Laos Tam Yum Tohato Snacks | Pureral Gummies | Beer Pretz Cheese On

Laos Tam Yum Crisps - These are thicker & therefore more potato-y than the regular variety of Tohato Tyrant crisps. They also have ridges to pack perhaps more flavor powder than usual, as well. They tasted like lemongrass, lime, and spices like coriander - with a huge hit of heat. They were actually quite hot! They tasted almost exactly like the previously reviewed Tom Yum Cutlet from McDonald's in Singapore. Except, of course, not as chicken-y. As a matter of fact, nil for chicken taste. Zilch. Nada. However, definitely a great flavor for a crisp, and they'd go very well with a beer.

I ordered these quite a while ago on Candysan, so not available now - but the regular Tyrant crisps are quite nice as well!

Pureral, Lychee & Dragon Fruit Flavor - Not sure if these have anything to do with the gummy brand Pure, which I've reviewed a few times before with as much accolade for a gummy that I can muster. These were also quality gummies - I think Japan just excels in the world of gummy creation. Yeah, I said it. Take that, Haribo! Very soft & squishy, with an inner core that reminded me of a actual wobbly jelly, or for my fellow Americans, a semi-solid Gusher.

The flavor itself - well, kinda hard to describe. I guess it was pretty delicate, at least the ones that were lychee - the dragon fruit variety was like tangy passionfruit. To be honest, the texture is what made these particularly good. Without that texture, they were just sort of lightly tangy 'fruit' flavor gummies, nothing really strong or unique to them flavorwise.

While this particular flavor is sold out on Candysan, there are a few more varieties that sound delicious. For example, you can harness the power of mangosteen in gummy format. I'd probably go for pineapple or grape, as I know that those flavors are quite strong.

Beer Pretz Cheese On! - I love this name. They're called Beer Pretz because that is what the recommended beverage accompaniment is, not because they're made of any sort of hops or barley. They're a far sight crispier & more brittle than the traditional Pretz. They come in a couple of flavors, I ordered Bacon & Potato, but there is also a Basil Chicken variety.

The flavor had a touch smokiness from the bacon & a lot of smooth & savory potato, but I can't really say there was much of a cheese taste. For a product that says cheese has been baked straight onto it, I just didn't really get it. This isn't the case with all Japanese snacks - as you'll see in a later post, the cheesy pizza Calbee chips with 'baked on' cheese are hecka cheesy.

These are still available on Candysan, and definitely worth a pick up in another order!

Candy Adriatico, March Box

I was the happy recipient of the March Candy Adriatico box - I'm sure you recall my delight with February's offering. As you can see, there was a real red theme throughout that box (I was told by the lovely owner of Candy Adriatico that this was indeed on purpose for the Valentine's season) and this month it's much more green! There was also some green paper inside acting as a buffer, too.

 Not only did it make me think of fresh spring weather (still waiting on that one in London!) but also St Patrick's Day. Being an American of Irish descent, I really tried to make it a special day on the 17th, but it's just not as big here. That made it even nicer when I opened this box up on March 17th - it was like an American style St Patrick's Day celebration in London by way of Slovenia. What a wild ride, huh?

Without further fluff, onto the sweets.

Gorenjka Jaffa Cake Bar - This was quite a bit sweeter than the classic McVitie's Jaffa Cake we get here in the UK, but still had a bit of zing from the jaffa. I think the chocolate isn't as bittersweet, but still dark, and the jaffa jam itself is quite lightly zesty. The cake was significantly softer than a McVitie's, and it was a far bit bigger. It would make a nice treat with tea, and the main difference is the softer cake. I kind of like the stale cake texture of Jaffa Cakes, but this bar feels a bit more high quality. There can be no arguing that this was a biscuit rather than cake!

Šumi Silk Hazelnut Hard Candies - These were a very unique experience for me! I've never had a hard candy that tasted exactly like this - most hard candies are fruity & tangy. This one is hazelnut flavored, quite subtly at that, with a delicate hazelnut cream in the middle.I didn't get a photo of these, but they sort of looked like root beer barrels with a cream-colored swirl. I really enjoyed them, it felt very indulgent while still just being a hard candy. It reminded me of a classier chocolate flavored Tootsie Pop, with a creamy center & a nutty, natural taste. I'd like to hear what other people think of these, as they're so unique!

