INSIDE: A Sakurabox Review by the RTG team!
When the world of travel stopped turning, my plans to show all the wonders of family-friendly Japan to my eldest son Ned were thwarted.
But the internet saved the day.
Disclosure: We received a complimentary Sakuraco box but all opinions are our own.
CHECK OUT OUR SAKURACO REVIEW!
Armchair travel became the name of the day.
We discovered a world of first-person POV videos where we could:
- walk the ancient shopping streets around centuries-old temples
- scare ourselves silly on Space Mountain at Tokyo Disneyland and
- be enchanted by the kaleidoscope of colour and magic in Ariel’s underwater lagoon at Tokyo Disney sea.
We took boat rides down rivers.
Rode in rickshaws to secret bamboo forests.
Sat in the crowd of a Sumo tournament.
Learned all about Japanese sweet red bean.
AND celebrated traditional Japanese ceremonies from afar, by repeating the catchy good luck chants we soon knew off by heart!
We could see and hear almost everything!
BUT there was one type we couldn’t watch because they made us long for a real life Japan adventure:
The POV videos walking through the food market streets!
THE BEST JAPANESE TREAT BOX?
We craved the food!
To snack on the sizzling yakitori chicken.
Nibble on dorayaki red-bean filled pancakes.
Chew on gooey rice mochi.
Stuff our bellies with hot off the plate okonomiyaki savoury pancakes.
And crunch on soy-sauce flavoured Japanese crackers, as well as sweet.
SAKURACO REVIEW
Then we discovered Sakuraco, the Japanese food boxes that bring a little bit of Japanese culture and flavour to your home.
The boxes are filled with both popular Japanese snack food, along with the best of Japanese hand-crafted biscuits, crackers, tea, confectionery, sweets and savory delicacies.
And from time to time, a surprise treat hides inside too.
This month, we’ve been lucky enough to try the Kyoto’s Crimson Leaves box full of autumnal-inspired Japanese snacks.
My partner Ste and I finished the snacks in a night. There was no slow savouring of the treats this month – it was a race to the finish.
Ste tried his first ever treats flavoured with matcha green tea – he devoured the Koicha Bouchee cake filled with matcha cream made from the Uji-Tawara tea garden and the matcha cream cookie.
(Luckily, there were two!)
We shared in the joy of Nikki Yatsuhashi, a crisp sweet cinnamon-infused biscuit shaped liked a Japanese harp, and split the Yuzu dorayaki cake filled with white bean paste. (We wished there had been two in the box. One was a tease!)
We’re big tea drinkers here, but tonight we swapped out our regular black tea for the Japanese green tea to keep in the mood.
Neither of us were big fans of the White Chocolate Fruits – it tasted like banana chips coated in white chocolate but didn’t grab us.
The artisanal Kyo no Ame candies were our favourite. Made in the traditional way over an open fire on the ground, it’s more proof that the Japanese are masters in keeping old traditions alive.
These candies, flavoured with matcha, black sugar, mint, plum and ginger – are something we look forward to eating in real life on our next Kyoto trip.
Adzuki Pear Jelly
I loved the Adzuki pear jelly.
Pretty and petite, it was the thing I saved all for myself.
Momiji cookie
But the best thing of all was that Momiji cookie.
Who can resist a sweet cookie baked in the shape of a Japanese maple leaf?
Not I!
Savory snacks in this box must be mentioned too.
There were three types of crackers:
- Heart shaped rice senbei crackers – surprisingly sweet!
- fried, crispy salted Hinerinpon crackers
- a little pack of assorted arare crackers
The surprise was the Sansho arare – these soy-flavoured crackers left us both with a mouth on fire!
That pepper taste was not expected!
Sakuraco Japanese Dish
The highlight of this month’s box was the addition of a patterned ceramic dish. I’ve fallen in love with this little plate and it now sits on my display shelf holding loose change.
I love a good surprise as much as I love a parcel, and Sakuroco delivers on both accounts.
Try a Sakuraco snack box yourself!
PS: Do take a moment to read the little booklet in the box. It’s full of stories of the makers, and why they do what they do. It’s a good read.
Hope you enjoyed our Sakuraco review. Let us know!