Reviewed by
Evelyn
Do you love Japanese food and culture? ZenPop specialises in curating amazing monthly subscription boxes which take into account some of Japan’s most popular brands and products. Their boxes are shipped to the UK from Osaka and with no extra customs charges or postage to pay, why not give ZenPop a try today?!
ZenPop has a range of different subscription boxes available such as:-
- Ramen Pack – 7 bowls of authentic and delicious Japanese noodles
- Stationery Pack – 10 cute and high-quality items, including 3 writing tools
- Sweets Pack – 15 kinds of weird and wonderful Japanese sweets and snacks
- Ramen & Sweets Mix Pack – 2 or more bowls of ramen and at least 6 sweets and snacks
For December’s box, I have been kindly sent their hugely popular Sweets Pack and I must admit, this has been my favourite box from them so far! Themed ‘Chocolate Café’, it contains sweets, chocolates, and a few savoury snacks to balance out all of that sugar! Here’s what I found inside the large box:-
Almond Crush Pocky
If you’re already a fan of Japanese sweets, you’ll no doubt be familiar with the country’s obsession with Pocky. These boxes feature a packet of crunchy thin biscuit sticks which are coated in a range of different flavours. For a really indulgent treat, these Almond Crush Pocky are one of Japan’s most decadent flavours and combine crunchy nuts with smooth milk chocolate – I love these!
Shimi Choco Strawberry
Strawberry is a popular Christmas flavour in Japan and many families celebrate the occasion with strawberry shortcake so these crispy corn puffs are coated in a sweet strawberry flavour to keep those festive vibes flowing.
Alfort Maple
Anyone who knows me will know that I have a serious sweet tooth, and I could happily drink maple syrup straight out of the bottle if it was acceptable to do so, so imagine my surprise when I came across these new Alfort Maple biscuits. They are INCREDIBLE! They’re cut into squares and have a small wholegrain biscuit underneath a thick layer of sweet maple flavoured chocolate. Needless to say, this packet did not last long!
Sittori Chocolate
Sittori means moist and choco in Japanese and this large share bag contains crispy round corn puffs which have been soaked in plenty of milk chocolate for a very moreish snack. It’s a difficult task to stop eating them after you’ve tasted the first one!
Salad Pretz
The green character on this packet of Salad Pretz is the star of a popular Japanese kids TV programme called Hirake! Ponkikki. Salad Pretz are savoury, slightly salty pretzel sticks for when you’ve eaten too much chocolate Pocky in my opinion ;)
Black Thunder Morning Boost Bar
This was interesting to try – it’s like a breakfast protein bar that’s flavoured with coffee, bitter chocolate chips and coconut. It gives you a caffeine boost and has a delicious texture to it – ideal for busy mornings on the go.
Crisp Choco
Do you remember making chocolate cornflake cakes as a child? This Crisp Choc is just like that but bigger and cut into slices like a pizza pie! The thinly baked corn flakes add a satisfying crunch and are coated in a lot of chocolate for a really sweet treat!
Milky Candy
You may have seen this famous character in Japanese pop culture before – it’s the adorable Peko-chan Milky mascot! Made with milk from Hokkaido and water from Mt Fuji, these individually wrapped milk candies are perfect for when you want a comforting sweet candy to chew on. I do warn you though, they are very addictive!
Hana Konpeito Candy
Given as a gift, these cute and colourful mini sugar candies have a long history in Japan and you can visit a special museum in Osaka where you can even make your own – how cool is that?
Doraemon Cup Choco
Back to something chocolatey, here we have saku saku which means crispy or crunchy, so sakusaku choco snaku is a crispy chocolate snack which perfectly describes this little cup of joy. Light and crunchy, this pot did not last long!
Salad Usu Yaki
For something savoury, there’s a bag of crunchy rice crackers which are lightly salted. They have a wonderful crunchy light texture that almost melts in your mouth and again, like so many products in this box, they are very moreish and addictive.
Melonpan X Melon Soda
A fun way to try two of Japan’s popular flavours, this soft candy chew stick features a refreshing melon soda and a crispy melon pan – very different to anything that we have here in the UK but tasty nonetheless.
Hi-Chew Green Apple
Hi-Chew is popular in Japan and this Green Apple flavour is bursting with fruity sweetness for a satisfying chewy candy whenever you need a little pick me up. Similar to Chewits here in the UK.
Puchi Matcha Cocoa
A new product in Bourbon’s Petit series, this pack contains bite-sized cocoa biscuits which are filled with a subtle bitter matcha cream. They’re definitely something of an acquired taste but if you love green tea like I do, you’ll enjoy these.
Otsumami Mix
The final product is a savoury one and features 10 different kinds of crispy snacks all in one bag. Ideally paired with beer or osake, these moreish little crackers include flavours of ika (squid), nori (seaweed) and more. Another fun way to try a truly authentic Japanese snack.
By Mary 
