It's Mid-Autumn Festival season, which means we're spoilt for choice when it comes to mooncake gift sets. Searching for one that's dressed in exceptionally pretty packaging? Here's our pick of the crop!
#1 Lady M Moonglow Gift Set
Inspired by garden moon gate arches, Lady M's Moonglow Gift Set has a pearlescent, textured surface adorned with gold-tone patterns of the full moon, lucky rabbits, festival lanterns and decorative foliage. It doubles as a jewellery box, with little compartments lined in plush microsuede to store rings, necklaces and earrings.
Photo from Lady M
Tucked inside the little drawers are six miniature mooncakes. Developed in collaboration with Kee Wah Bakery, the mooncakes come in three flavours: Lychee Rose, Matcha Pandan and Yuzu Milk.
Photo from Lady M
Each Moonglow Gift Set is packaged in a custom-designed gift bag with a matching greeting card.
It's now available at all Lady M boutiques and online at ladym.com.sg for $99.
#2 Baker's Brew Rosé Chloe Collection
Local artisanal bakery, Baker's Brew, channeled their inner Coco Chanel for their mooncake packaging design this year - a sophisticated pink tweed bag with a boxy silhouette. The bag opens to reveal a luxe velvet interior holding four traditional baked mooncakes.
Photo from Baker’s Brew
Made with no added preservatives and low sugar content, this guilt-free mooncake collection comes in four flavours:
- Yam Single Yolk: fragrant and earthy yam with a salted egg yolk
- Gula Melaka with Desiccated Coconut: caramelised palm sugar with desiccated coconut
- Charcoal Black Sesame: savoury premium black sesame paste
- Traditional Single Yolk: smooth mellow lotus paste crowned with a savoury salted egg yolk centre
Photo from Baker’s Brew
Baker's Brew's mooncakes come as an Assorted Set ($98) or Traditional Set ($92) with promotions including Super Early Bird (25% off with code 'BBAUTUMN25' till 7 Sept) and Early Bird (20% off with code 'BBAUTUMN20' from 8 to 14 Sept).
Baker's Brew's mooncakes are available in stores and online at bakersbrew.com.
#3 The Capitol Kempinski Hotel Singapore Celestial Collection
We can always expect beautiful, heritage-inspired mooncake gift sets from The Capitol Kempinski Hotel Singapore, and this year is no exception!
Photo from The Capitol Kempinski Hotel Singapore
Their Celestial Collection comes in a two-tier tin box with an intricate design of the iconic Capitol Building and Stamford House façade on each side. The set also comes with a pastel pink or dusty rose canvas bag that'll complement all your streetstyle ensembles.
Photo from The Capitol Kempinski Hotel Singapore
Choose from classic baked flavours like Egg Yolk White Lotus Paste and Macadamia Nut White Lotus Paste, or new additions like Almond Red Bean Paste and the Walnut White Lotus Paste. Prefer snowskin varieties? Go for the mini mooncakes in flavours including Pistachio, a new addition, Champagne Truffle, Mao Shan Wang Durian and Japanese Matcha Mochi.
The Capitol Kempinski Hotel Singapore's Celestial Collection mooncakes are available to order at capitolkempinski.myshopify.com for $78.40.
#4 Tiong Bahru Bakery Take Me To The Moon Mid-Autumn Gift Set
While not actually mooncakes, Tiong Bahru Bakery's mid-autumn special has mooncake-esque flavours and comes in packaging that encompasses that festive, creative mooncake box spirit!
The Take Me To The Moon Box Set comes in a honeycomb-shaped cylinder that opens up to reveal four stacked trays. In each tier is a Kouign Amann "mooncake".
Photo from Tiong Bahru Bakery
These delicious pastries come in four all-new flavours that'll remind you of mooncakes:
- Yuzu & Osmanthus with Wolfberries
- Black Sesame & Coconut
- Honey, Ginger & Sesame with Pine Nuts
- Lotus Paste & Salted Egg with Macadamia Nuts
Photo from Tiong Bahru Bakery
The Take Me To The Moon Box Set is available online at festive.tiongbahrubakery.com for $55. From 15 September till 1 October, a limited number of sets will be available for walk-in purchases in all Tiong Bahru Bakery stores islandwide. Early Bird Specials will run till 15 September, where shoppers can enjoy 10% off any box order with the code "EARLYBIRD10" and 15% off for 30 boxes and above with "EARLYBIRD15".
#5 Crystal Jade Handcrafted Traditional Baked Mooncakes
Simple yet quietly luxurious, Crystal Jade's mooncake boxes feature a rattan-inspired design with a vegan leather trim in a regal shade of green.
Photo from Crystal Jade
The traditional baked mooncakes are made with a low sugar and natural white lotus paste and a generous filling of golden yolks encased in thin and moist pastry skin.
To sample all four varieties, opt for the Happiness Four ($88.56) box with:
- Premium White Lotus Paste
- Single Yolk with Lotus Paste
- Double Yolk with Lotus Paste
- Signature Mixed Nuts with Jinhua Ham
Crystal Jade's Handcrafted Traditional Baked Mooncakes are available at estore.crystaljade.com. Jadeite Members and UOB Cardmembers can enjoy up to 18% off orders from 1 to 29 September 2023.
