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This place flat out rocks. It's a decently sized bakery with plenty of pastries, food, coffee, and treats to go around. My favorite thing to order is the red bean bing soo. Picture a large bowl filled with plenty of red bean, condensed milk, rice paddies, various fruit, all topped with shaved ice. It's heavenly. They also have other bing soo as well, such as strawberry and various fruits. The treats and pastries they sell are delicious. The coffee and bubble tea are mediocre, but not bad. The tapioca in the bubble tea is tasty.
The staff and environment are friendly. This place attracts really vibrant, polite people which makes it a pleasure to stay and eat. There are also tons of samples to try out. This makes the place surprising and fun to attend as there are always new things to try!
It's hard to find Asian style baked goods in the US. Having grown up in Taiwan, I've never been able to get used to the super sweet icing covered sweets they offer here in the US. Asian pastries offer more delicate flavored sweet desserts that don't give you diabetes (or at least not as quickly). Instead of heavy pies, icing covered cakes, you will find fluffy breads, cakes and heavenly whipped cream at Shilla's.
Shilla's is one of my boyfriend and I's favorite places in NOVA. I'm not talking about just bakeries or cafes or restaurants, but PLACES!!! First of all, it will be a difficult task for anyone to find a bakery that offers as wide a variety of pastries as Shilla's does. Though the cafe is not huge, they definitely display over 70 kinds of pastries in there - maybe even 100? I'm not sure, I always get so overwhelmed when I'm there.
Second of all, they always put out a good variety of samples that everyone can enjoy! From pineapple cakes, to croissant sandwiches, to red bean donuts, to fruit whipped cream cake, to tapioca bread.... you name it.
Shilla's is such a treat. On top of all the pastries, they also offer sandwiches which aren't bad, bubble tea, amazing Italian coffee, and Bing Soo (Korean for shaved ice). Everything is good! Oh yea, how could I forget the frozen yogurt, it's good there too.
I can't pinpoint one or two things to recommend because I try something different almost every time I go there, and I love it every single time.
The cafe is nicely designed, there is plenty of seating and service is fast. Prices are very reasonable!
Let me tell you how good this place is. Picture this: I'm sitting in a fancy steakhouse in Houston, Texas, with my girlfriend waiting for our orders to arrive at our table. I have been craving a big slab of red meat for days, and finally my taste is about to be satisfied. One of us mentions Shilla's Bakery. All desire I had for my steak immediately dissapears, and thus begins a discussion about Shilla's that lasted well after our steaks had arrived. I literally look forward to Saturday mornings all week, because that is when I go to Shilla's Bakery. I think this is my favorite place in the world, and the moon.
I was not born and raised in Asia, so this style of pastries and treats is somewhat of a novelty to me. Perhaps a native born Asian may not find Shilla's as interesting as I do, but it's always packed with Koreans, and I've never heard any complaints about the place. The have a huge selection of fresh baked breads. But don't mistake this for an Asian "Panera". These breads are very unique and are some of the most flavorful delicacies I've ever had. I really like the sweet ones such as Tapioca Donuts, Red Bean Buns, or Cheese Pound Cake. But the savory breads are also equally delicious, such as the Almond Pound Cake, Rottiboy, or Pizza Bread. Shilla's also has a great selection of sweet desert type treats such as fruity cakes, cheesecakes, and chocolate cakes; but all of them are very different from what you would find at a traditional American bakery. The cakes are very light, but also satisfying, so they don't leave you full but your craving for something sweet is completely satisfied.
I really can't say enough great things about Shilla's. In fact, I need to stop writing this review because I'm starting to drool right now and I won't be back in Arlington for two weeks.
Shilla is a very cool Korean bakery and cafe frequented by many young Koreans. It's definitely a place to see and be seen. It has a nice chic, trendy atmosphere and it's the type of place where everyone seems to be enjoying the conversation of their lives.
