Meiji Takenoko no Sato Cookies & Cream

 

This is definitely one of the things I was looking forward to in this box, because I loved the original Takenoko no Sato. It's one of those snacks that nails every avenue, with it's nice rich semi sweet chocolate flavor with a nice sweet crunchy biscuit backing it on the inside. And this one steps it up a notch with a cookies & cream flavor! It's also a limited edition flavor, so this won't always be around sadly.

One of the things I didn't catch from the box is this actually seems to be the reverse of the snack I had earlier! There's chocolate biscuit on the inside this time and vanilla with cookies coating on the outside. I quite like this variation in textures from an idea standpoint. The smell is also absolutely tantalizing, it smells like an Oreo except the cream filling is even more pronounced than normal, being on the outside.

To my surprise, the coating is even softer than expected. My teeth slice right through the vanilla frosting, and it's incredibly creamy, having somewhat of a milky taste to it. The chocolate inside too is surprisingly soft, not as soft as the outside, but I quite like it. This means the whole thing really gels together and blends into cookies & cream goodness. One of my favorite textural touches in this is how the top point of this is entirely frosting so there's one bit of really soft cream that makes the whole thing just that more enjoyable to eat.

Just like an Oreo though neither of these components is exceptionally great alone (yes I'm looking at you cream-lickers), but together they form something really special. The creamy frosting would be too sweet and one note if not backed by the less sweet chocolate filling. The only thing holding this snack back is like the other one, the dryness of it. But the flavor combination is incredible, as is the texture variety, and it's so great that I think I can give it a perfect mark. Oreo could certainly learn a lesson here!

Rating; 10 - AWOOOOOOO!!!

Kakigori Ramune Candy

We've had our fill of popsicle candy in this TokyoTreat, and now it's time for another cooling summer treat in the form of shaved ice! This is always that thing that you find on a super hot festival day and then it becomes the most appealing thing in the world... and it's fairly hot now, so I come to this snack with the same request. It seems that it has a cooling sensation much like the popsicle kit, and I'm certainly ready to be cooled. Hopefully everything will gel with the strawberry and ramune flavors a little better this time.

The candy, as depicted on the package, comes in these tiny tablets, which is good because, while tiny, it ensures I'll think twice before eating them all at once. Or maybe not if they're amazing. Both have a sweet vibrant smell with their respective flavors shining through and have a chalky texture, as some of it rubs off on my paws.

I pop the strawberry one in my mouth and it has a very satisfying pop as I bite through it, and I get the cooling sensation that was promised to me. It's a bit different from a purely strawberry candy, the flavor definitely seems more like the strawberry syrup that comes out of those shaved ice machines, which means it's quite accurate, and the sweetness and cooling sensation skew it away from a purely strawberry flavor. This is not a bad thing, actually it's a pretty refreshing difference, and the cooling sensation is used very well here, not being overbearing or obscuring the flavor. I already feel a little more cooled down, as I start to pant less. The ramune flavor also provides some nice refreshment. It has the rare distinction from other ramune snacks of actually feeling like it quenches my thirst, in part because of the wonderful cooling feeling. This takes everything the popsicle snack tried to do and does it right, managing to capture all the sensations of shaved ice in one convenient candy. I should keep more of these around for the summer!

Rating: 9 - Arooooo!

Tonkatsu Sauce Umaibo

With all the weird umaibos out there, this one actually seems like one of the more standard ones for me, or for anyone familiar with Japanese. Tonkatsu sauce normally goes on panko friend chicken or pork cutlets, and often steals the show with it's wonderful tangy sweetness. Instead this time the base of course is not meat but puffed corn instead, so we'll see if this sauce is a one trick pony or great with anything.

As tends to happen with umaibos, this one crushed in the bag! But while the appearance is compromised, the smell is not. The lovely smell of tonkatsu sauce wafts from the package, and I know then that this is going to be the real deal. The appearance is about the color I'd expect from tonkasu sauce, the dark brown that signals really good flavor is about to go down.

