We just went here for Christmas dinner and it was without a doubt the worst experience I've ever had in a restaurant! First off, the place was jam packed. We get there a few minutes early and are awkwardly standing in the doorway because there's nowhere to wait. You can immediately tell they treat their regular customers better. We finally get seated, then they seat another couple next to us. They ask them how they are and take their drink orders before even getting to us. We finally get our orders taken, then we're waiting about 20 minutes and they ask us to move to another table so they can seat someone else. What the heck? We go from a cozy window table, to a table in the back near the kitchen, where we hear nothing but clanking. We move, then we're waiting another 15-20 minutes. They come up with 2 orders, but one of them isn't right. So we wait another 15 minutes (it's been over an hour already) and they finally bring our dishes. My husbands lasagna is cold! I suspect it's the one they had brought 15 minutes before with the other wrong dish. We didn't get a single table touch, and not once was asked if everything was ok. We're finally ready to go and we're sitting there waiting. My husband tries to make eye contact with the waiter every time he walks by but he just walks past us. We asked a lady (looked like maybe a manager) for boxes and the check. We then watch her run around all over the restaurant doing other things like setting the tables, getting stuff for other people, getting other people's checks and totally forgetting we asked for something. We ask another waiter. He boxes our food, but still no check. We have to ask a third person for our check (we've now been waiting 20 minutes for our check) and we finally get it. You could look around at the tables and just see everyone was in a crummy mood about the awful service here! Truly the worst experience in dining I've ever had. The worst part was, they didn't even care! Completely classless. read more

After a bike ride from Pier 39, across the bridge, and straight to Sausalito, my parents and I were starving. This was the first restaurant we came across in Sausalito so we decided to stop. It's a really cute place that has a homey and upscale ambience at the same time. Service was good, nice servers, but SLOW. That was my only issue with the meal. Food was great! My mom, who's not a big fan of Italian food, even liked it a lot. Their pizza is pretty good, you can tell their ingredients are fresh. But I loved their lasagna. Mmmmm. I'll definitely be back! read more

I live like next door and would love to give a good review! But I've had at least 5 meals here - pizza sucks , no flavor whatsover; it was cardboard with tomato sauce. - calamari is as bland as eating a kitchen towel - prosciutto is ruined with a melon slice - it all has sucked. staff is fine - fire the cook; is he an actually trained cook? I doubt it ! I have to say it's very Nice to have a bar with a tv nearby but have no clue how anybody could like this food. Horrible, boring, tasteless food.....sorry Aurora. Another problem...the name. Who's every heard of an Italian Restaurant named Aurora? read more

The restaurant was very nice. The service was quick and the food was amazing. I had the Lasagna and it was good. The serving was a good portion. read more

Aurora Sausalito - Italian Near Me - Sausalito, California

*TLDR at bottom* Wonderful restaurant! They offer homemade gluten free food (pizza/ pasta) and the gf fettuccine in meat sauce is the BEST I've ever eaten. Everyone's meal was fantastic and it's worth it- not too expensive considering the area and the drive from major attractions. Staff is a little slow, however the food comes out very fast. They are very friendly and when ordering gluten free they make sure to repeat back your order and reiterate what you get when delivering it to the table. Staff even remembers who has gluten allergies and have a gf dinner/desert menus. They even box the food right up for you. The only complaints I have is that it's pretty dark in here and there's no kids menu but there's plenty of kid friendly food. TLDR- Average plate price is $15 and they are very accommodating to substitutions, sides, etc. Less than 20 minutes from seats to meal and that's with a waiter that was also attending to the bar and to go orders. Portions are huge, definitely worth price per plate. Not busy at all which is surprising because food was comparable to a four star restaurant. read more

Truly one of, if not, the best gluten free pizzas I have ever had in my life! I would 100% recommend for anyone gluten free

Homemade noodles for their lasagna. Amazing wine choices. Even more amazing service. Holy cow...so amazing. Truly, the best lasagna I have EVER had. Sooooooooooo delicious! read more

Aurora Sausalito - Lasagna with homemade noodles. Amazing!!! - Italian Near Me - Sausalito, California

