There is no shortage of variety when it comes to mooncakes here.
Every year, hotels, restaurants and bakeries up the ante with more daring flavours that continue to push the boundaries of gimmickry and innovation.
Here is our guide to newfangled offerings, novelty mooncakes and fancy packaging this Mid-Autumn Festival:
Watch our designers, Christina Lim and Xu Mei Yan try bak kwa and cempedak mooncakes below:
The Weekly Team Tries Out Bak Kwa And Cempedak Mooncakes from The Singapore Women’s Weekly on Vimeo.
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What: Bakerzin has launched a Bold Collection of baked mooncakes with four exotic flavours: ginger, tom yum, American ginseng and sakura ebi. Each box comes with one of each flavour.
Where: Bakerzin outlets islandwide including Century Square, 2 Tampines Central 5, 01-19, tel: 6694-8584; United Square, 101 Thomson Road, 01-07, tel: 6251-5550; VivoCity, 1 Harbourfront Walk, 01-207, tel: 6438-8700; and Nom La La by Bakerzin, 9 Sentul Crescent, tel: 6385-0409. Also available at mooncake fairs including Takashimaya Square, 391A Orchard Road; and nex at Serangoon Central (from Thursday), and Tampines One (from Sept 22)
When: Till Oct 4, various times
Price: $66 for a box of four mooncakes
Info: Go to www.bakerzin.com/mooncake
What: New this year are the creamy root beer mooncakes which are made with vanilla and a hint of rum, and the mildly alcoholic vermilion-skinned apple cider mooncake with small chunks of apple. The refreshing pink prickly pear mooncakes are made with fruit of the cactus plant.
Where: Goodwood Park Hotel, 22 Scotts Road
When: Till Oct 4
Price: $32 for two prickly pear mooncakes, $36 nett for two root beer or apple cider ones.
Info: Call 6730-1867 or 6730-1868, from 9am to 7pm (weekdays), 9am to 1pm (weekends); or e-mail mooncake@goodwoodparkhotel.com. Go to festivepromotions.goodwoodparkhotel.com. Last day for pre-orders is Sept 28, 5pm
What: Tuck into mooncakes embossed with Sanrio’s lazy egg yolk character Gudetama. A set of four mooncakes in different flavours, from black sesame to pandan lotus, comes in a novelty Gudetama-shaped tin. Each set also comes with a dining voucher for Gudetama Cafe Singapore.
Where: The mooncakes are available at Gudetama Cafe Singapore, Suntec City, 3 Temasek Boulevard, 01-361, tel: 6677-6195; Esso-Cheers petrol stations; Joe & Dough outlets, including Leisure Park Kallang, 5 Stadium Walk, 01-12, tel: 6348-2848; Income at Raffles, 16 Collyer Quay, 02-05, tel: 6438-2115; and Millenia Walk, 9 Raffles Boulevard, 01-86, tel: 6337-0938; and The Soup Spoon outlets
When: Till Oct 4
Price: $78 for a box of four mooncakes
Info: Go to gudetamacafe.sg or e-mail hello@gudetamacafe.sg
What: These baked Hello Kitty mooncakes are filled with white lotus paste, melon seeds and a single egg yolk. They come in a white and gold floral-design reusuable tin.
Where: Hello Kitty Orchid Garden, Arrival Hall Central, 01-22, Terminal 3, Changi Airport
When: Till Oct 4, while stocks last. Walk-ins only
Price: $33.80 for a box of two. Purchase by Sept 14 and pay $29.80 a box
Info: Call 6241-6127 or go to www.hellokittyorchidgarden.com
What: Marvel Comic’s superheroes Ironman and Spiderman are now on mooncake tins. The baked red bean paste and green tea Ironman mooncakes are embossed with an A, the symbol for the Avengers; while the baked egg custard Spiderman mooncakes are embossed with an image of Spiderman’s web-shooting hand.
Where: Hong Kong MX Mooncakes, Takashimaya Square, B2, 391A Orchard Road
When: Till Oct 4, 10am to 9.30pm daily
Price: $65 for two Marvel tins – one Spiderman tin and one Ironman tin. Each tin comes with four mooncakes
Info: Go to www.hkmxmooncakes.com/overseas/en. Orders can be made online at sgmeixin.com.
