Aura Waterfront Restaurant + Patio

This is a very nice spot with gorgeous views. The food and service were excellent. If we had any misgivings it is only that all the food arrived very quickly so we did not feel we had time to enjoy the setting. We weren’t rushed but with all the small plates arriving at once, it wasn’t a leisurely meal.

We were delighted with everything about Aura restaurant. They serve small-dish meals, so it is great to be able to try a variety of dishes, or allow those who like small portions to eat just the right amount. We did the $40 dine-around menu, and it was a wonderful four-course meal from start to finish. The squash soup and the main course (trout) were outstanding. I loved that I could order 3 oz wine pairings to go with the meal so I could try a variety of BC wines without overindulging. The quiet ambience was lovely, with safe, socially distant seating and a fantastic view of the inner harbour. Service was excellent. We will definitely dine there again.

Views of Victoria inner harbour were outstanding. Service was excellent. David was very attentive, helpful and professional. Our Squash soup was very nice indeed. Unfortunately the other dishes we ordered were too salty for our taste.
We would go back for a happy hour to enjoy the view.

The dinearound menu was fun, we asked to upgrade for all three options in order to have some variety & share dishes. Unfortunately, the dessert was not upgraded so we did not get the chance to see/taste the second offering. We are probably just super spoiled but we did find the serving of the flight of whites simultaneously a little bizarre. While I do understand the concept of a flight being served at the same time I am used to more of a wine pairing in which each glass arrives just prior to the course. That said thank you very much for creating a red flight for my husband, this was much appreciated. Special mention to the maitre d' as she was not only friendly but attentive as well. Overall the food was exquisite, delicious, perfectly portioned, the server was adequate. I certainly hope that you have a collective tip pool.

Awesome food
Out of expectation when looking at the menu
Squash soup hot and taste
Foie Gras exceptional
Tuna sushi very good
Extra bonus : Service by Colleen
Must go.

We ended up coming back for a third time this week, second time for dine around because it was just so good. I recommend substituting the trout for the gnocchi in my personal opinion. My boyfriend preferred the trout, but I loved the gnocchi. We got a great table by the windows which made celebrating our four year anniversary so much more romantic! Thank you!

Amazing service! The food was excellent, we got Dine Around and the portions were perfect and the taste was so good. We're coming back just for dine around!

Pleasantly surprised as almost all are so well done. Ambience is good, service level is good, smooth. For the price I paid, it is beyond I expected. The reason I reserved was The write out about executive chef is Japanese, so there’re many references of kind of Japanese or oriental fusion. We shared one dine around and added some dishes. All are right amount. One thing I must note is the source for fish and beef ate bit too strong. Desert was a pleasant surprise, so well designed and prepared, just right amount to fish off meals. We shall come back!

Super friendly and attentive staff. Delicious food. Really liked the small plates, although just a heads up the burger is still 5oz and the steak was 5oz's as well....so we were pretty surprised by the size of the "small" plates :) Very affordable. You won't be disappointed!

The trout dish, in particular, was outstanding.
We also enjoyed the Dine Around selection.

Such a nice place for brunch: View, food. Ambience is affected by Covid of course but very relaxing place to be.

Pretty waterfront room, small plates menu so the two of us split 5 plates and it was perfect, we were satisfied and not stuffed. Great wine list. Prices are fair, might get a better deal during Dine Around. They usually have wine flights but it was sake the night we were there. Will definitely go back.

Great location with gorgeous views of the inner harbour. Food was very good, the deep fried sushi was a great surprise! Desserts are tiny and overpriced but otherwise a good experience

The wait staff were fantastic and all the meals were phenomenal! Definitely will be back!

Delicious small plates and excellent service

One of the best dining experiences I have ever had. The staff were outstanding and the food was amazing! We loved the small plates and were able to try so many dishes.

We can’t wait to go back

We had such a nice experience. Our server, Simon was companionate and kind. The hostess was so accommodating. We had the luxury of being in a private room so our kiddos could roam free and we didn’t have to worry about bothering the other guests. Due to not having childcare during the pandemic. We hadn’t been out for 8 months, since before our youngest babe was born. So it was extremely special.
The food was extraordinary. We had the special Brussels sprouts, trout, Kara few chicken, Korean cauliflower and broccoli and deep fried sushi. They had an excellent kids menu and were so great at accommodating our baby too! Thanks everyone for helping me feel more sane abs able to get out, finally!

