A Hit and A Miss - The Yogurt Flavored Sweet-Tarts No One Ever Asked For

Lemon Candies  - Asian Food Markets

I'm alive~! I took a short (unscheduled) break, but I'm back at it again with the Tuesday & Thursday food posts and today's pick is a double feature with two different flavor variations of the same candy. 

I picked these up during the great "Hoard everything 'cause Asian Food Market is closing forever," sale. Instead of the usual case of me being suckered in by pretty packaging, this time I was blinded by the fear of missing out. (Also known as FOMO but that sounds stupid.) I bought everything that I had never seen at other Asian markets, these candies included, and the results have been hit or miss. Mostly miss, if I'm being honest, but I regret nothing!

What's The Difference? - 3 Kinds of Apples

Pine Brand Apple Candy (3 Kinds) - Asian Food Market

Another item from my Asian Food Markets farewell-haul. (I miss them.) Last I heard, they were scouting new locations for a South Jersey store, but things have been pretty quiet. I hope for the best, but I fear that this might have been goodbye, for good. 

Contextually, this is easy to figure out. These are hard candies with different apple flavors, a pink, a red, and a gold. And since my hiatus, I still haven't learned to read Japanese, so we're going to be winging it a little in this one. I mean, I can tell it is three different varieties of apples, but I am not sure which ones and if these are region-specific.  Thanks to the almighty-Google, I was able to find this, which looks almost exactly the same, but the golden apple in the center (on the right) is replaced with a green one. Pretty sneaky, sis. I guess apple variety packs are this brand's thing? 

Since the top and bottom apple image are the same as the one found online, I can assume they are Johnathan Gold and Fuji. The gold is still a mystery, but I am going into this with some healthy skepticism. Will these actually taste any different? 

Blueberries, Butts & Bubblegum

Lotte Fruity Bubble Gum Dispensers - Asian Food Markets 

Sometimes it's the subtle things that win me over. Sure this has cool packaging, but one little detail is all it took for me to toss this into my cart. Notice anything different between these two flavors?  

On the right, we have little gum-ghosts blowing bubbles shaped like blueberries, which just so happens to match the flavor of the candy inside. The peach gum-ghosts? They're blowing normal balloon-shaped bubbles. Why is that? Because if they were blowing up peaches it'd look like they were blowing up pink-hued bubble-butts...or worse. Part of me wishes they hadn't of caught that (the evil part), but my graphic design background wants to commend their design-team and their foresight. 

As it turns out, everything about this packaging is incredibly thoughtful. 

A Candy Farewell Toast! - Goodbye to My Beloved Asian Food Markets

Tokachi Wine Candy - Asian Food Markets 

Two weeks ago, the Asian Food Markets, arguably, the best Asian grocery store in South Jersey, broke my heart by closing it's doors. 

According to articles online, their lease was up and they are currently looking for a new location, but as of now, they haven't found one. I'm a little nervous that this could be goodbye forever...

(Before I get too dramatic, these are a chain and there are other locations, but there are none within reasonable driving distance of my home.)

I couldn't let my favorite store disappear without one last hurrah, so the day before they closed, I stopped by and took advantage of their 30% off everything sale. Normally I stick to a simple hand cart, but if this was (potentially) a "good bye forever" situation, I was going to go out with a BANG. I grabbed a full-size cart and filled it with all kinds of goodies. We're talking candies, tons of tea, snacks, curry cubes, wasabi tubes, and tons of cooking ingredients. Pretty much I grabbed everything I had always wanted to try and knew I couldn't buy at H-Mart or the other Asian markets here in South Jersey. 

When I got to the check-out, my cart was pretty heavy and practically overflowing with stuff, and the total? Only $109.76 for 50 items! The frugal part of me was stoked, but it ultimately a bitter sweet victory. 

To celebrate my love for the oddly pluralized "Asian Food Markets," (and to get my butt back into blogging semi-regularly) I'll be reviewing a bunch of the stuff I purchased there, starting off this these wine flavored candies. 

A crunchy candy farewell toast!

Sippin' on Some Snow Pear, Banging on a Street Light! - Quickie Review

Tropicana Snow Pear Juice - Asian Food Markets

After going to the doctor for the first time in five years....I've been trying to get a little healthier. Don't worry, if I ever do get back to regular blogging (which I really really want to do), I won't be getting all health-foodie on you guys. I just need to start taking better care of myself. Ah, the joys of adulthood. 

I lost 14 lbs. of body weight...and gained 14 lbs. of Pomeranian. Meet Pepper! Jack-Jack's new little brother who we adopted a few weeks ago! 

So, all of my pants don't fit, I have a new pup, my day job has been crazy busy, my tomato plants are sprouting, our Chinchilla is getting more and more snuggly, and I bought a butt-load of cool drinks from the Asian Food Market. That pretty much catches you up on my life, so let's crack open some of these bottles and do some quickie reviews!