The flavor of the sauce, even dulled down by the corn, is rather strong. It's a lovely flavor, but here it comes on just a little too strong, like tonkatsu bullets straight into my yap. Those are some nice bullets to get hit by though, if I had to choose any kind of bullet it would definitely be tonkatsu sauce, yes sir. The corn seemed like it was a good medium to dull down the flavor, but maybe for the first time ever with umaibos it feels like there isn't enough of it in proportion to the flavor here. Or maybe corn isn't the right medium. With meat there's a little more time spent chewing that maybe this needs, to really let the flavor seep in, but corn is softer so the sauce hits you all at once. Regardless of my criticisms, it's still tonkatsu sauce one of my favorite Japanese flavors, and this umaibo nails it spot-on. If you're a fan of tonkatsu or curious, then this snack has it in droves.

Rating: 6 - Aruff!

DIY Popsicle Kit

Summer is rapidly approaching, and though it's still a little chilly outside here, TokyoTreat comes to the rescue for those hot days with this popsicle kit. Oh, you mean there's no actual freezing involved? Well then it's perfect for days like today! It'll be interesting to see if they try to still make this kit have the cooling sensation that popsicles are known so well for.

Much like the candy apple kit, the contents are simple: some pre-made candies and two toppings. I'm not sure what exactly the toppings are, looks like a syrup and... powdered sugar? I taste a bit of the syrup and it seems to be ramune flavored, and the powder... what is this stuff? It has such a cooling sensation to it, I'm really impressed, whatever this is. The ramune candy doesn't have much of a smell, but there's an intoxicating strawberry smell coming from the entire package.

The assembly process is not the cleanest one. The syrup adheres well, but the cooling powder in turn doesn't seem to adhere that well to the syrup. It actually seems to merge with it a bit, which is a little odd. But here we go! It's an odd combination of flavors. The strawberry candy is nice, but I feel like it needs something different than what's presented to it. The ramune syrup and cooling are nice touches, but it still doesn't give me a popsicle sensation. I guess I am crunching it and not licking it after all, but what's a hungry pup to do? The ramune one is even more questionable. It comes off a little strong at first, but has a weird aftertaste? Something about it is not pleasant and I can't put my finger on it, but it crosses the flavor line into a not-so-great place. Overall I can't really recommend this one, the strawberry candy is okay, but every other decision going into these popsicles is questionable.

Rating: 2 - Awrr

Koikeya Scone Rich Corn Flavor

Normally this type of snack I'd pass over as disinteresting, but two aspects of this make me think otherwise. The first is that it's corn flavored, and while Japan is not known for corn they do great justice to corn in the snacks from them that I've had, whether it be the puffed corn umaibos or the Dos Tacos corn chips with a surprisingly rich corn flavor. Also the previous "scones" I had actually had the appearance of french fries but delivered a very nice flavor experience, so maybe the same will be true for this.

While not the most appetizing looking snacks, these scones like the last have a very appetizing corn flavor to them. The corn flavor is ever apparent, like the smell of freshly grilled corn, and it certainly makes my mouth water. I have never been a corn pup, always favoring rice or bread, but the true essence of it is brought out from this aroma.

Tasting it, I get even more of that. The flavor of the corn is accentuated so well by the nice helping of butter and salt here, I feel like I'm eating some of the best quality corn fresh from the fields, even though I'm from NorCal and not the midwest. The crunch alongside it is spectacular too, being so satisfying but not inhibiting any of the wonderful corn flavor. Definitely something I can't stop eating, and it's a shame because while they include so many in the bag, they're dwindling fast! But I just can't get enough of this, it tastes so fresh despite being a packaged snack. Whatever Japan found in making the perfect corn flavor, Mexico's got something to learn.

Rating: 9 - Arooooo!

Doraemon Gummies

I feel like I've seen this character before on a snack. I'm not sure where, but I have. Or maybe I'm confusing him with the guy that's on every umaibo? Hard to tell with these kawaii mascots. These gummies come in the rare grape flavor that is so rarely seen among all the strawberry and cola gummies, but much appreciated. It's strange that this is a much more common flavor in the US, because I've heard good things about Japanese grapes.

These gummies, to my surprise, are more of the flat and sticky variety like the hand gummy I had last month. They were a struggle to get out of the package but here they are. They also are a little bit smaller than I was hoping for this package size - oh no! The smell is distinctly that of grape juice, very deep rich grape flavor, which bodes well.

My sniffer didn't like, as I get that wonderful grape taste, only a bit sweeter than I recognized before. The texture leaves a bit to be desired here, as the gummies are a little too flat to feel satisfying, I just plow through them and all their grape yumminess is gone too fast, which is not a great thing with the small amount of gummies here. Over all they need just a bit more bite to them. But the short moments of taste I do get from these are quite wonderful, again bringing back that rich grape juice smell, without the trouble of drinking it.