I have been to Shilla on many occasions and they have tons of baked goods, but I can honestly say, Im not a fan of them at all. I don't think it's because they do them poorly, more so because I prefer SE Asian baked goods to what you find at Shilla. The pastries here just aren't half as good as they look in my mind. It's a cultural difference---I don't like really sweet pastries, but to me, these are not sweet enough to clearly distinguish them as dessert. All of my Korean friends' parents always give them long lists of things to pick up from this place (since we are all from Richmond or further south in VA), so, if you actually like Korean-style pastries, let that be an indicator of the quality of their baked goods, as opposed to my evaluation of them.
What I come for is nothing more, nothing less than the bingsoo! It is SO good!!!. I love the stuff! For those of you who aren't familiar with bingsoo, most East Asian countries have their own version of this shaved ice treat. It's shaved ice topped with ice cream, condensed milk, and toppings of your choice (fresh fruit, fruit cocktail, sweet red beans, rice cake, and much more). You mix it all together and share it with a few friends.
My hometown is Chesterfield, VA and my friends in Northern VA and I always meet here to catch up in the summer. I've had strawberry, almond, pot bingsoo, and the one with the fruit cocktail. It is all so very very good! i love the mixed textures from the crunchy ice, the creamy ice cream, and the chewy toppings. I will say that I prefer Taiwanese shaved ice to Korean, but the bing soo is just that, bing soo, not Taiwanese shaved ice, and it is very tasty! Not too sweet either. I definitely recommend going in and giving this place a try, even if only for the bing soo.
I say, grab some friends and come share a nice bowl of bing soo!
I've been to Shilla Bakery a handful of times and it is a great place to meet up with friends and have snack or dessert or drink. It is opened late on weekends which is nice and has ample seating.
bu OK....How much are styrofoam dessert plates? Can't be more than a few cents each right?
The other evening, we bought a small cake for my friend's bday. $24.95. Not cheap to say the least. We were given 4 small styrofoam plates and asked for 2 more since there were 6 of us.
Shilla man said -No, the cake is for 4 people so I can only give you 4 plates.
Us: we just want 2 plates, can we have 2 additional plates?
Shill man: no i can't give you two more plates.
wow....baffled. really? After buying a $24.95 cake you are going to dictate that the cake only feeds 4 people? I mean yeah, 4 people can eat the cake ....if they are fatasses and eat huge cake slices.
After being denied, we sent up the ONE korean guy in our group. my korean friend said sometimes things like this happen because we're not korean.
So token korean went up to ask for 2 more styrofoam plates, in korean. DENIED.
As an act of rebellion from being denied 2 styrofoam plates, token korean friend grabbed 2 handfuls of plastic forks.
So no thanks but thanks Shilla Bakery for the 30 something black plastic forks.
The $25 cake was OK. way too much icing. it was like, 50:50 cake/icing ratio.
after scraping off the unwanted icing we piled it together and sculpted a face out of the mass excess amount of icing.
One of my favorite places to go, it's about a 40 min drive for me, but I always need to come here. I love their bubble tea because it is the frozen slushy kind. I always get the black milk tea; I am not a big fruit flavored fan. I love how sweet it is! Their "bubbles" (tapioca) are sweet also! I love that! I put sugar and honey in my boiling water when I make my own bubble tea. Bubble are always cooked perfectly.
I have had their little cakes before, very yummy and definitely not too sweet! ^^;; They are decorated to pretty and taste really yummy also!
I LOVE LOVE LOVE their butter cream buns Mmmmm ^^;; I just ate in actually, they are sooo delicious! They have a very nice amount of butter cream, it isn't overbearing and oozing out of the sides, it is just enough to make your bun sweet. I don't like too much butter cream, so this is great!
I have had many other breads and goodies here and I cannot complain about any of them.
To me, it's worth the 40 minute drive, but thats just me.
Like you're right in Korea... however I've been seeing more and more non-Koreans there.
Their pastries are delicious. Bread is baked fresh and there is always a wide selection. My faves are the strawberry creme filled bread, mochi, the corn cassle (think that's what it's called) bread and the strawberry bin soo (shaved ice, strawberry ice cream, fresh strawberries, mochi and some pink strawberry/condensed milk syrup).
Their fro-yo isn't bad and they offer toppings, but not a lot.
