How many Japanese candy/snack subscription boxes are there, anyhow?  Seems like there’s a ton, and they keep cropping up.  The thing is….they all have been good, at leas the ones I’ve tried.  And this one?  I dunno guys….this one might be my favorite yet.

First off, we got a family thing going.  And I dig that, because eventually, we Candy Gurus are gonna have a family thing going in our brick & mortar store, where we’ll put our college graduate kids to work (for free) and not have to do jack shit ourselves, while at the same time having the most badass candy store in the US (looking at you, Dylans).  So family is cool.  And to go next level, these guys have a unique edge, where mom makes a piece of origami for each box.

I mean, ….how cute is that?  But ya know what?  SCREW CUTE.  Let’s get to the food.  Here’s what the box looks like when you open it up:

Absolutely jam packed with stuff.  So let’s take a ride through my overeating ways, and I’ll let you know what I thought of each item I tried.  It’s like an aural history of the box, but more text based.  They include a piece of paper that explains what everything is, which is super neccessary.

This is the Kabuki cracker.  It’s a rice cracker, very similar to Asian rice crackers you find al over the place.

Except this one is a bit saucier, a bit tangier, and a bit tastier.  Crunchy, delicious.

This bag was HUGE.  I mean seriously, it’s 5 times the size of anything else in the box, and judging from the bag art…I didn’t care what it was flavored, I wanted in.

Yeah, this is me trying to take a photo before I finished the bag.  Unreal tasting, these are beef consume flavored crisps.  I mean…why can’t we make snacks with flavors like this?  It was incredible.  Deep, beefy, earthy, umami flavors.  So good.  I definitely need these in my life again.

Ok, so there’s 3 of these tube shaped cheese puffs in the box.  Mozerella & camembert, Pizza, and this one, teriyaki.  Let me tell ya something.  All great.  the cheese flavored done was my fave, but I loved all of them.

SO light and fluffy.  Like a super fresh puffy Cheetos, but even lighter.  Who wouldn’t like this?

Ok, finally some candy.  this is a UFO, which comes in 4 flavors.  This one was yogurt.

Odd.  You think it’ll be a hard candy, but it’s not.  It’s…slightly creamy, and powdery at the same time.  It dissolves almost immediately.  It was ok, but not among my favorites.

MORE SNACKS!  I love love love this bag.  These are described as “ramen chips flavored like champion, a Nagasaki noodle dish made from seafood and veggies”.  That nails it, except they’re cheese puffs, not chips.

Simply scrum.  I mean the thing is, I love snack foods, so it’s gonna be hard for me NOT to like anything salty and crunchy.  But there’s are genuinely good.  it was about at this time I became aware that I was enjoying everything in this gorgeous little box from heaven, which isn’t the case for other sub boxes.  There’s usually at least a few things I don’t like, but so far…we’re hitting  1.000 (for you non-baseball fans, that’s the best possible batting average one can have).

Lookout, here comes sweet. It’s aerated chocolate inside of a cone to look like….

Yep.  Very cute.  And guess what?

Yep. It’s scrumptious, against all odds.  I was SURE this was the one I’d hate, but nope, I loved it.  3 bites.  Gone.

We’re getting close to wrapping this up, but before we do, here’s something that’s right in my wheelhouse.  Paper thin pickled plum- or Ume for those of us in the know.  One of the best flavors I’ve ever tried-slightly sweet, sour, tangy, a tad bitter: it has everything.

They’re not kidding when they say it’s thin.  And as predicted, it was delicious.  I suppose this flavor isn’t for everyone, but man…it’s so interesting and evolved, yet basic-it’s special.  If you’re reading this, it means you’re interested in Japanese food on some level. And therefore you owe it to yourself to try some ume at some point.

Check out this cute little freak.

Massive trojan horse.  Hiding inside…grape flavored chocolate?

Have you ever had grape flavored chocolate?  It’s actually kind of good.  The grape flavor (I’m assuming) lies in the candy coating.  And it’s somewhat subtle, but it’s there.  Kinda neat.  And while we’re on the subject of grape, let’s wrap it up with these chewing straw candies, which were the bonus item in this month’s box.

oh.  My. LORDISH. These look like just like normal sour straws, which I guess they are.  But if you know us, you know we rage on about how much better Japanese grape candy is that any other country’s and this is no exception.  Absolutely spot on concord grape bursts from these and now….I’m legit upset that I don’t have any more.  I loved these, and will buy them every time I see them, if that ever happens again.

Basically, this box was a HUGE winner, and it wasn’t specially made for us, it was the same box you’d have gotten if you were a subscriber.  Their rates start ridiculously affordable, and if you add that to the family touch, not to mention the obviously excellent curating skills they have…well then, you might have found your Japanese box service.  Hit the link below to check it out, and tell them we sent you!