The development of Mid-Autumn barbecue in Taiwan

A shared meal

Barbecue has become a recognisable way to celebrate Mid-Autumn in Taiwan. Relatives, friends and colleagues gather around a grill, making the preparation of the meal part of the occasion. People cook and eat gradually through the evening, with conversation continuing between batches of food.

This relaxed format suits family reunions as well as gatherings beyond the household. Its appeal lies partly in doing something together: the grill gives everyone an activity to share, rather than making the celebration depend on a particular dish.

Festival setting

Mid-Autumn falls on the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month, which is September 25 in 2026. Barbecue is a relatively recent addition to Taiwan’s celebration of this older festival. Mooncakes, seasonal pomelos and moon viewing remain familiar parts of the occasion.

Outdoor gatherings have a longer history. During Taiwan’s Japanese colonial period, moon viewing in parks and from boats joined household customs, and outings continued after 1945. Grilling offered another way to combine a meal with an evening outdoors.

Newspaper reports collected in a 2016 archival study in National Chung Hsing University’s journal show that this combination was already taking shape in the 1970s. Reports dated 1971 and 1974 included barbecue among the attractions of Mid-Autumn outings. A 1975 report described plans for a riverside wedding that combined barbecue, moon viewing and an overnight stay with friends.

By 1979, reporting on crowds barbecuing along streambeds in the Taipei area showed that the activity had become more than an occasional feature of organised outings. At least in Taipei, barbecue was already a widespread part of the festival’s outdoor celebrations.

Barbecue advertising

During the 1980s, Wan Ja Shan’s television advertising and Kimlan’s sauce promotions helped strengthen the association between Mid-Autumn and barbecue. Retail promotions also linked festival shopping with ingredients and equipment for grilling.

That visibility helps explain why sauce advertisements feature so prominently in popular accounts of the custom. But the newspaper evidence places Mid-Autumn barbecue before the later campaigns. The history is one of an activity taking hold through outings and social gatherings, followed by commercial promotion—not a custom with a single inventor or a securely identifiable starting date.