I'm not a huge fan of their drinks, got Taro bubble tea and my bubbles were stale and narsty. After having bubble tea in NYC and other cities, I was not satisfied and resorted to launching my stale bubbles with my straw. And they sell the Italian Illy coffee, which is supposed to be FANtastic... I mean really... it's coffee...
And I leave you with a lame-funny story... this guy in front of me ordered two bin soos (traditionally with shaved ice with red bean, condensed milk, fruit, ice cream, mochi, etc.) with NO milk products cause the girl he was with is lactose intolerant.... WHY would you bring her here then? Idiot.
This place is smaller than the Centreville one but has been here the longest and it is the most packed! you won't walk in without seeing someone you know! they also have a bigger selection of pastries, etc. I have to say though that this shilla is definitely more "korean oriented" but that's cuz it's in annandale!! hahaa In centreville, i definitely see tons off different ethnicities walking in and out of the place so it makes me happy to see everyone trying new things. Their bingsoo (especially coffee bingsoo to go!) is delicious and their yogurt icecream as well. Their coffees ehhh, but their cakes are good too!
overall= yay
I think I was on a sugar rush, and since this was my first Korean bakery visit in Annandale, the presentation of all sugary goodness/various breaded, dessert fluffiness were all very inviting. So I randomly ended up consuming a small yogurt with kiwi pieces, and took home a small chocolate mousse with blueberries... a bit pricey, but the chocolate mousse presentation was cute -I wouldn't buy it again though. I'll come back and try their different types of breads and bing soo. It's a great place to come and hangout with friends, have a cup of coffee, munch on some baked goods with great conversations =)
Had their red bean Paht Bing Soo.. its wonderful during the spring/summer months... shaved ice, fresh fruit, small bits of asian rice cake, red bean paste, some type of cream, and a light brown powder (don't remember the name but i believe its a type of grain). From my experience, its better during the summer as the fruits are in season rather than in the winter when they're more likely to use canned fruits (which is still ok but can't compare to fresh fruit). I haven't tried the one at Le Matin de Paris so I can't compare.
I also tried the turkey-artichoke sandwich which was pretty good.
Got Red Bean bingsoo and mango boba drink today..
Red bean bingsoo was good. lots of shaved ice.. lots of fresh fruit. very delicious. however, i still prefer the Le Matin de Paris' Paris Bingsoo (it's bigger and has frozen yogurt).
The mango boba bubble tea was really good. it was almost like a mango smoothie. wasn't milky, yet wasnt juice. very good.
bingsoo was $650
boba was $450.
a bit pricey for the boba.. but definitely one of the better types of boba/bubble tea that i've had.
the place has a lot of seats and was pretty crowded.
Shilla Bakery is one of the best bakeries in the Northern Virginia area, hands down. I'll tell you why.
The prices are very reasonable, considering what kind of ingredients go in/on the baked goods and dessert. And the portions are just right or a little bit more than what you will pay for -- you will not be disappointed with the amount you're getting with what you're paying for.
The presentation and decoration of the cakes, buns, bread, dessert is excellent. This is greatly due to the Korean-style baking method -- "Look good, taste good". Especially if you have a boyfriend/girlfriend or another loved one and it's a special occasion, I would definitely recommend purchasing a cake from here -- It will impress them hands down.
There are many locations in the northern Virginia area under Shilla and they all meet the exemplary status that Shilla bestows, but I think the main bakery is located in Annandale, Virginia. I recommend this place to anyone who is in the Fairfax/DC area to give a visit to Shilla and enjoy what Shilla has to offer. Thumbs up!
Time for an upgrade. My last few visits to this location I've seen an abundance of samples of a variety of their pastries. Finally you can try before you buy. Shilla always seems to be the "ee-cha" (or second round) of choice when eating out in Annadale.
I used to like the Centreville location better because they had plenty of free samples, but now, they are almost on par with each other. The only thing I don't like about this place as much is it just seems overly packed full of people mostly young teenagers, and gives it a sorta high-school cafeteria ambiance.
I prefer the ambiance at Le Martin, but I think the food, selection, and samples is better here.