Enter the G-Dragon - Citrus Tea with a Pop-Idol Tie-In

Nongfu Tea π Citrus Green Tea G-Dragon (Big Bang Promo) - Asian Food Markets

This line of teas has the BEST illustrations on their labels. Seriously, each one looks like it should be printed onto fabric and turned into trendy clothing and throw pillows. I feel in love with their visuals and reviewed their Peach Oolong tea awhile back, and now I'm back again, this time with a BANG. A Big Bang.

Puccho Fruit Chews - Grapefruit & Yubari Melon

Puccho, Grapefruit & Melon - Asian Food Markets

Even though I have reviewed a BUNCH of different Puccho flavors, there is only one other Puccho review here on the site, and it's the Banpeiyu Da Mon Puccho. 

All the other posts are still in my Tumblr archives, and we both know I'll probably never get around to transferring all those posts over....so let's start fresh with a little information about this candy. 

Puccho is a fruit chew candy produced by UHA. At a glance, the fruit chews look similar to Hi-Chew and many other dense fruit chews from Asia, but this particular variety has some different mix-ins that make it unique. Usually those mix ins are small, stiff, oval-shaped gummy candies with their own unique flavors, but I have had some in the past that used fizzy candy as well.  

Unlike Starbursts, which are more like a stiff taffy that dissolves as you chew it, Puccho has a denser, bouncier, almost gum-like chew that dissolves more slowly. It's a texture I have only experienced in Asian candies, like Hi-Chew, and it's something you really need to experience for yourself to truly appreciate. 

There are tons of flavors available, pretty much every fruit you can imagine, as well as localized specialty items, cola, ramune, and even a mystery fruits flavor. I've tried every flavor I've come across and even though I do have a few favorites, I have never been disappointed.

Will today mark the end of that winning streak? We shall see. 

Tempted By The Fruit of a Pocky! (Grape & Mango Pocky?)

Pocky Squeeze (Grape & Mango) - Asian Food Market

(Made it in! Just before Midnight EST!) I am 100% sure I've used this song lyric as a title before, but this was too perfect to pass up. I mean, this is "Squeeze" Pocky, and it's fruit flavored! It's a match made in pop-culture-foodie heaven. (Or Dad-joke level hell, depending on your sense of humor.) 

When did I buy these? I have no idea. My foodie backlog is way out of control. I've joked about it in the past but due to my failure as a blogger in 2017, it overflowed big time. I'm just going to write this off as a foodie gift from my past self and leave it at that. (Yay!)  

It might be hard to tell in photos, but these are half sized boxes that contain mini Pocky sticks. For something so small, the packaging sure is stylish! The cardboard boxes have a high gloss finish, beautiful food imagery, and a fairly luxe feel. They even photographed beautifully! So far, this packaging as me falling in love with Pocky all over again, but what about the flavors? 

Thanks to the context clues on the packaging, I'm guessing these chocolate coated bread sticks are flavored with 70% real fruit, which wounds great...if these were gummies, but they're chocolate coated bread sticks. That being the case, mango was more of a safe bet for me, since I've had a decent amount of mango flavored chocolates from Japan, but grape flavored chocolate? I sense a red flag...

Like A Boss - Canned Coffee?

Premium Boss Black - Asian Food Market

(Remember when, "like a boss," was a thing?)

I think it's common knowledge that Japan loves their vending machines. You can buy hot and cold drinks, snacks, canned soups and even mystery boxes covered in ghost stories. (Okay, that last one isn't as widely known as the others.) 

I've have friends that have been to japan and told me that Boss coffee was the best vending machine coffees they've ever had. I've been waiting for a can/bottle to make it's way to the Asian Food Market every since, and it's finally here!

Foreign-Food-Friday? Pokka Sapporo Yuzu Lemon

Pokka Sapporo Yuzu Lemon - Asian Food Market

It's not limited edition, holiday-themed, or "on-trend," but this yuzu and lemon drink sounded so light and refreshing! I had to have it. Into my cart it went, along with some other bottled beverages, way too much candy, and some Pop'n Cookin' kits that have been done-to-death on YouTube. (That won't stop me from trying them for myself!) 

I'm really excited to drink this, so let's (very briefly) cover the packaging and get right into the review! 

Japanese Screaming Intense Super Sour Plum Candy

Japanese Screaming Intense Super Sour Plum Candy - Asian Food Market $1.79

Sorry for the hiccups in posting. House-buying and moving stuff has my after-work hours pretty tied up these days, but we're closing THIS FRIDAY! I'll finally get the keys and the place will be mine! Hooray!! It still needs a lot of repairs, and cleaning, before I can move in, but I'm a home owner! Which is definitely something worth screaming about.

So, let's celebrate with some Screaming Intense candy! (Will I be able to handle it?)

Meltyblend Strawberry & Blueberry Chocolates

Meltyblend Strawberry & Blueberry Chocolates - Asian Food Markets $3.49 each

I know updating has been pretty sporadic while I finish up all this house-buying-business, but today I've got 2 reviews mashed up into one!

