet elegant, a small Kobe tenderloin cooked to a perfect medium rare was served with a smattering of roasted root vegetables. A Syrah from Washington’s Columbia Valley was a fantastic match to the marbled beef. Not overly inventive or sexy, but a home run just the same.
With all the opulence in the food, synchronized presentation of courses, and the lavish dining room and appointments, the wine list is surprisingly approachable. That’s not to say there aren’t rare and very expensive Bourdeauxs, Burgundys, and California reds. There are. But you can definitely see an emphasis has been put on what will work with the food. You can obviously opt out of the wine pairings and choose your own selections from the list, but I’ve found the by the glass pairings to be very good. Certified somm Edwin Saravia is at your service to navigate you through the list. Speaking of service, the wait staff differs from the stereotypical stuffy old seasoned veterans you might expect at a French (albeit modern) restaurant. The team is younger, sharp, and very well trained. Granted it is a small dining room to handle, but these guys don’t miss anything.
Others I know that have dined at Aurora have registered two big complaints. First, that the food is very expensive. As you can tell from our site, I believe you get what you pay for and the meals I’ve had here are equal to or less expensive than national powerhouses like French Laundry and Charlie Trotters. And I've done the 15 course tasting at both and truly feel Aurora's food is on that level. The above described lunch was $129 with wine pairings. Sure that’s not a blue plate special price but for the meal described above with the well chosen wine pairings, I’m not sure how anyone could argue that the food experience to cost ratio is askew. Secondly, I hear that people have left Aurora hungry. Well, I never have but I guess I would also say that the approach from any fine dining, chef driven restaurant should be to give you smaller portions of fantastic food leaving you satisfied, not miserable. If your litmus test for a great meal is how full you are when you leave, I suggest you have your next meal at a pizza buffet or some all you can eat catfish joint.
For all the hype about Aurora dummying down their menu and scaling back their approach, I honestly don't see it. The menu is largely unchanged but the prices are lower. So how is that possible? Pretty simple really. By sourcing as much produce, meat and other goods locally they save a ton of money and are passing that savings on to their diners. Now, realize there are some things Avner can't live without (truffles from Alba, true blue Dover Sole, HV Foie Gras, and his beloved Iranian caviar to name a few) and those items will always be on Aurora's menu. Like I said in the beginning, not all that much has changed at Aurora and that's a really, really good thing. He might have been a tad late to grab his seat on the 'support your local farmers' bandwagon but he's there and the restaurant is that much better for it.
With all the reputed blow ups, tyrades, and disgruntled former employees flaming up blogs all over town, I can honestly say I've never seen his dark side. Then again, I'm not interested in a sous chef position so if he's demanding in the kitchen and I'm the benefactor of his pursuit for perfection, I'm pretty okay with that. Sure, Chef Samuel will never be mistaken for a folksy, media darling type chef that would rather work the front of the house than the kitchen. But should that really matter? Really, his commitment to perfection on a plate should be enough to satisfy Dallas' most discerning diner. The bottom line is that, even with their pocketbook friendly changes, Aurora would be an elite restaurant in any U.S. city, Avner has to be considered one of the top chefs in the country, and the fine dining landscape in Dallas would be incomplete if he ever left.