{"id":987,"date":"2020-08-30T12:55:59","date_gmt":"2020-08-30T16:55:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ctdish.com\/?p=987"},"modified":"2020-09-20T12:40:06","modified_gmt":"2020-09-20T16:40:06","slug":"cafe-aura-connecticut-needs-its-heroes-now-more-than-ever","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ctdish.com\/?p=987","title":{"rendered":"Caf\u00e9 Aura\u2014Connecticut Needs Its Heroes Now More Than Ever"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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It\u2019s always a sad day when a venerated restaurant closes, as Cavey\u2019s in Manchester did in May, 2019. For several decades, Cavey\u2019s was among Greater Hartford\u2019s most beloved. The dual restaurant concept that Beard-nominated executive chef-owner Steve Cavagnaro and his wife Kate maintained for many years of its existence, with the upstairs dedicated to Italian dining and the downstairs to French, meant that Cavey\u2019s was simultaneously one of Connecticut\u2019s most important Italian and most important French restaurants. I respected both efforts so greatly that I separately visited the Italian upstairs for the February, 2011 edition of Hartford Magazine<\/em> and the French downstairs for March, giving both stellar reviews.<\/p>

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Speaking frankly\u2014as I find impossible to avoid\u2014the audience for high-end restaurants east of the Connecticut River, although growing, has never been what it is for restaurants west of it. And despite a few nice dining options, Manchester isn\u2019t Glastonbury, let alone West Hartford. So the looming closure of Cavey\u2019s, esteemed enough to draw gourmands from across Connecticut and even beyond, was potentially a terrible one, both for the community and the restaurant\u2019s loyal and well-trained staff.<\/p>

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But there\u2019s a hero to this story\u2014one who might already<\/em> be Connecticut\u2019s top hero. The restaurant\u2019s savior was UConn women\u2019s basketball coach and restaurateur Geno Auriemma, a Manchester resident and Cavey\u2019s regular who gathered the Cavagnaros were nearing retirement and had no family interested in continuing the operation. Recognizing the importance of maintaining a highly esteemed eatery in the location, Auriemma reached out to the Cavagnaros, closing on the building in June of 2019 and commencing a $700,000 renovation in early July. Thus was Caf\u00e9 Aura born in December of 2019.<\/p>

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If Cavey\u2019s felt as if it existed in a slight time warp, Caf\u00e9 Aura\u2014dedicated to \u201cworld-class wines, prime steaks and classic Italian dishes with a modern twist\u201d\u2014is a restaurant for the times. Exterior lamps mounted between the restaurant\u2019s high, arching, street-facing windows throw light up and down the white brick exterior, creating, if you will, their own auras. A lamppost casts a long shadow against the building, reminding me of the long shadow Auriemma casts over our state. \u201cSomeone to watch over\u2014us\u201d runs through my head. The pandemic and civil rights protests have made some folks angrier versions of themselves, others, like myself, more empathetic and sentimental.<\/p>

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Those tall arching windows supply daylight to the sleek, modern interior. At night, the control over lighting is perfect, the tones flattering to faces yet bright enough to appreciate the beauty of executive chef Erminio Conte\u2019s food. Carefully placed ferns and floral displays inject small splashes of color. Hardwood tables are serviced by snug pale gray chairs and long, low-backed banquettes. Tasteful framed photographs of Auriemma\u2019s Campanian hometown of Montella and Conte\u2019s Puglian hometown of Taranto festoon the walls.<\/p>

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Gray carpeting helps muffle sound in the dining areas, but the large, open lounge features a pretty vinyl-plank floor. After all, what restaurateur wants a quiet bar area? The long quartz bar with footrail, properly socially distanced, awaits the return of more convivial times. Available for private functions, with pre-pandemic seating for roughly 75 individuals, the downstairs has kept its basic outlines, including the bar in front and slightly raised platform in back, but otherwise echoes the upstairs d\u00e9cor.<\/p>

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Caf\u00e9 Aura has a terrific drinks program. Cocktails ($12-$14) include items like a fig mule ($12), lavender lemon drop ($12), gin blossom ($12) and even rosemary gimlet ($12), but Manhattans are my poison of choice. The Aura Manhattan ($12) I have on my first visit is terrific, featuring Michter\u2019s Rye, Blade & Bow Bourbon, Carpano Antica vermouth, orange bitters and a proper Luxardo cherry. (An American-style maraschino cherry can\u2019t harm a Manhattan\u2014if you remove it\u2014but it can\u2019t help it, either.) On my second visit, I force myself to order something else, albeit with a highly compatible flavor profile\u2014the 45 East Center Old Fashioned ($14), described as \u201cbarrel-aged premium bourbon, orange and cherry essence, aromatic bitters, aged for two months\u201d\u2014and it also proves very good.<\/p>