This place needs to sample more of their items like the Centreville location. They definitely aren't… Read more »
Ok I'm giving this place four stars strictly for the fro yo! I dunno what the heck they put in it, but it's damn good. I've been to all the Cali joints, pinkberry, red mango, golden spoon, etc....and NOTHING compares.
Grabbed a basket/tray and performed my routine. When you get there too early, you'll just get in their way hehe. I've never made it before the rush - I never should. Let the good moms of Shilla do their job and stock the babies up. I walked to the finished area and started drooling.... nothing new.
My 'Most Wanted' List:
(not all purchased today - I'm not -that- bad... Kev, oops, I did that "-...-" again :P)
Tapioca/red bean filled bread $1.95 (purchased)
Almond cookie $1.50
Fruit pastry $2.95 (purchased and devoured inside Shilla's)
Croissant $1.95
Almond and raisin bread $2.50 (purchased)
Soboro $0.95
White bean filled bread $1.50 (purchased)
Green bean filled bread $1.50
Red bean filled bread $1.50 (purchased)
Cream filled soboro $1.95 (purchased)
Strawberry cream filled bread $0.95
Almond cream filled bread $0.95 (purchased)
Sausage rolls $1.50
Madeleine tea cakes (chewy cookies) - set of two $1.25 (purchased)
Oy, I'm hungry again. Typing treats = temptation. Good thing they're waiting in the fridge.
My current 'crack', at this specific Shilla, is the tapioca/red bean filled bread. Also contains chestnuts! But can do without the black sesame seeds - got floss?
Same set up as the Rockville location except the non-refrigerated items are at the front of the entrance. Took some pics that are found in their business profile http://www.yelp.com/bi...
Wow, within twenty minutes, their parking section was packed. Munch time... I mean, lunch time. This head store is here to stay.
Aww it's summer time... I gotta start my craving for bing soo... only if fro yo didn't get in the way... lol
Well I used to come here often for bing soo. I have to say this place is standard bing soo. It isn't any monstrosity of Dolce but... if you want something light... and this not be the main event... It does it's job. :)
Enough ice with a generous porition of duk and fruit ( you might have to ask for duk) Plus this place is right next to all the good korean restaurants so... if you want dessert.. come check it out. :)
The bakery is also generous in their selection. They have a sample section you can try if you'd like
Oh yeah the fro you... this place had it before the whole famous crazy began. So... it's the pretty standard fro yo place.
Come here to enjoy some fro yo, bing soo, or some baked goods with coffee. :)I fyou have good company and want to talk... come here. :)
I had trouble deciding what to get for dessert, as there seemed to be a lack of labels in front of most of the cakes in the display fridge. I decided to go with the Strawberry Mousse. (Bingsoo was on my mind, but tofu soup was -very- filling!) I've never had anything like this. Chocolate mousse, duh, I've had plenty of time before... but strawberry? It was so light, but not too fluffy. Sweet, and tastes of artificial strawberry (which isn't bad - do you complain over strawberry Pocky's flavor?). A vanilla cake serves as the base of the mousse, giving it some "substance". It was a tiny piece, but it was very rich. Neither my friend and I could finish the last bite. Then again, he was on the verge of upchucking from overeating earlier, and I naturally have a small appetite.
(I honestly didn't try anything else, but you can read the other, more thorough Yelp reviews.)
DAMN, I forget how massive their bingsoos are here...My personal favorites were the banana and green tea...(before the fro-yo hype). Naturally, I was very much inclined to try their yogurt (holy crap at a whopping $9.50???? a little bit highway robbery don't you think? this better be something special)
OMG, it was so massive that I just had to take a picture to share with you all. I couldn't stop laughing ... a friend and I had just came back from dinner. The thing was ginormous, BUT to my surprise, we made a pretty good dent in it. The base layers were whipped with corn flakes, honey dew, strawberries, bananas, peaches and shaved ice, swirled around with the yogurt. In all essence, yogurt is like ZERO fat calories..... all the meat seemed to be sitting on the bottom. I don't say no to sugar, esp. when I'm pretty sure it's healthier than my normal monstrosity of choices.
Now that I am thinking about it.... For half as much, I would not nearly get half of all that crap with iceberry.... so I guess for that, it's decently priced, but you can definitely share that with 2-3 people! Sadly, we didn't finish ours....
