Skoshbox: The Japanese Snackbox Subscription // December 2014

I'm taking pause from the formalities of "FOOD FRIDAY" because food is good every day of the week, especially during the holiday season. I love me a good snacking and Japanese snacks are always welcome in my belly. Japanese snacks are available at Asian food stores in Toronto but I find that the variety just isn't there. So, I've been looking into subscription box options that send Japanese snacks. The only option that I could find that shipped to Canada was SKOSHBOX. 

 Skoshbox is a "taste of Japan at your doorstep". From $10 USD or $18.99 CAD, Skoshbox offers an assortment of mystery candies and snacks monthly. If you're crazy about the snacks you try in the box, there's also an online webstore for featured snacks organized by type and month. SO... here's the box: 

Caramel Pie Pretz, Super Mario Galaxy Gum, Calpis Masrshmallow, Seaweed Wrapped Rice Cracker, Potato Ring Snack, Cola Bubble Gum Balls, Vegetable Salad Umaibo, Super Soda Hard Candy 

Isn't the packaging so on point? The minimalist cardboard with the paper crane logo just gets me. I'm a sucker for white tissue paper and stickers with logos plus graphic oriental patterns, so I'm kind of dying in awe from the box, the description card, and the overall look of the box. Furthermore, the simple Skoshbox complements the bold, graphic packaging of Japanese snacks. 

More importantly than the packaging is the food inside. I tasted the snacks with the boyfriend (who is also an avid lover of snacks and nomnomnoms), so opinions are a combo of his and my own. The box contained 8 snacks - a mix of sweet and salty.

My rating scale is as follows:

 (>'-')> <('-'<) ^(' - ')^ (worthy of dance party) 

^u^ (pretty yummy) 

-_- (indifferent, borderline dislike) 

 Let's see what's inside...

Caramel Pie Pretz ($3.99 for 1) (>'-')> <('-'<) ^(' - ')^ 

NOM NOM NOM. If you're familiar with the traditional salt and vegetable flavoured Pretz in the green packaging but would prefer something a little sweeter, these are perfection. The texture is like a crispy pie crust and it tastes like caramel and cinnamon. This one's definitely my favourite out of the box. WOULD EAT AGAIN. 

Super Mario Galaxy Gum ($3.99 for 10) -_-

Supposedly, this gum is supposed to be soda flavoured. I found that the only appealing thing about it was the packaging. Other than that, it tasted nothing like soda (more like a hint of sugar) and lacked flavour. Furthermore, the little flavour that it did have disappeared within a 5 minute time period. Boring... 

Calpis Masrshmallow ($4.99 for 4) (>'-')> <('-'<) ^(' - ')^ 

These are pretty much a marshmallow filled with fruit gummy. The marshmallows are light and fluffy, while the fruit jelly reminds me of Welch's fruit snacks. The boyf mentioned that he's had them before, so they're probably available somewhere close. Yum! 

Seaweed Wrapped Rice Cracker ($4.99 for 11)  ^u^

I've had these previously. In a nutshell, it's a hard cracker wrapped in seaweed. Similar snacks are available at Costco for a much lesser price, but a great snack nonetheless. 

Poteko Salted Potato Ring Snack ($4.99 for 4)  ^u^

These taste exactly like potato chips. They're slightly less salty than their larger North American counterparts, but equally as tasty. 

Marukawa Cola Bubble Gum Balls  ($3.99 for 10) -_-

Slightly more flavourful than the Super Mario gum, these tasted quite like Coca Cola but lost flavour after 10 minutes. The gum was quite light and not chewy enough for my preferences.

Vegetable Salad Umaibo ($12.99 for 30) ^u^

My grandma used to feed me Umaibo, which is a savoury snack made with corn. These tasted less like "vegetable salad" and more like sour cream and onion rings sans the sour cream and onion. The packaging is so fun and kidish that I couldn't resist feeling a little nostalgic. 

Super Soda Hard Candy  ($4.99 for 22) ^u^

A surprising last treat, these Super Soda Hard Candies should really be called Super SOUR Hard Candies. The initial shock of the sour coating was unexpected. The sour lasts about 30 seconds but is sweet after the coating is penetrated. The underlying candy is sweet and long-lasting. These remind me a lot of Warheads, which are also ridiculously low on the pH scale. 

Overall, I think Skoshbox is a great assortment of sweet and salty snacks and candies from Japan. Although I'm not a fan of the gums, the other snacks were pretty stellar and I might have to make it my quest to find the Caramel Pie Pretz somewhere in Toronto. $18.99 is a bit pricey for what Canadians will get in the box, but if you're absolutely DYING to try some snacks, it may be worth it. For Americans, the $10/month for a year subscription makes a great gift for the food lover. 

Have you tried any of these? Do you like Japanese snacks? 

Press samples featured 

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