Kinder Bueno Bites - What can I say about Kinder Buenos? They're one of my go-to chocolate bars when I'm just craving something sweet. The crispy thin wafer, the milky nutty center, the delicious chocolate covering - Kinder Buenos are a 10/10, and when you put them in little bite form they're still a 10/10. These are just like the individual segments of a traditional bar, and I think I ate all four of mine in quick succession. What can I say, they're one of my favorites. People with more self control than I can probably use these individually portioned bites to have "just a little bit" of chocolate.

Kraš Bonko - These are little taffy 'fruit caramels' that are individually wrapped. The flavors are all really refreshing, but my favorite is definitely the pineapple. These are a bit softer than Starburst, but otherwise fairly similar in terms of sweetness vs tang. When I looked them up online I saw they had lots of different flavor assortments, including a cola one which I bet is very nice. Another plus is it's a big bag - I think I can't manage to get through an entire bag of candy these days, but years ago these wouldn't have lasted long at all around me.

Animal Kingdom Chocolate - This is a popular bar with children, and I can see why. I think it came with a cute squirrel sticker, and on the wrapper is a sweet cartoon lion. The chocolate itself is very thin so not too much for a little appetite, and it tasted a lot like Hershey's chocolate, which surprised me given how much European chocolate usually doesn't taste like Hershey's! I loved it, but if you don't like American chocolate you may find this one not so appetizing. Mine melted a bit in transit, but it was the only casuality - and it was still tasty!

Ciocori Rice Chocolate - This one wasn't as nice as the Dorina rice chocolate that was included in the box last month. The rice wasn't very crispy, there wasn't that much of it, and it was just a bit sweet & plain. Not memorable for me, it was the only one in the box that left me a little cold. Then again, other people may really enjoy this one.

Bauli Croissant - I've had one of these before, and it's quite impressive how soft & fresh they stay even though they're shelf stable! This one is no different - soft & buttery, but not really flaky like a traditional croissant. Hey, you can't have it all! The vanilla custard innards are delicious, they even manage to get an eggy flavor in there. This one was really good - maybe my favorite in the pack, outside of the delicious Bueno Bites, of course.

Over all it was a really great surprise box! A nice variety of things - something for everyone. Candy Adriatico is a sweet company in many ways - I recommend a sign up.

Taffy Mail for February (American Candy Subscription Box in the UK!)

I've just recently started looking into subscription boxes, and I was a bit disappointed to see that my countrymen in the USA had yet to open up the shores of our sugary sea to the United Kingdom. In a word, there were no North American candy subscription boxes that shipped to the UK. Disappointing for a wayward American who likes to keep up to date with the limited edition Oreos back home...(Red Velvet, come to me!)

Leave it to some ingenious Brits to solve this problem for themselves. The fine folks at Taffy Mail were kind enough to send me a box to review. Thanks so much - it made me nostalgic, and it really felt like a care package from home for me. For non-Americans, I'm sure it's an exciting box full of things that they may remember from childhood holidays - or even things that they've never tried, which the patriot in me knows they'll love.

They're based here in the UK & ship out delicious American sweets every month at just £14.99, shipped. If you want to get it for just £12.99 shipped - use my code 'CREAMYSTEAKS' for £2 off!

Best of all, they also include a soda - which if you've ever tried to buy soda from overseas you know the shipping is ridiculous. My box was full of awesome candy & chocolate, read on for blow-by-blow (or is that Blow Pop by Blow Pop?) reviews of what I got. Would you believe it, but there were some things in there that I had never tried myself!

Airheads Grape - Never had an Airhead in my life...I was never big on chewing, now or as a kid, I'm more of a chomper. Turns out all these years I've been really missing out. Airheads are a very soft taffy that doesn't linger about on your teeth, it's sticky but only just. Unlike, for instance, Laffy Taffy which I have solid recollections of having to dig out of my teeth by the end of a chunk - or any caramel ever. The grape flavor was strong, sweet, & tart. Reminded me of Crush Grape soda! Miss that stuff.

Abba Zabba - I've had this bar before, and it's definitely an odd one. Absolutely fun to try, it's extremely sticky & chewy sweet taffy with a peanut butter center. I'm not the biggest fan personally, but it was nice to see something a bit more rare in the box. Once you've reached the peanut butter center, it's actually quite nice. It's working your way through that thick rope of taffy that may prove difficult. If you've got strong teeth you may find it a pleasant chew, but I've got li'l baby milk teeth so I can't handle it.

Nerds Rope - I loved Nerds Rope. As soon as it came out when I was a kid in 1997 I was all about it. It's a very smooth, relatively thin gummy rope that is coated in a variety of Nerds. They did different flavors, and this one is Valentine's themed. It was just as nice as I remember, the Nerds were tangy & of course incredibly sweet (did you know they're basically just sugar coated in sugar?) and the gummy is soft & 'red' tasting. You know how red licorice tastes, or unspecified red 'jam'? That's the Nerds Rope!