#6 Goodwood Park Hotel Snowskin Combo
Looking to impress someone who likes the historical Chinese aesthetic? Look to Goodwood Park Hotel's Snowskin Combo gift set. This royalty-worthy box features opulent shades of gold and a stunning lantern design.
Photo from Goodwood Park Hotel
Inside are four fruit-based snowskin mooncakes in crowd-favourite flavours: Pineapple with Custard, Mango with Pomelo, Cempedak and D24 Durian.
We can't go without mentioning the adorable Bunnies Tubbies mooncakes too. A new addition to the hotel's mooncake line-up, these rabbit-shaped mooncakes have a buttery shell and a delicious filling of white lotus seed paste, a quarter salted egg yolk and pork floss.
Photo from Goodwood Park Hotel
The Goodwood Park Hotel Snowskin Combo and Bunnies Tubbies are available online at goodwoodparkfestive.oddle.me for $82 and $48 respectively.
#7 Marina Bay Sands 2023 Mooncakes
No one does understated luxury like Marina Bay Sands and it rings true for their mooncakes too! This year's rendition comes in a weighty box with a minimalist design and a soothing colour palette of lilac, pale yellow and gold. Embellishing it are gold-tone motifs of flora and fauna. The same gorgeous illustrations are also on the individual boxes holding the four mooncakes.
Photo from Marina Bay Sands
The mooncakes are also a darling to look at! Encased in vividly coloured snowskin, they come in a set of four elegant flavours:
- Golden Nest: refreshing citrus kumquat custard cream with crunchy bird's nest
- Matcha Blossom: aromatic uji matcha and sugarfree silken mung bean paste with azuki beans
- Strawberry Fields: cooked French strawberries from Provence blended with sugar-free mung bean paste mixed, yoghurt and granola bits
- Ebony: rich 70 per cent dark chocolate truffle core infused with Glenfiddich 21-Year-Old Gran Reserva Single Malt Scotch Whisky
These mooncakes are available for pre-orders online at marinabaysands.com for $98. They will also be available for collection and purchase at Marina Bay Sands Hotel Lobby Tower 2 from 8 to 29 September.
#8 Shangri-La Singapore Origin Bar Cocktail Snowskin Mooncakes
One of the more whimsical mooncake gift sets, Shangri-La Singapore's Origin Bar Cocktail Snowskin Mooncakes come in a delightful suitcase-like box complete with a luggage tag and retro prints.
Photo from Shangri-La Singapore
The eight mooncakes come in unique flavours to match! The centrepiece is the Love Handles Cocktail
Snowskin Mooncakes made with a combination of strawberry, white lotus paste, gin, pink salt, red wine stock, chocolate and white chocolate couverture. The other is just as boozy and glamorous, the Negroni Cocktail Snowskin Mooncakes, which is filled with dark chocolate, white lotus paste, Campari, Vermouth, orange peel, orange extract and chocolate couverture.
Adding the final ritzy touch is a gold stainless steel hip flask filled with a Negroni.
Shangri-La Singapore's Origin Bar Cocktail Snowskin Mooncakes is available at boutique.shangri-la.com for $114.75.
#9 Conrad Singapore Orchard 8-in-1 Summer Palace Snowskin Collection
After you've indulged in all the snowskin mooncakes by Conrad Singapore Orchard, you'll have a beautiful box to hold your jewellery and other small items. It comes in a charming circular design in pastel blue with floral motifs.
Photo from Conrad Singapore Orchard
The mooncakes themselves are just as impressive. They are handcrafted by the culinary team of Summer Palace, the esteemed Michelin-starred restaurant in the hotel, using Cantonese techniques.
The set comes with a variety of eight flavours:
- Signature Black Sesame Paste
- Gryphon Green Tea with Melon Seeds
- White Lotus Paste with Yolk and Melon Seeds
- Mao Shan Wang Durian
- Mocaccino Chocolate
- Custard with Cranberry
- Lemon Mascarpone Chocolate with Blue Pea Tea
- Coconut Chocolate with Black Glutinous Rice
Conrad Singapore Orchard's 8-in-1 Summer Palace Snowskin Collection is available at tangs.com for $52.20 (4 pieces).
#10 Mdm Ling Bakery Signature Assorted Baked Skin Mooncakes
Mdm Ling Bakery's lantern-inspired Minty Rose Bucket Bag looks like something from a cool, indie designer label store! An eco-friendly take on the mooncake box, this cute little bag will fit right into your handbag rotation and get plenty of practical use.
Photo from Mdm Ling Bakery
Nestled in the bag are the Signature Assorted Baked Mooncakes in four flavours:
- Black Sesame Peanut Butter
- Red Dates Longan
- Belgian Double Chocolate
- Emerald Pandan Golden Yolk
Mdm Ling Bakery's Signature Assorted Baked Skin Mooncakes are available at tangs.com for $70.
On a related note, we spotted a mooncake blind box collection that is made up of mooncake slice houses with little rabbits and furniture inside!