Sakuraco review: we tried the Japanese snack box and loved every bite
LIKE many people, I've always wanted to go to Japan, but thanks to the various demands of modern life (taxes, rent, student loans), it's not likely that I'll be touching down in Tokyo any time soon.
A quick Expedia check reveals that the cheapest return ticket from New York to Tokyo in a few weeks would cost me close to $1000 — it's a once-in-a-lifetime trip that only a small percentage of people will be lucky enough to make.
While there's no replacement for a trip to Japan, there are a few ways you can temporarily scratch the itch.
One method is Sakuraco, a Japanese Snack Box Subscription that aims to "share more of the roots of Japanese snack and afternoon tea culture".
The company has been in operation since 2015, and we've covered plenty of its deals in the past. However, we thought it was high time we tested it out for ourselves, so The US Sun's shopping team was sent a box and we've conducted a thorough Sakuraco review.
Pros
- Full to the brim of authentic snacks you'd usually struggle to get outside Japan
- Beautifully presented
- An exciting selection of unique flavors, textures, and colors
- Often comes with a gift (ours included an exclusive "Tokyo Plate")
- Every product is thoroughly explained and accompanied by an allergen guide
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Cons
- Price can reach $37.50 without shipping, depending on which plan you opt for (however, you do get a lot for your money).
- Shipping is another $12.50 on top of the cost of the box, taking the price up to a potential $50
- Novelty might wear off after a couple of months
Rating: 4/5
Sakuraco Review: How We Tested
Put simply, we ate a lot.
Sakuraco sent The US Sun's Shopping team its monthly box, which at the time of writing (June 2024) was the "Traditions of Tokyo" box.
Our whole team got involved in the tasting, and we compared notes, looks of surprise, grins of satisfaction, and one or two grimaces.
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Sakuraco review: quick summary
One of the many allures of going to Japan is the food, but it's not all sushi and teppanyaki; one of the best parts of Japanese food culture is snacks.
They're the perfect illustration of both the differences and similarities Japanese culture shares has with our own, and Sakuraco presents them in a fun, exciting, and elegant way.
The box sent to our team contained between 15 and 20 snacks (although some were duplicated), as well as some tea and a souvenir plate; there was enough in there to keep me entertained for a couple of weeks.
The snacks come in a pretty decorative box and are accompanied by a thorough guide, which explains both the content of the box and the wider context around the theme.
As far as snack boxes go, this is as thorough, elegant, and exciting as you can get. Most of what I ate was absolutely delicious, and even the things that I didn't like were enthralling in their unfamiliarity; after all, the attraction of something like this is experiencing something new, not necessarily liking it.
However, there's no getting away from the fact that, including delivery to the US, the box costs $50. That's a lot for snacks.
I think that one or two months of a subscription box like Sakuraco is a wonderful idea, especially as a gift to someone who loves Japan. However, we're not sure I'd keep it up long-term, as you would with a streaming service or coffee subscription.
Sakuraco review: full review
What is Sakuraco?
On its website, Sakuraco describes itself as "a community of food lovers, makers, and artisans, dedicated to sharing the authentic taste of Japan with the rest of the world".
That mission statement manifests as a subscription box filled with snacks, teas and other creations. In 2022, the Japanese Government gave the brand a Cool Japan Matching Award, which officially recognises its value as a bridge between the nation's culture and the rest of the world.
Sakuraco has a sister brand, TokyoTreat, which is also a snack box, but focuses more on trendy modern food, in comparison with Sakuraco's more artisanal, traditional approach; the company says that it works with many family-owned businesses, and many snacks are created exclusively for Sakuraco.
The brand focuses on a different part of Japan every month. In the month we tested, the theme was "Traditions of Tokyo", and recent boxes have focused on areas including Hokkaido and Hiroshima. There are also seasonal themes such as Sakura (cherry blossom) festivals and Valentine's Day.
What's in the box?
