Tokyo Treat Japanese Snack Subscription Review

A monthly supply of Japanese snacks! What can be better than that? Fortunately, if you are looking for a Japanese snack subscription box, there are a lot of options. Unfortunately, there are so many options that you might not know which one to pick. We’ve reviewed Skoshboxand JapanCratebefore; this time we are checking out Tokyo Treat.

Typically Japanese snack subscriptions fall into 2 categories: subscriptions filled with mass produced snacks, and subscriptions filled with locally produced authentic Japanese snacks. Tokyo Treat, like all the other Japanese snack subscription boxes, fall into the first category of only offering mass produced snacks (Snakku is the only subscription box that offers specialty Japanese snacks from traditional mom-and-pop stores in Japan). So out of all the snack subscriptions in the first category, how does Tokyo Treat stack up?

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Ordering Process:

Tokyo Treat’s ordering process was straightforward. They offer 3 options, so you just pick one and place an order. If you want to ever pause or cancel the subscription, that’s easy as well. The only issue I encountered is that even though I ordered the more expensive “Premium” box days before the cut-off date, they sold out so I had to settle for their mid-tier “Regular” box.

One good thing about TokyoTreat is that they offer free shipping worldwide. But since they ship all their boxes from Japan, it might take a while for the boxes to arrive.

Price & Value:

Tokyo Treat offers 3 tiers of boxes. The ‘Small’ box starts at $14.99/month and contains 5-7 snacks. Skoshbox and JapanCrate offer a similar small option starting at around $12, so TokyoTreat’s option is the most expensive ‘Small’ option out of the bunch.

Then they have the ‘Regular’ box (the one I got) which starts at $24.99/month and includes 8-12 Japanese snacks. The ‘Premium’ box is $34.99/month and includes 13-17 snacks plus a drink. 

In terms of value, my ‘Regular’ box cost $24.99 and included 10 different snacks.  Value wise, it’s on par with Skoshbox and definitely better than JapanCrate. JapanCrate’s box was filled mostly with gums and cheap candy, while Skoshbox’s selection seemed better curated. Skoshbox cost $24 and had about $8 worth of snacks. Japan Crate cost $30 and included about $11 worth of goods. Tokyo Treat cost $25 and had about $8 worth of snacks in it.

If you live in the US, both Skoshbox and Tokyo Treat are about the same. However, if you live outside of the US, you might want to go with Tokyo Treat because they offer free international shipping, whereas Skoshbox charges a fee.

Packaging:

TokyoTreat was shipped in a regular brown cardboard box. There were a few stickers on the box to spruce things up a bit. Inside was a single piece of red tissue paper and a colorful pamphlet describing the snacks.

In terms of packaging and presentation, TokyoTreat falls behind Skoshbox and Japan Crate. Skoshbox’s postcard is better designed and lists ingredients for all of their snacks (for those with allergies). Japan Crate’s packaging, while not as good as Skoshbox, is still ahead of TokyoTreat with their bright red box and fun snack description flyer. Tokyo Treat’s flyer does describe all the snacks, but is no frills and doesn’t have any ingredients listed out. This is especially troublesome for the included DIY snacks because all of the instructions are in Japanese. If you don’t understand Japanese…good luck with your DIY snack.

The Snacks:

Now onto the all-important Japanese snacks. Let’s see how they are.

Bake Cookies & Cream Flavor Chocolate: “Enjoy the rich taste of baked, crisp cookies with a sweet and creamy interior! They are said to never melt in your hand, and for a fun summer treat, try freezing them to enjoy as an ice cream alternative.”

I had high hopes for this one as I had expected it to taste like mini cookies and cream biscuits. Unfortunately, it did not taste very good. The center tasted like dry, powdery cream and the exterior layer was a greasy, bland layer of chocolate. If I had to describe what artificial flavor tastes like, this would be it. It was sickeningly sweet and left a really bad aftertaste.

TLDR (Too Long Didn’t Read): Not good. Way too sweet and leaves a bad aftertaste.

Monster Stamp: “A hard-type of soda sweet that can actually be used as a stamp, through licking and wetting. Please do this on something else edible for safety reasons! After stamping your tongue, you will see an adorable monster appear! Taste, play, stamp-it-up and enjoy!”

This hard candy was pretty creative and fun. You can lick it and use it as a stamp! The candy is even shaped with a handle for easy stamping. This pack had three different Halloween stamp designs. You might not want to stamp on anything you like to keep long-term though, since, you know, it being sugary slobber and all. The taste itself was not bad either - it reminded me of the Sweetheart candies that you find at the checkout aisles in supermarkets. 

TLDR: Really fun candy and tastes pretty good too.

Red Bull Taste Hunter Gummy: “These delicious gummies have collaborated with the popular Japanese game Monster Hunter, to create a wild treat for any type of adventurer. The energy taste mixed with honey will leave you feeling refreshed and ready for your next gaming binge!”

There were 2 kinds of gummies in the bag. The soft yellow one tasted exactly like Red Bull, except I'm pretty sure it doesn't give you the same energizing effects as an actual Red Bull drink (that'd be pretty neat though, huh?). The white one was covered in a hard sour coating but had the same yellow gummy on the inside. This one was nothing special, just a regular gummy.

TLDR: Gummy that tastes exactly like RedBull.

