Everything we tried was amazing. The worker also was dealing with a rude customer while helping us but continued being professional and kind towards checking us out. Would recommend if you are on the hunt for a delicious bakery.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Black Rose
I absolutely LOVE this bakery. So authentic and beautiful overall!
John L.
This is the first of 4 reviews for the Korean bakeries in the Annandale area: Shilla, Breeze, Manoa, and Tous Les Jours bakeries. Each has its strengths and weaknesses in food taste, food texture, ambiance, service, and value. I'll be listing them. Started in 1999, there are 5 locations: Ellicott City, Annandale, Centerville, Chantilly, and McLean. The Annandale store was the first. So, my wife and I went there to see where they started. We walked in and started looking at items on the shelves. We picked some items, and we looked at items in the glass display cases. An employee came to help. Nothing in the cases interested us, so we walked to the end of the displays where the cash register was located and paid. We visited twice and tried 6 items in total. 1) Cinnamon Twist Doughnut It was soft with a texture between cake and bread. It tasted similar to Hawaiian bread. It had a sugar and cinnamon coating that was very light on cinnamon. A stronger cinnamon flavor would make this great. 2) Red Bean Bread A bun with lots of red bean filling. Mildly sweet with moderate red bean flavor. The bread tasted exactly the same as the one in Chinese baked pork bun. It was soft with a hint of sweetness and a nice toasted flavor. Nicely made with great flavor. It's one of the best that I've tasted. 3) Shilla Chicken Panini It had chicken, cheddar cheese, baby spinach, basil, and boiled red peppers in flatbread. It came with a side of chips. The chips were Miss Vickie's sea salt kettle chips. They were crispy and not too salty. The chicken filet was tender and moist. The cheese was sharp cheddar and the greens were fresh. The bread wasn't crispy and lacked a buttered toasted flavor that is found in pressed panini. The red peppers were very overcooked. This was a decent sandwich that needed condiments. 4) White Bean Bread Soft with a flavor like a white roll. The white bean paste was mild in sweetness and bean flavor. It was edible and forgettable. 5) Shilla Lemon Sheet Cake It was a 2 layer yellow cake with lemon frosting on top and between the layers. The cake was mildly sweet with a hint of vanilla. It was soft and moist. The frosting was sweet, citrusy, and very zesty. Way too much lemon zest! The flavor was sharp with a touch of bitterness. If they tamp down on the zest, it's a winner. There were slices of real lemons on top. This cake didn't need more lemon juice!! 6) Cream Cheese Pound Cake It was moist, soft, and sweet with a light vanilla flavor. No cream cheese or butter flavor. It's called pound cake because a pound of butter is used with a pound of flour, eggs, and sugar to make the cakes. In other words, equal parts of each. The butter flavor should be prominent. The traditional recipe was rich and incredibly moist. Today, places like this take cost cutting steps. So, their cake wasn't as rich, dense, or moist as a traditional pound cake. It was okay tasting, but the missing flavors don't encourage me to buy their cakes. The service was polite and quick. The dining room and restrooms were clean. The store had modern decor with an emphasis on wood. They're more than a bakery. They sell breakfast food, panini, sandwiches, salads, wraps, ice cream, bingsoo, boba tea, tea, and coffee drinks. Coffee fixings are limited to sugar, Splenda, Equal, half & half, and a flavored creamer. Nothing else. The store is stand-alone in a small shopping center with a free parking lot. They are located across the road from Tous les Jours, another Korean bakery. So, there's another nearby choice for Asian pastries. The prices are higher here for most items, so this is not the place for good value. Although most of the items we got were disappointing, we'd be willing to come back to try other things.
Kenny Franklin
Get there early before they sell out of their Japanese cheese cake!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Bakery, Japanese Cheesecake, Shaved Ice, Fruit Bingsoo, Binsoo, Pastry, Loaf Breads
Puneeth Velivela
Poor customer
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 1
Mike Nate
OVERPRICED PASTRY! after experiencing 85 degrees bakeshop, l will never buy anything from this overated, overprices bakery here in northern virginia.. not worth it at all!
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
Stacey C.
Food is delicious! Best Boba tea around, hands down! Variety can depend on time of day, but options are so tasty.
Rebecca Trinh
There were baby cockroaches or some other type of beetle in my mango roll... Additionally everything was very pricey and too sweet. I thought their fruit tea bobas were tea with fruit flavor but they were just super sweet slushies.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
Brenda Wilcox
Small location, but service is always great and quality is always amazing.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Bakery, Pastry, Loaf Breads
Grace Lee
What a gem! A great place to get delicious treats and exceptional service!
