Taiwan Pasalubong List: 10 Must-Buy Food & Snacks to Bring Home
We’re Filipinos, of course, we always buy pasalubong (gifts or souvenirs) for ourselves and our loved ones back home whenever we travel. So, on all our trips to Taiwan, we made sure to allot time for souvenir shopping in night markets and local shops. From sweet treats to classic drinks, here’s our list of the best Taiwan pasalubong food items and where to buy them.
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Tip: Secure your Taiwan EasyCard before your trip. You can use this card to pay for transportation and shopping in Taiwan. Plus, it can be a cool Taiwan souvenir, too! Read our EasyCard guide for more info. |
Sweet treats and pastries for your Taiwan pasalubong
1. Castella cake or sponge cake
Our all-time favorite Taiwan pasalubong is none other than the castella cake or sponge cake sold in Shilin Night Market. The long queue says it all! But we don’t mind waiting for our turn for a taste of this freshly baked huge fluffy cake that’ll then be sliced into smaller portions. It comes in two main flavors: original and cheese. You have to try both!
Popular brands: OriginalCake; Le Castella
Where to buy: Shilin Night Market; Tamsui Old Street
Price: NT$90 (original flavor); NT$100 (cheese flavor)
2. Pineapple cake
Pineapple cake is a quintessential pasalubong from Taiwan, perfect to those who love this sweet and tangy yellow fruit back home. But even if you’re not a pineapple lover yourself, every bite of this pastry will keep you craving for more.
Popular brands: ChiaTe; Leechi; SunnyHills
Where to buy: ChiaTe Bakery in Taipei; Carrefour; 7-Eleven; souvenir shops in Taiwan
Price: NT$228 (box of 6 pcs); NT$456 (box of 12 pcs)
3. Sun cake
Originating from Taichung, sun cake is a round, flaky pastry with different fillings including milk, butter, and even matcha. Though you can buy a bunch of sun cakes in many souvenir shops across Taiwan, the best place to buy this delicacy is still from its place of origin, Taichung. A well-known store there is Ruyi Sunny Cake.
Popular brands: Ruyi Sunny Cake; ChiaTe; SunnyHills
Where to buy: Ruyi Sunny Cake: Taichung Store & Taipei Store
Price: NT$390 (box of 3 pcs original sun cake)
4. Mochi
Mochi is a popular Japanese glutinous rice cake which is also a must-eat in Taiwan. There are different flavors to choose from, but we recommend bringing home a box of Sun Moon Lake mochi from Royal Family, an established food manufacturing company specializing in mochi with high-quality ingredients.
Popular brand: Royal Family
Where to buy: Taiwan Mochi Museum in Nantou; supermarkets and souvenir shops in Taiwan
Price: NT$250 (Sun Moon Lake 5-box mochi set)
Yummy snacks and finger food for your Taiwan pasalubong
5. Egg rolls
Looking like lumpia in the Philippines, egg rolls are a popular Taiwanese delicacy with various fillings including classic ones such as pork floss, peanuts, and sesame. They also come in cute packaging, making them a great pasalubong from Taiwan.
Popular brands: Blue Bird Travel; HiWalk
Where to buy: Blue Bird Travel shops; HiWalk shops in Taiwan
Price: NT$300 (Blue Bird Travel 8-pack travel box); NT$270 (HiWalk Flossy Pork Egg Rolls 4-pc box)
6. Nougat
A nougat is a chewy confection of sugar, honey, nuts and other dried fruits. It makes for a yummy pasalubong for your pamangkins (nephews and nieces), inaanaks (godchildren), and kids back home.
Popular brands: Sugar & Spice; Salico Foods
Where to buy: Taiwan supermarkets and souvenir shops
Price: NT$450 (Sugar & Spice French Nougat 400g); NT$300 (Salico Foods Boba Milk Tea Nougat 114g)
7. Pork paper
As the name suggests, pork paper is basically pork in paper form. This flavorful Taiwanese snack is a good pasalubong idea for your colleagues or officemates as it is something you can munch on while you’re in the zone working your hat off.
Popular brands: Kuai Che; Hsin Tung Yang
Where to buy: Kuai Che store; Hsin Tung Yang shops in Taiwan
Price: NT$270 (Kuai Che pork paper pack)
Classic Taiwanese drinks as pasalubong from Taiwan
8. Loose-leaf oolong tea
Tea is synonymous with Taiwan, so don’t ever go home without buying one of their tea products like the aromatic loose-leaf oolong tea. This is a perfect pasalubong for your parents, grandparents, as well as titas (aunts) and titos (uncles).
Popular brands: Lin Mao Sen Tea Co.; Taiwan Tea Corporation; Cha Moods
Where to buy: Alishan; Lin Mao Sen Tea Co. store; tea shops and supermarkets in Taiwan
Price: NT$950 (TTCH Elite Alishan Oolong Tea); NT$2,614 (Cha Moods Alishan High Mountain Oolong Tea)
9. Bubble tea or pearl milk tea
You should never leave Taiwan without trying the famous bubble tea or pearl milk tea, which is said to originate in Taichung. Though you can’t technically bring home this drink as it is, you can definitely buy some ingredients like the boba (tapioca pearls) as well as the tea itself fresh from Taiwan.
Tip: There are shops selling cute bubble tea bottles like the ones we bought at Taipei 101 shopping mall, so you can take that home instead!
Popular brands: Chun Shui Tang Original Store (first bubble tea); SunnySyrup (bubble tea ingredients supplier)
Where to buy: milk tea shops and supermarkets in Taiwan
Price: NT$100-130 (cup of bubble tea)
10. Coffee
Taiwan is not all tea — there’s also something for coffee lovers! Hit up Simple Kaffa on the 88th floor of Taipei 101 and bring home some of their specialty coffee like Xingbo Coffee, which is primarily associated with Simple Kaffa’s founder and World Barista Champion Wu Zelin.
Popular brands: Simple Kaffa; Ruh Cafe
Where to buy: Simple Kaffa Cafe (88th floor of Taipei 101); Ruh Cafe No. 1 in Kaohsiung
Price: NT$900 (Simple Kaffa Xingbo Coffee 200g); NT$400 (Ruh Classic City Roast Espresso Blend 250g)
Surely, you’ll find a tasty treat for everyone as your Taiwan pasalubong. Add these Taiwanese food souvenirs to your shopping list now!
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