Aurora Brooklyn ★9.1

Aurora: The Ivy Garden That Outlasted Every Williamsburg Trend

Restaurants in Williamsburg come and go with the seasons; Aurora has been rolling pasta since 2003, back when opening an ambitious Italian trattoria here was considered a gamble. Two decades on, its ivy-draped garden is one of the neighborhood’s most coveted tables — and the kitchen still makes everything, down to the sausage, in-house.

The Concept

Three friends from Italy founded Aurora, led by chef Riccardo Buitoni, a native of Piedmont — the northern region whose rustic cooking shapes the menu. The name means “dawn” in Italian, fitting for a place that arrived before the neighborhood’s restaurant boom. From day one the rule has been made-on-premises: bread, pasta, sausages and gelato all begin in this kitchen.

What to Order

Start with squash blossom tempura, arancini or the grass-fed steak tartare. The handmade pastas carry the reputation: pappardelle with lamb ragù, agnolotti filled with sunchoke and ricotta, squid-ink spaghetti with shrimp and cockles, or a sea-urchin risotto when it appears. Mains run from branzino to chicken under a brick and a Creekstone Farms rib eye. Weekend brunch is a sleeper hit — soft-scrambled cacio e pepe eggs, Nebbiolo-braised beef cheeks, a proper brunch burger. Dessert: house gelato or the gluten-free Valrhona chocolate cake.

The Space

Exposed brick, worn wood and industrial pendants inside; outside, the famous ivy-covered garden — open-air in summer, enclosed and heated when it turns cold, so the best seats survive the calendar.

Who It’s For

Long dinners that turn into longer ones, garden-seat romantics, brunch crews avoiding the loudest lines, and anyone who trusts a restaurant old enough to remember a different Williamsburg.

Good to Know

Can I sit in the garden year-round? Effectively yes — it is open-air in warm months and enclosed in the cold ones.

Do they take reservations? Yes, directly through the website; the garden goes fastest on weekends.

Is there brunch? Yes, Saturday and Sunday from late morning with a dedicated menu.

What about wine? A deeply Italian list — Piemonte, Toscana, Veneto, Sicily — with a few surprises, plus craft beer and Italian sodas.

Can it host a party? Yes — the venue takes private events for up to around a hundred guests and even hosts weddings.

Opening hours