tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-58933806218486379842024-03-09T18:46:19.468-08:00Japanese Snack ReviewsTelling you more than you need to know about Japanese junk foodUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger1449125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-19377724636370059712020-01-31T18:03:00.002-08:002020-02-01T08:15:37.186-08:00I wrote a book
I've been away from this blog for a very long time so I may be announcing this to an empty room, but I've spent the last seven years slowly writing a book and have finally finished it. If you like my writing in general, you might want to check it out. For the next five days, the Kindle version can be gotten for free.
Kindle version
Paperback
I've also created a blog devoted to displaying Unknownnoreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-67021019083254197172019-08-18T16:52:00.005-07:002019-08-18T16:52:44.825-07:00Maruchan "Mike" Green Tanuki Soba Popcorn
On the social media outlet, "Reddit," - that's the one that all of the content aggregaters steal content from - I occasionally see a question to the effect of, "If you fell asleep for a hundred years, how do you think the world would have changed when you woke up?" Being in Japan was a bit like being asleep for 23 years and then waking up and finding out how America changed. One of the Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-36990211289131929712019-08-08T10:09:00.002-07:002019-08-08T10:10:10.017-07:00Sukiyaki Pringles
I have never been much of a Pringles person. Sure, being a fairly organized person who likes orderly spaces, the concept of Pringles appeals to me. Who wouldn't love an anal-retentive concept in which your chips are well-behaved and identical such that they stack neatly into a canister. What's not to love if you're compulsively tidy?
What has never been for me to love is the texture. Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-62825063450786220582019-08-03T10:59:00.004-07:002019-08-03T10:59:55.585-07:00ZenPop date night box - All the Reviews!
Things in life don't always go as planned. I had hoped to do proper reviews of everything in this box, but two people who were important to me died suddenly and unexpectedly shortly after I received it. One of them was my best friend in high school and her husband was flying a small plane and they both died in a crash. The other passed away after years of health issues. I wish I could say Unknownnoreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-82424575732032118942019-05-16T16:44:00.002-07:002019-05-16T16:44:40.268-07:00ZenPop Movie Date Pack Unboxing
Recently, I took a trip to Seattle and shopped at no less than four Japanese markets. The experience reminded me of something which I'd started to forget and that is that, even if you live close to Asian markets of any sort, the selection is often limited and the price greatly inflated. Despite my high level of interest in Japanese snacks, the prices were often 200% of that I'd pay in Japan. Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-29041385078985711282019-03-12T13:08:00.001-07:002019-03-12T13:09:31.516-07:00Glico Kari Kari Cheese Pretz
My husband and I have been back in the United States for almost exactly seven years come the end of this month. This has nothing to do with Pretz, but it has something to do with the delay between the last review of the contents of my ZenPop cheese box and this one.
For the duration of our time back "home" (which often doesn't feel like home), we've lived without an actual television. That Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-40423688281000898462019-02-28T10:47:00.001-08:002019-02-28T10:47:01.451-08:00Bourbon Horo Buono (Cheese Balls)
My expectations of these were that they would be a variation on conventional cheese balls in the U.S. By that, I mean a version of a cheese puff in ball shape. My supposition was incorrect by and large. This is one of those snacks which is unique and defies comparison because we don't have anything like it in the U.S.
These are little balls of softly crispy rice with a cheese coating that Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-37977141459399734832019-02-27T12:49:00.003-08:002019-02-28T08:03:55.864-08:00Lotte Crunky Baked Cheese Tart
The concept of this bar seems stolen directly from the baked KitKat concept. It's a white chocolate bar designed to be briefly cooked in a toaster oven in order to caramelize the chocolate a little and change the flavor profile.
