Restaurant Review: Shine Bakery & Cafe at SM Aura Premier

One Thursday night, I found myself once again in the company of Jeff and Joie. I was a third wheel for a long time that night because my very workaholic husband arrived really late for our dinner date. Anyway, we were starting to run out of places to eat in SM Aura so it took us a while to decide where to have dinner. We were supposed to go directly to the Sky Park to check out the other restaurants that we had yet to try when Joie requested if we could pass by Toy Kingdom first. I then told her that I spotted a cute restaurant just across Toy Kingdom. We then checked the menu and decided to give it a go.

Shine Bakery & Café is overloaded with cuteness and daintiness. The tables and chairs remind me so much of the ones I had when I was in kindergarten. It’s the kind of chairs and tables that are conducive for arts and crafts sessions. Hihi. And what I loved the most about the café’s interior is the fact that it does not look cluttered. The management injected cuteness here and there without making it look crowded. I should have taken pictures to show you, but I was too hungry and too furious (because my husband is late once again, haha) to have the energy to do so. :p

Joie excused herself to go to the restroom so Jeff and I scanned the menu. It was so hard to choose from the wide array of choices. We wanted to have burgers. We wanted to have pasta. We wanted to have rice meals. We wanted to have desserts. Haha! Anyway, I was eyeing the Umami Fries the moment I saw a picture of it posted in the restaurant. Jeff said that he wanted to try the fries. I told him, “Ako rin!!!” And when Joie arrived, the first thing she said was, “Gusto ko nung fries!”

Different spices and toasted sesame nori coat the fries. And that’s not all. It’s topped with lots of Parmesan cheese. We could not stop munching it. After eating this for 5 minutes, I already lost count how many times we said, “Grabe, ang sarap!” It’s so good that I compare it to (Twister Fries + Potato Corner) x 100!!! If my husband asks for an annulment, I would just go to Shine, eat the umami fries all day, and I’d definitely feel better. (Of course, my husband can’t ask for an annulment. Ma-le-late siya lagi sa hearing for sure! Charot! :p)

It is served with a dip made of Kentucky Bourbon Aioli on the side. I have no idea what it is. But the only thing that matters to me is that it tastes divinely good. The dip is very tasty, and the additional coating of flavors to an already delicious fries is very addicting.

Joie and I have the same wavelengths. I sometimes get scared because our thoughts are so alike. She is already saying or doing something that I was supposed to say or do. The same goes with our choices in food. When I asked her what she would be getting, she said the exact thing that was running in my mind – Jalapeno Burger!

When I see the word Jalapeno in the menu, odds are high that I would get it. And trying the Jalapeno Burger was definitely a brilliant move for me and Joie. Angus beef patty is sandwiched in a brioche bun. In between are Jalapenos stuffed with cream cheese, refried beans and pico de gallo. I was initially having second thoughts because I might not like beans in my burger. But one of the crew members asked us if we mind if our burgers don’t have beans. Apparently, they ran out of beans that day. Talk about luck! Haha!

Everything about this burger is shouting perfection. We specifically requested for the patty to be cooked well done because I don’t like seeing blood flowing through my burger. I knew it would be risky because my burger would turn dry. But surprisingly, my burger was so juicy. I could feel the juices oozing out at my every bite. The burger patty tastes so good with its smoky flavor. It went perfectly well with the pungent taste of the fresh salsa. But the star of the night was indeed the Jalapeno stuffed with cream cheese!!! I could not even describe how my taste buds reacted with this spicy and cheesy treat!

Now, these are what the boys had for dinner.


Jeff opted to have the Classic Bacon Cheese Burger. It looks sloppy and messy to eat, but would you say NO to this amount of cheese?! Nothing could ever go wrong with cheese and bacon. I had one bite of it. The patty tastes the same as the one used in my burger. But what sets it apart (aside from the salty and crunchy bacon strips) is the evident milky taste of the cheese.

My unorthodox husband (as usual) had a rice meal. Shine’s Grilled Pork Chop originally comes with mashed potato. But they gladly obliged when I asked if they could replace the mashed potato with rice.


The flavorful pork chop is fork tender and very juicy. It is served with vegetables and mustard sauce. I can’t describe it further because my husband ate it non-stop. Nakakagutom naman talaga kapag late. Hahaha!

We really wanted to try their desserts, but we were too full to even dare. But ever since our first visit, Joie and I had numerous talks about coming back to Shine! We were actually planning to purchase a voucher from Deal Grocer! =))

Shine Bakery & Cafe is the latest addition to my list of favorite restaurants. Aside from the nice ambiance and delicious food, the staff members are very friendly and accommodating. One of the servers even teased Boyet when he requested for his food to be reheated. I told Boyet, “Kasalanan mo ‘yan e.” The waitress said, “Oo nga naman, Sir. Bakit po kasi late kayo?” Hahahaha! Muntik ko ng ma-high-five si ate sa sobrang tuwa ko sa kanya! :p


Shine Bakery & Cafe
Level 3 SM Aura Premier
McKinley Parkway, Bonifacio Global City,
Taguig City