Just some friendly feedback back, I ordered a medium size Green Tea Cake.ProsThe presentation overall was visually appealing and well done.ConsThe cake focuses more on the cream rather than the bread. There is nothing wrong with having a spongey bread texture, however one must remember that soft texture dissolves (melts quickly) when you eat it. With the small portion of an already soft spongy bread layer combined with a large amount of cream, it created an unpleasant taste where it felt like one was eating a cream filling instead of a Cake.RemedyOne way to fix this is to have a balanced proportion of bread and cream filling that compliments one another.I suggest that Shilla Bakery review their Green Tea Cake. Taste their cake to see what it feels like when a customer eats it. Then make the necessary adjustments: whether it’s fixing the ratio of bread and cream or changing the overall structure of the cake. (I noticed that the cake is structured in the shape of a donut and has way too much, cream filling in the middle, which doesn’t add anything to the cake) it’s just feels like a way to fill the void of the hole. Perhaps a normal shaped cake is better? instead of a donut shaped cake? unless something else that is unique or delicious can replace the hole instead of regular cream filling.Due to these factors, it has led to my opinion that the cost of the cake does not equate to the quality of the cake.I love Shilla Bakery. I really do wish for the continuation of its success, but in order for that to happen improvement must be made.I believe another review by the name of Jennie Ly had similar complaints about the cake. I will say on a positive note that your other cakes are phenomenal.If you you can make other cakes that good, surely you can make this cake good as well, if not, even MORE better. This cake can be fixed and has the potential to be a phenomenal cake! Shilla Bakery can do it!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 1
Service: 4
Eric Hernandez
We love the backed goods. They are not overly sweet. My son really enjoys the mango roll. Great job.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Henry
Found a dead bug in my
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 1
Service: 3
Natalie Neal
What an amazing bakery! They have so many different kinds of baked goods, cakes, coffee, and the taste is exceptional too. Can't wait to come back!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Bakery, Japanese Cheesecake, Cakes, Pastry
Sandra Romero
To be my 1st visit was really disappointing about the service I got from Ale, one of the Hispanic workers. The 1st impression you get from a place normally is that your kind of people will be more helpful since there won't be any language barrier, that was not our case. Thank God I speak both languages, and Terra was able to help me with my order. She was very helpful and very kind. If it wasn't for her, I wouldn't have place and order. Thank you, Terra, for people like you this world keeps going on.
Everything we tried was amazing. The worker also was dealing with a rude customer while helping us but continued being professional and kind towards checking us out. Would recommend if you are on the hunt for a delicious bakery.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I absolutely LOVE this bakery. So authentic and beautiful overall!
This is the first of 4 reviews for the Korean bakeries in the Annandale area: Shilla, Breeze, Manoa, and Tous Les Jours bakeries. Each has its strengths and weaknesses in food taste, food texture, ambiance, service, and value. I'll be listing them. Started in 1999, there are 5 locations: Ellicott City, Annandale, Centerville, Chantilly, and McLean. The Annandale store was the first. So, my wife and I went there to see where they started. We walked in and started looking at items on the shelves. We picked some items, and we looked at items in the glass display cases. An employee came to help. Nothing in the cases interested us, so we walked to the end of the displays where the cash register was located and paid. We visited twice and tried 6 items in total. 1) Cinnamon Twist Doughnut It was soft with a texture between cake and bread. It tasted similar to Hawaiian bread. It had a sugar and cinnamon coating that was very light on cinnamon. A stronger cinnamon flavor would make this great. 2) Red Bean Bread A bun with lots of red bean filling. Mildly sweet with moderate red bean flavor. The bread tasted exactly the same as the one in Chinese baked pork bun. It was soft with a hint of sweetness and a nice toasted flavor. Nicely made with great flavor. It's one of the best that I've tasted. 3) Shilla Chicken Panini It had chicken, cheddar cheese, baby spinach, basil, and boiled red peppers in flatbread. It came with a side of chips. The chips were Miss Vickie's sea salt kettle chips. They were crispy and not too salty. The chicken filet was tender and moist. The cheese was sharp cheddar and the greens were fresh. The bread wasn't crispy and lacked a buttered toasted flavor that is found in pressed panini. The red peppers were very overcooked. This was a decent sandwich that needed condiments. 4) White Bean Bread Soft with a flavor like a white roll. The white bean paste was mild in sweetness and bean flavor. It was edible and forgettable. 5) Shilla Lemon Sheet Cake It was a 2 layer yellow cake with lemon frosting on top and between the layers. The cake was mildly sweet with a hint of vanilla. It was soft and moist. The frosting was sweet, citrusy, and very zesty. Way too much lemon zest! The flavor was sharp with a touch of bitterness. If they tamp down on the zest, it's a winner. There were slices of real lemons on top. This cake didn't need more lemon juice!! 