Yih Shun Shiuan

Review

Yih Shun Shiuan is one of Yilan's most-named souvenir shops, with stores in Luodong, Yilan City and Jiaoxi; this Luodong store on Minquan Road is the company's registered address on the brand website. Supertaste calls it a popular shop for affordable Yilan souvenirs, and a beauty and lifestyle site lists it as a classic brand for gifts to elders. On holidays, and especially at the end of long weekends, queues form outside and the shop fills with shoppers.

Best-sellers include milk jelly rolls, pineapple cakes, nougat, thick crunchy ox-tongue biscuits and Taiwanese-style macarons, while locals especially recommend the cheddar cheese zhuangyuan pastry: cheese with mochi, sweet and savoury at once, appealing even to people who dislike traditional big pastries. The shop also sells freshly baked bread, and its Sanxing scallion bread is popular. Supertaste lists a Napoleon cake roll at NT$160, and diners mention red wine berry bread at about NT$50; check prices on site.

Fans praise the wide choice, good quality and fair prices, being able to buy souvenirs and bread in one place, the stronger cheese flavour of the chilled milk jelly roll and the chewy mochi. Complaints include holiday crowds and checkout queues, some finding the dairy flavour too heavy and cloying after a while, and reports that the Jiaoxi store does not take credit cards, so check payment options at Luodong too.

The Luodong store opens roughly 9:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., and hours differ slightly between stores, so check before you go. You can order popular items directly at the counter, which is faster than hunting the shelves. Red-line parking is strictly enforced on Shennong Road at the Yilan City store, and nearby car parks are recommended for all branches. The Luodong store is close to Luodong Night Market, so you can shop on the way.

It suits anyone taking Yilan souvenirs home or buying gifts for elders or colleagues, as well as travellers who love browsing bakeries. First-timers can pick up a box of milk jelly rolls and cheddar cheese pastries plus a few Sanxing scallion buns for the next morning; for gifts, go for a mixed gift box.