Aura Holds Grand Opening with Special Guests
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| Owner Megan Gomez said the space has plenty of room and can easily accommodate groups. |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Aura Coffee and Cocktails officially cut the ribbon during for its grand opening last week.
Special guests included city councilors, the mayor, and even Gov. Maura Healey, who helped hold the ribbon. Healey was making campaign stops in the Berkshires and was meeting with business owners on North Street.
Owner Megan Gomez, along with her husband and chef Ronald Gomez, wanted to bring a new concept to the city.
"A concept that is community-driven, a space where everyone can come and enjoy the day, whether it's a latte or a cocktail, and combine morning and night, and have everything together," she said.
Aura is located at 41 North St. in the former Jay Allen's Clubhouse. The Gomezes came across the space in March and did a full remodel.
Megan is not a stranger to the restaurant business, and she started working as a dishwasher when she was 14 years old in multiple establishments, soon after upgrading to manager.
This is not the couple's first venture either; the two also opened Italian restaurant Sibaritas.
"After that, I managed a couple places, and then during COVID, my husband and I were like, 'let's do something for ourselves,'" she said. "That's when Sibaritas happened. So we just wanted to add something else to the community and felt that this was the best moment to do so."
As for the name, Megan said she wanted something that could be used nicely in a sentence and conveys what they are offering. And her kids had said that was a perfect name.
"We were going back and forth a lot with the name, but we wanted something that shows that the environment is energetic and vibrant, and a space where you can meet. And everyone always talks about how much they always feel at home at Sibaritas. And I was kind of just Googling a whole bunch of names, and for some reason this one popped up, and it stuck," she said.
The restaurant will offer coffee and light fare, including sandwiches and salads, until 3 p.m. Then at 5 p.m., the evening tapas start, which also includes drafts and cocktails. It is open Wednesday through Monday from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Megan said the tapas portion will allow her husband to do more of his specials that they used to be able to do at Sibaritas before they became too busy.
"I'm excited for people to try new things. I mean, at Sibaritas, we used to always do specials, and people loved them. So at Sibaritas now, it's a little more difficult for us because we are so popular to be able to switch a whole bunch of plates around," she said. "But with tapas, we feel like it's a chance for him to show more of his skills at a finer level. So that's why we brought back his octopus, his arancini, things that people are really looking forward to and miss."
Megan said they are also excited for people to taste his beef bourguignon. She said the tapas menu allows Ronald to switch the menu up more than he could before, and even though they have only been open for almost two weeks, they are already bringing new items.
"We're already switching one item to something new, and nobody really knows what it is yet, but we're really excited, and tapas allows us to change things and explore different tastes and different cultures. That's what we're most excited about," she said.
She also said all of their dishes are homemade.
"We just wanted something easy and delicious, and everything's all homemade," she said. "So we make our rolls, we make everything: all of our sauces, our ciabatta rolls, our gluten-free rolls, our waffle mix. Everything is all homemade. So we know what's in our ingredients, and we know what we're giving everybody."
Megan said anyone is welcome to come in and hang out. The space is welcoming with couches and seats, whether you want a private room or a place to sit and enjoy company or alone time.
"It's all welcoming. So if you want to come and sit on your computer for, you know, five hours, do so. We have the space to do so. If you just want to have a business meeting or a book club, the space is here," she said. "If you want to get together with old friends that you haven't seen in a while in a spot where you can have a cocktail and be able to hear each other while you're talking, then this is the spot. So it's just a space where community can come together. It doesn't matter what hour of the day to enjoy."
Megan said Healey's visit and being able to share their time as a business owner was a great experience.
"It's nice to have support from somebody that's not downtown Pittsfield and can see the challenges not just from the Berkshires but the whole Massachusetts area," she said. "So she sees struggling areas in businesses all over Massachusetts, and allowing us to be able to give our input on what we're experiencing here. It means a lot to us, and that we can have that impact on the community to make a change."
Tags: cafe, healey, restaurants, ribbon cutting,
