Treats Box October 2015 Review & 15% off Coupon Code!

It’s snack time and today I’ve got a real treat for you, and I mean that literally. Today I’m reviewing the Treats subscription box plus I’ve got a great coupon code for 15% off your first box (use SUBTHERAPY).

Every month Treats sends an assortment of snacks from a different country. Their mantra is “Experience the world through its snacks! Discover flavors you never knew existed! Enjoy a one-of-a-kind snacking experience!”

People, that is some hard core snacking guarantee.

They offer two box options, The Standard (for $12.95) with 4 to 5 snacks and the Premium (for $24.95) with 8 to 10 snacks.

The box that arrived was pretty big, so I was guessing I received the Premium. It was wrapped very neatly in brown paper.

Now I love trying out new foods from other countries, but (there’s always a but), I have my limits. I’m going to be honest and say that I was just praying “please don’t be from Japan, please don’t be from Japan…” as I was opening my box. Now I love plenty of Japanese stuff, but from what I’ve seen they really like to have fish and seaweed flavor in their snacks. I’ll try a lot of things but stuff that tastes like I shoved my head into the dried fish bin in Chinatown is probably not for me.

Okay so I open it to reveal, colorful packages that are from…Japan.

Of course I jinxed it, as I always do. My friends can attest to the fact that stuff usually doesn’t go my way, but it’s nearly always in a comedic fashion so at least it brings entertainment value.

To start, this sub has a lovely card with pictures assigned to the names (thank god). I do wish there were descriptions of some of the more obscure items, but they have more info on their website. Since my boyfriend is the CSO of our household (Chief Snacking Officer), he’ll be trying out some of the items as well, so you get two for the price of one.

Fruit Gummy Assortment from Kasugai
(Amazon Retail: $4.98)
Description: “Kasugai is a premier gummy maker in Japan. Their gummies are easily recognizable for many who grew up in Asia. Kasugai gummies are known to taste like real fruit (and it is no surprise, for these gummies are made with real fruit juice), and also come individually seal wrapped, making them convenient to store and enjoy over time.”
Verdict: Hit!
I love gummies and these come individually wrapped and absolutely do taste like fruit. They also have more exotic fruit flavors, like lychee, that you don’t typically find in US gummies. These haven’t usurped the Albanese gummies as “world’s best” but they are tasty and being individually wrapped makes them perfectly suited to sitting out in a candy dish.

Soy Sauce Potato Crisps by Jagabee
(Amazon Retail: $3.60)
Description: “These are soy-sauced flavored potato crisps that look like french fries. Baked, not fried, they contain less oil then your average fried potato chips. Jagabee crisps are crunchier then french fries and being flavored in soy sauce, they tastes different than other potato chips we’ve tried!”
Verdict: Hit!
My boyfriend and I both liked these. They tasted very similar to Pringles and it’s nice that they were baked instead of fried.

Giant Caplico Strawberry by Glico
(Amazon Retail: $9.10)
Description: “The Giant Caplico is a giant version of the Caplico Stick. It looks like a giant ice cream cone but instead of containing ice cream, it contains a thick and fluffy layer of strawberry filling. If you like Strawberry, you’re in luck. If you like Chocolate, even better! For beneath outer strawberry is an inner layer chocolate filling. The Giant Caplico may not be an actual ice cream cone, but its just as awesome.”
Verdict: Like!
I never realized the Japanese loved fake strawberry flavor as much as I do. This snack was a lot of fun. The flavor of the filling is hard to describe, and I wasn’t crazy about the consistency but the cone itself is like a wafer cookie and yummy.

Baked Shrimp Chips by Calbee
(Amazon Retail: $5.38)
Description: “Virtually unheard of in America, Shrimp Chips and are one of the most popular snacks in Asia. You might be thinking “Shrimp flavor? I don’t know about that.” I assure you, for shrimp lovers or haters alike, these chips are incredible, it will probably win you over. These chips are baked, and this gives them crispy texture. As the name implies, there is a light, yet satisfying shrimp flavor to these chips. If you like seafood, you will love shrimp chips.”
Verdict: No Thank you
We all knew there’d be something flavored with shrimp. It was inevitable. I couldn’t bring myself to taste these, but despite my boyfriend hating fishy tasting things he went for it. I guess the lure of baked snacks overcame logic. He stated there were super fishy tasting, which made me secure in my decision not to go there.

Cola Puccho by Uha
(Amazon Retail: $4.99)
Description: “Pucchos are chewy candies made by Japanese confection company UHA. Pucchos are available in some very interesting flavors, such as blue cream soda, melon soda, cola, (as well as traditional flavors like pineapple and grape,) and are unique for having chewy gummy-like “balls” in its center that release flavor and fizz and carbonate when chewed on. It’s fizzy texture (in the form of the gummy-balls in it’s center) and interesting flavors combine to provide a very unique and memorable snacking experience.”
Verdict: Levels of Whatfuckery nothing should ever reach
At first glance I had no idea what these were. I thought they’d be something like a Starburst. I should have been warned by the weird little marshmallow man on the wrapper with the foaming head and expression of terror. His face is exactly what this tastes like: horror. I don’t even have a frame of reference for what this tasted like. It was like chewy perfume with an undercurrent of something rotten. I don’t know if there were multiple flavors in here, because I tossed the box right after the first horrific taste.