Oh yes, they have small Korean baked goodies, cakes and coffee too. Tables within the cafe setting if you are in no hurry to go anywhere. Watch your damn order come out in the "pick-up" section....we had quite a wait on our hands, apparently ours was given away because we didn't hear our number.....
Can't beat their yogurt bingsoo. bopbingsoo (whatever that was that i ordered at the andong chicken place in daegu) plus korean tangy yogurt. nummy!
if you go after your bbq or bonchon dinner on the weekends, or even late night during the week, it will be crowded. and there will probably be only 1 or 2 of the red bean pastries you were looking forward to all week left in the wicker baskets. but it's an awesome place to get more food to soak up the soju, especially if you don't have the energy for the norebong.
and hey, who cares if they look at me like the crazy not-korean girl getting all hot and bothered about their desserts. (they acted like it was weird for me to ask for cornflakes on the red bean bingsoo). i got $10 in my pocket and a mission on my mind.
Not the ghetto Asian bakery - the decor isn't that much different than your local Starbucks. Plenty of seating and chairs suitable for large groups.
I like sampling the different pastries offered with the free samples before making a purchasing commitment. The baked goods and the desserts I got to sample are pretty good - light and not too sugary sweet and satisfying enough to satiate my after-dinner sweet tooth.
I finally experienced the infamous bingsoo for the first time. Yes the pile of shaven ice, syrup, and (fresh) fruit makes for an impressively large mound (larger if you get the larger bowl with frozen yogurt), but the sugary, milky soupy mess that results over time makes it less appetizing. Adding the frozen yogurt might sustain the frozen dessertness of bingsoo, but honestly i don't see the big deal about it.
At least the frozen yogurt is satisfying. A little overpriced and the toppings are sparing yet fresh but it does the job. Closer to the other froyo places in DC and the desserts are good enough for my sweet fix any night.
Having never had bingsoo, I let Jeff W. do the ordering, as he was on a mission. The thought of fruit and shaved ice seemed pretty simple to me, but I didn't understand paying nearly $7 for it. Still, I subsidized his request. :)
The ice tasted like ice and the fruit tasted like syrupy fruit. Within seconds we had a soupy fruit cocktail on our hands, and no one wants that! It appeared that the bingsoos that included ice cream lasted folks a bit longer, and I think I'd opt for one of them if I were to return to Shilla... although the pineapple I sampled totally weirded me out. Was it ice cream? Custard? Sorbet? Yogurt? I have no idea, but I wasn't sold.
First, let me do my best to describe bingsoo because if you are not Korean, then it probably doesn't help for me to keep mentioning bingsoo as until my visit to Shilla Bakery, I had no idea what it meant or that it was even something that people eat.
If you look in the photograph section for Shilla Bakery, you will find large piles of ice and syrup over fruit. These humongous desserts are indeed bingsoo. Think of it as a more convenient method for stating, "large ice, fruit, syrup, red bean paste, and ice cream combination." See, that isn't too easy. Strawberry bingsoo is much easier on the tongue.
Speaking of the tongue, depending on how you order, it could either be delighted or let down. I'd suggest going with the strawberry flavored bingsoo. It comes with tasty strawberry ice cream, loads of ice, and a pile of strawberries at the bottom (it should be noted that the fruit here could have been more fresh). You can do all sorts of flavors -- there was a green tea one that I thought might be promising and there was the fruit one that I tried that just didn't hit the spot.
The dessert is cheap here. It was less than $8, and it easily serves two people (possibly three if you are judicious). Other competing places have more expensive bingsoo, but from all accounts, it appears that those places might be better (Dolce, Let Matin de Paris, etc.). I won't know which one is the best unless and until I visit all of them, but I can say that while the novelty factor is interesting, the all-important taste of Shilla's dessert was pretty much what I expected and unfortunately uncompelling.
Kevin and I decided to split some bing soo. After careful deliberation (ie. should we get the green tea? the strawberry? ... the banana?...NO! the red bean...NO!)...we settled on the pineapple. See photo(s) here: http://www.yelp.com/bi...