Rating: 7 - Aroof!

Yaokin Cream Rusk

 

Despite having a rusk snack in the past, I'm still not quite sure I've figured out what rusk is. It seems that it's a type of sweet crunchy toast, which sounds quite nice, and it's obviously one that translates well into packaged form, with crunchy things staying good for a long time. And who better to make it than Yaokin, who time and time again makes some nice packaged pastries? But nothing has ever topped their pudding marshmallows, mmm... maybe this one can do it.

Unfortunately, as sometimes happens with shipped foods, this one broke in the package. But no worries, doesn't make it any less tasty. As predicted, seems this takes the form of a very crunchy sweet toast, and it certainly has a nice buttery, creamy smell coming from it. Hopefully it's not too crunchy, I want it to have a bit of satisfying squish.

Putting the first bit in my mouth, I'm definitely getting good things from this. The creamy flavor seems to instantly melt and fill my mouth with its comforting essence, all while I crunch away the rest of it. It looks like this is due to a thin top player of soft cream, and although tiny that really does help glue this all together. It's quite simple yet works so well. If a packaged snack is this nice and comforting, I'd like to try the real thing! It does suffer mildly from being a bit too one note, being only cream, I would love to see this paired with another flavor. But what they've done here is very nice.

Rating: 8 - Rowf!

Happy Turn Soy Sauce Cheese Flavor

Soy sauce... and cheese? It seems totally unlikely, yet at the same time these are both such staple flavors that it's surprising that they aren't usually combined. And I suspect it's not a bad combination, as they both share tanginess and saltiness with each other... though maybe it could come off to strong. If there's any medium to try this on though, a rice cracker is the one to do it.

To my surprise, all of these rice crackers are individually wrapped inside. It was the same for the rice crackers I had yesterday though, so maybe it's a trend. But they know nobody's going to open up this bag and just eat one, so why package only one at a time? Anyways, the actual cracker has a pretty peculiar shape, almost looks like a madeleine from this angle, though I doubt that's the look they'd be going for. The cheese is the most dominant smell here and it's quite strong, hopefully not overpowering. The soy sauce is there too, and for now at least, they don't seem to clash.

The taste of this snack actually reminds me a lot of the umaibos that I've been having. Definitely reminds me more of puffed corn, though I can taste the rice. The cheese, unfortunately, feels a little cheap here, and with the depth it had in some of the other cheese snacks I think it would be an amazing snack. The soy sauce is also a good idea, but altogether these two flavors do come off a bit strong, even with the soy sauce taking more of the supporting role. The crunch also, is just over the edge of too much, it may be personal preferences, but I like my snacks with just a little more give when I bite them so they melt a bit, which of course cheese is known to do. So... it's a nice idea to put these two flavors together, but needs a bit of work.

Rating: 4 - Boof!

TokyoTreat June 2018

Once again a new TokyoTreat is here, bringing with it a horde of Japanese snacks I might not have heard of otherwise, along with a drink, DIY snack, kinosei snack, and of course the monthly umaibo. This these is Summer Carnival, bringing with it a wide variety of odd flavors that you could only get from carnival food. Sounds like an exciting theme, let's see what we've got!

• Happy Turn Soy Sauce Cheese Flavor
• Meiji Takenoko no Sato Cookies & Cream
• Yogurt Ginza Rusk
• Doraemon Gummies
• Chee-zack
• Cream Rusk
• Ikinari Dango Kit Kat

 

 

And in this picture:

• Koikeya Scone Rich Corn Flavor
• Kakigori Ramune Candy
• DIY Popsicle Kit
• Melon Cream Soda Chips
• Salty Seaweed Stick Potato Snack
• Pepsi J-Cola Midnight

A lot of variety here! Just compare this with the almost entirely strawberry February pack and it's clear TokyoTreat has stepped up their curation. Particularly excited for the Kit Kat, Takenoko no Sato, and corn scone!

Yaokin Sweet Potato Yokan

While sweet potato may be out of season now, the its hearty flavor is always in season in my taste buds! It seems like no matter what form sweet potato takes it manages to keep its status as a comfort food. But can this tiny jelly snack bring the same kind of comfort? It's also worth noting that this takes the form of a traditional Japanese snack known as yokan, which is a thick jelly usually eaten in non-package form. But with this innovation of packaged yokan, it can be shipped to anywhere in the world!

