Calling all Japanese snack lovers! This is a Japanese snack box review and unboxing you’re not going to want to miss!
TokyoTreat is a monthly subscription box that delivers a selection of limited-edition Japanese snacks, candy, and other treats to your door. The box is curated to showcase a variety of popular and unique items from Japan, giving subscribers the opportunity to try new things and discover their favorite treats.
But with so many other Japanese snack subscription boxes out there, is this the best one out there?
In this article, we will dive more into what TokyoTreat is, who it’s perfect for, the pros and cons of subscribing, and finally take a peek inside my very own TokyoTreat box!
Hopefully, by the end, you’ll be able to determine if this Japanese snack subscription box is right for you!
*I received courtesy product from TokyoTreat in order to do this review. You’ll get nothing but honest thoughts here! All opinions expressed here are my own. This post may also contain affiliate links. You won’t be paying a cent more, but in the event of a sale, the small affiliate commission I receive will help keep this site pumping out more free and useful content.
What Is TokyoTreat?
TokyoTreat is a monthly subscription box that delivers a unique and hard-to-find selection of Japanese snacks, candy, and other treats straight from Japan–right to your doorstep!
With each box, you can expect a whopping 15-20 full-size Japanese snacks. This means they won’t be sample-sized bags, but they also won’t be massive, USA-sized either (USA-sized snacks are way too big in my opinion!).
The boxes typically include a mix of sweet and savory items, such as candy, cookies, chocolate, ramen, rice crackers, chips, mochi, and even Japan-exclusive and seasonal KitKats. Tell me, who doesn’t love Japanese KitKats?
Each box is curated to showcase a variety of popular and unique food items from Japan and is paired with a fun 24-page Culture Guide, giving subscribers the opportunity to discover their new favorite treats while learning more about Japanese culture.
Cost: $37.50 USD for the month-to-month plan, but as low as $32.50 USD for longer commitments.
Skip a month feature: Yes
Shipping info: Varies depending on the country. Check here for more shipping details.
DEAL ALERT: Use the above link and coupon code ELLE for $5 OFF your first box!
Who is TokyoTreat For?
TokyoTreat is primarily for people who are interested in Japanese culture and enjoy trying new snacks and treats. The subscription box is also a great option for people who are unable to easily find Japanese snacks, drinks, and candy in their local area.
And for those of you who don’t particularly like snacks, the subscription can also be a fun and unique gift for someone else who has an interest in Japanese culture and Japanese food.
How The TokyoTreat Subscription Works
In order to subscribe, you can choose between different subscription options such as month-to-month, 3-months, 6-months, or 12-months.
A month-to-month subscription will cost a bit more than if you were to prepay for 3 months, 6 months or 12 months. Opting for a 12-month plan will save you the most on monthly costs.
Once you’re officially signed up, just sit back and wait for your snack box to get to you! Each month’s box will feature a new theme with all the snacks related to that theme.
Pros and Cons of TokyoTreat
Pros
- Huge variety of Japanese snacks and treats monthly.
- Easily allows you to discover new and unique food items that are hard to find outside of Japan.
- Great gift idea for people in your life who like snacks or Japanese culture!
Cons
- Shipping does cost extra.
- Some items may not be to everyone’s taste.
- Despite being full-sized, some snacks were very small portions which made it difficult to share with larger groups.
TokyoTreat Unboxing Experience: My Snackin’ Valentine (2023)
When I first saw TokyoTreat in my mailbox, I was overjoyed! Not just because my Japanese snacks had arrived, but also because the presentation of the package was wonderful.
Check out the box’s bright and happy colors! The yellow, orange and turquoise colors seemed to make the overall unboxing so much more exciting.
Upon opening the box, I was pleasantly surprised by how many snacks actually fit into such a small box. My Snackin’ Valentine box was packed with goodies that just LOOKED delicious from their packaging!
I loved how the TokyoTreat team curated this month’s snacks to be color coordinated just for Valentine’s Day-most of the treats were in some shade of pink or red.
It was certainly cute, but then I remembered that I wasn’t a huge fan of strawberry milk flavored things. Don’t get me wrong, I’m absolutely obsessed with real strawberries, but strawberry milk and strawberry chocolate? Not so much. In fact, at home, most of the leftover uneaten snacks I brought back from previous trips to Japan were strawberry flavored. Oops!
With this worry that everything will be strawberry chocolate flavored, I started my unboxing. But to my surprise, I found a ton of different flavored snacks in the box! Despite a lot of them having pink wrappers, they weren’t all strawberry flavored.
I love how even though they needed to adhere to the Valentine’s Day theme, they were still able to fit in a great variety of snacks ranging from grape to peach-flavored and even sour plum to daifuku mochi-flavored!
The first thing that caught my eye: Japanese KitKats! Japanese KitKat flavors are the best, and they’re so much better than the ones offered in the USA. These will definitely be cherished slowly over the course of a few months–at least until I can re-up on these red bean flavored ones! Yum.
My favorite snacks ended up being the following:
Pure Petit Grape Gummy – devoured instantly, had to hide the bag from myself so I could save my partner the 2 remaining gummies for when he got home from work. I do wish this one was a bit larger since candy bags, even those sold in Japan, typically are.
Maruko-chan Arare – sweet and savory is truly my favorite type of flavor. Add this to a rice cracker and it’s game over. These babies did not disappoint! These were the first snacks that caught my eye and it was a real delight. Definitely going to hunt for these on my next trip to Japan!