Beer, malt beverages and cider ($5-$10) are also available. And there is a serious list of after-dinner drinks ($8-$28), single-barrel bourbons ($10-$14), whiskeys\/ryes ($10-$30) and single-malt Scotches ($12-$40).<\/p>

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But where Caf\u00e9 Aura particularly distinguishes itself is in its wine list ($34-$495), food of this quality demanding suitable accompaniment. Because my companion requires white wine or Ros\u00e9 and I trend red, we\u2019re rarely candidates for whole bottles. Caf\u00e9 Aura conveniently offers its regular wines by the glass in six- ($8-$15) and nine-ounce ($12-$22) pours (plus six-ounce luxury Coravin pours, like its Jordan Cab for $25). On our first visit, my companion enjoys a glass of Baron de Ley Tempranillo-Garnacha Ros\u00e9, Rioja, Spain ($9\/$13), while I follow up my Manhattan with a glass of Vietti \u201cTre Vigne\u201d Barbera d\u2019Asti, Piemonte, Italy ($12\/$18). On our second visit, my companion delights in a glass of St. Supery Sauvignon Blanc, Napa, California ($12\/$18), while I, normally distrustful of private labels but having great faith in this particular restaurateur\u2019s palate, try the Geno Auriemma Puglia Rosso ($9\/$13), finding the Primitivo robust and juicy in a good, pound-your-fist-on-the-table-and-ask-for-more kind of way.<\/p>

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But it\u2019s worth noting for oenophiles (I\u2019m certainly one) that great offerings can be found on the Coach\u2019s List, of which Auriemma says \u201cKathy and I enjoy entertaining friends at home\u2026 I want all our guests at Caf\u00e9 Aura to have the opportunity to experience these wines.\u201d The regions of Burgundy, Napa, Piedmont and Tuscany are especially well represented. While some of the choices, like the Jordan, Dominus, Quintessa, Ornellaia and Tignanello, are obvious, there are also revealing, lovely surprises like the 2016 Ghost Block Estate Cab, Oakville, California ($125) or the 2013 Feudi di San Gregorio Taurasi from Auriemma\u2019s native Campania.<\/p>

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Italy, with more microclimates and more white varietals than any other country, really rewards the adventurous. I love Auriemma\u2019s passion for oft-overlooked southern Italian wines. Tremendous bang-for-the-buck can be found in Italy\u2019s southerly regions where land is more affordable, the cost of land being the principal predicter of the cost of wine. Although delicious food and wine can be found throughout all of lo Stivale (\u201cThe Boot\u201d), I find it ironic that Connecticut residents seem to prefer the foods of southern Italy but the wines of northern Italy. While I\u2019m not overly didactic about pairings, believing people should drink what they want when they want, I do maintain that the wines of a region evolve alongside its cuisine, making them an ideal match.<\/p>

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For the May 2014 edition of Hartford Magazine<\/em>, I reviewed Geno\u2019s Grille, Auriemma\u2019s Storrs restaurant (which will not reopen) and really enjoyed it. But as good as it was, Caf\u00e9 Aura is a notch more ambitious and better. Conte brings great breadth of experience to the executive chef position. He has worked \u201call over Europe,\u201d including fun stints in Saint-Tropez, on private lines and on yachts. Since his arrival in the U.S., he has served as the executive chef of top Italian restaurants in New York like Barolo, Acquapazza, Cellini and Fiorini. \u201cThe more I know, the less<\/em> I know,\u201d he intones sagely. \u201cThe day you stop learning, you retire<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>

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During our two visits, spaced a month apart, good quality rolls are served with a choice of fine golden Italian EVOO or herb butter. Caf\u00e9 Aura\u2019s menu includes plentiful options, including five salads ($11-$16), 10 appetizers ($12-$18), six pastas, some of which are housemade ($20-$36), 13 entr\u00e9es ($22-$52), six sides ($6-$10) and five desserts ($8-$12).<\/p>

None of Caf\u00e9 Aura\u2019s salads are designed as entr\u00e9es, but some can be pretty substantial nevertheless. The refreshing watermelon salad ($14) features plentiful bright pink cubes of fresh seedless watermelon, a few orange wedges, smidgens of goat cheese and fresh mint in a lemon vinaigrette that perfectly reins in the melon\u2019s natural sweetness.<\/p>