This snack, as it turns out, is quite high maintenance. I couldn't get the package open, even with my ever-developing teeth, so I had to resort to scissors for this. And as it's a jelly, getting this thing to slide all the way out of the package can be an ordeal. It does stay together unlike some of the other jellies, but it's quite sticky. It does have that perfectly nutty sweet potato flavor though, that brings back all those nice fall memories.

As it turns out, this tastes... exactly like a sweet potato. There's a little more bite here than most jellies, and as it turns out, a little bite with some squishiness gives you the exact texture of a sweet potato. The flavor is spot on too, so much so that I'm a little suspicious this is just packaged sweet potato. But that isn't a bad thing if so, it's a little hit of fall comfort for anyone who needs it on the go. Doesn't that sound like a nice idea?

Rating: 7 - Aroof!

Want Want Follow Me Senbei Milk Tea

Want want? Follow me? Sounds like this cracker really wants me to like it. And I really want to like it, as the idea of a milk tea flavored cracker sounds tail-waggingly good. But it's going to be hard to convert the refreshing, satisfying taste of milk tea into solid form... or maybe not. The British imagery on here is also a little confusing, maybe it's British milk tea? Do they even have that over there? That would be my kind of tea time.

The cracker is pretty similar to its appearance on the package, and it's definitely intriguing me. It's a nice light brown color with white icing splotches, which could be the milk. I'm certainly intrigued, though the scent is quite mild. I get the tea and the rice flavor, but no milk, hopefully all that goodness is hiding within. The crackers are also quite light and hollow meaning I'll probably be chowing down on a lot of these soon if I like them.

The cracker has more of a savory component to it than I thought, which I guess should be expected - it is a rice cracker first and foremost. The flavors within it are quite nice reminding me of some of the best rice crackers I've had, it's very rich in its grainy flavor and there's a lot of nice depth here, almost like a rice-wheat mixture, but likely just rice. The milky bits add some much-needed sweet touches to this, and although milk tea isn't the first thing that comes to mind here, it's still quite good. It's got some nice light sweetness just like the drink, just in a different form factor. These might in fact be the perfect companion to some milk tea!

Rating; 7 - Aroof!

DIY Candy Apples

I've tried one variant of carnival food with the chocolate banana, why not another one? This one is a particular favorite of mine: something about candy coating mixed with apples makes the vibrant sweetness of apples even more pronounced. And this one has all the fun of being a DIY kit!

I was surprised in this one to see that the candy coating was not a powder, instead a very thick liquid in a packet. Not that I'm complaining, let's me get to the eating that much quicker! The apple candies in here absolutely explode with delicious apple smell, and while likely artificial it's got that richness to it that I'd expect from a real apple, with all the candy sweetness. The candies are a bit thicker than I expected, only changing in shape with a little force, but all the better to stick a toothpick in. From what I licked off the packet, the candy has a very nice sweet taste.

The whole process of putting a candy apple together is quite seamless. The candy coating sticks easily, and the sprinkles stick to that in turn with no mess. The taste of these is absolutely divine. The apple candy is everything I'd want flavor and texture wise, with sweet and rich apple flavors, but not overpowering or too much richness, and the candy aids in making it even sweeter, but more importantly supplying some liquid texture that these would desperately need otherwise. And lastly the sprinkles make it crunchy and soooo satisfying to eat. Everything is so perfectly balanced that I couldn't stop eating these, and I think given infinite amount of these I'd eat them all day! Good thing that's not happening, as I need to stay in hunting shape...

Rating: 10 - AWOOOOOOO!!!

Kit Kats - Wasabi, Sakura Nihonshu, Sakura and Roasted Soybean

Ever since I got my box of Kit Kats I've been fearing this day and alas it's finally here... the day I'm going to try the wasabi Kit Kat. I can stand some spicy foods, but the instant slap to your tastebuds that wasabi delivers can be a bit too much. I hope Kit Kat has realized this and dulls it down a bit, or maybe they'll go for the hyperrealism approach. If the worst-case scnario happens though, at least I'll get to cool down with some nice sakura flavors afterwards.

The wasabi Kit Kat seems benign from the outside, with its lovely light green color and creamy smell. But I'm not going to be deceived by that, no way. Wasabi itself has this same inviting color. I take a deep breath, and see if it's going to sting me the same way...