I tried this both "as is" and baked and it is a night and day situation. When it's "raw" and a normal chocolat bar, it is unremarkable with a somewhat cloying "Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-85909936650193381612019-02-26T11:56:00.002-08:002019-02-26T11:56:48.629-08:00Calbee Potato Chips Giza Giza - Cheese and Black Pepper
The site for the "giza giza" (ridged) potato chips that Calbee makes encourages you to enjoy the chips slowly one by one. I don't know if they are letting you know that the experience is better if you eat them slowly or if they care about your health and are encouraging moderation, but it's pretty sound advice in either case. I imagine that American companies would encourage you to cram as Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-72217461986876925322019-02-25T09:19:00.000-08:002019-02-25T09:19:46.895-08:00Fujiya Anpanman Korokoro Ball Chocolate
Though these balls are chocolate coated bits of crunchy cookie, they are kin of M & Ms in a way other than being small and a chocolate coated confection. They melt in your mouth, not in your hands according to Fujiya's web site. I'm guessing the fact that the claim is in Japanese will keep them from being sued for slogan theft.
These are fortified with Calcium derived from egg shells so Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-44719593017667703042019-02-24T08:08:00.000-08:002019-02-24T08:08:46.613-08:00Lotte Strawberry Chocolate Pops
This is another form of "dagashi" (kid's snacks) with some cute and inventive design. The pops are designed to look like flowers that are tethered at the base. You snap them apart at the root to eat each "pop."
These aren't actually lollipops though. They're small amounts of chocolate (about the size of a Hershey's kiss) stuck on the end of a plastic stick. There's also a-guitar pick-shaped Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-38978534011551498572019-02-23T08:58:00.000-08:002019-02-23T08:58:42.177-08:00Asahi Blueberry Cheese Tart Bar
Though Asahi is best known for its beer, the "Asahi Group" makes other products including snacks, personal care products, and soft drinks. I don't drink beer, but, after tasting this bar, I think maybe they should stick to what they're best known for.
My expectations fo this were quite low considering that it's a nutritional bar/meal replacement type of thing. I didn't expect it to taste Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-1368794622372349662019-02-22T09:03:00.004-08:002019-02-22T09:03:51.994-08:00Tohato Ura-Caramel Corn Double Cheese
In England, I'm told that many people refer to any vacuum cleaner as a "Hoover" whether it is made by the Hoover company or not. And, in the U.S., very few people call a facial tissue anything but a "Kleenex" regardless of whether they're blowing their nose into that brand or not. In Japan, staplers are called "Hotchkiss" because that was a popular brand there. It's certainly not uncommon forUnknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-26553086338184192019-02-21T08:51:00.005-08:002019-02-21T08:51:58.921-08:00Bourbon Petit Cheese Cracker
If you ever wondered what a Ritz cracker would look like if it could mate with another Ritz and reproduce, these cracker sandwiches will sate your curiosity. Imagine happy families of Ritz crackers and their tiny little babies sharing loving glances. Then, Bourbon comes along and rips the infants out of their parents hands, slathers them with cheese, and presses them together. Oh, the Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-70631768752635184442019-02-20T15:05:00.004-08:002019-03-12T13:10:11.597-07:00ZenPop Sweets Box February 2019 unboxing (Cheese!)
When I was a child, I remember a commercial which showed a gorilla tossing around Samsonite luggage as a way of demonstrating how tough it was. Though I doubt gorillas tossed my ZenPop box around, it did encounter some sort of trauma in shipping. The boxes themselves are quite sturdy and this is the first time I've ever received one which took on any damage at all. Perhaps a gorilla did get Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-82800174323817970992018-08-31T10:13:00.001-07:002018-08-31T10:13:19.076-07:00ZenPop Sweets Pack August 2018 unboxing
It may seem these days that the only Japanese snacks that I review come from ZenPop. Well, that's because that's the case. They provide the best value box for the money and they also send me free boxes. If I had to pay, I'd buy from them, but I'm just as happy not to pay.
When I lived in the Bay Area (of California), I was lucky to have access to shops that sold Japanese food at seriously Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-86854927996995485402018-04-23T13:05:00.004-07:002018-04-23T13:07:00.011-07:00Coris SonoManma Peach Fuzen Gum and Kanro Fruit Rich Peach Candy
The peach on the bottom candy reminds me of "Call Me By Your Name." If you haven't seen it, don't ask. The defilement of fruit is just too disturbing to relive.