Highly recommend this place. They have 2-3 parking spots next to the restaurant that are reserved for the guests otherwise you can easily street park. We walked in without a reservation on a Friday night at 8 and we were able to get a table for 2 right away. The noise level was lower than many other Italian restaurants. Service was very nice. Food was yummy too. They had a special soup which we didn't try but sounded yummy - creamy broccoli and asparagus soup. It was vegetarian. They give you complimentary bread with olive oil and balsamic vinaigrette. Must try items: 1. Ortolana - This pizza is good for 2 people. I liked their thin crust. It had mushrooms, red and yellow peppers and some other vegetables. Yummy! 2. Gnocchi al piacere - Their gnocchi is simply too soft and fresh. We had it with pesto sauce which was very delicious. Didn't try the desserts but they looked really good. They have a good selection of California wines as well as Italian wines. I tried the Italian red "Chianti Ruffino" and loved it. It was sort of medium - not too light and not too heavy. read more

Stumbled onto this place after an event in SF. We were all hungry and inpatient. Parking was a little confusing. It was also close to closing time. They seated us immediately (party of 6) and they were patient with us. The service and food was good. Everyone left more then satisfied. I was also happy it was not outrageously expensive. read more

Aurora Sausalito - Late night food adventure Yum!! - Italian Near Me - Sausalito, California

Came here about a month ago with friends, post workout. The staff was really accommodating - they quickly set us up (there were 12 of us!) outside...I thought it was impressive as we were a large group and they were so friendly and accommodating. I had the pizza with mussels and it was really tasty! The view was nice, food was reasonably priced. It's too bad I don't actually live in Marin, otherwise, I'd stop by more often - but it's a great neighborhood Italian restaurant. read more

Cute atmosphere. Our waitress Celeste was very nice and had great service manners. I got gnocchi with Alfredo sauce (that wasn't on the menu- they had gnocchi with red or pesto sauce and they had fettuccine Alfredo, so I asked for this instead) and that was really good. They make the gnocchi there. I would go back read more

Aurora Sausalito - Gnocchi with Alfredo sauce - Italian Near Me - Sausalito, California

This is my favorite restaurant for food and fine service in Sausalito. Although it doesn't have the fantastic view of some of the waterfront restaurants, it does have free parking, fabulous food, excellent service, and lower prices. The lasagne is very tasty with home made pasta and the minestrone soup is the best I've ever had. Yesterday I had the salmon special with polenta. As usual, the fish is cooked to perfection. Highly recommend this place. Kudos to Sean and the rest of the friendly welcoming staff. read more

We were worried the lasagna wouldn't have enough meat but they packed it on. It was delicious and did not disappoint. The atmosphere is welcoming. Italian music playing, everyone is very nice and professional. Great options, affordable. And such great food. Definitely a 5! And get the lasagna!! :) read more

Aurora Sausalito - Inside! - Italian Near Me - Sausalito, California

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Very good lunch here today. Restaurant is off the beaten path, away from all the tourists. There were 4 of us. Originally thought about fried calamari but it was not available. Two of us enjoyed Spaghetti with Seafood instead and the other 2 had Seafood Rissotto. All the dishes were delicious! Seafood was very fresh and dishes were clearly cooked to order. For desert, we shared some Tiramasu and a Creme Brulee, which were bit on the sweet side but, still tasty. Service was friendly and timely. We all agreed that the meal was very enjoyable and we will return. read more

What a wonderful little Gem!!! The atmosphere is light and friendly! The owner was our waiter with very strong Italian accent and excellent recommendations! Our food was delicious, the wine superb and the dessert out of this world!! Had the Tiramasu with port and cappuccino! Perfect! read more

Aurora Sausalito - Italian Near Me - Sausalito, California

We had dinner there tonight looking forward to a great meal out.... Had the seafood pasta and it was not very good. My dates order was wrong and had to send it back. My pasta arrived cool. Seafood tasted like frozen packaged meal and pasta overcooked. Waiter was absent later in our meal and even though the place was half empty I struggled to get someone to pick up our tab so we could leave. I've always liked it here so I'm sorry that things are not as they once were... read more

