The custard mooncake was created in 1986 at the Peninsula Hong Kong hotel, and quickly become loced for its buttery, rich flavours. Fans tend to be divided between classic and custard-style mooncakes.

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What makes a stand-out mooncake? Lau looks for nicely browned pastry that’s not too crumbly, and with no artificial smells or flavours. The taste should be smooth, not too sweet, and balanced between sweetness and saltiness.

“That balance is the essence of the mooncake,” says Lau.

To ensure the tasting was blind, we carefully cut slices of each mooncake to obscure any characters or branding, and arranged them on numbered plates. We also hid the elaborate boxes.

Many calorie-rich bites and sips of palate-cleansing tea later, here are the surprising results.

Bottom of the bunch

Duddell’s Lava Cream Custard Mooncakes (US$56 for a box of six)

This was the most shocking result, from Michelin-star Cantonese restaurant Duddell’s.

The supremely sexy packaging would make a gorgeous gift, whereas the cakes themselves were “a bit dry” and “on the crumbly side”, said Lau.

“I also look for sweetness and the salty balance between the paste and the egg yolk, and I don’t feel this is very balanced. But mainly it’s got an artificial taste.”

Dang Wen Li by Dominique Ansel Jade Rabbit Deluxe Mooncakes (US$64 for a box of six)

Pastry chef Dominique Ansel may have invented the cronut, but mooncakes, here in classic and Earl Grey custard flavours from his Dang Wen Li bakeries, are not his speciality. “Underbaked,” said Lau. “It’s just kind of pasty.”

Hyatt Centric x Lee Keung Kee Egg Waffles Mooncakes (US$42 for a box of six)

The partnership with North Point’s famous egg waffle shop fell short on its promise of bringing the flavours of the classic street snack to the mooncake – in fact, “there’s not a lot of flavour” at all, said Lau, asking, “is it dairy free”?

Maybe the packets of peanut butter and condensed milk that were included to pour on top would have helped. “Just save it for breakfast,” she said. “I don’t need it for a little cake.”

Skip if you’re counting calories

The Peninsula Boutique Mini Egg Custard Mooncakes (US$57 for a box of eight)

Another major upset given the Peninsula sells hundreds of thousands of the pastries every year. The skimpy filling and lack of flavour left Lau unimpressed: “It’s quite dry. Nothing interesting.”

Better to opt for the originals, still handmade by chefs in the hotel’s Spring Moon restaurant ( US$82 for eight) instead of the Boutique’s factory-baked wares.

Fortnum & Mason Mooncakes (US$88 for a box of four, plus tea cups and loose tea selections)

The British tea merchant’s Mid-Autumn treats didn’t move the needle with their too dry, crumbly custard.

“I prefer something that’s more smooth. I think it’s missing fat.” As for the signature flavour? “I can taste Earl Grey distinctively. What tea is this one?” she asks, eating the other mooncake. “Nothing too much. I’m not quite sure.”

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Rú Mini Lava Egg Custard Mooncakes (US$47 for a box of six)

Nina Hospitality, a local chain of hotels and serviced flats, also has a string of bakeries and restaurants. The mooncakes from Rú, its flagship restaurant, struck squarely in the middle of the road.

“This is OK,” said Lau upon tasting. “It’s a bit average though. It’s not underbaked. And it’s quite even the custard, with a thin crust.”

Rosewood Hong Kong Legacy House Mini Egg Custard Mooncakes ( US$60 for a box of six)

The No 2 hotel in the 50 Best Hotels in the World offers various gift boxes with a variety of mooncakes including traditional double-yolk lotus seed and smoky lapsang souchong-infused treats – the “Witty Moon” gift box we received even included a porcelain plate.

The Legacy House custard mooncake, though, didn’t measure up. “It’s bit dry,” said Lau, with “a little bit of a powdery taste”.

The lighter colour also made her wonder if they cut back on the amount of salty egg yolk. “Maybe they’re going for no salty egg yolk, but it’s not a very balanced piece.”

Lune de Blossom Lava Mooncakes (US$67 for a box of eight)

Topped with a pretty peony blossom pattern, and with salted egg yolk and coconut milk in the filling, these handmade lava mooncakes ooze when cut.

“Coffee, interesting!” said Lau, of the caramel coffee slice, and praised the lava effect of the classic custard. “It’s very liquid,” she said, before hedging a bit. “I feel like I can taste that these are a little cheaper to make. But if it’s cheaper, I think it’s quite good for its category.”

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Worth indulging

Conrad Mini Musang King Durian Mooncakes (US$62 for a box of eight)

One whiff was all it took to know the five-star hotel’s Golden Leaf restaurant used real purée from the highly prized Musang King love-it-or-hate-it durian.

Lau fell into the love it category calling the mooncake “quite good and moist. It has some actual durian taste. It’s not artificial at all.”

The filling pulled away from the crust during baking, leaving unsightly gaps. “Fruit will lose its moisture, so there should be something between to cover it.”

Lady M Moonglow Mini Custard Mooncakes (US$88 for a box of six)

“Maybe for kids,” Lau said of the multicoloured mooncake trio from the trendy Japan-meets-France bakery based in New York.

She praised the super-smooth custard of all three flavours with the yuzu milk custard being the stand-out. “The citrus really cuts the fattiness, and it’s quite refreshing to eat.”

The lychee rose was just “OK”, while the matcha pandan had a bit of a “weird” taste. “It’s not really going well with the paste inside.”

The Merchants Signature Mooncake Set (US$61 for a box of four)

Chef Lau admits she isn’t a fan of Suzhou-style mooncakes which have a crispy, papery, bun-like character: “You can’t even eat it. When you cut it, it’s too flaky.”

But trying the new offering from The Merchants, an opulent Shanghainese restaurant that opened this spring, she gave a thumbs-up to the flavours of the salted egg yolk and lotus seed paste – although it was marked down for being skimpy with the latter.

Top ranked

Imperial Patisserie Lava Mooncakes (US$47 for a box of six)

Also popular were two free-flowing lava mooncakes from ubiquitous and heavily advertised chain Imperial Patisserie. Yip Wing-wah, co-creator of the egg custard mooncake back in 1986, is on the payroll, which has apparently paid off.

“The black sesame is a stand-out,” said Lau. “It’s got some, like, green [mung] bean paste taste that blends quite well with the black sesame. And because it’s liquid on the inside, it’s quite moist.”

Four Seasons Mini Egg Custard Mooncakes (US$72 for a gift set)

“One of the best,” said Lau of the custard treats in the hotel’s new mooncake gift set, which also included lotus paste varieties (five cakes in total) and a selection of tea.

“It’s a good size and the pastry is thin. You see a bit of … browning on the top, so it’s very naturally baked. The inside has a lot of salted egg yolk taste, and it’s blended in and not too heavy.”

These mooncakes have already sold out, but the preservative-free Lung King Heen toasted pine nut-specked cream custard mooncakes (HK$578) are still in stock.

Island Shangri-La Summer Palace Red Bean Paste Mooncakes With Rare 80-Year Dried Tangerine Peel (US$170 for a box of eight)

It took chef Lau barely a nibble to proclaim it a stand-out. “This one has chenpi, the mandarin peel – and it’s a good mandarin peel. You can taste it.”

The most expensive mooncake we tested had a superior filling-to-crust ratio of red bean paste as well as a thin and gorgeous lacquer-like crust (to say nothing of the purple presentation box).