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Grilled Caesar salad has been a \u201cthing\u201d for a few years\u2014in the right hands, a good thing. There\u2019s an amusing video, easily found online, of Gordon Ramsey in a Kitchen Nightmares<\/em> episode feigning ignorance of grilled Caesar salad, saying it \u201chasn\u2019t hit London yet\u201d and interrupting diners to mock the restaurant for offering it. However, he was probably being disingenuous because he reportedly had one on the menu at the time at his New York restaurant, Maze.<\/p>

What\u2019s gratifying is Caf\u00e9 Aura offers its Caesar ($12) either grilled or traditional. My companion exercises the grilled option, which includes crisp elongated hearts of romaine, a robust Caesar dressing, seasoned croutons and nice shavings of Parmigiano-Reggiano, finding the lightly charred flavor a welcome change of pace. If you elect the traditional version instead, I recommend requesting it prepared like the grilled with its romaine heart unbroken and Parmesan shaved.<\/p>

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Caf\u00e9 Aura\u2019s seafood starters excel. Arranged in a pinwheel, Conte\u2019s delicious, if nontraditional, interpretation of oysters Rockefeller ($15) features a quintet of five freshly shucked Blue Points baked with creamed spinach, hollandaise sauce, Parmigiano and Prosecco rather than Pernod. Resting upon a bed of radicchio, tender grilled and baked spears of jumbo octopus ($16) are served with blistered cherry tomatoes, celery root wands and caperberries in a candied lemon dressing. I\u2019m a sucker for good octopus.<\/p>

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Placed atop a comet tail spoon drag of spicy mayo, the delicious crab avocado mousse ($18) is a timbale formed of jumbo lump crab meat, avocado and celery root topped with tobiko and microgreens. The dish is delicate and well-balanced. Arguably even better, three colossal pan-seared dry scallops ($16) are served over a smear of multi-color pepper coulis. The scallops are perfectly bronzed, their flesh naturally sweet. I\u2019m always astonished, watching Ramsey\u2019s Hell\u2019s Kitchen<\/em> in seasons past, how terrible the scallops look and how poorly they hold a sear, causing me to theorize that West Coast scallops can\u2019t hold a stove flame to East Coast scallops. But aren\u2019t we in the era where seafood can be flown in overnight from just about anywhere?<\/p>

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As good as our starters have been, Caf\u00e9 Aura\u2019s entr\u00e9es seem to take things to an even higher level. A beautiful square of pan-seared halibut ($39) lounges on a bed of lovely mango sauce, the fish topped with a mango-summer salsa that\u2019s a fine dice of fresh mango, cucumber, tomato and cilantro. The swordfish ($38) is swoon-worthy, its grain shaped like the eye of a hurricane, its lovely burnish like the teak deck of a yacht. Served with saut\u00e9ed garlic spinach, the fish steak comes with a \u201cwhite livornese\u201d sauce that\u2019s a reduction of cream and vinegar with julienne celery, black olives and capers. It\u2019s not hyperbole to say this swordfish preparation deserves to be included with great fish pairings like trout amandine, mustard-glazed salmon, skate beurre noir and cod in pil pil sauce.<\/p>

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Meat dishes also prove exceptional. The rack of Colorado lamb ($48) is superb, showcasing interlocked, mustard-and-parsley-crusted rib chops served with baby rainbow carrots over saut\u00e9ed escarole. Sorry, Gordon, cooked lettuce again (although technically, escarole is a member of the chicory family, along with fris\u00e9e, endive and radicchio). The meat displays nice crunchy fatty edging and fairly oozes juice and flavor.<\/p>

The perfectly seasoned and cooked 16-ounce, prime Black Angus rib-eye steak is served sliced in an impressive array, its rectangular pieces revealing the wonderful crisp edging, delicious marbled fat and glowing pink interior of superior meat. The rib-eye is accompanied by roasted fingerling potatoes, baby rainbow carrots and a delicious porcini mushroom sauce that I apply only to the potatoes because the meat is too good to tamper with.<\/p>

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The dessert list ($8-$12) may be short, but it contains great housemade options. My companion delights in her scoops of chocolate, vanilla and espresso crunch gelato. And I love Caf\u00e9 Aura\u2019s refreshing key lime pie ($10), which has lovely flavor without being unpleasantly tart, as some can be. But the best dessert, a customer favorite, may be a slice of the moist, nutty, creamy pistachio cake ($12). Conte explains, in a follow-up interview, that it\u2019s really two cakes in one, featuring two moist sponge cake layers sandwiching a pistachio cheesecake layer, the cake covered with an almond-pistachio fondant and strewn with pistachio pieces. If you try nothing else, try that one! We wash our desserts down with good strong Lavazza black coffee ($3) served from individual coffeepots, enabling free topping off.<\/p>