Watapachi Cotton Candy by Meiji
(Amazon Retail: $3.87)
Description: “The name of the Watapachi Melon Soda hints at its form, for Watapachi means Cotton Candy in Japanese, and Melon Soda is the flavor of an immensely popular drink invented in Japan (great example of the inventiveness in Japanese Snacks). This treat is a Melon Soda flavored Cotton Candy. Did I mention it also contains pop rocks? Embedded within its Melon Soda flavored cotton candy are pop rocks and fizzy candy. When the cotton candy is in your mouth, the pop rocks and fizzy candy activate, and explosion of taste in your mouth follows.”
Verdict: Like
I actually haven’t had a chance to try this one, but cotton candy with pop rocks is worth a smile. I’m not sure about this “melon soda” business but this will be fun to try.

Pocky Tsubu Tsubu by Glico
(Amazon Retail: $6.64)
Description: “Pockys, although originally from Japan, are one of Asia’s most recognizable snacks. Pockys are wheat sticks coated with a creamy topping designed to melt in your mouth. The Pocky Midi is the newest variation of the Pocky, being shorter and stubbier then its predecessors, and contains an an extra thick layer of cream coating..”
Verdict: Love!
More fake strawberry flavor! Plus chocolate! That is always the way to my heart. These were super tasty and I ate them all myself.

Himemaru by Amanoya
(Amazon Retail: $7.42)
Description: “Amanoya is one of Japan’s premier rice cracker companies, and the Himemaru is one of their main products. Himemarus are golden-hued, deep-fried rice crackers in the shape of a shell. Crunchy with a light soy sauce flavor, this treat achieves the perfect balance between sweet and salty while retaining a incredibly crispy and fresh texture.”
Verdict: CSO Approved
I found these to be surprisingly bland (considering they are deep fried), but my boyfriend got addicted and ate them all.

Milk Caramel by Morinaga
(Amazon Retail: 5 for $23.25)
Description: “Milk Caramels by Morinaga were first introduced 1914 and immediately became a hit in Japan. Milky, chewy and with a rich caramel taste, these treats are an absolute favorite for many snackers and a MUST if you enjoy caramel. Another interesting fact about these treats, they contain tea extract! These treats also come individually wrapped and stays fresh over time. These are well made, highly delicious caramel candies.”
Verdict: Hit!
These caramels were delicious with a smooth buttery flavor.

Kaki no Tane by Uegaki
(Retail:???)
Description: “Kaki no Tanes are crescent shaped, soy-flavored rice crackers from Japan. Although commonly enjoyed as a bar snack, these treats are ubiquitous across Japan. With a crispy and crunchy texture, they come in different flavors including original, wasabi, extra hot and more. In part because the Kaki no Tane is known as bar snacks, many people like to enjoy their Kaki no Tanes with a glass of beer.”
Verdict: Uneventful
These are pretty bland to me, but I think they’d make a hell of an interesting rice crispy treat. I could see this snack appealing to toddlers because of the fun shape and crunch. I couldn’t find this one on Amazon so I didn’t list a price.

  OVERALL

Verdict: Hit!

So what have I learned about Japan?
They love to make things out of rice and have a surprising affinity for artificial strawberry flavoring.
I really enjoyed trying out these snacks and I thought the box was well balanced with sweet versus savory and more unusual versus mainstream items. I received this box for free to review, but the cost would be $24.95. In pricing out these snacks, the shipping is quite high when buying these individually so my best estimate (excluding the Rice snack I couldn’t find) came out to $50.63 (and that’s with a discount on the caramels that come from buying a package of 5). You could get a lot of these cheaper by buying a large pack, but you’d obviously have to know you love that particular snack. You are definitely getting your money’s worth from this box.

I really love the idea of trying imported snacks from other places. It’s a lot of fun to see what the equivalent of things like Twinkies and Gummy bears are in other countries. I think this sub would also make a fun gift for the adventurous eater in your life.

Have you tried snack foods from other countries? What did you think?

THE BACKSTORY
COUPON CODE: Use SUBTHERAPY to get 15% off on your first box

Treats Box sends you a box of snacks from a different country every month!
You can expect to receive snacks from candy to crackers to chips to cookies to chocolate and more. We include all types of snacks in our box with the exception of drinks.Try a new country every month. Receive your first box within a week of your order

Plans automatically renew, cancel any time

Box Options:
Standard Pack:
4-5 international snacks included
Cost: $12.95/Month

Premium Pack:
8-10 international snacks included
Cost: $24.95/Month (Free Shipping)*

Shipping: Shipping is free for addresses in the United States. Shipping fees will apply for addresses outside of the United States.