Lao Long Shi Meat Buns

Review

Lao Long Shi's main shop is at No. 117 Sanmin Road in Lukang, close to A-Zhen, with a second shop at No. 31 Zhongshan Road, and it is the bun shop most often compared with A-Zhen. Owner Shi Ruilong has run it locally for more than twenty years. Smile Taiwan notes that he improved the traditional dough using Western baking methods, and that nearly ten young cooks wrap and steam buns to order in the back. Visitors often buy box after box, and one local says Lukang people all eat Lao Long Shi.

The signature shiitake pork bun has a fluffy, soft, slightly sweet and chewy skin with a clear wheat aroma. The filling of pork hind leg, shiitake and spring onion is looser and juicier, savoury with a touch of sweetness; bite in and you will find a whole shiitake and plenty of juice, with a rich, oily fragrance when hot. Overall it is seasoned a little more heavily than A-Zhen and feels fattier, and some say younger diners prefer it. Besides meat buns there are spring onion rolls, house steamed buns and popular fresh-milk steamed buns.

Fans of shiitake aroma and fluffy, sweetish dough will be happy; those who prefer a lighter taste and firm chunks of meat may favour A-Zhen next door. Some buy meat buns here and steamed buns at A-Zhen, alternating between the two. On price, the shiitake pork bun went from NT$20 to NT$22 in February 2022, and the steamed savoury egg cake from NT$6.5 to NT$7 per tael; the shop said it had absorbed costs for a while first. Check current prices on site.

Listed hours are about 08:00–19:00, closed Mondays, so confirm before going. Each bun is bagged individually so you can grab and go, and boxes make good souvenirs; re-steam at home if they cool. When the main shop is busy, consider the Zhongshan Road branch.

It suits anyone buying buns as gifts or who loves fluffy, sweetish dough and rich juices. First-timers should eat a shiitake pork bun while it is hot and add a fresh-milk steamed bun; to compare, walk over to A-Zhen and buy one there too, and the difference is obvious.