Caizhizhai

Caizhizhai was founded in 1870 during the Tongzhi reign of the Qing dynasty on Guanqian Street, specializing in Suzhou-style candies, pastries, roasted nuts and preserved fruits; its name alludes to gathering the auspicious lingzhi fungus.

It is renowned for Suzhou specialties such as pine-nut candy and translucent triangular sweets, and has long been a traditional stop for festival treats and a defining brand of Guanqian Street.

Suzhou-style confectionery depends on careful ingredient selection and hand-boiled sugar; the crystalline pyramid sweets enclose pine nuts and rose, while the pine-nut candy is fragrant and crumbly, reflecting the refined, gently sweet character of the local tradition.