Kinako Stick – I loved how TokyoTreat was able to feature a more traditional snack in their box. Since I’m Asian American myself, I know and love soybean-flavored things already. But for subscribers who aren’t as exposed to this type of taste, I was really excited for them to discover a snack like this!
Overall, I really, really enjoyed the entire experience of this box. And let me repeat that–this snack box is a whole experience! And a lot of that is thanks to the 24-page culture guide.
The fact that you get to follow along the Culture Guide booklet and learn more about the snacks made the unboxing and eating so much more enjoyable.
I mean, I’ve tried snack boxes in the past where about 8-10 food items were just tossed into a box with no theme at all (and even worse, not even a postcard explaining anything), and it made for a completely lackluster experience. TokyoTreat is quite the opposite!
Not only did the culture guide give a brief description of each and every snack featured, but it also contained a lot of fun cultural information surrounding how Valentine’s Day is celebrated in Japan.
A few of my favorite V-Day tidbits of knowledge were:
- Japanese women are expected to give men chocolate, not the other way around–this was because a marketing exec in the 1950s tasked to boost sales in Japan understood a translation wrong and thought women were supposed to give chocolates.
- The best way to enjoy tons of premium Japanese strawberries is at a dessert buffet in Japan. I’m definitely taking a trip to Japan next year in February and visiting the Hilton Tokyo–30 kinds of strawberry desserts? I’m so there!
Is TokyoTreat Worth The Money?
In my opinion, TokyoTreat is a ton of fun. Once a month, you can get together with your friends/family and have a tasting experience that’ll transport you to Japan.
And because there are no less than 15 treats in each box, the element of surprise is a lot better than most other subscription boxes!
As for whether TokyoTreat is worth the money, this all depends on what you value in a subscription box.
On the one hand, the TokyoTreat subscription box offers a convenient way to try a variety of Japanese snacks and treats, and it can be a really fun and unique way to discover new items with your friends.
However, the cost of the subscription may be considered high for some, and some items may not be to everyone’s taste. It’s also important to remember that shipping is not free.
Additionally, if you are not much interested in Japanese culture or even interested in snacks, it may not be worth the money for you.
And although I personally found 2-3 snacks in my box to be in smaller portions than I expected, the fact that the variety of snacks was hard to find in the USA made the subscription worth it!
Even if you don’t think TokyoTreat is worth the money for yourself, one thing is for sure. TokyoTreat makes an awesome gift to others–for any occasion at all!
In fact, the 3-month subscription is going to be my go-to gift this year! I plan on gifting a box to my close friends/family members who say they “want nothing” but love to eat snacks.
Hint hint: If you gift this to someone in your household, you’ll probably get to enjoy a snack or two with them when they open up their TokyoTreat box every month!
DEAL ALERT: Use the below link and coupon code ELLE for $5 OFF your first box!
Alternative Subscriptions to TokyoTreat
Sakuraco Box
With a subscription to Sakuraco, you’ll receive authentic Japanese snacks, tea, sweets, and home goods on a monthly basis hand selected by in-house experts that represent a seasonal or cultural theme.
With Sakuraco, you’ll get to experience traditional and artisanal flavors from Japan. While TokyoTreat delivers snacks better suited for the whole family, Sakuraco’s snacks are more gourmet and artisanal.
Every month, you’ll receive 20 authentic Japanese snacks & candy, including Japanese tea, traditional snacks (like mochi, manju, and yokan), Japanese cakes, and even Japanese home goods!
Both Sakuraco and TokyoTreat deliver worldwide and feature Culture Guides that pair along with the snack boxes.
Frequency: Monthly
Cost: Subscriptions starting at $32.50 per month, additional savings are from committing to 3-12 months
Ships to: Worldwide; shipping costs extra.
Click here to subscribe.
DEAL ALERT: Use the above link and coupon code ELLE for $5 OFF your first Sakuraco box!
Japan Crate
About This Box: Japan Crate is a subscription service that delivers a variety of Japanese snacks and candies to your doorstep each month. They offer several different crate options, including the Original Japan Crate, which includes a mix of sweet and savory snacks; the Doki Doki Crate, which focuses on cute and adorable household items, travel items, and treats; and the Umai Crate, which includes a selection of authentic Japanese noodles and broth.
The Original Japan Crate box is similar to TokyoTreat in that it features a mix of sweet and savory items, but it also includes a monthly DIY candy kit. Their version of the Culture Guide is the Manga-zine, featuring Japanese translations, fun facts, and more.
Frequency: Monthly
Cost: Subscriptions starting at $49.95 per month, additional savings if you commit to 3-12 months
Ships to: Worldwide from the United States, except a few countries; shipping costs extra.
Click here to subscribe.
Umai Crate
Eat like you’re in Japan with a variety of unique, tasty instant noodles and garnishes each month! Umai Crate is a subscription box all about Japanese instant noodles. Each box includes a selection of popular and unique instant noodle varieties from Japan, as well as a booklet on Japanese culture and noodle recipes.
You can expect 8-10 Japan-exclusive noodles, so if you’re a fan of hard-to-find ramen, this is a great box to opt for! Each box also comes with an exclusive recipe card so you can take your ramen-making to the next level.
Frequency: Monthly
Cost: Subscriptions starting at $46 per month, additional savings if you commit to 3-12 months
Ships to: Worldwide from the United States, except to a few countries; shipping is free in USA.
Click here to subscribe.
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