Bring Japan to You! Tokyo Treat Review, First Impressions & More

 

This post contains affiliate links, at no extra cost to you. I may earn a small commission if you click through and make a purchase.

 

Types of Tokyo Treat boxes available

As mentioned earlier, there were once two kinds: Classic and Premium. Who doesn’t like the idea of quirky Japanese beverages? That’s why I signed up for the 3-month Premium subscription over the Classic box for my first order.

I was a HUGE fan of Grape Fanta during my trips to Japan so there was a chance we could be reunited! Plus, the Premium box has more treats inside so that seemed like a no-brainer for me, haha.

 

First Impressions of Tokyo Treat

Website, customer service & delivery

The Tokyo Treat website is clean, easy to use and the ordering process is simple with only a few clicks standing between you and your box. Once I ordered, I waited super impatiently for my box to arrive!

Customer service promptly responded to my queries, usually within 24 hours. The team is polite and helpful so you can feel comfortable asking them any questions you have.

Delivery for my first box took longer than I expected, but it was worth the wait! More details on this later in the review.

Packaging

Something I immediately loved about Japan was the high level of attention to detail in literally everything. It didn’t come as a surprise to me that Tokyo Treat would be any different!

It’s obvious that a lot of pride and care has been put into the boxes: From the colourful, sturdy outer carton ensuring treats weren’t squashed when I got them to the Tetris-inspired arrangements of snacks inside the box. The graphic designer in me absolutely LOVES the branding! It’s a really nice idea and product that’s been well executed.

A handy booklet is included that describes the items in your box if you can’t read the Japanese. This booklet also covers some things to do in Japan for tourists, tidbits about Japanese culture, Tokyo Treat promotions, English instructions for the DIY snacks, allergen information and more.

There’s also a chance for you to be featured in the next issue if you photograph your box and share on social media with the #TokyoTreat hashtag.

What to expect in your Tokyo Treat box 

As mentioned earlier, the snacks in each box are carefully curated to suit a theme. The theme and snacks are different each month so it’s a surprise! Below I’m going to outline the different kinds of items you can expect within your Tokyo Treat box each month, the quality and what they taste like.

What tickles your fancy may be different to me, but overall I enjoyed each of the Japanese snacks in the boxes I received and trying new things. When I have been in Japan, I’ve gone on to purchase snacks there that I was introduced to through Tokyo Treat and I knew I liked. Let’s take a look at what you’ll receive:

Popular snacks from Japan

These are snacks you would immediately associate with Japan. Be prepared to enjoy famous Japanese Kit Kats with their interesting flavour combinations (like sake and sakura). I was lucky to receive the highly-anticipated Japanese Cheesecake Kit Kats that you could bake in the oven – they are quite a tasty and unique experience!

Quality snacks from popular brands such as Pocky, Calbee, Lotte, Hello Panda, Glico and more. The Japanese brand Bourbon had included a fluffy sponge cake coated in chocolate in one of the boxes that was so decadent.

Japanese Party Packs

Yummy bite-sized treats you can bring along to a party. These come in seasonal flavours, like the mini apple pies and chestnut-flavoured Kit Kats. In my opinion, the apple pies needed more custard and the chestnut Kit Kat has the most amazing scent but mostly tasted like white chocolate. Still yummy, nonetheless.

READ MORE: Best Japan Travel Books for All Types of Travellers

Anime & Gaming Snacks

You can’t get much better than your favourite character appearing on a tasty treat! These candies and snacks include popular anime characters and other cartoons on the packaging, including Pokemon, Doraemon, Super Mario and Disney to name a few.

My goodness, the Shin-Chan Chocobi puffed apple snacks are incredible! The flavour tasted exactly like apples from Nagano. Sweet, light and delicious!

Japanese Share Packs

 

Different to party packs, the share packs are usually four packets combined and are designed as a “tear and share” snack. But let’s face it, you’re going to want all four packets of the BBQ things to yourself – they tasted just like BBQ Twisties would, were there any… Maybe Twisties needs to jump on board with a new flavour!

These share packs come in both sweet and savoury options so there’s something for everyone. The BBQ flavoured savoury twists are pictured below.

Dagashi

If you like getting nostalgic, you’re going to love dagashi treats. These seasonal, small snacks are popular with children who use pocket money to buy them on the way home from school in Japan. Don’t let that stop you as an adult, though!

Dagashi packaging is usually covered with cartoon characters or shaped in kawaii creatures to ignite that childhood spark we have within.

The dagashi sticks I received reminded me of a long Cheezel in texture but loaded with flavour, like takoyaki (octopus balls). One was a little broken but it was still really tasty.

Beverages

No one quite does beverages like Japan. Japanese drinks are so unique, where else would you find clear Coca-Cola or the mango-jelly flavoured Fanta that I received in my box? Holy moly, I don’t even like mango (weird for an Aussie, right?) but this shake-and-drink can was amazing.