Like a runner struggling after a long, hard run to reach the finish line, I am slowing down on my progress with my ZenPop box, but I am determined to finish! However, I'm being slowed down by plans to take a very brief trip for Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-32505265175224290862018-04-22T07:00:00.000-07:002018-04-22T07:00:34.215-07:00Shimi Choco Corn and Anpanman Pero Pero Choco
I'm headed close to the finish line in my race to review all of my ZenPop box treats before I loose my free time to jury duty (which is coming up on May 2nd). I have to say that it's been quite refreshing to get back in the groove of steady reviewing, though I know that I'll run out of things to review pretty soon.
If aliens came to earth and looked at our food, would they be confused by theUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-79415141473406268772018-04-21T07:00:00.000-07:002018-04-21T07:00:22.211-07:00Orihiro "Standing" Jelly
The latest in my continuing marathon of reviews of my ZenPop box is a "health" drink/snack from Orihiro. Orihiro specializes in food targeted toward women who are calorie-conscious and up on all the latest food fads that are supposed to keep you younger looking and in the pink. These are the women that keep the price of Manuka honey in the stratosphere because someone told them it'll cure Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-17919757924968949882018-04-20T07:00:00.000-07:002018-04-20T07:00:26.983-07:00Poteko Cherry Blossom Salt Potato Rings and Calbee Sea Salt Hard Chips
I'm continuing my brisk jaunt through the box of snacks ZenPop sent me with two of the salted potato snacks. Besides being made of potato and containing salt, they really don't have much in common, but it's not like I'm matchmaking them or engaging in little mock wedding ceremonies where in which I put a tiny veil on the rings and a bow tie on the chips - at least not yet. Constructing these Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-1445918309614978862018-04-19T07:00:00.000-07:002018-04-19T07:00:01.393-07:00Yaokin Fluffy Softmallow and Dora-Choco
The next step down the path of reviewing food from my ZenPop box (the "Peach Festa") is paved with things for children. Both of these dagashi (kid's snacks) are made by a company that most people know best for their savory corn snack sticks. I have to admit that I don't recall every having seen the pastel marshmallow barber's pole that is the "softmallow," but I have a hazy memory of Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-48242017532913647902018-04-18T07:00:00.000-07:002018-04-18T07:00:25.223-07:00Karu Edamame Snack
My stroll through the ZenPop box is one that I'm hoping will be far less leisurely so, with any luck, I'll be posting one review a day until I wear myself out, get called in for grand jury duty, or put on too much weight from an abundance of appealing Japanese junk food.
When I first saw the box for this snack, I assumed that the snacks inside were just pretzels flavored with edamame (Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-56387181469079984982018-04-17T07:17:00.001-07:002018-04-17T07:17:15.408-07:00Gelee Pure Peach Gummys and Meiji Gummy Candy
When I received both of these in ZenPop's Peach Festa box, I figured it was only reasonable to pit them against one another. I constructed a tiny battle arena and placed each in one corner of the ersatz ring. One of them had a shelled pistachio for a coach and the other a crusty old corn nut. Both touch old snacks did their best to prepare them for the battle to come. When the bell rang, I Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-58760214454368682192018-04-16T13:05:00.000-07:002018-04-16T13:05:32.569-07:00ZenPop "Peach Festa Pack" box unboxing
I didn't expect to be doing two Zenpop "unboxing" posts in a row. In fact, I expected to review the items in the previous box. I have a good excuse. No, really, I do. If you don't think what I have to say is a sufficient reason, then you haven't had my misfortune. My excuse is, in three little words, "grand jury duty."
If you've never been selected for this honor, then let me say that I was Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893380621848637984.post-40578341218037247022018-02-13T11:17:00.001-08:002018-02-13T11:47:04.810-08:00ZenPop Sweets "Red and White" Box (Unboxing)
In the first few years after I returned to the U.S., I took my sister-in-law to the "Daiso Japan" shops in the Bay Area. The Daiso is a hundred yen (dollar) store in Japan and other parts of Asia, but most things are a $1.50 in the U.S. When my sister-in-law remarked on Facebook that it was so cheap and had a lot of interesting items, someone who had lived in Japan for a long time scoffed Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4