My mom and I were coming home from the City and found this place to be open on Christmas Day. The place was packed, and the server told me that this was nothing "Its only lunch time" I can see why this place is packed. First of all... lots of windows, cute little place, not super fancy, but pretty decent. Its off the beaten path. Would be a great place to eat on a warm day. Cute little front patio. Generous wine pours :) nice wine list. Mom had the special salmon. Fresh wild cut salmon. laid on a bed of lettuce, had a pineapple salsa over the top. was good! $20 I had the Cioppino. It. was. amazing! $23 So good. I usually try to get Cioppino if its available. This is probably the best yet. I cant wait to bring my BF. I recommend! :) read more

I got spaghetti all'arrabbiata. The portion size was pretty good and spiced on the correct way. The service was good too but I didn't like the fact that we needed to go inside the restaruant and ask for breads for our table. I expected them to be already served as soon as we were seated. read more

Allows smoking at Aurora Waitress stated "well we do allow and used the " manager approves " When we brought up state law she was oh well about that The food Pizza was just ok nothing special with cheap cheese and crust with no flavor and we had ordered prior to smokers lighting up or we would have left Wish we had Salad greens were way past their prime This place is clearly low end and we will not be going back read more

Wow! I never thought such an inconvenient place in a small town could be so amazing! I ordered the linguine the night I went, and it was with all my willpower to not order another plate. Brilliant! I definitely think that this place should get 5 stars! as for waiters, can anyone you look anyone in the face and say you didn't like Sean or Cesar or anyone else part of the crew? I rate Aurora an A+ with compliments. read more

We stopped by for the gluten free menu and it was delicious! I ordered the pepperoni gluten free and it is one of the best I've had. The staff was wonderful, friendly and quick. The other items ordered by my family were delicious ( according to them) the cappuccino's were wonderful- very close to true Italy. I would highly recommended Aurora! read more

We stopped here while on a bike tour from San Francisco. We had crossed the Golden Gate Bridge and were starving, and this was the first restaurant we ran into. I needed to rest and stopped here. So glad we did. What a quaint, quiet restaurant. So relaxing. The service was excellent. The food was really good and filling. I had the Fettuccine Alfredo, my husband had the pizza. Both were so tasty. There was bike parking out front, free wifi, and restrooms. read more

This place was an amazing find. Bruschetta was delicious and the chicken parm was so good!!! After not being able to find good food we Stumbled upon this place after traveling over the Golden Gate Bridge, so glad we did. Amazing service and amazing food. read more

The absolute BEST!!! Aurora is Novato's secret gem...serving amazing and authentic Italian food for decades. We order take away from them often, but today we upped the ante by surprising dear friends with dinner from Aurora. Julia helped to coordinate home deliveries throughout the Bay Area and it was a hit!! Please think out of the box for birthdays, anniversaries and more by ordering food deliveries. Your friends will appreciate your thoughtfulness and our local restaurants will benefit from your support during this challenging time. Eat and stay well! read more

We were in Sausalito on vacation. Came across this place by accident while driving around. Food was amazing! Everyone in our party ordered something different, so most of us tried each other's meals. One person in our group has Celiac and they had a great selection of items for them as well. Would definitely go back! Gave 4 stars because I thought the service could have been a bit better. We ordered wine and Prosecco and our server totally forgot to bring them...although he was nice. read more

We wanted to lick our plates. Fantastic authentic Italian food!!!! The waiter is Italian and everything on the menu is what my Italian mother used to make for me. You simply can't go wrong with this place. read more

My girlfriend and I visited this restaurant after biking across the Golden Gate Bridge. The service was kind and relaxed, the food was tasty, quick, and well-portioned. We had a very relaxed, enjoyable lunch here. Thanks, Aurora! read more

We came here for dinner after a day in San Fran. We sat on the deck and brought our dogs. The service was fantastic and was really good. Definitely recommend the Pizza and the Garlic cheese bread! If the weather is good definitely sit on the deck! read more

Coming from Sacramento, after we had a lovely time watching the sunset, we both were actually going to a different restaurant and as we passed by, this beautiful cozy-looking and string-lights lit up place caught our attention. It was a cold night. Attentively, a server offered us a warmer and more private seating with a heater since we were first seated next to the door. I gotta say, the food was amazing, and the service was beyond phenomenal!!! We were the only ones left at the end, and suddenly my favorite song was on, which made me so happy, especially when I was with my dearest person, that we both started slow dancing. I love that they noticed and turned the song louder so we could have a wonderful and intimate and best time to ourselves. Thank you so so much to everyone from that night! You all helped us create the most unforgettable memories together, and I would definitely love to come back again soon whenever I'm in town again! read more

