My Taiwan Pineapple Cakes Test: Which One is the Best?

Pineapple cakes (鳳梨酥 or feng li su) are the undisputed most famous snack in Taiwan, a country well known for its packaged snacks.

Which Taiwanese pineapple cake is the best one is a hotly disputed topic. Long standing brands like ChiaTe and Leechi are frequently regarded as the best, while newer ones like SunnyHills are exploding in popularity.

For this article, I purchased individual pineapple cakes from seven famous pineapple cake brands in Taipei region. In alphabetical order, they are: ChiaTe, IJySheng, Kuo Yuan Ye, Leechi, Pan’s Cake, Sunmerry, and SunnyHills.

I tasted these pineapple cakes back-to-back (except for Kuo Yuan Ye, which I had when we did their awesome DIY pineapple making class) in order to determine the key differences and my personal favorites.

You may be surprised by my results!

Taiwanese Pineapple Cake Introduction

Pineapple cakes are rectangular or square-shaped baked cakes with a preserved pineapple interior and pastry shell. Bakeries in Taiwan have been making them for over 100 years.

Traditionally, winter melon (冬瓜, an enormous fruit also used to make tea, also known as “wax gourd”) was also added to the recipe. Winter melon makes the cakes chewier and sweeter, balancing out the tartness of the pineapple.

For bakeries, it’s also cheaper to use winter melon than real pineapple. Thus, some “pineapple” cakes are in fact 100% winter melon and have no pineapple at all!

In recent years, there has been a growing trend of making pineapple cakes with pure pineapple (SunnyHills is the best example). Without the winter melon, these cakes are tarter, less sweet, and more fibrous.

Some people, especially younger, see these new versions as superior, and look down on the traditional ones with added winter melon as “fake” pineapple cakes.

However, given the choice, some people still actually prefer the one’s with winter melon. As you will see in my reviews below, I personally love them!

Many bakeries offer both varieties, with the pure pineapple ones sometimes labelled as “gourmet” pineapple cakes. Usually these are slightly more expensive.

Several variations of the pineapple cake exist, including ones made with melon, strawberry, oolong tea, mango, longan, and more.

Also watch for pineapple cakes with egg yolk, which are my absolute favorite. The yolk adds a hint of saltiness to the sweet dessert.

To learn about Taiwan’s other famous pastries, see my guide to the best snack souvenirs in Taiwan and where to go shopping in Taipei.

What are “Soil Pineapples”?

Taiwan has some so-called native varieties of pineapple, which were actually introduced during the 17th century. They are smaller and more tart. There are hardly any of these left today.

The Japanese introduced a larger and sweeter pineapple from the South Pacific to Taiwan to compete with the canned pineapple industry in Hawaii.

The agricultural experimentation institute in Taiwan modified these Hawaiian pineapples into a new variety, which it called 土鳳梨, or “soil pineapple”.

In fact, the word 土 here doesn’t mean soil, as it normally does, but rather “local”. In Taiwan, you can even call a person 土 to mean that they are being very “Taiwanese”. Some “local pineapple” is a better translation.

You will see the term 土鳳梨 on some pineapple cake packages in Taiwan. Bakeries put this to indicate that this type of local pineapple was used.

Seeing these words on the package usually (but not necessarily) means that 100% pineapple was used. The only way to know for sure is to check the label for further clarification, ask staff at the bakery, or see my table below.

My Pineapple Cake Test Results

Here is a quick summary of my pineapple cake test results. For more details about each one, continue reading in the section below.

Best to Worst	Brand	Pineapple Content	Cake Description	Visiting Experience
#1	ChiaTe	20% pineapple, 80% winter melon	Perfect balance of ingredients and texture	Minimum 1 hr line at store, order online
#2	LeeChi	Pineapple – winter melon mix or Gourmet (pure pineapple) options	Close second and very similar to ChiaTe	Line at busy times, fancy and modern shop
#3	Pan’s Cake	Pure winter melon	Chewiest, sweetest, lightest color	Line at busy times, old and traditional shops in New Taipei City, order online
#4	Kuo Yuan Ye	70% pineapple, 30% winter melon	Good but not the best	Fun DIY experience, Halal options
#5	SunnyHills	Pure pineapple	Tart, dry, fibrous, longest shape. Most expensive.	Free sample cake with tea, lovely visiting experience
#6	Sunmerry	78% pineapple, 22% winter melon	Small, bite-sized cakes	Many branches in Taipei, no line
#7	IJySheng	Pineapple – winter melon mix or pure pineapple options	Driest and most crumbly	Many branches in Taipei, no line

For other cities, if you happen to be in Taichung, one of my Taiwan Travel Planning group members says the pineapple cakes at Miyahara Eye Clinic (otherwise famous for its ice cream and Harry Potter vibes) are some of the best!

