Where To Celebrate The Mid-Autumn Festival In London

Also known as the Moon Festival, the Mid-Autumn Festival is an East Asian tradition dating back thousands of years. It’s held on the 15th day of the 8th month of the Chinese lunisolar calendar, which falls this year on 6 October, but many celebrations run throughout the month. 

The event is marked in a number of ways, from moon gazing to lanterns, but food is also a big part. Mooncakes are the festival’s most famous tradition: round sweet or savoury pastries which symbolise togetherness and harmony, but dishes like rice dumplings and roasted duck are also commonly eaten around this time.

Festivities are particularly big in countries like China, South Korea and Japan, but the UK’s Asian restaurants get involved too with special menus and boxes of mooncakes. Here’s where to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival in London in 2025.

Mid-Autumn Festival: Why Are Mooncakes Eaten?

The Mid-Autumn Festival dates back more than 3,000 years. Coinciding with the autumn harvest, it was initially viewed as a time for farmers to pray for a bountiful year ahead, but eventually it became a practice among the general public too. 

Mooncakes have long been entwined with the festival. In Chinese tradition, a full moon signifies completeness, hence the round shape and whole egg yolks which are often found inside, and they are believed to bring good luck for the year. The pastries are made in a labour-intensive process which requires skill and precision: flour, sugar, oil and water is mixed together, then the dough is carefully kneaded to make it suitable for shaping. They are then filled and moulded, before a delicate design is etched on the top.

Across China, there are various different regional fillings. In Southeast China’s Guangdong Province, for instance, they’re often sweet and use ingredients like lotus seed paste – one of the most traditional mooncake fillings. Teochew mooncakes, meanwhile, feature layered pastry and sweet fillings like yam or red bean, while Suzhou mooncakes are typically made with a flaky crust and pork filling.

Mooncakes are often gifted to friends and family, served in elaborate boxes which many brands spent months designing. Around the world, they’re traditionally sold from late summer until the festival passes, available from Chinese bakeries, restaurants, supermarkets and hotels. 

Mid-Autumn Festival Menus & Mooncakes In London

The Peninsula London

Mooncakes are a big deal at The Peninsula hotels group, particularly at the Hong Kong branch, where people queue round the block to get their hands on a box. They’re made using a special recipe created by pastry chef Yip Wing Wah, which is now patented and owned by the Peninsula brand – each box sold comes with a special QR code proving its authenticity. You can try the signature mini egg custard mooncakes here in London, available at The Peninsula Boutique & Cafe. Plus, head to the hotel’s Cantonese restaurant Canton Blue to try a six-course festival-inspired tasting menu featuring the likes of steamed lobster and green vegetables, barbecued pork, and sautéed Atlantic king prawns with salted egg-yolk. 

Mooncakes available until 8 October from £48 per box, Canton Blue menu available from 29 September – 12 October from £188pp, peninsula.com

Chop Chop at The Hippodrome

On 6 October, Leicester Square’s Cantonese restaurant Chop Chop will be giving complimentary mooncakes to every table. Enjoy dishes like char siu BBQ pork buns, prawn and chive dumplings, and steamed garlic tiger prawns, ahead of desserts like yuzu cheesecake and choux buns, rounding things off with some handcrafted mooncakes. This spot is particularly useful for night owls, as the kitchen stays open until 4am.

6 October 2025

Mei Ume x Saicho

Chef Mandy Xu at Mei Ume, the Chinese restaurant at Four Seasons Hotel London at Tower Bridge, has created an assorted box of six handcrafted mooncakes. It includes flavours like white lotus and salted egg yolk, snow skin matcha, and roasted black and white sesame. Alternatively, guests can opt for the special edition box made in collaboration with drinks brand Saicho, which includes its newly released Osmanthus Sparkling Tea, made using osmanthus blossoms – flowers that symbolise love, faithfulness and optimism. 

£58 per box, fourseasons.com

Noodle & Beer

Chinatown favourite Noodle & Beer has created a limited-edition box set of mooncakes, featuring four flavours: coconut and quinoa, triple teas, tangerine peel and red bean, and taro and chia. They come with a handcrafted Longquan Celadon Cup, as well as a greeting card – perfect for gifting. Another selection of mooncakes are available to enjoy when dining in, with a choice of either matcha, chocolate or egg custard (or all three!). Alongside this, you can feast on dishes like crispy beef jerky, courgette fries with Persian spices, and noodle soups including Xia-Xia Mian, made with king prawns, tofu and coriander.

Gift set is £75 per box, mooncakes are available in the restaurant from £5.80 per mooncake, noodleandbeer.com