And surprisingly it doesn't burn at all. In fact the first thing I get is the creamy taste, which leaves me wondering if this is even the right Kit Kat. But then I get the taste. The familiar pungent taste that accompanied the quick fire that wasabi produces, but without any of the fire. How they did this I don't know, but it's a miracle and it's pretty wonderful. It's pleasant to eat and hides a complex flavor underneath it's simple creamy exterior. The Kit Kat creators must have been wizards to come up with this.

Rating: 9 - Arooooo!

Meiji Choco Baby

Such a peculiar name with this one. Clearly it makes sense because they're baby chocolate pieces, but the way it's phrased makes it sound like a baby made out of chocolate! If they're going for the cuteness angle, they should definitely make it choco puppy... no bias here of course. All that aside, I've been longing for some chocolate, so hopefully this scratches that taste itch. I'm curious what the texture will be like though with these small pieces.

The smell inside is very reminiscent of semi sweet chocolate chips, which seems great to me. I would totally eat those out of the bag anyhow, so if this gives me an excuse to do that, all the better. Surprisingly though, the texture doesn't seem very melty or soft, so maybe these will be a more crunchy or solid exterior. I guess that makes sense, as these hold their shape very well.

There's a slight bit of bite here, but not anything excessive, so it's just very crafty texturing. They have more of a sweet and milky taste than the smell predicted, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. They're quite addictive, as treats in small pieces usually are. They're not too sweet, or too bitter, or too milky, it's an equal mix of both, that all break apart with just a small bite each. I quite like that texture as time goes on, it's a bit unique from typical chocolate candy. Overall nothing mind-blowing but a nice addictive chocolate snack that'll be gone before you know it.

Rating: 7 - Aroof!

Marukawa Kirby Mix 'n Match Gum

Even though I've gone through the anime snack box, this is Japan, so there's always more on the horizon! Or at my local Japanese market. This one is equal parts cute and iconic being Kirby, and what better way to celebrate a character that can copy so many powers by swallowing them with this gum having many different flavors and combinations? Since Kirby swallows so many enemies to do this, it'll maybe make me feel like I'm doing the same, except the powers I'd get from these... wouldn't be all that interesting.

There are a total of five flavors here, which are yogurt, soda (ramune), orange, apple, and the ever-enigmatic prank gum. That last one in particular scares me, what could it be? The combinations add another layer to this, where I can get flavors like... an orange apple hybrid? Intetive. Also lemonade, apple cider, milk tea, ice cream float, and cola. The last type of mix 'n match snack I had actually delivered on its wacky mixing promises, so maybe I'll get just those flavors here too.

Maruta Nericcho Soft Ice Cream DIY, Strawberry and Cider

Japanese candy includes many attempts at imitating ice cream without the meltiness, with varying but usually positive degrees of success. Now we have it in DIY form, with two flavors and these very happy little ice cream cones filling each other. The cider flavor (which likely means ramune) is of particular note, as I haven't had ice cream quite like that before. Maybe it'll work, maybe it'll be a disaster, or somewhere in between.

The contents of this DIY are quite simple, but simplicity can be sweet. A packet representing the ice cream, a spoon, and three cones. Which seems like a bargain considering only two are shown on the package!

Mini Fried Dough Twist, Salty Shallot Flavor

Right up until the point I pulled out this snack today it seemed like an amazing idea. Mini fried dough twists? So basically a churro right? And I started wagging my tail in anticipation of this. But then... I saw in the left right corner "salty shallot flavor" and I tilted my head in confusion. These... don't seem like things that'll go together. But maybe it'll work anyways. I mean I definitely have more of a sweet tooth, so it's going to be a bit disappointing either way, but onion flavor snacks can be great, and this seems like it's taking it to a different form factor altogether.

Thankfully this Chinese company knows better than to leave a bunch of dough twists bumping into each other overseas, so they are packaged in threes within. They have a texture that's not soft, but not entirely crispy-hard either, somewhere in between. Basically they hold their shape. The smell as I expect is oniony, and very salty. This might be too much salt for me, but only one way to find out.