You can also try Ichihuku in Taichung. But Taichung is better known for its sun cakes and lemon cakes (see my Taiwan snacks guide for more info).

In Tainan, try Jiu Zheng Nan here. Kaohsiung has a branch of SunnyHills here.

Best Pineapple Cake Brands in Taiwan

Here are my more detailed reviews of each of the pineapple cakes I tried in my test. They are in order of best to worst.

ChiaTe

In my taste test, the pineapple cake from ChiaTe (佳德 or jia de) truly lived up to its reputation. It took the win for best all-around pineapple cake.

ChiaTe is generally considered the epitome of pineapple cakes in Taiwan, and I agree. The bakery dates back to 1975 and has won various awards.

Upon opening the package, with its iconic label, I noted that the classic ChiaTe Pineapple cake has more of a square than rectangular shape like most brands.

When I bit into the pineapple cake, it had the perfect texture, chewiness, and sweetness.

ChiaTe attributes this balance to its “golden ratio” of 80% winter melon and 20% pineapple, and the consistent 12% moisture in every cake.

If you visit ChiaTe Bakery in Taipei (here near Nanjing Sanmin MRT), you can expect to wait an hour or more in line, even on a weekday morning. Some people say the best time to try is in the evening before they close.

You can skip the line if you order ChiaTe pineapple cakes online delivery to your hotel or the airport (only the classic kind). You can also find ChiaTe pineapple cakes at some 7-Elevens.

However, the upside of visiting ChiaTe’s bakery is that they have so many other pastries on offer, including pineapple cakes with egg yolk, nougat crackers (so good!), wife cakes, sun cakes, longan/coconut/lotus seed/jujube/strawberry/melon cakes, and cheesecakes.

Leechi

Leechi (犁記, pronounced li ji) is another of the most famous bakeries in Taipei. This one has an even longer history, having been established way back in 1894.

In my taste test, Leechi’s pineapple cake seriously rivals ChiaTe’s. I really had to think about it and re-taste before concluding that ChiaTe’s is just slightly better, but the difference is marginal.

Like ChiaTe’s pineapple cake, Leechi’s seems perfectly balanced to me. I couldn’t find an exact percentage of winter melon to pineapple anywhere, but I’m guessing their classic pineapple cake’s composition is very similar to ChiaTe’s.

Leechi’s cakes are the classic rectangular shape and slightly smaller than ChiaTe’s. And I would say they are just a hint less sweet than ChiaTe’s.

You wouldn’t guess Leechi’s history based on the shop. Following its most recent renovation, Leechi’s store has a luxurious vibe, with large chandelier inside. It is here near Songjiang Nanjing MRT.

Beside’s the classic pineapple cake, LeeChi also has a “gourmet” pineapple cake made with pure 土鳳梨.

Without the winter melon, its interior is darker, tarter, and more fibrous, but not as much so as SunnyHills pineapple cakes. They retain the same shape as the regular ones.

So if you like a less sweet pineapple cake but don’t want to make the long walk from the MRT to SunnyHills, this is a great option.

Besides the regular and gourmet pineapple cakes, they also have pineapple cakes with egg yolk (I’d say the best I’ve ever had), moon cakes with various fillings, traditional fish-shaped cakes, and more.

Pan’s Cake

Pan’s Cake (小潘 or xiao pan) is another of the most famous pineapple cakes in Taiwan. This one has two bakeries, both in Banqiao District of New Taipei City, which is accessible by Taipei MRT.

To be honest, I was tempted to put Pan’s Cake in the number 1 spot following my taste test. Many people snub winter melon pineapple cakes nowadays, but I freakin love them.

I’m not alone, either. Many Taiwanese still prefer the classic wintermelon variety, including my Taiwanese wife and her father.

As proof, when my wife offered to drive to Banqiao (we live across the river in Xinzhuang) to pick some up for my taste test, I told her that I needed a single, packaged cake for my photos.

But of course, she came back with a whole box of freshly baked ones. Unless you need to take them home as a souvenir, fresh is always best!

Due to the pure winter melon content, Pan’s classic “pineapple” cakes are extremely chewy and sweet. I can eat these things like candy. If you like sweeter desserts, then you may love these as much as I do.

Still, I decided to give the top two spots in my test to ChiaTe and Leechi simply because they have perfected the style. But put all three on a table, and I might just go for Pan’s Cake first.

The two Pan’s Cake bakeries (here and here) retain the oldest or more traditional look of any bakery on my list. These feel more like real, local, neighborhood bakeries.

They are extremely popular among New Taipei City folk, so you may encounter a line, even during the week. But this will be a line of locals, not tourists like at all the famous shops in Taipei.

Besides the classic pineapple (winter melon) cakes, they also have ones with winter melon and egg yolk (see pic above), which I also can’t get enough of.

Pan’s Cake is popular enough that you may find them in some 7-Elevens across the country, including the one at B1 in Banqiao train and HSR station.