Great food, good service and a fantastic view over the inner harbour. We went with 4 which was great to share lots of plates.

The food was 😋 delicious and the wine excellent. The server was very attentive and helpful with our menu choices. Of course you can’t beat the beautiful view of the harbour.

The one suggestion I would make to improve on the ambiance is to turn the lights down. They were too bright and distracted from the view. Overall, it was a lovely evening

Server was great food was so so. Want to support local so we will be back.

Always have received amazing service at Aura. We ordered nearly everything on the tapa menu and we’re not disappointed.

Great meal served in a beautiful setting with top notch service (especially with three separate allergies to deal with)!
Navigating serving patrons during COVID has to be tough. Thanks to all the staff that made a special night even better!

Aura is a modern small plate restaurant with a fabulous view of the water and city lights. The chef is talented! His dishes are very interesting and delicious. Each one is a creation on its own. They have a very good reasonably priced wine list too. Wonderful evening sampling the food and admiring the view. Terrific service as well.

Aura rocks! The tapas dishes were so good we ate slowly slowly to savour every bite. Our server, Simon,was helpful and pleasant and took time to converse...all in all, a fabulous dining experience.

The evening all in all was pretty good. The change in the menu to smaller items was OK other than the fact that too many dishes were deep fried . I am thinking that if deep fried food is really what people are looking for when going to a 5 star hotel and a 5 star restaurant then the Aura is the place to go.

Would I go back being a local Victorian- NO and would I recommend the Aura, I would not

We dined in Aura in November. Due to the dreaded germ it wasn’t crazy busy. We have dined at Aura annually on visits to Victoria. The staff is amazing. The new small plates menu was outstanding.
I’d highly recommend it to anyone.

Attractive surroundings and pleasant staff. Enjoyed the individual servings.
The tapas format worked for us but not for those that desire a regular meal format.

The hostess and server were outstanding. Made us feel special! Many extra touches.

Go here if you want to sample a wide variety of imaginative dishes. Our party of 5 tried almost the whole menu. A few misses among them but generally great overall.

The service was great. The food is small but extremely good. The overall experience was well worth it

Great food and attentive service. It was let down by the ambiance. I will happily return once the restaurant gets an upgrade but in the meantime given the overall investment you need to make in your dining experience the value simply not there. I will return in the future in the summer.

Unique approach to the menu. We enjoyed sharing several small plates. Food was great; service fast and attentive. Price was modest - less than we expected.

I expected more from Aura. The food was average and the cost was expensive for what you get. Wait staff were great though.

Great service, great view of the harbour, and very interesting tapas-style food. Not a huge menu, but nicely varied (including vegetarian). Works best if you order family style — the food comes out randomly as soon as it’s ready, so makes the most sense. Not the best choice if you are starving, but excellent for really interesting dishes.

Food was good. Ambience was not great. The fellow at Aura who checked us in was not attentive to his work at all. Given a table without a chair, no cutlery or set up. He was just not interested in ensuring we were taken care of.
Dave our server was great. Suggested great options on the menu. All tasted very nice. Very small portions. Drinks are made to the minimum. Felt like they were monitoring the bar tender’s allowance per glass. Smallest martini ever.
Server was great. Atmosphere was disappointing. Expected more from this dining experience.

Enjoyed a great selection of share plates, all of which were very well done! The black quinoa risotto, the grilled focaccia and the deep fried sushi were amongst our favourites. The service was attentive but not over bearing and the restaurant space was beautiful and inviting. Will be back to try the rest of the menu items.

Aura is by far the best restaurant for finer dining in Victoria. Small plates, all delicious. We generally have six and two for dessert. Around 80.00 for two without wine. They are also super careful around placement of diners, masking servers, and walking routes within the dining room. There is a patio but its a bit too cold for that now.

The food was amazing and our waiter was absolutely wonderful. Very helpful and friendly.

Beautiful view, delicious food, and wonderful service.

Everything was exceptional. The nice thing with small plate dining is you get to try a variety.