Expect to receive more jelly drinks, seasonal flavours like cherry blossom and even milky teas!

Kinosei snacks

Who knew treats could have added health benefits? Kinosei snacks claim to fame are healthy perks, ranging from aiding digestion, improving your memory or boosting collagen for youthful skin!

The tomato and cherry collagen-boosting gummies I received tasted quite interesting. It was more of a sweet tomato flavour, but with a subtle hint of savoury.

DIY Snack Kits

No Japanese snack box would be complete without the increasingly popular DIY kits. These Japanese candies are fun to make and will bring out your creative side. A little messy sometimes, but still tasty and it all goes down the same way in the end!

From mini ice-creams to making your own fish on a fishing line and other obscure ideas, there are loads of flavours as there are ways of making them.

Tokyo Treat Unboxing Video

As you can see from my unboxing video, there are quite a few layers when you open the box and start taking out the goodies inside!

 

Overall Verdict: Is Tokyo Treat worth it?

Having said all this, what did I think of Tokyo Treat snack subscription boxes overall?

What I liked about Tokyo Treat

Largely, I was happy with my Tokyo Treat purchases. The sturdy and exciting packaging is enticing and there’s a great variety of sweet and savoury snacks to satisfy different cravings. The snacks are a real treat for all senses, from the aromas and flavours to aesthetic looks of the individual packaging. Opening and enjoying each treat is a little experience in itself!

I found the “Snack Menu” within the booklet very helpful in giving me a little background about each snack, which was a meaningful little touch (like how Dagashi became popular in Japan after World War II).

TIP: If you’ve been to Japan and want to go back someday, then I think Tokyo Treat boxes are a great way to bring a little piece of Japan to you in the meantime.

Would I order again? I absolutely did! 

Room for improvement?

The only thing that let down the experience a little was my first box taking four weeks to reach me via regular post.

I understand there are outside factors affecting this beyond Tokyo Treat’s control, but at the time I would have liked a tracked shipping option to watch the progress of my delivery. I was left hoping the postie (Australian slag for postman) hadn’t decided to run off with my treats! Plus, I’m impatient and like to stalk my parcels online every few days, hehe.

In the fourth week, I contacted customer service to check if that timeframe seemed to fit with their deliveries to other Australian customers they kindly confirmed it did.

Turns out my second box arrived one day after the first, which meant it only took around two weeks to arrive. On mentioning this to Tokyo Treat’s customer service at the time, they said a tracked shipping option may be something they look into in the future but for now the parcels are not tracked in order to keep the subscription cost low and competitive.

It’s great that tracked delivery is now an option, though!

Final tips and important things to know before ordering Tokyo Treat

To ensure you have the best experience with Tokyo Treat, these are important things to keep in mind when ordering:

• Shipping with DHL is an additional cost per box. As an example, if you sign up for a 3 month subscription, you’ll be charged the price of 3 boxes and 3 lots of shipping. DHL is unaffected by reductions in commercial flights, so your boxes will arrive quickly using this service. Remember, you can save time or money – usually not both.
• Don’t be alarmed if your second box ships before your first one arrives if shipping by free regular post. This is mentioned on the Tokyo Treat website too. Your boxes may turn up a few days apart, like mine did in the end! Boxes are usually received within a 2 – 4 week timeframe. If you’re worried, contact Tokyo Treat’s friendly customer service and they can answer your questions. Alternatively, the DHL Express shipping option is ideal if you’re impatient to receive your snacks (like me).
• Your subscription doesn’t automatically expire once you’ve received the allocated boxes you ordered. This is important to note as Tokyo Treat won’t send you a reminder to cancel. Your subscription will automatically renew for the same period after you receive your final box. For example, you’ll be charged another 3 month subscription if you initially subscribed for 3 months. If you need to postpone or cancel your subscription altogether, be sure to make a note to yourself and do so within your account settings to avoid extra charges and boxes. 
• As noted by one of my readers: If you purchase a gift certificate for family or friends, take note that you will be charged the monthly shipping fee, not the gift recipient.

Concluding this Tokyo Treat Box Review 

So, there you have it with my overall Tokyo Treat review! Do you have a Japanophile in your life who would love this as a gift? Ready to order your own delicious Japanese goodies? Don’t forget, you can use code “INVISIBLE” for a discount or the promo code code at the bottom of the Tokyo Treat website for an extra surprise. If you found this helpful or know someone interested in Tokyo Treat, feel free to share the love!

If you’re thinking about visiting Japan, why not check out my popular itineraries and travel guides while you’re here? From popular destinations to lesser-known places off the beaten path, I have your future Japan trip planning covered.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy your Tokyo Treat snacks as much as I do! Let me know what you think of bringing Japan to you in the comments below. You can also come and join me on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok for more Japan inspiration!

Until next time,

---