Each one definitely has a bite to it, enough to make it feel significant. It's about the texture of your average cereal once you bite of each piece with a satisfying pop. It is salty, but not unbearably so. Having the doughy interior there makes this hole thing work. It's a bit of a buttery taste too, which actually goes quite well with the salt and shallots. The shallots pack a punch, but the butter and dough manage to mellow that down to something that makes me not too overwhelmed eating it. This snack isn't anything mindblowing, although it could be if in bigger form with more quality ingredients. I could see these being similar to breadsticks, and the oniony flavor could certainly spice those up. For now though, just a nice little salty, oniony treat.

Rating: 6 - Aruff!

DIY Dino Island Pudding

RAWRRRRRRRRRRRR!!! Sorry, just have to get in the spirit here, as we're going back into prehistoric times where canines definitely weren't a thing. Sad days those were... but instead we have these giant (well, actually small green plastic) dinos roaming the earth. And what better surface to roam in than scrumptious pudding? At least I hope it's scrumptious. And hearty enough to satisfy my inner T-rex.

The contents here are surprisingly simple, just a mold, the two dinos, and packets for the pudding and sauce. Sadly the utensils needed, as well as the cup to mix the pudding in, nor the milk to mix the pudding with, is not included. Thankfully I have all the necessary things. But for those who don't and want to follow along, get them or you'll be disappointed.

I don't usually arrive at the final conclusion so early with these DIY kits, but alas there wasn't much to show in the middle. The steps basically are: mix the pudding powder with milk, microwave it, leave it in the fridge, and then pop it out of the tray and put the sauce and dino toys on top of it. Pretty straightforward, though I didn't know how long to leave it in the fridge. I left it in for an hour, maybe should've been two. As I can't read Japanese, who knows.

Despite being a little messy, the pudding is still delightfully eggy, with more richness as this one takes on a darker color than some of the other pudding I've had. I have conflicted feelings about the strawberry sauce though: well it seems like a nice idea, every bite I have with it completely masks the pudding flavor, and you know I wouldn't want that.  It's nice on its own though, a little oversweet. I find myself wanting more from even the pudding component though, it's nice but not with the depth and perfect balance of sweetness and richness that I'm used to. If anything it needs some more sweetness and a stronger pudding flavor to really draw out what makes this great. I do have to say this is a really nice concept. Visually one of the best DIYs and it's such a simple idea too.

Rating: 6 - Aruff!

Yaokin Apple Roll

While Japanese candy has introduced me to a lot of unique flavors in types of food, some of them can definitely be a little derivative. Take this one for instance, which seems to be the Japanese version of a fruit roll-up. Not that I'm complaining of course, as those can be plenty yummy with their soft-thin texture and vibrant flavor. Also this one is entirely apple, so it'll be interesting to see which route they take with the apple flavor, as there are a myriad of natural and artificial apple flavors out there.

At first glance, this seems to be much closer to Fruit by the Foot. It also is bright green just like the packaging and the strange looking apple character on the front. It could be color association but the smell seems similar to a green apple Jolly Rancher, so that's what I'm expecting, and 3-ish feet of that sounds quite fine to me!

The gummy is a bit tougher than I've expected and requires a bit of force to get off of the paper, but I guess that's how Fruit by the Foot is too, better than being a mess of gummy and paper in the packaging. The apple flavor is a bit more natural than the green apple flavor actually, which means it's not as much as an in-your-face flavor as a Jolly Rancher, but more subdued and refreshing. It's quite a welcome change. I do wish though that this had just a bit more flavor. As I go through the rest of the roll I'm always left a bit unsatisfied and wanting more, and that itch is never scratched even when it's gone. The roll also sticks to my teeth a bit more than I'd like it to. I like to keep these clean for hunts!

Rating: 6 - Aruff!

Kracie Popin Cookin Japanese Festival

After going through the large box of Kracie kits I had, I found another one. Guess this calls for a celebration! Thankfully this kit has everything I need to do that. Four different components here being french fries, candy apples, chocolate bananas, and corn on the cob, so it's sure to be involved but no short on fun.

I expected a lot of components in this kit, and that's exactly what I got. Three different mats, 5 packets of powder, some yellow soft candy, sprinkles, toothpicks, and a shovel-spoon (my favorite!). The cutting board mat in particular seems rather excessive, but I guess it's nice to create the mood.