6) Cream Cheese Pound Cake It was moist, soft, and sweet with a light vanilla flavor. No cream cheese or butter flavor. It's called pound cake because a pound of butter is used with a pound of flour, eggs, and sugar to make the cakes. In other words, equal parts of each. The butter flavor should be prominent. The traditional recipe was rich and incredibly moist. Today, places like this take cost cutting steps. So, their cake wasn't as rich, dense, or moist as a traditional pound cake. It was okay tasting, but the missing flavors don't encourage me to buy their cakes. The service was polite and quick. The dining room and restrooms were clean. The store had modern decor with an emphasis on wood. They're more than a bakery. They sell breakfast food, panini, sandwiches, salads, wraps, ice cream, bingsoo, boba tea, tea, and coffee drinks. Coffee fixings are limited to sugar, Splenda, Equal, half & half, and a flavored creamer. Nothing else. The store is stand-alone in a small shopping center with a free parking lot. They are located across the road from Tous les Jours, another Korean bakery. So, there's another nearby choice for Asian pastries. The prices are higher here for most items, so this is not the place for good value. Although most of the items we got were disappointing, we'd be willing to come back to try other things.
Get there early before they sell out of their Japanese cheese cake!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Bakery, Japanese Cheesecake, Shaved Ice, Fruit Bingsoo, Binsoo, Pastry, Loaf Breads
Poor customer
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 1
OVERPRICED PASTRY! after experiencing 85 degrees bakeshop, l will never buy anything from this overated, overprices bakery here in northern virginia.. not worth it at all!
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
Food is delicious! Best Boba tea around, hands down! Variety can depend on time of day, but options are so tasty.
There were baby cockroaches or some other type of beetle in my mango roll... Additionally everything was very pricey and too sweet. I thought their fruit tea bobas were tea with fruit flavor but they were just super sweet slushies.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
Small location, but service is always great and quality is always amazing.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Bakery, Pastry, Loaf Breads
What a gem! A great place to get delicious treats and exceptional service!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
Just some friendly feedback back, I ordered a medium size Green Tea Cake.ProsThe presentation overall was visually appealing and well done.ConsThe cake focuses more on the cream rather than the bread. There is nothing wrong with having a spongey bread texture, however one must remember that soft texture dissolves (melts quickly) when you eat it. With the small portion of an already soft spongy bread layer combined with a large amount of cream, it created an unpleasant taste where it felt like one was eating a cream filling instead of a Cake.RemedyOne way to fix this is to have a balanced proportion of bread and cream filling that compliments one another.I suggest that Shilla Bakery review their Green Tea Cake. Taste their cake to see what it feels like when a customer eats it. Then make the necessary adjustments: whether it’s fixing the ratio of bread and cream or changing the overall structure of the cake. (I noticed that the cake is structured in the shape of a donut and has way too much, cream filling in the middle, which doesn’t add anything to the cake) it’s just feels like a way to fill the void of the hole. Perhaps a normal shaped cake is better? instead of a donut shaped cake? unless something else that is unique or delicious can replace the hole instead of regular cream filling.Due to these factors, it has led to my opinion that the cost of the cake does not equate to the quality of the cake.I love Shilla Bakery. I really do wish for the continuation of its success, but in order for that to happen improvement must be made.I believe another review by the name of Jennie Ly had similar complaints about the cake. I will say on a positive note that your other cakes are phenomenal.If you you can make other cakes that good, surely you can make this cake good as well, if not, even MORE better. This cake can be fixed and has the potential to be a phenomenal cake! Shilla Bakery can do it!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 1
Service: 4
We love the backed goods. They are not overly sweet. My son really enjoys the mango roll. Great job.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Found a dead bug in my
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 1
Service: 3
What an amazing bakery! They have so many different kinds of baked goods, cakes, coffee, and the taste is exceptional too. Can't wait to come back!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Bakery, Japanese Cheesecake, Cakes, Pastry
To be my 1st visit was really disappointing about the service I got from Ale, one of the Hispanic workers. The 1st impression you get from a place normally is that your kind of people will be more helpful since there won't be any language barrier, that was not our case. Thank God I speak both languages, and Terra was able to help me with my order. She was very helpful and very kind. If it wasn't for her, I wouldn't have place and order. Thank you, Terra, for people like you this world keeps going on.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 1