We've got Meiji's Meltyblend in, not one, but two fancy fruity flavors: strawberry, and blueberry!

Tea π Peach Oolong Tea - Asian Food Markets

Tea π Peach Oolong Tea - Asian Food Markets $1.79

First off, hello to anyone stopping by after my food tasting and discussion at the Cherry Hill Public Library, and welcome to the blog!

If you don't know what I'm talking about, a few days ago I posted an event on facebook stating that I'd be doing a small panel at the local library's comic-con, highlighting Asian snacks, sweets, and the local markets where you can find them. (Like those DBZ cheese puffs, or those bakeable Kit-Kats.) 

If you were wondering what I was sipping on during the discussion, it was this: Chinese Peach Oolong Tea! I picked it up a the Asian Food Market just last week. The labeling caught my eye thanks to it's bold, flat, illustrations and if you turn it over, there's even an adorable little wiener dog! (Check him out under the cut.)

Dragon Ball Heroes Cheesy Snacks - Asian Food Market

Dragon Ball Heroes Cheesy Snacks - Asian Food Market

Last time on food-blogger-Z: Sometimes Foodie was overcome by the earthly flu-virus. Weak, and incapacitated, she retreated to her lair and lay dormant in a healing tank to regain her strength while the other food blogging warriors picked up the slack. Today, she reemerges from the rejuvenation chamber to reclaim her foodie-throne!

I hope you read that in the rough and scratchy voice of the English-dubbed DBZ narrator. If not, click the link to hear a little piece of my childhood. Also, being trapped in my bedroom for nearly a week has made me even more socially awkward, so bear with me.

When I was a little girl I would wake up at, what seemed like, the crack of dawn on Saturday mornings to watch Dragon Ball Z on some basic cable channel. I honestly can't remember which one, but I think they also had the rights to Sailor Moon at the time. I'd crawl out of bed, wake up my sister, and we'd go downstairs to gaze at the TV screen and sing the Americanized theme song which had, like, six words in it. "Dragon, Dragon, Rock the Dragon, Dragon Ball Z!"

DBZ and Sailormoon will always have a very special place in my anime-loving-trash heart, so when I saw these snacks at the Asian Food Market, it was an insta-buy.

Grape Fettuccine Gummi - Asian Food Markets

Grape Fettuccine Gummi - Asian Food Markets

Check it out! The blog got a (very slight) facelift! I don't have enough time to dissect all the coding and give this place the complete update it deserves, but hey, it's a start!

One of my goals for 2017 was to update the blog, and another was to be less of a food hoarder. I've been cleaning through my stash (slowly) and honestly, it's pretty bad. I completely forgot what I had already purchased, so I've found a few repeats, along with a bunch of products I never knew I had, like these Grape Fettuccine gummies.

When did I buy these? I don't know! But they look yummy, so I'm going to quickly review them before they disappear into the pantry-void, never to be seen again.

Bakeable Mini Sweet Potato Kit-Kat - Asian Food Market

Bakeable Mini Sweet Potato Kit-Kat - Asian Food Market 

I hope you guys had a great weekend. Mine was filled with permits, variances, and car shopping, with a little Fruit Ninja VR mixed in for good measure, but there is a light at the end of my short sale home-buying tunnel! It's so close I can taste it! Or maybe that's just the Kit-Kat's...

Cola Fettuccine Gummi - Asian Food Markets

Cola Fettuccine Gummi - Asian Food Markets

Think last week sugared me out? Think again! Gummi candy is my absolute favorite! When I was in high school I would go to the mall every weekend, not to hang out and get cool clothes like the rest of my peers, but to stuff a plastic bag with various gummi creatures at the (now closed) bulk candy store. Back then I may or may not have "freed" some large gummi sharks into the food court water fountain. Ah, those were good times. (Especially for my dentist. Pretty sure my teenage cavities personally paid for his kid to go to college. You're welcome! Also, yes, I'm still stuck in a Maui-hole. Send help.)

Let's rack up more dental bills and munch on some cola candy!

White Coffee Candy - YouTube Video Review

KA White Coffee Candy - Asian Food Markets $1.29

White coffee? Is it different from normal coffee? 
Coffee lovers, can you explain this? 

Kyushu Seaweed Lay's Potato Chips (Taiwan) - Asian Food Market

Kyushu Seaweed Lay's Potato Chips - Asian Food Market $1.69

With all the candy I've reviewed this week, I am all sugared out. I need something savory and light. Seaweed flavored potato chips should do the trick.

#tbt Matcha Ice Cream Candy - Asian Food Markets

UHA Matcha Ice Cream Candy - Asian Food Markets $2.99

And now for something completely different: Matcha Ice Cream Candy! 

It's a nice break from all the holiday specific sweets and snacks I've been reviewing, and since it's been so bleak and miserable here in South Jersey, it's nice to see some green. (Even if it's just on a candy wrapper.)