Boruto Hand Gummy

There are two Boruto snacks in this box and both are pineapple flavored. I assume that's not a coincidence here and pineapple is the designated Boruto flavor. I wonder if they assign flavors to every anime? That would be interesting. This one is supposed to be energy drink flavored, while not an actual energy drink, but I did already get that vibe a bit in the last Boruto snack. Hopefully this will add something a little different into the mix, and if not, it'll at least be a different texture and same refreshing pineapple taste.

The gummy certainly seems to resemble one of those stretchy hand toys. I think I've said this before about other gummies, but this one more than any of them seems to be inspired by that. The hand is very loose and curls up just like those. The flavor is also quite unique and very distinct from the pineapple jelly. Where that was more sweet, this adds a sour component as well, which is really nice, creating an interesting balanced flavor.

When I eat it I just get more of that and it's really nice, definitely like drinking a pineapple energy drink and feeling recharged after a nice romp, except it's slightly more solid. The gummy texture isn't the most satisfying around though, there's a weird consistency too it where it's lacks a little bit of the bite it needs so it melts in your mouth just a little too quickly. I say that though because the flavor is so nice that I want to experience it for longer, but alas it's all over too soon. Not even the tiny second helping of the star can prolong the sadness after that nice flavor left me. Of course I wouldn't be saying this if the flavor wasn't amazing, so it is. Just don't expect it to last too long.

Rating: 8 - Rowf!

Dragon Ball Z Cheese Puffs

Another box, another cheesy snack. Though I always worry about these Japan seems to do them better justice than America, and maybe this one will continue the trend and go Super Saiyan, or bring up the snack power level to over 9000... yep, that's all I know about DBZ. It also comes with a card, which is a nice touch. I feel like all anime snacks should come with some sort of collectible, especially the ones that feel really underrated otherwise.

Already it seems like I'm in good hands getting a Goku card. These puffs smell very similar to the Umaiwa Cheese snack from last month's box, very much like cheese fondue, which is a very nice smell to have compared to many of the other cheese snacks out there. They may even be the same composition as Umaiwa Cheese, considering the description for this one mentions corn puffs as well.

One again, I get that nice cheesy fondue flavor tasting the puffs, and it mixes quite well with the puffed corn center. The cheese taste is very solid but not overwhelmingly strong, the corn puff does well to help dull it down. It actually seems to continue to be dull the more I eat, but then when I eat another one after a while all the cheesy flavor comes bacl. Very strange phenomenon... This cheese puff seems to do everything right, but it still doesn't seem like a snack I'd be itching to eat. The flavor is good but not outstanding, same with the texture. It doesn't go super saiyan for me, but it's at least a solidly good pick.

Rating: 6 - Aruff!

One Piece Bubbly Jelly DIY

 

Been a while since I've had a jelly DIY! These are always pretty fun except for figuring out how to eat them of course, because those tiny straws never cut it. This one also comes in the slightly more unique flavor of melon, which I at first haven't been a fan of but it's certainly growing on me as I try more and more melon snacks. Japan just does the flavor justice. This one also seems to come with a reusable cup, which actually worries a bit because the snacks with reusable cups I've had before haven't been good. Can this one break the mold?

Pretty simple setup this time, but also more involved than the other collectible cup DIY drinks, haing two packets. Likely this means there's a soda and jelly layer, like a DIY drink I had a while back. There's also a spoon instead of a straw, yay! No issues with trying to slurp up thick jelly, which is always a plus. The souvenir cup is nice too, but these are always so tiny that I don't know what to do with them.

Sriracha Rice Chips

 

Hmm, another box, another spicy snack. I do like sriracha, but in very small doses, as it packs nice flavor but also a ton of spiciness. Hopefully this one can do the same! The other ingredients listed on the package all sound like the components of a very nice rice bowl, although I had to look up what okara is (it's a type of flour). Sesame and soy beans and the pictured garlic and brown rice should also add a number of nice complementary flavors to this.

All looks good so far when I open the package. The crackers have both a nice appearance and smell. They're quite solid and have a varied texture, lots of little air bubbles, but can definitely see that they're baked perfectly and have lots of little sesame seeds in them, and a nice sriracha dusting. The smell brings to mind a lot of crispy rice snacks, with the nice accents of both sesame and spicy tomato-ey sriracha. Now I just have to hope it isn't too spicy!