It was pretty tasty. The pineapple syrup was pineapple-y. There were pinapple pieces in there - though canned, not fresh cut. Still, I was satisfied with our choice.
We got about a quarter to half way through before we decided we couldn't really figure out if the "ice cream" was actually ice cream or if it was sorbet or custard or just some creamy frozen substance. Kathleen tasted it - and then commented on how the ice part of our bing soo reminded her of yellow snow...
And then Kevin and I both put our spoons down.
Good thing we had already eaten about as much bing soo and pineapples as we could.
I've given Dolce 2 stars because of their absurdly high prices, but I actually prefer their bingsoo over Shilla's, despite the larger portion at Shilla. Shilla gives you a huge mountain, but there is much less fresh fruit, at least in the fruit bingsoo. It seemed that the majority of fruit was canned! Del Monte fruit cocktail bingsoo? No thanks.
The price is right, and the baked goods I sampled were pretty good, but there has to be better bingsoo out there that is around the same price, I just don't know where it is!
Give the girl who reco'd the Butter Bread a GOLD STAR.
That shizz is dangerous. I think I ate the entire thing in about two sittings. Kinda felt sick afterwards. Piece of advice: spread the butter, spread the love!
(Since the butter cream is in the center of the loaf, which itself is like a giant sliced, nouvau-riche twinkie... take some of the excess and redistribute it to other less fortunate parts of the loaf. On a per-slice-basis, like any decent liberal socialist.)
RE: The Fro Yo. Not as good as the Pinkberry wannabes in the district. But no demerit to this place since it is a delicious bakery first and foremost.
Another place for Bingsoo....it's a little bit cheaper than Dolce. $6.50 here vs. $8.50 at Dolce. Maybe it's my imagination...I think the portion is a bit bigger here.
I had the red bean bingsoo here (remember...this one doesn't have any ice-cream in it!)
This place reminds me of when I was in high school, where the in place to go was Coffee or Tea? and Panya (both in Hawaii).I remember staying for hours at a time sipping away on bubble drinks gossiping, shrieking (I was one irritating girl), giggling, and all the things we find irritating about teeny boppers. The exact same atmosphere can be found at Shilla. So if you're like me and had similar high school experience, you can come here to relive it again.
BTW
-The potato cake, sponge cupcake, and cream pan are all delicious.
-Try to stay away from the mango bubble drink....it doesn't taste like mango...it's more of a mystery favor.
-Love French toast? The Japanese bread is perfect for making it.
-If you get the bingsoo be sure to bring at least three people or a big appetite, it's pretty big. My bf and I thought we had the "black hole stomach syndrome" but we stand corrected.
-The baked goods mold fast, so try to eat it fast or put it the fridge in an air tight bag
Must get:
Frozen yogurt (no DC "Pinkberry-wannabe" comes even close to this!!)
Red bean bing soo (it's got everything your little heart could desire on a hot summer day)
Taro boba (a little slice of heaven...and much better than Chinese bubble tea)
Positives:
Fun people watching and pretending like I'm visiting Korea.
Quick service with lots of yummy baked goods and pastries to choose from.
Best Taro Bubble Teas in the urrea (even better than Pho 50 in Falls Church).
It's not Le Matin De Paris (thank, Buddha... can't stand that place).
And, it's only a mile from my pad.
Negatives:
Too many fucking people.
Nothing is cheap.
I like Dolce better (it's like the grown up version of Shilla's)
However, as long as I live in Asiandare, I will go back for my taro fix!
For the Haiku fans:
Strawberry Bing Soo
The things you did to my tongue
Let's do it again
After ordering a strawberry & honeydew bubble tea, or bobba tea as they call, it wasn't surprising that the place was packed on a cool breezy spring Saturday evening. Typically, I hate bubble tea, but my friend ordered the honeydew one and it looked so good, I had to try it. It was amazing!!! The flavor was dead on, the consistency was that of a milk shake, and the tapicoa beads were tasty. It did cost $4.20, but it was certainly worth it. I don't think that is more expensive than any other place anyway. I will be going back!