What: Shang Palace has created a new tangy yuzu mooncake with bird’s nest. These mooncakes are part of its Mini Snow Skin Eight Treasures gift box, which also comes with chocolate salted toffee mooncakes.
Where: Shang Palace, Shangri-La Hotel Singapore, 22 Orange Grove Road
When: Till Oct 4
Price: $88 for a box of eight mini mooncakes, four of each flavour.
Info: Call 6213-4398 or 6213-4473, or e-mail shangpalace.sls@shangrila.com. Go to slsfestive.oddle.me to order online until Oct 2
What: Ollella, which specialises in French choux pastries, has created a range of bunny-shaped snowskin mooncakes. There are four bunnies and each has a different flavour – white peach champagne with a strawberry gelee centre; dark chocolate rum with almond crunch; mango white chocolate with a candied yuzu and ginger centre; and raspberry rose with a lychee centre.
Where: Ollella – 3 Petain Road, Residences@Somme, 01-01; and Takashimaya Square, Basement 2, 391A Orchard Road
When: Till Oct 4. Its Petain Road outlet is open from noon to 6pm (Wednesdays to Mondays), closed on Tuesdays; Takashimaya’s Mid-Autumn Fair, 10am to 9.30pm, daily
Price: From $48 for four round mooncakes to $78 for eight bunny-shaped mooncakes.
Info: Call 6291-4076. Go to www.ollella.com or ollella-chouquette.oddle.me for pre-orders
What: Peony Jade’s new molten lava Milo dinosaur mooncakes are filled with a Milo creme centre and feuilletine for a little bit of crunch.
They are best eaten warm – preheat the oven to 180 deg C, then reduce the heat to 130 deg C and bake for two to five minutes.
Where: Peony Jade, two outlets – Keppel Club, 10 Bukit Chermin Road, club lobby, tel: 6276-9138; Clarke Quay, 3A River Valley Road, 02-02, tel: 6338-0305; mooncake fairs, including Takashimaya Square, 391A Orchard Road; Chevron House, Raffles Place; and Tangs VivoCity, Central Court, 1 Harbourfront Walk.
When: Till Oct 3 at Peony Jade restaurant outlets, until Oct 4 at various mooncake fairs
Price: $72 for eight pieces
Info: Orders must be made at least three days in advance. Call 6276-8327, from 9am to 7pm (weekdays) and from 9am to 1pm (weekends). Go to peonyjade.com or pjmooncakes.com.sg. E-mail festive@peonyjade.com
What: This year, Peony Jade has created pink three-dimensional Pig-me-up snowskin mooncakes with lotus paste and egg yolk custard.
Where: Peony Jade, two outlets – Keppel Club, 10 Bukit Chermin Road, club lobby, tel: 6276-9138; Clarke Quay, 3A River Valley Road, 02-02, tel: 6338-0305; mooncake fairs, including Takashimaya Square, 391A Orchard Road; Chevron House, Raffles Place; and Tangs VivoCity, Central Court, 1 Harbourfront Walk
When: Till Oct 3 at Peony Jade restaurant outlets; till Oct 4 at various mooncake fairs Price: $42 for two, $72 for four
Info: Orders must be made at least three days in advance. Call 6276-8327, from 9am to 7pm (weekdays), and from 9am to 1pm (weekends). Go to peonyjade.com or pjmooncakes.com.sg. E-mail festive@peonyjade.com
What: Cheesecake specialist Cat And The Fiddle has rolled out five mini cheesecake snowskin mooncakes, each embossed with a cat. Flavours are blueberry, strawberry, cookies and cream, chocolate and durian. Each box comes with a reusable glossy PVC tote bag. The charcoal skin durian mooncakes are sold separately as a set of eight, while the other flavours come in an assorted box of eight.
Where: Order online at www.catandthefiddle.com
When: Till Oct 4
Price: $68.80 for eight mini mooncakes. Each box comes with two of each flavour
Info: Go to www.catandthefiddle.com. For bulk and corporate orders, e-mail enquiries@catandthefiddle.com
(Text by Rebecca Lynne Tan, The Straits Times / Additional reporting by Natalya Molok)