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During our first visit, we\u2019re seated in the attractive small dining room in the front of the restaurant, during our second, in the small rear dining room where the old Cavey\u2019s sign, previously mounted on the front of the building, is displayed in nostalgic tribute. Not surprising considering Auriemma\u2019s high standards and the retention of so many Cavey\u2019s staff, our service proves both welcoming and attentive.<\/p>

On our second visit, a genial Auriemma makes an appearance and, letting customers know he\u2019s just been tested, stops by tables to check that they\u2019re happy. Unsurprising to anyone who knows him, he\u2019s as hands-on a restaurateur as he is a coach. But he also is fortunate to have a highly capable director of operations in son-in-law, Todd Stigliano.<\/p>

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Looking forward to autumn, Conte plans to introduce lots of new menu items, some of which he says depend on delivery returning to normal. He hopes to bring in truffles, to braise meats, and to offer temptations like wild game and fettuccine with chocolate.<\/p>

Given its inviting atmosphere, attentive service, inventive Italian food, terrific beverage program and committed ownership, Caf\u00e9 Aura has much to recommend it. I\u2019m not sure whether to call it good karma or a great aura, but whatever it is this restaurant has it in spatulas.<\/p>

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Printable PDF version of Cafe Aura Review<\/a><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tGeno Auriemma expounds on his background, the restaurant business, his love of food and passion for wine, and of course, basketball.\t\t\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\tRead Frank Cohen\u2019s Interview with Geno Auriemma\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\tClick Here\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s always a sad day when a venerated restaurant closes, as Cavey\u2019s in Manchester did in May, 2019. So the looming closure of Cavey\u2019s, esteemed enough to draw gourmands from across Connecticut and even beyond, was potentially a terrible one, both for the community and the restaurant\u2019s loyal and well-trained staff. But there\u2019s a hero to this story\u2014one who might already be Connecticut\u2019s top hero.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1655,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"sidebar_toogle":false,"sidebar_date":"","sidebar_drop":"","ocean_post_layout":"","ocean_both_sidebars_style":"","ocean_both_sidebars_content_width":0,"ocean_both_sidebars_sidebars_width":0,"ocean_sidebar":"0","ocean_second_sidebar":"0","ocean_disable_margins":"enable","ocean_add_body_class":"","ocean_shortcode_before_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_after_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_before_header":"","ocean_shortcode_after_header":"","ocean_has_shortcode":"","ocean_shortcode_after_title":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_bottom":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_bottom":"","ocean_display_top_bar":"default","ocean_display_header":"default","ocean_header_style":"","ocean_center_header_left_menu":"0","ocean_custom_header_template":"0","ocean_custom_logo":0,"ocean_custom_retina_logo":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_height":0,"ocean_header_custom_menu":"0","ocean_menu_typo_font_family":"0","ocean_menu_typo_font_subset":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_size":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_unit":"px","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_line_height":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_unit":"","ocean_menu_typo_spacing":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_unit":"","ocean_menu_link_color":"","ocean_menu_link_color_hover":"","ocean_menu_link_color_active":"","ocean_menu_link_background":"","ocean_menu_link_hover_background":"","ocean_menu_link_active_background":"","ocean_menu_social_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_links_color":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_color":"","ocean_disable_title":"default","ocean_disable_heading":"default","ocean_post_title":"","ocean_post_subheading":"","ocean_post_title_style":"","ocean_post_title_background_color":"","ocean_post_title_background":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_image_position":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_attachment":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_repeat":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_size":"","ocean_post_title_height":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay":0.5,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay_color":"","ocean_disable_breadcrumbs":"default","ocean_breadcrumbs_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_separator_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_hover_color":"","ocean_display_footer_widgets":"default","ocean_display_footer_bottom":"default","ocean_custom_footer_template":"0","ocean_post_oembed":"","ocean_post_self_hosted_media":"","ocean_post_video_embed":"","ocean_link_format":"","ocean_link_format_target":"self","ocean_quote_format":"","ocean_quote_format_link":"post","ocean_gallery_link_images":"off","ocean_gallery_id":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[55,62,59,64,58,65,57,61],"class_list":["post-987","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-restaurant-reviews","tag-cafe-aura","tag-erminio-conte","tag-geno-auriemma","tag-gordon-ramsey","tag-kate-cavagnaro","tag-pistachio-cake","tag-steve-cavagnaro","tag-todd-stigliano","entry","has-media"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ctdish.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/987","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ctdish.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ctdish.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ctdish.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ctdish.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=987"}],"version-history":[{"count":51,"href":"https:\/\/www.ctdish.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/987\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1955,"href":"https:\/\/www.ctdish.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/987\/revisions\/1955"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ctdish.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1655"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ctdish.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=987"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ctdish.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=987"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"htt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