Japan Fun Box: What's Inside?

Everyone knows I love subscription boxes. I love the prospect of getting a treat every month in the mailbox, and the idea of it kind of being a surprise is even better, since the box contents change each month. I also love Japanese culture- anything kawaii (Japanese for 'cute') and interesting Japanese candies and foods. So when the polite and friendly folks at Japan Fun Box asked if I would review one of their subscription boxes, I said OF COURSE!

What is Japan Fun Box?

Japan Fun Box is a subscription box service that sends Japanese candies, treats and snacks right to your door (or mailbox or whatever, you know what I mean). You can order online, choosing the plan that best suits you. You can receive a box monthly and cancel anytime. The shipping cost is built right into the price, so you don't have to worry about paying extra for delivery. And they ship worldwide!

How Much Does Japan Fun Box Cost?

Prices for Japan Fun Box vary based on which type of box you choose. But as of the publication date of this entry, a mini box is $14.99 (I'll explain the difference in a minute), the original size box is $32.99 a month, and the family size is $49.99 a month. You can read more about their monthly plans and get their most current prices here.

What's Inside a Japan Fun Box?

I received a Mini Japan Fun Box to sample. When I opened it, I was greeted by a list of the goodies that would be inside my box, like this:

I totally loved this list because it also showed what you would have received if you ordered the larger sized boxes, so you have a good comparison of the differences in each box. Also, when dealing with Japanese foods and treats, you can't always tell what they are! Unless you can read Japanese, it's easy to have no clue what each item is. This handy list described each food item beautifully (in English), so I wasn't left in the dark about what I was consuming.

So here's what my mini box looked like when I unwrapped it:

Japan Fun Box mini box assortment

Nice, right? And here's what was inside. I'll admit that it was a lot of fun sampling each item and sharing them with family members. Mr. Jersey Momma spent two weeks in Japan last year for business, so he was familiar with some of these items. It was fun to see everyone's reaction when sampling.

So the day my Japan Fun Box arrived, it was about 95 degrees in the fine state of New Jersey. These shortbread chocolate cookies were completely melted. And I mean, completely, like total liquid! No worries, I popped them in the fridge and they hardened up again. But they remained in one big blob of chocolate and biscuit, so I had to eat them all in one sitting. I think they're meant to be cracked off one at a time to eat as 'mini biscuits,' but oh well! They were yummy this way, too.

And THESE were hysterical. They're called whistle candies (grape flavored) but they really should be called screamers or something, because they make so much noise! I doubted they were going to work, but lo and behold, they do actually whistle and they taste good, too. They came with a little surprise toy, which was a plastic ring in a funny little box. The Japan Fun Box description of these whistle candies says, ' ...it makes kids happy but their parents angry.' Ha!

grape whistle candies from Japan Fun Box

Next up were exploding prune candies (similar to American Pop Rocks). 'What are prunes?' asked The Jersey Momma's Boy, to which I replied, 'They are like sad little plums.'  I'll be honest, I was totally afraid to try this! The little character on the top left looks like he's exploding or farting or something. I wasn't sure what to expect. But they were just like American Pop Rocks, only not quite as sugary sweet. They had a nice plum flavor.

The Tomato Pretz sticks were like a super thin breadstick, and similar in size to a Pocky. They had a nice tomato flavor and made a good snack before dinner.

The next snack was a pizza potato chip. They were good, too, with a unique flavor. They kind of tasted like pizza but with a sweet tomato twist. And each chip had what looked like cheese melted across it. Definitely not like the typical American potato chip! It was a fairly large sized bag, too, somewhere between a mini bag and regular size.

And finally we tried this odd stick of candy, that was described as 'orange and lemon flavored soft candy that mysteriously creates a cola flavor.' It smelled bizarre when I opened it and had a strange tart flavor when I first tried it, but then turned chewy and sweet, like taffy, and wound up tasting like a citrus soda. Not bad!  The Jersey Momma's Boy really liked this one and wound up eating almost all of it himself.

I love the packaging on these products. The little characters and drawings always make me laugh. I think out of the entire box, the whistle candies were the favorite in this house!

Which Box Should I Choose?

The products I showed you in this blog post were all part of the Japan Fun Box mini box size (the first printed column in the photo below), and you can receive anywhere between 5-7 items in this size box (I received 6). If you chose the next size up, the Original, you would have received everything in the photo below for about $15 more. But that's a lot of stuff! The family size gets you even more items, featuring between 25-30 items in your box. So when ordering, think about how much you can consume and who you'll be sharing it with!

Is Japan Fun Box Worth It?

If you are a  fan of Japanese foods, snacks, culture and all around fun, then yes, this box is definitely worth it. I liked the fact that these were all items you could not get in the United States (not easily, anyway). They were unique and interesting, and actually tasted good, too. Everything was fresh with marked expiration dates (nothing was expired). The prices of the boxes seem fair for what you get, especially since shipping is included. Tip: they sometimes offer coupons or discounts if you sign up for their email list or follow them on social media, so keep an eye out for deals!

They had a good selection of both sweet and salty items, too, and one of the packages (the whistle candies) even included a little toy. So the bottom line, I would totally recommend giving them a shot! It would also make a fun gift for someone. As an added bonus, the people who contacted me from Japan Fun Box were super friendly and polite, so I can attest to their good customer relations. :)

You can find Japan Fun Box online or visit them on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. Tell them The Jersey Momma sent you!

Disclaimer: I received a free mini sized Japan Fun Box in exchange for a fair review, but this in no way influenced my opinion. What do I always say? That's not how I roll!

Also, be sure to check out my other subscription box review posts! I've received Tetherbox and KawaiiBox so be sure to take a look!