This really depends on the person. I don’t favor them particularly but it really it a tradition that has been passed down from generations to generations. Even though you may not feel that it tastes good, maybe you would several generations ago if you didn’t have as many choices as you do now when it comes to food. But like I said, since mooncakes are a chinese tradition (there’s actually a whole story behind it) why make it so the tradition is broken? Like fruitcakes are still around during christmas even though I find them not very tasty.

Mainly for the tradition. Its not bad, however we buy it not because we want to eat it or anything its just apart of the tradition that moon cakes are a must for mid-autumn festival. People have created variations of mooncakes besides the traditional lotus seed flavour. There are green tea, red bean, snowy moon cakes (coffee, chocolate, strawberry, blueberry) the list goes on. However at the end they all taste pretty horrible. In my opinion the classic lotus seed is the best. To answer your question, I think they have tried producing many variations of mooncakes in attempt to sell. however mooncake itself just isn’t a type of food you wouldn’t crave for any time all year round.

Chinese Autumn Festival mooncakes are the cultural equivalent of American Christmas fruitcakes. Everyone buys them, everyone gives and receives them as gifts, but their taste varies.

Haagen Dazs started selling ice cream mooncakes in the upscale malls of China this year. Judging by the length of the lines into their stores, this new twist on the mooncake is a big hit.

As one of the previous answers suggested, mooncakes are a cultural tradition. Mooncakes connect the past to the present. Like a Thanksgiving turkey or Easter ham in America, the mooncake is a permanent fixture at this time of year.

They are delicious but too rich in calories. The reason most Chinese don’t like them is because they are so sick of it having one at every festival, not too mention that eating a whole mooncake will make you dizzy because like i said, it is too rich.

Well it depends on the person =)
Mooncake to me is really really delicious
my sis and i buy it like candy (not really and it’s expensive too)
but my cousins don’t like it
and Mooncake is super rich and eating a whole mooncake would make yourself dizzy
So I guess that’s why Mooncake is cut into 4 equal pieces =)
and if you are buying mooncake, get the ones that say ‘One egg yolf and lotus paste’ or something similar to that because the egg yolk and lotus paste combination is really good ^-^

Everyone i know really like them and instead of cutting them up like you do with a cake or pizza, they actually hold it in their hands and gobble them up. They are mostly uni students who grew up eating them though, so to someone who has never tried them before they might not love it as much.

I dont know of anyone (in China and Hong Kong) who only eats it for the festive spirit.

Oh by the way, the brand of the mooncake makes a huge difference. Don’t buy the cheap ones, buy the authentic boxed ones, I would recommend WingWah or MeiXin

As in any type of food, there are delicious moon cakes and there are bad ones. Unfortunately I find most of them unappetizing nowadays. Because many Chinese people buy them during mid-autumn festival simply as a tradition, many manufacturers make crappy moon cakes to make a quick buck once a year. Good ones, though hard to find outside of China and Hong Kong, are very delicious, especially when it’s fresh. They come with different ingredients, and depending on which part of China, could be sweet or savory. In all, if you are into sweets, try one when you have a chance. Look for the sweet ones that come with 2 egg yolks. The combination of the yolk plus the ground lotus is the best part of any moon cake.

In fact there are Chinese desserts with the same ingredients sold all year round, just not called moon cakes. I think you can only find them inside China.

Well, I’m Chinese and I think they’re delicious and can’t get enough (especially the shredded coconut ones). But I DO think they are way overpriced (~$25 for a box of four mooncakes). It’s a lot more practical to just dig into a can of lotus seed paste with a spoon – however, I eat mooncake anyway due to tradition and nostalgia.