The spiciness is definitely there but manageable, I'm certainly not rushing to lap up water. The first thing I notice though is the nice crunch as I break through the crispy rice layer. It's neither burdensome nor unsatisfying, and then my mouth is introduced to a wave of flavors straight out of a rice bowl. It almost feels like I'm eating just that, it's incredible just how realistic this is, and the nice aftertaste of that bowl lingers for a while. Even though I'm spice adverse, the spice here doesn't feel cheap either, it's a long lasting heat that adds to the flavor and doesn't cover it up. It also seems to taste a little nutty, and maybe that comes from the soybean flavor. All in all a really nice treat that's really representative of Asian cuisine!

Rating:  9 - Arooooo!

Mentaiko Umaibo

Japan's umaibos all come in strange flavors but bring with them some very delicious unique snack food tastes, all in a convenient stick shape with some nice puffed corn flavor on the inside. While most of them are recognizable flavors though, I have no idea what this one is. Seems to involve salted pollock roe, which I've never had. So I assume it might taste a little fishy? The picture on this one freaks me out for sure, but only one way to find out if the taste will make me as crazy as that dude.

It's definitely very orange. And very fishy. The color inclines me to think some sort of cheese is involved, but that's definitely not the case here. One whiff of this brings you right to a seafood pier, and it's a little worrying. Fishiness doesn't tend to transfer over to snacks, but maybe this one will be better?

Thankfully the corn flavor that never shows up in the smell helps to mellow that down a little bit. The taste reminds me a lot of the veggie salad umaibo actually... somewhat cheesy, except it's definitely supposed to be something else. The fishiness that I got from the smell surprisingly isn't there at all, instead just some salty, sweet corn with some sort of tangy flavor that I can't name but it totally tastes like cheese. Like that other umaibo, it's just okay, nothing unique or special about it, just a confusing and slightly pleasant mix of flavors.

Rating: 5 - Ruff!

Don Taro Udon Snack

 

Well this certainly is a peculiar looking snack. I've had a ramen snack before but not udon, so I may no what to expect or get my expectations blown out of the water. It's also supposed to be flavored like an udon noodle soup bowl, which I tend to lap up like a parched pup whenever I get my paws on one. It's a tiny snack so maybe it'll incite a craving for some more udon. Can't win, huh?

Well this certainly wasn't what I was expecting. Rather than noodles clumped together, it's a collection of loose, dried, udon-flavored noodle crisps. I guess this was meant to be eaten tiny piece by piece from the bag then, but whoops, now it's all dumped out! The smell is peculiar too. I don't get an udon vibe from it, more of a beef instant ramen kind of flavor. Which is from the noodle snack I had before.

The noodles seem to be not as crispy as I was expecting, they're some kind of halfway point between soft cooked noodles and crispy dried. The flavor though is somewhat pleasant, there's a lot of salt, and then what seems like soy sauce, and some kind of broth (maybe dashi?) in addition to the eggy flavor of the noodles themselves. And it does somewhat work. Though I can't shake the feeling that I'm eating uncooked instant ramen. I'm also not a huge fan of this form factor because it's hard to eat all the tiny pieces without spilling them, but maybe that's me having clumsy paws. All in all it tastes a little cheap and the texture isn't great, but the combination of flavors does work. Not enough to make me crave udon though. Phew.

Rating: 5 - Ruff!

Senzu Bean Edamame Snack

 

Edamame is always a fun little Japanese snack. So much flavor from such a tiny bean, and it seems to come from the saltiness of the pod itself. It's quite a unique thing and I'm surprised it's not in more cuisines. I'm skeptical of this snack like I am many other salty snacks, but I hope this one manages to get the flavor just right. And then hopefully I'll be popping them in my mouth nonstop like edamame.

The snacks seem to be shaped to resemble an edamame pod, and they get the color right, although the shape could definitely be a little less rigid. They have a very salty smell as well, almost a little too salty, and then a smell that does resemble edamame but it's a little off. I can't tell what it is, it seems to lack depth.

One of the major differences from edamame right off the bat is the crunch. It certainly makes the whole snack taste a lot different from how I'm used to it. While the smell fell a little flat, the taste certainly has more depth. It's quite rich, earthy sweetness accented by a lot of saltiness but not drowned out by it, and I'm certainly popping quite a few in my mouth as I go. It actually manages to capture the feel of edamame well despite being a completely different texture. They did a great job here, and though it took some adjusting at first I'm impressed at the depth of flavor in this unassuming snack.

Rating: 9 - Arooooo!