AURA Tapas & Cocktail Bar: $14 Cocktails and $12.95 Small Plates, 4–6pm
AURA runs happy hour Tuesday to Sunday from 4 to 6pm at 111 1st Ave in the East Village: $7 draft beer, $10 wine, $14 cocktails and small plates at $12.95. There’s no Monday service; the bar is closed that day.
The verdict: the food is the reason to go. Happy hour starts when the doors open, so you get two hours of discounted tapas that would otherwise run higher: the Turkish meatballs are $18 on the dinner menu and $12.95 now, the pulled pork sliders $17 against $12.95. The catch is that the drinks side is plain pricing, and the bar doesn’t post its regular drink prices, so the saving on a $14 cocktail is unclear.
The Happy Hour
- Draft beer: $7
- Wine: $10
- Craft and classic cocktails: $14
- BBQ pulled pork slider: $12.95
- Truffle mac & cheese: $12.95
- Crispy calamari: $12.95
- Turkish meatballs: $12.95
- Truffle fries: $10
Truffle fries are $12 on the regular menu and mac & cheese is $16.
The Room
AURA describes itself as a Mediterranean-inspired tapas and cocktail bar, with shareable plates, fresh pastas and full dishes alongside cocktails, wine and beer. It’s open Tuesday to Saturday 4pm–2am and Sunday 4pm–12am. The nearest trains are the F at 2 Av and the 6 at Astor Pl.
Who AURA Is For
| Occasion | Why It Works |
|---|---|
| An early date | Cocktails $14, plates from $10 |
| Dinner from small plates | Five happy hour dishes, $10–$12.95 |
| A Sunday drink | Happy hour runs Sunday too |
More nearby is in our East Village happy hour guide. For the tapas side, see the best tapas in NYC, or the best cocktail bars in NYC.