Calbee Tuna Flavor Potato Chips: “Toro, or Fatty-tuna coveted in Japanese sushi can be felt from each bite of these delicious chip, but the kicker is there is no fish ingredients within this snack! A mixture of soy sauce, avocado, and wasabi have somehow recreated this familiar taste.”

I’ve seen these before at my local Japanese store, but never tried it. And wow, these chips really do taste like tuna sushi! I personally liked these chips a lot, but I feel like these would be very polarizing. You are either going to love it or hate it.

TLDR: Do you like tuna sushi? Well these chips taste exactly like it.

Rilakkuma Pretzels: “From the popular bear character Mascot and Kabaya snacks comes Rilakkuma pretzel biscuits! Enjoy the sweet aroma of honey butter as you take every bite of this delightful snack!”

This is basically a thin sweet pretzel stick that tastes like honey and butter. The subtle sweetness is very tasty, but the buttery finish makes it a bit heavy. I quickly finished the pack, but I don’t think I could eat more than that in a sitting because the butter flavor tends to get overwhelming.

TLDR: Tastes exactly like the description. It’s a honey butter pretzel and pretty tasty.

Round-n-Round Takoyaki: “Based off the famous Japanese street good, Takoyaki, we were shocked how similar the tastes was to the original meal! Artificial octopus and mayonnaise made from flour sure can fool anyone! Use a toothpick and heat, skewer and bake just as you would regular Takoyaki!”

This was one of the most laborious DIY snacks I’ve ever tried. Overall, it took about 20mins to make and required scissors, water, and a microwave. The directions were pretty complicated and all in Japanese so if you don’t understand Japanese, you probably are going to get lost. The finished product was…interesting, and not in a good way. It definitely smelled and looked like Takoyaki (one of my favorite foods) but tasted nothing like it. It had a weird chewy texture and left a really bad after-taste. I’m not a fan of DIY snacks because they typically taste pretty bad, and this just confirms my dislike even more.

TLDR: Requires a lot of involvement to make, but all that effort leads to a mess of disappointment.

Lotte Koala’s March Strawberries: “The popular koala march cookies are back! Enjoy buttery, crisp koala-shaped biscuits with refreshing strawberry cream filling!”

These super popular snacks are always great. They usually come with a chocolate filling, but the strawberry filling is just as good. Each cookie is shaped like a koala and has different cute koala drawings on them. These are arguably the most common Japanese snack in the US and you can them at any Asian grocery store, sometimes even in regular supermarkets.

TLDR: Very popular snacks available at any Asian grocery store. Super tasty!

Crackling Panic Cola!: “These cola-flavored candy bites will shock and amaze you with their crackling and fizzing powers! The bold taste will remind you of bubbly cola and keep you wanting more!”

There were two different types of candies in the bag. The brown, crystal looking ones were like soda flavored pop rocks. They were pretty decent. The white ones tasted like Japanese ramune soda but didn’t pop in your mouth. Together, they tasted like solidified soda.

TLDR: If you like pop rocks, you’ll like these.

Fujiya Milky Candy: “Made from fresh milk from the Hokkaido region of Japan this candy is a thick and soft milk chew that really brings out the sweet flavor of dairy goods that you probably will not find elsewhere!”

These are really tasty and one of the first milk candies popularized in Japan, making them a classic among Japanese snacks. They are chewy, sweet, milk-flavored candy and readily available in most Asian grocery stores. It’s like condensed milk in candy form.

TLDR: Very good chewy milk candy.

Pretz Soy Sauce Biscuit: “These limited edition Pretz sticks have been dipped in soy sauce and are perfect for when you are having a salty craving. Enjoy the crisp biscuit paired with the savory flavored of Japanese soy sauce!”

Pretz are like the savory version of Pocky. They’re very popular, but I’ve never had this flavor before. These came in a flat, wide stick shape instead of the usual Pretz sticks, and it tasted like a crispy grilled pretzel glazed with soy sauce. This has a distinct Japanese flavor that you won’t find in any other snack. Personally I liked this a lot, but a few people mentioned that the soy sauce flavor was too strong.

TLDR: A very unique Pretz. If you like soy sauce flavored snacks, you’ll like this.

Overall Impression:

So Skoshbox vs Japan Crate vs Tokyo Treat? Which one is the best Japanese snack subscription box? If I were to rank these 3, I would say Skoshbox first, then Tokyo Treat, and Japan Crate last.

In terms of packaging, Skoshbox wins hands down. Their box is better designed, and you can tell that they put more thought into their packaging.

In terms of value, both Skoshbox and Tokyo Treat offer about the same value. All 3 boxes offer readily available, mass produced Japanese snacks that you can get at any Asian grocery store. The types of snacks they put in their boxes are the same, and the amount of snacks they put in are also about the same. Both Skoshbox and TokyoTreat include about $8 worth of snacks in their ~$25 boxes. Japan Crate unfortunately comes in last because their selection of snacks is the worst of the three (you can read more about this here).

Where Tokyo Treat pulls ahead is the free worldwide shipping. In terms of service, I would say all 3 are the same too. It’s pretty easy to sign up, cancel, and pause a subscription and they are all fairly responsive to emails and requests.

Hope this review helped you decide which Japanese snack subscription is better. If you are looking for more authentic, locally made Japanese snacks that you won’t find anywhere else, then check out our Snakku box.

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