I was a little disappointed with the bingsoo here. When I order a strawberry bingsoo at the Shilla in Rockville, I'm given a humaaangous bowl with all kinds of goodies like Fruit Loops, dduk (rice cakes) and even other kinds of complementing fruit. I don't even remember some of the crazy and awesome things they put in. Here in Annandale, though, all I got was the standard ice cream, shaved ice, syrup and dduk. Still good, but I feel like they could step it up a bit more.
Of course, I can't deny that Shilla anywhere is always a great place to come and hang out.
Very good baked goods and Boba. Good Bing soo. Good palce to go hang out and get a cheap snack and a cup of coffee.
Let me preface my review by saying I don't ordinarily like frozen yogurt or ice cream.
What does that have to do with a bakery review?? Everything.
I was dragged out here on a Sunday afternoon to try their frozen yogurt. And I have to say, it was pretty damn good, probably the best I've ever had. My only complaint is that the choice of flavors (toppings) was severely limited, but I enjoyed mine none the less.
Basically, you choose you fruit topping and it's scooped on a heaping serving of frozen yogurt. The frozen yogurt tastes like someone put fresh yogurt in an ice cream machine and turned it into soft serve, with that refreshing tangy aftertaste.
Seriously, I never crave ice cream, but I'd drive out there again right now if I could get another serving (for breakfast!). My only critique would be that they add chocolate to their list of toppings (not picky - chocolate sprinkles, chocolate syrup, snowcaps, even oreo chunks). Ok, I'm not much of a purist. I can live with the strawberries. But it is worth a trip out there.
Other than that, you can check out the other reviews for the bakery items. We got quite a selection of interesting things (if you're into asian baked goods) but I can't remember the names of anything to describe them... :)
Has an assortment of bread just like any other Korean bakeries you find in Chicago, LA or New York; I tried their regular pot bing soo - what a bust! While the place was closing within ten minutes, I had it to go - this does not mean for them to cop out in ingredients. There was no mochi, but big slabs of over-ripened dduk - eh. The red bean was sweeter than usual, which was okay with me. Not much shaved ice, which was surprising, since korean cafes tend to rip you off by having an unbalanced ratio of shaved ice to the toppings; the fruit itself was not much of a cocktail style, but only had 4-5 chunks of honeydew and 3 minced peaches - where are the strawberries, the grapes, the cherries, etc.? No ice cream was in sight. Overall, I guarantee you can get better bing soos anywhere else other than this place.
The good
I haven't tried the bingsu at the Centreville or Rockville locations so I can't compare, but I think it is pretty good here. The green tea one or the fruit ones are good. It seems like they only give you bingsu ddeok (soft chewy pieces of sweetened rice cake) sometimes though. The frozen yogurt thing was pretty good too.
The baked goods are pretty standard for Korean bakeries, but they do them well.
I really like the chestnut bread, and they have good butter cream buns. There are several flavors (mocha, vanilla, strawberry, soboro cream...), but all the butter cream versions all sort of taste the same to me. None of my Korean friends seem to know what 'soboro' means, but in Japanese it means minced, so maybe it is minced cream? I dunno. The butter cream stuffed bread (is it brioche?) is kind of delicious and nasty at the same time in it's artery clogging extravagance. I refuse to buy it since if we have it at home I keep eating it even though it is basically white bread, sugar, and butter.
The not so good
I like Shilla, but I think they've been slacking or coasting for a while since it is so popular. If you get any of the breads, check to make sure it is fresh!!! I don't think they're so scrupulous about throwing out or even checking day old products.
I've come across butter cream buns that had mold on them, and I received a roll cake as a gift that was totally moldy. It was boxed and probably from the fridge section, so I guess the person who gave it to us didn't check first, but nasty! and sadly unedible.