Whatchamacallit - Now this is one I doubt many British people have tried, considering a lot of Americans probably never give this one a go in their lifetimes! It's one of the older Hershey's bars that lacks advertising & colorful limited editions, along the lines of the 5th Avenue & the ever mysterious Mr Goodbar. This one has caramel & 'peanut flavor crisps'. I've got to imagine there are some holdout Whatchamacallit superfans from the 70s that still bulk buy these, and I'm glad they exist because it's a fine bar of chocolate. The caramel is runny & not too sticky or stiff, the peanut crisps are like softer, less sticky Butterfinger pieces. If you're a fan of Butterfingers, especially if you like the flavor but find the texture too sticky, I think you'd go nuts for the Whatchamacallit. It is quite nice!

Kool-Aid Strawberry Lemonade - Ah, Kool-Aid! I don't think I've tried this flavor before, I was always a red or purple fan. It's quite tart, which makes it a bit more appealing to the adult palate. It's a lot like a Countrytime Lemonade actually - but some of that might have to do with the fact that I didn't add too much sugar. The strawberry flavor, hm - maybe if I added more sugar it would be more pronounced, but as of right now it just softens the lemon up a bit. In case you're wondering, you can make Kool-Aid directly into a glass, you just use a smaller portion of the packet & less sugar. It's a bit tougher to get the balance right, but the good news is you don't need to go out and buy a pitcher!

Dove Cookies 'n' Cream Bar - I've reviewed this one before! What are the odds. As I said in my previous review, I'm actually not crazy for American white chocolate bars - they are very sweet. I ate Hershey's Cookies & Cream bars a lot as a kid, and as soon as I start thinking about them now my throat starts to get a bit sore. I had a segment, and while it was smooth & the cookie chunks a bit more noticeable than before, I still gave the rest to my husband. He loved it - your results will vary depending on how white chocolate you ate as a kid, I guess!

Tootsie Pop Drops - Love Tootsie Pops, but hate sticks? This is just your style then! I'm ambivalent towards sticks, but what I do like about these is the size & ease with which you can eat. Also, it takes a lot less licks to get to the center of one of these, which is good because everyone knows the melty Tootsie center is the best. I bet that owl's head is spinning. These come in all the best flavors of Tootsie Pop, so orange, "blue", grape, cherry & even the dreaded chocolate flavor hard candy. Woe be to the teacher who passed that flavor out to me, hated it. All the fruity ones are just perfect though! If you've never had a Tootsie Pop, I feel bad for you, but they're fruity tart lollipops with a Tootsie Roll center. As you suck, the center because melty & gooey, and once you get to the center it's a lot like a flavored Tootsie...which are also awesome. Orange is my favorite these days, the combination of a tangy citrus hard candy & a malty, soft choco-ish center is quite nice & something I can imagine the land of Terry's Chocolate Oranges & Cadbury Eclairs loving. Even though these are quite small drops, I was able to get a good 10 minutes worth of candy pleasure out of one. That is... without biting. I'm no owl.

Pixy Stix - Oh man, I ate a lot of Pixy Stix growing up. They might explain why I did so little actual growing up after awhile. This is "blue" flavor, an American flavor that is in some ways blueberry, in some ways raspberry, and in a lot of ways neon citric acid. It was my favorite flavor as a kid because well, it was almost always the strongest flavor in the bunch, was kinda sour, and usually had razzbadattude. Just like how I remember it, except now as an adult I'm very conscious of the fact that it's a straw full of sugar, and instead of giving me the energy I need to play dogs for hours & hours it just makes me feel ashamed. Like I said, a Pixy Stix is basically a stick of sugar & is as you might expect, quite sweet. It's not purely sweet though, it does have a hint of tartness & tang. SweetTarts are actually Pixy Stix that have been compressed into discs, so if you know & love that flavor, you'll get it pure & uncut in Pixy form. It was really nice to try this again, and it was actually a lot nicer as an adult than I thought it would be! I guess we never stop loving slightly sour sugar.