If you don’t want to make the trek to Banqiao, you can order them online here.

Kuo Yuan Ye

Kuo Yuan Ye (郭元益, pronounced guo yuan yi) is another long-running (since 1867), household name-bakery in Taipei. It is here near Shilin MRT and not far from Shilin Night Market. There are also small branches at Taipei 101, Taipei Main Station, and more.

Taipei people know this as a general bakery doing traditional Chinese pastries, not so much for their pineapple cakes.

Still, Kuo Yuan Ye makes some very good pineapple cakes. They are the standard variety but just didn’t quite match up to ChiaTe or Leechi in my taste test.

The main reason I regard this bakery highly is due to their super fun pineapple making class (read about our experience doing the class here).

In the class, my kids got to learn how to make their classic pineapple cakes according to the traditional recipe, which has 70% pineapple and 30% winter melon.

While we waited for them to bake, my kids also enjoyed trying on traditional Taiwanese qipaos and hanfu clothing and learning about some Taiwanese customs revolving around baked items.

This was one of my kids’ favorite activities in Taiwan. I highly recommend it for visitors with kids, but even some adults joined our class. They offer it in English, Mandarin, Japanese, and Korean.

The pineapple cakes my kids made in the class were surprisingly good! They didn’t quite hold their shape as the real ones, but they weren’t that far off.

After the DIY class, we got a voucher to use in their bakery. Besides the classic pineapple cakes, they also pure pineapple ones, pineapple and egg yolk, and boba cakes (far left in pic below). They also had some Halal options.

Here are some other fun DIY classes my kids have enjoyed in Taipei.

SunnyHills

Some readers may be surprised to find SunnyHills (微熱山丘 or wei re san qiu) so low on my list.

So boils entirely down to the fact that I just don’t like 100% pure pineapple cakes. To me, the cakes taste too dry, tart, and fibrous. I feel like I’m eating a health bar, not a sweet dessert.

But if you prefer a less sweet dessert with only pineapple, these are definitely the most famous ones of that variety. The company is relatively new on the Taiwan pineapple cake scene but has quickly become many people’s favorite.

The cakes themselves are of a unique shape, which is longer than any others.

Even though they aren’t my favorite, this shop offers the best visiting experience. When I visited the Taipei Minsheng store (here), there was no line, a major contrast from ChiaTe, which is not far away.

I was immediately seated at a long table and served an entire free pineapple cake and cup of tea. After enjoying it, there was no pressure to buy.

The pineapple cakes come in beautifully designed packages, box, and free cloth bag for take-away. You do pay for these extra perks, though, as SunnyHills pineapple cakes are the most expensive of any brand.

The shop itself is also nicely designed and located in leafy Minsheng Community. It’s a bit of a trek from the MRT, but that’s part of the reason it doesn’t have crowds.

There are also SunnyHills shops in Nantou and in Kaohsiung city, near Pier 2 Art Center.

Sunmerry

Sunmerry (聖瑪莉 or sheng ma li) is a chain bakery with nearly a dozen branches in Taipei.

Well they are seldom regarded as having the best pineapple cakes, they are still a convenient option for cute snack souvenirs, especially with their cute and colorful packaging.

In my taste test, the first and most obvious difference is that Sunmerry pineapple cakes are tiny. They are meant to be bite-sized. For this reason, I’d say they are a good option for young children or anyone who doesn’t want to eat a full cake (yes, pineapple cakes are high in calories).

My honest impression in the taste test is that these pineapple cakes are kind of boring. They do have a higher percentage of pineapple (maybe that’s why I don’t love them).

They just didn’t stand out for me as especially sweet, tart, chewy, or anything, really. They weren’t bad, but they also just weren’t really notable in any way.

Sunmerry sells a variety of other tempting baked items, including mango cakes, oolong tea cakes, and nougat crackers. So don’t totally write them off!

IJySheng

Of the seven brands of pineapple cakes I tested, those made by IJySheng (一之軒 or yi zhi xuan) were my least favorite.

IJySheng makes two kinds of pineapple cakes: regular and pure pineapple. I found both of them to be more crumbly and drier than any others I tried.

The pure pineapple cake especially was practically falling apart when I took it out of the package.

The pure pineapple cake to me seems to be an almost exact copy of the SunnyHills one, in style, shape, and even package color, but of noticeably lower quality.

This is the only pineapple cake brand on my list which I would say to totally avoid. There’s one exception – if you are vegan, I’ve been told that IJySheng has the best selection of vegan pastries in Taiwan (see my vegan guide to Taiwan). Most pastries usually contain butter.

The bakery itself, which has over a branches in Taipei, is far better known for its freshly baked breads, buns, and other pastries.

They also have delicious, tennis-ball sized mochi stuffed with various ingredients. In other words, their ready-to-eat items are better than their packaged snacks, like pineapple cakes.