Each box contains 20 items, most of them snacks, and the variety of foods Sakuraco manages to squeeze under that umbrella is truly impressive. It's worth noting, though, that there were a few duplicates; I would estimate that we received around 10 or 11 different types of food and drink.
We received chips, candy, cakes, cookies, and some snacks that truly defy categorization; one, for example, was called a Mizu Shingen Mochi (raindrop cake), which is a completely seethrough Jell-O-like confection that is unlike anything I've ever seen.
As well as the snacks, we received two teabags (more on those later), a pretty decorative plate, and a booklet that provided an interesting back story about the artisanal food traditions of Tokyo and explanations of all the food that we were sent, including a helpful allergen guide, which will be extremely reassuring to people with allergies who feel a bit lost when looking at the food's packaging.
Is the food good?
Personally, I wouldn't say that enjoying the taste of the food is really the point of a Sakuraco subscription; it's more about trying unfamiliar things and getting a small window into Japanese culture.
However, plenty of the food we received was absolutely delicious. Standouts were the Hydrangea Amber Sugar, which was beautifully delicate, perfumed, crystalline pieces of candy, and the chips, which came in flavors that were completely unfamiliar to me (Japanese consumers seem to be a lot more open than Westerners to fishy flavors on their chips, which I'm not entirely against).
As mentioned above, we received things that were truly unrecognizable, but Sakuraco also provides snacks that are familiar enough to be comfortable while being foreign enough to be exciting. A rice crispy treat in an unfamiliar brown sugar flavor, for example, or a very middle-of-the-road sponge cake filled with an unrecognizable substance that turned out to be sweet red bean paste.
Only one of the things we received got a blanket thumbs-down from the team; a black soybean tea, which was just a bit too savory for our Western palettes. However, it was still interesting to learn that the drink existed, and now I can say I've tried it, at least.
How much is Sakuraco?
Here's where we meet the main sticking point of this Sakuraco review.
The price of your Sakuraco box will depend on how many months you sign up for. If you buy a single month, it costs $37.50; if you commit to 12 months, it's $390, or $32.50 per month.
However, for most Western countries, delivery costs $12.50 per box, taking the cost up to between $45 and $50 per month.
To me, that feels like a lot to pay every month for snacks. Having said that, the quality and quantity of what's in the box is undeniable, and the price of the Sakuraco subscription is in line with that of its competitors.
And thinking about it, $12.50 for shipping from Japan to the United States isn't an absurd amount.
Sakuraco vs Bokksu
You might think that the world of Japanese snack subscription boxes is a small one, but Sakuraco does have competition; most notably from Bokksu, another company claiming to be able to help you discover Japan through the power of processed food.
I've not been able to try Bokksu myself, but I don't think I need to; the brands are pretty similar and even seem to contain a few of the same snacks.
They're even priced the same if you look at the cost of a single month. Bokksu phrases its pricing as $49.99 including free shipping rather than $37.50 plus $12.50 shipping, but I'd argue this is just a matter of marketing.
If you do want to compare the two, I'd recommend reading this Reddit thread, in which Subscription Box enthusiasts compare the two.
The consensus of the thread is that Sakuraco is the superior subscription, mostly thanks to its quantity of snacks and the beautiful non-food items it sends in its boxes.
More than one commenter also reported that many of Bokksu's items are available at Japanese Grocers in the US, while Sakuraco's are rarely available outside of Japan. However, I can't confirm the veracity of that claim, and it's also worth noting that the thread was active around three years ago, so it might not accurately depict each brand now.
The verdict: is Sakuraco worth it?
Although undeniably expensive, I would say that the quality, quantity and attention to detail in every Sakuraco box make it worth the price.
I think it would be an amazingly thoughtful gift to anyone with an interest in Japanese culture, or as a treat to yourself if you want to experience something new from the comfort of your own home.
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Although we only tested one month of the subscription, I would imagine that the novelty might wear off after a few months, especially as the main thrill of Sakuraco is being unfamiliar with the contents of the box.
For that reason, I'd say that buying one, two or three months of the subscription is the best place to start.