One of Hong Kong’s biggest festivals, the Mid-Autumn Festival, is coming up on September 29, 2023. And everywhere you go, you’ll see mooncakes — the tender pasty traditionally filled with salted egg yolks and lotus seed paste that are symbolic of the occasion.
This year’s offerings from some of the most popular hotels and F&B outlets in the city are defined by innovative flavours and sustainable packaging. If you want to go the extra mile, you could pair your mooncakes with tea or pick up luxe hampers for your friends and family.
If this is your first Mid-Autumn Festival, you can get an understanding of the significance of this famous food item with our cultural guide to mooncakes. Once you’re done, check out our pick of the best places in Hong Kong to get this festival favourite.
Cordis
If your taste in mooncakes gravitates towards the luxe variety, then try out the Cordis’ Ming Mooncakes. They are crafted using a range of traditional and contemporary flavours and come in a gift box designed by acclaimed illustrator Lingmuki. Order the classics, such as Mini Custard with Egg Yolk and White Lotus Seed Paste with Double Egg Yolks. They even have a festive gift set that comes with special XO sauce, caramelised walnut, palmiers and wine, in addition to the mooncakes.
Location: 555 Shanghai Street, Mong Kok, Kowloon
Call: +852 3552 3510
Ān Soy x Esca
Ān Soy joins forces with vegetarian food specialists Esca to create their first-ever limited-edition mooncakes that offer guests an elegant, soy-inspired, and vegetarian gifting options. Each pastry box features three pieces of Ān’s oozing Black Sesame Mooncakes created with Ān soy milk, and three pieces of Esca’s fragrant Osmanthus Salted Egg Soy Milk Financiers. The mooncakes — which are available on Date By Tate’s online shop — are presented within an eco-friendly wooden box to further their philosophy of sustainability.
Location: Date by Tate, 210 Hollywood Road, Sheung Wan
Call: 852 6730-2494
Fortnum & Mason
Indulge in Fortnum & Mason’s mooncakes infused with custard and flavours from the UK department store’s most famous tea blends. The bergamot-laced Earl Grey Classic adds a hint of zest, while the robust, malty Royal Blend provides a rich and full-bodied flavour. You can choose to pair the mooncakes with tea that comes in a mini tin, or put your own hamper together. They are available at the K11 flagship store and all Lane Crawford kiosks.
Location: Shop 022, K11 Musea, 18 Salisbury Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
Call: + 852 3916 8100
Hong Kong Cuisine 1983
For this year’s Mid-Autumn Festival, Hong Kong Cuisine 1983 has launched a collection of traditional hand-crafted Suzhou-style mooncakes renowned for their flaky crusts, generous fillings, and distinctive flavours. Presented in an elegant gift box, the collection features six flavours of mooncakes: Red Bean Paste with Nuts, White Lotus Seed Paste with Yolk, Premium Mixed Nuts, Yunnan Ham with Mixed Nuts, Red Bean Paste with Yolk, and Purple Sweet Potato Paste with Yolk.
Location: 1/F, Elegance Court, 2-4 Tsoi Tak Street, Happy Valley
Call: +852 2893 3788
Hyatt Centric Victoria Harbour Hong Kong x Lee Keung Kee Egg Waffles
Enjoy a fresh take on Hong Kong classics with a unique mooncake gift box that contains six individually packed egg waffle-flavoured mooncakes, as well as two sets of peanut butter and condensed milk sachets. The mooncakes come in a gift box exclusively designed by Hong Kong artist Leon Lollipop, whose vibrant illustrations celebrate the moon and rabbits from Mid-Autumn myths. Created in collaboration with North Point’s famed Lee Keung Kee Egg Waffles, the limited-edition mooncakes are inspired by traditional 雞蛋仔 “gai daan jai” (egg waffles) and 格仔餅 “gaak zai beng” (chequered waffles served with peanut butter and condensed milk), and incorporate Lee Keung Kee’s original egg waffle batter recipe.
Location: 1 North Point Estate Lane, North Point
Call: +852 3762 1234
Regent Hong Kong
The famed Regent Hong Kong celebrates its return to the city’s hospitality landscape with Lai Ching Heen’s beloved egg custard mooncakes handcrafted with edible gold leaf flakes melded into a deliciously smooth and creamy mixture. The Lai Ching Heen Mini Egg Custard Mooncakes are presented in a bespoke gift box resembling a jade jewellery chest with drawers that open to reveal the culinary treasures within.
The Regent also has a curated collection of mini mooncakes that come in four flavours: White Lotus Seed Paste with Yolk, Red Bean Paste with Mandarin Peel, Green Tea Custard, and Earl Grey Tea Custard.
Location: Regent Hong Kong, 18 Salisbury Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
Call: +852 2721 1211
Le Méridien Hong Kong, Cyberport
Le Méridien Hong Kong, Cyberport is debuts three premium mooncake gift sets this year by way of its contemporary Cantonese restaurant Nam Fong. The mooncakes come in traditional and contemporary flavours: Mini White Lotus Seed Paste with Egg Yolk and Mini Lava Egg Custard. In addition, Nam Fong has a Deluxe Mini Mooncake Assortment Gift Set that features classic and modern flavours of mooncakes with premium Chinese loose leaf tea.
Address: 100 Cyberport Road, Pok Fu Lam
Call: +852 2980 7788
The Landmark Mandarin Oriental
The Landmark Mandarin Oriental has crafted a double-decker bento box made of corn-fibre materials with six individually packed mini egg custard mooncakes. The neon-yellow wrapper band of the bento box celebrates the traditional and modern Mid-Autumn Festival rituals with symbolic elements, incorporating the characters of the hotel with minimalistic rabbit illustrations.
Location: The Landmark, 15 Queen’s Road Central, Central
Call: +852 2132 0188
Header image credits: Makidotvn via Canva