The very first thing my eyes went towards as soon as I entered the place was a couple of sampler plates of freshly baked cakes and muffins, and OMFG, so oishi (delicious in Japanese) and moist like their pineapple, chocolate, and cheese cakes. I also tried their castilla cake and instantly fell deep in love with this place. sorry to my favorite chinese bakery in rowland heights, ca, but you have been officially dumped. The fluffiness and delicateness of cake with the very light cream filling was more than I could handle so I purchased it right away. In fact, the day I went here, I had just finished stuffing my face at IlMee next door. It was like 94 degrees outside, and I still had some shopping to do. So I didn't dare leave my precious cake in the car, and brought it in the stores with me, placing it carefully in my shopping cart (which I did not leave unattended at any time). Anyways, this review is about Shilla. The bakery is quaint, well organized (there are straw baskets you pick up to place your items), and plenty of seating should you wish to nosh there. There were so many items to choose from, and the quality and appearance of the products reminded me of bakeries when I used to live in the Far East. Just look at the pictures posted, and they speak volumes. Oh, I also ordered a cup of a regular coffee which needless to say left me sighing because, they did right there too. Steaming, hot, and flavorful, a perfect brew. Next visit, you'll find me in the corner hunkered over a cup of coffee in one hand, a newspaper in the other, and a plate of either their savory pumpkin nut muffin or a soft, sugary donut twist. That would be an ideal way to begin my Saturday morning.
The four stars come from the baked goods and the shaved ice. The lack of the fifth star comes from the fact that the teens working there are unfriendly. But hey, it's a Korean business. For the uninitiated, this can be a turn off, but anyone who has lived in Korea (or even visited for that matter) will find that it's par for the course.
Every time I go, it's only for the shaved ice. Yum - just like home. The problem comes when you start getting these weird and crazy varieties. I'm going to go with the three that I've eaten - the rest just look like crap to me.
1. Paht bing soo - this is the standard for shaved ice. You get fruit, sweet red beans (and yes, it's quite tasty, America!), mochi balls, shaved ice, and a little sweet cream to top things off (sometimes they cheat and give milk). Definitely a favorite and oh - unless you're:
1) heading for Jenny Craig/Weight Watchers (like me)
2) are a Korean girl who is a 34-26-32 and can pack away 50,000 lbs of food despite your boyfriend/husband's horrified expression and not gain a pound (like my wife)
3) don't mind eating a water based meal for dinner
Get the desert as something for two. Or be prepared to push away from the table after eating half. It's a lot - and that goes for all of the shaved ice desserts.
2. Gwa il bing soo - this is a variation of the above only that it has more fruit and no beans. So-so - I see a lot of mom-daughter duos coming in to have this dessert together. Low fat (maybe that's why it's a ladies' favorite), not as heavy. Personally, give me the protein from the red beans and fat from the cream!
3. Nok cha bing soo - utter crap unless you like eating green tea ice cream with green tea powder and water. Not as much of a success as the first one. In my personal opinion (and that's why we yelp, right?), this is the same no matter if you get the coffee or strawberry renditions as well.
Oh - a comment about the ambiance - it really lacks any. If you enjoy the environment where you get both ends of the social spectrum (a bunch of adults or a bunch of yelling teens), then by all means go there. If not, you may want to avoid peak hours and take this as a lunch time coffee/dessert spot on the weekends. Any other time can be horrendous.
If you're Korean, avoid pinching, poking, kissing, or any other "scandalous" behavior in this place - your parents will find out quickly. In my case, my DRY CLEANER knew I was there with my wife...I blame the CIA influence in this town for all of the social spies!!!
Their breads taste similar to other Korean-Euro-style bakeries in the area; generally good. I got a honey-dew bobba and it tasted great. I don't recommend the mousse desserts. They tend to taste overly sweet. The bingsoo's are great and they have a fun variety.
I can't really say that this has any advantage over any others, but there aren't any glaring weaknesses, too.
The $6.50 price tag for a strawberry bingsoo is much more justifiable than a similarly-sized one at Dolce for $8.50. However, I think the fruit at Dolce is fresher. The ice cream quality is comparable. I do not like red bean paste and there were multiple pockets of it in the bingsoo. I'll just have to ask them to hold it next time but for all you red bean paste lovers like Keri M., you're getting more for your money than Dolce's strawberry bingsoo.
Centreville, VA
Category: Bakeries
Annandale, VA
Category: Bakeries
Annandale, VA
Category: Bakeries
Fairfax, VA
Category: Bakeries
Annandale, VA
Category: Korean
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