Jolly Rancher Stix, Green Apple - We all know green apple is the best flavor of Jolly Rancher, but how does it fair in stick form? I'll be honest - I'm not sure I understand how we're supposed to eat this product. It's no fault of Taffy Mail's of course, but I suppose you're meant to just have half of a hard candy sticking out of your mouth while you gum endlessly at the other end until you get it to biting consistency? Jolly Ranchers in their normal form are bite-sized hard candy logs that you just put in your mouth, in their entirety, and suck on. This thing is way too big for that, and the only other things I can think of just look so weird & feel uncomfortable. The taste was just as nice, a tart green apple that is sweet & fresh tasting, but I just can't get over how exactly I'm meant to eat it. I'd recommend sticking to the classic Jolly Ranchers shape, but it's an interesting experiment - I bet kid's would find a way to eat it in a more clever way than I did.

Butterfinger Bites - I was into the Butterfinger BBs back in the old days, and while these are quite a bit bigger it's the same principle. I think the fine folks down at Butterfinger Co. realize that their candy is almost impossible to just eat as a big hunk of chewy peanut-flavored confection, so they come up with simpler ways of getting that salty, peanutty crunch without having to actually eat an entire bar of it. See Butterfinger Cups, BBs, Snackerz, and Bites. The bites are about thumb sized and mostly Butterfinger inside, with just a medium sized coating of chocolate, The flaky & crispy innards are as they always are, and the flavor (in case you've never had a Butterfinger period) is more peanutty than peanut buttery. It tastes a bit like sweetened - but not roasted or salted - peanuts. It's a unique flavor, and that's why Butterfinger Cups can sit happily beside Reese's. The smaller bite size version is definitely preferable to the large bars, but be warned that you'll still get some stuck in your teeth.

M&Ms Minis - Have you had M&Ms? Yes? Have you ever had them teeny tiny & adorable? Maybe not? Well here's your chance. I like these better than traditional M&Ms because the shell is a bit thinner, so it's more like you're just eating little dots of chocolate. I'm not crazy for the hard sugar shell on Smarties or Mini Eggs, and the M&Ms Minis swing in the opposite direction by making it thinner & less crunchy. I also think they're just adorable. I remember when these came out I got them a lot at the movies, and they blend quite nicely with popcorn. I've compared them above to a regular M&M I happened to have around.

Day's Root Beer - Tasty root beer! You've got to try it, and this is a nice & mild one. It's not too spicy & not too minty, it's like a non-fruity Dr Pepper. It's so hard to describe the flavor of root beer...this is a really lovely one though!

Whew! What a haul, huh? I absolutely loved getting this box - for me it was nostalgic & tasty. There was also so much inside, I shared half of everything (well...more or less) with my husband and we both had candy for days.

 If you want to sign up at Taffy Mail, please be sure to use my code CREAMYSTEAKS to get £2 off your order!

Candy Adriatico, February Box

 When I got the opportunity to review this new subscription box from the Adriatic Sea area - called Candy Adriatico -  I was super excited. Thank you, lovely Nadi for the complimentary shipment. It arrived in such a nice, personalized box I could tell a lot of thought was put into it.

Inside there was further customization, with a personal note & a sweet postcard from Piran. It's an attractive city, I'd like to visit someday - 4th most romantic in Europe, apparently! Everything came in a large quantity - we could've easily gotten just a few of those Truly gummies, for instance, but it's an entire bag.

I noticed that most of the snack packaging was red, and I'm not sure if that was because of Valentine's Day or that's just the way snacks are packaged in the Adriatic region! Kind of like how purple & blue seems to be the color of sweets in England. Either way, it was cheery & very on-theme for Valentine's Day.

The first thing I dug into was the Dorina bar, milk chocolate with puffed rice. I loved it, and luckily there was lots of it to love. It's a moderately sweet & milky chocolate, like Milka or other European continental chocolates. 

The rice was plentiful & maybe lightly sweetened - reminded me of cereals like this one, which personal favorites of mine. I really liked the texture of this bar, the amount of puffed rice inside was more than you may first expect and made for something different from your usual Cadbury bar.

The Jadro wafers were next up, and I was pretty into these from the start. When I was younger I used to love World Market, a shop in the USA that sells some candy & snacks from around the world. Big shock I'd like a place like that, huh? Anyway, they sold Loacker wafer cubes, and I loved them. I assumed these wafers were from Italy as well, but these were actually from Croatia!

 These were just as nice as the Loacker wafers from back then. Crispy yet delicate. Inside the wafers is chocolate cream & I believe vanilla cream? The chocolate filling has a strong taste, unlike some cheaper (read...American) wafer cookies. The white filling also had a legitimate taste of vanilla - rather than the standard 'sugar cream'. It may have been white chocolate, but whatever it was it had a rich & buttery flavor.

