Sunshine Spice Bakery and Cafe
An Afghani eatery sits pretty in a pretty unassuming Boise strip mall
“Motivated by a deep desire to effect positive change, Bahar [Shams-Amir] devised an innovative plan: establishing a cafe where she could serve delectable cuisine while channeling the profits to support women in need. Going a step further in her philanthropic endeavors, she launched her own brand, Sunshine Spice Saffron Tea, directly sourcing this aromatic spice from underprivileged farmers in Afghanistan. At Sunshine Spice Cafe, Bahar expertly blends this exceptional saffron tea, delighting the palates of her discerning clientele.” — website
Out of nowhere, about 30-40 minutes from our Boise destination this past weekend, the husband pipes up with, “Where do you wanna eat before we hit Costco?”
We planned to load up on Asian dumplings and then have dinner at our favorite pizza place, Tony’s Pizzeria Teatro in downtown Boise. But in between, we were free.
I immediately looked up bakery and cafe, and found Sunshine Spice Bakery & Cafe on 6911 Fairview Ave. The GPS said we only had 20 minutes before the cafe closed at 4 p.m. (weekends).
Then, I began second-guessing my choice, as I’m prone to do. Maybe we should just forge on ahead with the shopping first, and find some place open later.
After awhile, my husband told me he’d rather have a snack first, then hit Costco. He didn’t mind the fact that we only had 20 minutes to pick and choose, and eat.
Neither did the staff behind the counter, who let us take our sweet time enjoying everything. We wound up staying 10 minutes past closing. They never rushed us.
Guy Fieri-approved Sunshine Spice Bakery & Cafe was the best decision I’ve made in a long time.
There’s so much to love about this little, but mighty, family-owned Afghani oasis, from the pastries, cookies, and tarts, to the cafe menu items you won’t find even in major U.S. cities.
Sunshine Spice comes from saffron, a mainstay seasoning of Afghanistan.
But it could also apply to the feeling you get when you walk through the glass doors that open up into a clean, spacious, white canvas accented by local art — some painted by co-owner sister Narges Shams — and the kind of floral baked goods found far from Krispy Kreme mall America.
My wandering eye didn’t know what or where to settle on next. I went from the popular Turkish bagel (simit) to a raspberry-chocolate tart, to saffron pudding and pistachio baklava.
One of the sisters (all four are amazing artisans who deserve a movie-of-the-week), I think she was Khatera Shams, helped us out with recommendations.
One of her favorites was the chocolate choux. I ordered that, as well as the sesame Turkish bagel, or simit, while my husband went for the poppyseed/black olive version and a raspberry-chocolate tart to die for.
Everything we ordered could’ve easily come from a Euro-South-Asian cafe in Paris, or Turkey, or both. Impeccably, lovingly, artistically made.
Most so-called artisans are a lot of talk. I know, I interviewed my share back in Washington and even Hawaii for tourism magazines.
They tend to pat themselves on the back a lot, spouting impressive numbers and dropping impressive terms, like sustainability, vegan, and environmental stewardship, expecting you to do the same.
By the time the fruits of their labor come rolling out, it’s often a mediocre, blah blah blah experience…the crust a little tough, not enough layers, more heft than flakey, and the bespoke price tag just never seems to be worth the hype.
Not at Sunshine Spice Bakery & Cafe.
You can taste the roots of their commitment, care, and compassion, sacrifice, hard work, and perseverance in every bite. They and their families fled Afghanistan, moved to Iran, Turkey, and eventually the U.S. for better lives. They never forgot their homeland or the suffering of their people.
Read their bios. Whether they pursued careers in criminal justice, medicine, or the arts, they always did so with a mind — and heart — toward helping others like them thrive in a new country.
Founder/owner/lead baker Bahar Shams Amir initially wanted to become a filmmaker to document the lives of other Afghanis in need, particularly single women. She held onto that dream when life forced her to pivot to another line of work entirely, one involving dough and a special saffron tea.
She directs profits to single Afghani women in need and sources saffron for her special Sunshine Spice Saffron Tea from underprivileged Afghani farmers.
“With unwavering dedication and determination, Bahar transformed her vision into a tangible reality when Sunshine Spice Cafe opened its doors to patrons on December 12, 2019. Inspired by the impact she has already achieved, Bahar is now poised to open more locations and plans to create a chain of cafes across the United States. By expanding her business, she hopes to extend her empowering efforts to an even larger group of women, both in Afghanistan and beyond.” — website
The chocolate choux took my breath away. The choux itself, made by whipping flour, butter, eggs, water, and salt like mad in a saucepan over low heat, was light as a cloud and not claggy like in a typical eclair.
The creamy, rich filling plus the milk-chocolatey frosting combined for the best chocolate-bar-mousse mouth feel. I could’ve polished off four.
I carry around a secret bucket list. Turkish bread is right at the top of that list. As soon as I spied the twisted, speckled, round bread, otherwise known as simit, I knew I had to have one, or two, in a sesame and a poppyseed/black olive.
It did not disappoint.
Served with a small ramekin of cream cheese drizzled with honey, the simit broke apart gently in stretchy pieces — the mark of a great baker who knows how to knead and rest a dough.
This simit was a cross between a chewy Jewish deli bagel and a soft, fluffy, Japanese milk bread. Only fellow bakers, amateurs and professionals, can appreciate just how hard and how amazing this is to accomplish.
The raspberry-chocolate tart owes its uniqueness to whatever magic lies between the crust and the plump, juicy raspberry finish.
Bahar also recommended a blackberry-pistachio tart for next time, along with the Afghani dumplings in tomato sauce (mantu) and stuffed cheese Turkish bolani.
Oh yeah, I plan on working my way up and down the list.
If you’re in town, I suggest you do the same.
Update:
We went back the day before Mother’s Day for the menu items. The dumplings, aka mantu, and stuffed bread, bolani (above), delivered a homey one-two punch.
I actually closed my eyes when I shoved the first dumpling in my mouth, feeling a light taste of yogurt, tomato, and garlic flood my senses. They serve two rectangular, room-temp slices of Afghani bread to sop up the juices. The dumpling dough was rolled impossibly thin, and melted in my mouth, along with the well-seasoned ground beef.
This would be my last meal.
Just when I thought it couldn’t get any better, I tried my husband’s bolani. I thought the stuffed bread would be a puffy loaf of bread filled with thick, gooey cheese. Instead, these were more like Chinese scallion pancakes, thinly fried, crispy, and insanely addictive.
The perfect accompaniment? A small ramekin of a spicy, minty chutney. They should bottle that stuff. I’d eat it on anything.
I can imagine sitting down to bolani and mantu every time I’m feeling hungry, down, or just because.
Sunshine Spice Cafe
6911 W. Fairview, Boise, ID
220 N. 10th St., downtown Boise, ID
(208) 202-7887