Looking for a restaurant open for dinner on Christmas Day. Couldn't find anywhere in sleepy Sausalito, but Aurora was open and had a reservation available for us. Didn't know what to expect, but oh my! Freshly made pasta and from scratch bolognese sauce? Yes please! I had papperdelle with their bolognese sauce. My husband had their lasagna. Both were delicious!!! Parking is tricky so I would bike or walk...or Uber. But very definitely worth the trip! read more

I stopped here when I went to a lookout to the golden gate bridge. The food was so yummy! I got the bolognese and it was delicious. The service is good and fast. I really enjoyed the ambience in here too. My friend got carbonara and that was delicious. read more

Worst food ever. Ordered pasta Arabiata and it is SO spicy none of us can eat it. Italian food shouldn't be this hot. This is hotter than any Indian or Mexican food we have ever eaten. Awful. They should be embarrassed to serve such food read more

I'd probably give this place two stars for their pasta which isn't hideous but for service and pizza they get 1. We live across the road, which is the only reason why we've been here more than once. The first time we are there I had a bolt in my pasta. As in, a 'nuts and bolt' bolt. They apologized with a free dessert! The pizza tastes like a frozen pizza and the salads are sad. Over-priced. I'm sure the rent is high but I reckon nobody here cares because the tourists keep this place afloat. Such a bummer. Would be awesome to have a rad local. read more

Cute little place on a corner with authentic Italian cuisine. Great pastas, pizzas, and fish that my whole family enjoyed. I suggest the dore- very good white fish with lemon sauce. Calamari was great, and also had good fettuccine Alfredo and mussels. The inside was small but had a cute interior with seating and also a bar. Waitress was nice, and our appetizers and entrees came out very quick. The restaurant is small and easy to overlook on the outside, but I highly encourage you go in for a meal! read more

We came in on a Tuesday evening and had to wait 50 minutes for our dinner. It was not a huge crowd in the restaurant. The kitchen is very slow, so allow plenty of time. The waiters are very friendly and all of the staff is quite nice. Our waiter was quite funny, and very possibly of Italian heritage. The food was quite good. The cioppino was quite good, the potato gnocchi was a big hit, and all three of the pizzas that we ordered were great. They even gave us an extra pizza, on the house, because they were ashamed that it took so long. This place is not nearly as good as Poggio, but then it does not cost as much as Poggio. So overall three stars is fair. read more

a newbie to life in sausalito... at least the work life... i discovered this place when a friend came to visit and was craving pizza. we yelped it and found that it was literally two doors up the block. convenience sure makes us lazy but aurora is definitely a winner. i rave about it to coworkers and people who share the building all the time so figured i should share the wealth to you yelpers. absolutely EVERYTHING we tried was delicious. i'm sure hunger was not the deciding factor. from the free bread to start to the ending chocolate dessert... i was so full i should have popped! we shared the bruschetta appetizer, a pear salad, and a margherita pizza. i know... major food coma by the end! haha which reminds me... we stayed there for hours and service was excellent. so polite and welcoming. just good all around. i'm one to appreciate waiters who aren't overbearing but know to not ignore customers. our waiter checked our water glasses frequently but did so quietly. loved that! definitely check it out if you're reading this. it's worth it. like the men's warehouse guy would say... i guarantee it! =) read more

There was one server here and a couple bussers & they worked their butts off. The service was amazing and the food was very delicious! I loved the gluten free option. Can't wait to come back :) read more

We ordered the specials. Crab ravioli and lasagna both were amazing. Our niece had the fettuccine Alfredo which was a little bland. It needed salt but was still good. Friendly staff and great service. We will be back. read more

After an 8 mile ride from SFO across the GG bridge we stopped here for pizza (Gluten Free) before dropping our bikes off and catching the ferry. Good service and delicious pizza and wine (we earned it). read more

Just in case you were left wondering if my experience was just a one time display of rudeness from the owner...this is how the owner responded to me: "I do not know who you are or what issues you have. We treat everybody with decency and respect, I am sorry you felt so inadequate, but look deep into yourself because you must have some sort of issue. This post is very inadequate and offensive." read more