Speaking of Loacker - this next bar is actually made by them! I didn't realize until after I had already eaten it, haha. This one is Choco & Milk Cereals.

 It reminded me of the Kinder Country bar, with the thick milky cream that has a slightly nutty taste. The little bits of cereal just add crispness & the chocolate coating is high quality European stuff. 

This one went down very quickly, I'd happily choose it for an afternoon snack anytime.

Next I enjoyed the roll cake. This really reminded me of Little Debbie's Swiss Rolls, but better. The chocolate covering is properly chocolate, not a weird choco-confection like a lot of snack cakes use. The filling was creamy & light, didn't coat my mouth in a weird way.

 The cake itself was natural & sweet. If you're an expat American craving Little Debbie's, I'd happily recommend you find a way to get these - good news, there is a way, and I'll tell you at the end. :)

The Zanzibar chocolate was gianduja with a whole hazelnut in, and it was just as tasty as it sounds. Which is to say super tasty. I love hazelnut & chocolate combinations like all red-blooded human beings, and this is just a quick little hit of that perfect combo.

 Nice to include a whole nut as well - gives it a more premium feel. The hole in my bar is where the nut was...haha. Sorry.

There were a couple of fruitier candies included - including some strawberry Starburst type sweets that I didn't try...but I received reports from my snacking companion that they were nice & sweet. That's why he doesn't have his own blog I suppose, haha. 

I did have quite a few of these Truly gummies & they're quite nice. I appreciate the natural way they've been made, with fruit juice & no artificial colors. To be honest, I kind of like the stronger taste that comes with artificial flavors, but I also understand it's unhealthy!

 I really love the texture of these, they're like firm gumdrops covered in a fine sugar. The orange is particularly good with a strong fruity tang.

So all together, a lovely package with tons of chocolate I would've never otherwise tried. That's what makes this box so interesting to me - it's chocolate & candy from a region that I (and perhaps others, too) don't know much about. That's not to even mention the sweet the owner who is very communicative & obviously passionate about her region of the world and the delicious snacks therein. If you're interested in this specific box (including the reminiscent-but-tastier cake rolls) I happen to have some insider info that there will soon be an option on the site to order sweets from previous boxes...However, it'd be just as fun to get some new snacks! Take a look at the Candy Adriatico website for more info & discover the snacks of the Adriatic sea!..and I don't mean fish & kelp.

Puccho Disney Pixar World, Candy & Charm

I'm not usually one for chewy candies - I know they're particularly harsh on teeth, so my paranoia about decay overrides the joy that a long lasting, tangy chew can provide.

That being said, I am a sucker for a gimmick, especially one that I can hang off of my keys. Enter Puccho Disney Pixar World, a candy that comes with a charm. Not just a charm if you ask me, but lots of charm. With it's bright packaging and promise of adorably pudgy Pixar characters (that do indeed resemble Puccho squares) inside, I couldn't resist these charms.

I was hoping to get either Mike, Sully, or Buzz as my charming companion - but I'm certainly not complaining about Unsure Puccho Woody! He's very sweet.

Speaking of sweet, the candies themselves are a milky berry flavor. While not my favorite - I would've preferred something citrus or more tangy if I was choosing based on flavor - they're inoffensive & are probably toothsome to all fans of chewy candies. Won't be setting anyone's world on fire, but you'd be hard pressed to find someone who would spit out a gentle strawberry & raspberry candy. I was most reminded of the Berries 'n' Creme variety of Starburst, famous for this terrible, no good, genuinely annoying ad.

Puccho sets itself apart from other chewy candies by including cool little bits of firmer gummy inside. Some varieties also include fizzy bits, but these Disney Pixar variant stick to the basic formula. The main body of the Puccho is a soft Starburst texture, while the interior gummies are firm - a bit like a Haribo Gold Bear.

They're still available to purchase at TofuCute (shipping within the UK!) at a right reasonable £2.99 for an imported candy & keychain. I haven't seen them on any of my other favorite Japanese candy webshops, but maybe they'll arrive later on in the year.

It's a shame that this free toy/free bauble attached to food & drink thing hasn't really made it across the world yet. In America we used to get free toys in cereal, but that has really declined in practice since I was a kid. Probably fear of choking hazards - same reason the Kinder Egg is banned in the USA. Were there free toys in cereal in England ever?

 I did happen to see over Christmas that you could get a big box of PG Tips that included a stuffed version of their monkey mascot inside, so perhaps the time is nigh for western consumable companies to start including fun extras in their products again!