Aura Gelato Artigianale — Restaurant in Toronto

Tldr;

Neighborhood shop that makes good gelato. I would have given this place 4 or 5 stars if it was not for a recent experience. Not only did the business solicit a tip for providing the bare minimum service of scooping some gelato, but when I did not leave a tip, the service staff spoke up and said, "what?! No tip?".

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We all know tip creep has been a thing lately, and Gemma has jumped on the bandwagen. It's still awkward, but I have started to firm my stance on which scenarios I would tip (table or bar service/haircuts). Considering I just stood in line for 5-10 minutes on a hot day to buy a few scoops from someone that scrapes it out of a pale and hands it to me so I can eat on the street, it didn't meet the criteria that I have predetermined. I go to pay the $10-$15 bill and am greeted with the unexpected but expected tip prompt. At some point between me selecting no tip and leaving to make my way home eating gelato, the staff member says to me, "what... No tip?". I gave her an awkward look while I thought, "are you kidding me?", and quietly left as to not make a scene in front of the lineup of customers.

This is a neighborhood place that I walk by several times a week since I live down the road. Once in a while I stop in either here or Futura during the summer time. I guess I'll go to Futura for the time being until I get over...

The customer service here is pretty shady and they try to trick customers into buying the bigger tubs. There are multiple sized tubs that you can buy, and when you ask the price of the tub they confirm that it’s by weight and typically around $20. When you agree to buy the tub, they always grab the LARGER size first hoping that customers don’t notice. In my case, I noticed and confirmed that I only want the SMALLER size. The total came up to $17, which was fine.

I thought this was an honest mistake until my fiancé went to go buy a tub and they did THE EXACT SAME THING. She told him $20, grabbed the larger tub (he didn’t notice) which is double the size and then charged him $39. Not a fair business practice and clearly taking advantage of customers.

The two stars is for the gelato - the best chocolate gelato I have ever had, hands down! Too bad the business is run this way and made to feel like it’s the customer’s fault for not...

My partner and I were driving by and decided to make a stop.

This gelato place is authentic and had a variety of interesting and tempting flavours including Sangria and Bellini. The texture of the gelato was velvety and smooth. The gelato is not too creamy which lets the flavours really shine.

I would absolutely get my paring again. I love citrus gelato and so the Novita was my obvious choice. It was a combination of blood orange and grapefruit. It was bright and refreshing on a hot summer’s night. I paired the Novita with Prosecco. Oh man, the Prosecco was really good and tasted true to it’s name. My partner also got Novita and paired it with chocolate. It was a nice combination too. The chocolate was rich but not too sweet.

I am happy to have stumbled across this place and will be back. I am excited to try other flavour because the gelato itself was...