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Eater Los Angeles ambitious Los Angeles Matthew Kang Lead Editor Editor of Eater Los Angeles Times Mona Holmes

The Ultimate Guide to the Best Mooncakes in Los Angeles

The Ultimate Guide to the Best Mooncakes in Los Angeles

While Cantonese-style mooncakes are the most typical, various other local variations include Taiwanese mooncakes prepared with taro or pineapple dental fillings and Vietnamese bánh trung thu that have sweetened mung bean, coconut, or durian. The signature lava mooncake is made with mung beans with a salty egg yolk facility, while the taro lava mooncake features coconut milk and taro. Best recognized for its layered strawberry cakes and various Cantonese baked products, the pastry shop shifts to baking Cantonese-style mooncakes during the Mid-Autumn Celebration. On hand are red bean- and lotus-paste-filled mooncakes with one or two salted egg yolks, as well as mini mooncakes and options without any kind of yolks. Modern Taiwanese pastry shop Sunmerry is using limited-edition mooncakes in nine different flavors, including a lava series (delicious chocolate, oolong matcha, ube milk, milk tea, mocha coffee), a Cantonese collection with lotus seed and red bean, and one with red bean and salted egg yolk.

Two styles of Cantonese-style mooncakes are offered for the vacation: custard and lava custard. Both are made to purchase with salted egg yolks and include a balanced sweet and salty flavor account.

Started by former great eating bread cooks, Evelyn Ling and Joe Cheng Reed, DĹŤmi uses a modern spin on standard mooncakes with a milky shortbread crust. This year’s flavors consist of black sesame, red bean, lotus, and jujube. DĹŤmi additionally offers moon cookies– shortbread crusts stamped into numerous designs to supply a mooncake-esque experience without any dental filling. The vacation treats are readily available for regional pickup in the Arts District; at the Temple City, Hollywood, and Mar Panorama farmers markets; or for nationwide delivery. 672 S. Santa Fe Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90020, and at Holy Place City, Mar Vista, and Hollywood farmers markets.

The no-frills Royal Pastry shop in Rosemead is understood for its Vietnamese-style mooncakes, which are available in baked and snow-skin varieties. Thick dental fillings of mashed mung bean or taro, together with blended nuts and healed meat, produce hearty desserts finest coupled with hot tea. The mooncakes are marketed independently and in boxes of 4 for gifting. 8450 Valley Blvd # 117, Rosemead, CA 91770, (626) 288-8302.

Square and squat mooncakes, usually imprinted with chinese personalities and elaborate layouts, are commonly loaded with lotus seed paste, red bean paste, and salty duck egg yolks. While Cantonese-style mooncakes are the most common, various other regional variations consist of Taiwanese mooncakes prepared with taro or pineapple fillings and Vietnamese bánh trung thu that include sweetened mung bean, coconut, or durian.

The 86-year-old Phoenix Bakery is a family-owned and ran institution in Chinatown. Best understood for its split strawberry cakes and various Cantonese baked items, the bakery moves to baking Cantonese-style mooncakes during the Mid-Autumn Festival. Available are red bean- and lotus-paste-filled mooncakes with a couple of salty egg yolks, along with mini mooncakes and choices without any yolks. 969 N. Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90012, (213) 628-4642.

This year, the celebration drops on September 17, 2024, and is recognized throughout the Southland in Asian communities like Chinatown and the San Gabriel Valley by collecting with household, lighting lanterns, staring at the moon, and consuming mooncakes. The pastries’ round form signifies the moon and household unity, while the practice of gifting mooncakes to family, buddies, and organization partners represents togetherness.

The Mid-Autumn Event, or Moon Celebration, is traditionally commemorated throughout East and Southeast Asia in China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam, and Taiwan. The vacation is rooted in the tale of the Chinese moon goddess that ascended to the moon after swallowing an elixir of everlasting life and was honored by her husband with offerings of fruits and cakes during the 15th day of the eighth month of the Chinese Lunar calendar.

Modern Taiwanese pastry shop Sunmerry is providing limited-edition mooncakes in nine various flavors, consisting of a lava collection (delicious chocolate, oolong matcha, ube milk, milk tea, mocha coffee), a Cantonese collection with lotus seed and red bean, and one with red bean and salty egg yolk. The mooncakes are sold separately or as a greatly packaged gift collection. Several locations throughout Los Angeles.

The Buttery in Water fountain Valley prepares standout Vietnamese mooncakes for the holiday. Extra tasty than conventional variations, the mooncakes right here are loaded with a paste made from 20 different ingredients, consisting of lime leaves, smoked meats, lotus seeds, and red wine and sugar syrup, and aged for six months.

Aliya Lavaland, a Thai-owned mom-and-pop store in Monterey Park, bakes Thai-Chinese blend mooncakes year-round utilizing French methods. The trademark lava mooncake is made with mung beans with a salted egg yolk center, while the taro lava mooncake features coconut milk and taro. The pastry shop also offers flaky-crusted mini mooncakes without a lava. Tangerine-shaped mooncakes signifying best of luck are just readily available during the Mid-Autumn Celebration. 141 N. Atlantic Blvd, Monterey Park, CA 91754.

1 Asia in China
2 East and Southeast
3 mooncakes
4 Southeast Asian restaurant