Yup, the lab could tell a difference! Shiney side (so mill roller facing, as opposed to the dull side which faces the other layer of aluminum) was marginally more reflective, but I believe (and a former coworker also remembered it as) it was less than a tenth of a percent (<0.1% for the visual folks)
Anyone who says it affects cooking time or something is mistaken, I’d wager.
I love Ape, and think he’s one of the best devs out there.
I don’t mind paid DLC like Elden Ring or Factorio 2.0, when it’s basically a whole complete game on top of it. But anything micro transaction can go right to hell