Universal Yums Review: Snacks From Around the World

Pretty much everyone has a subscription box these days, and it can be hard to find boxes that are truly unique. Plus, how do you know it’ll include things you actually like? There’s one thing that everyone likes no matter who they are: Snacks. Everyone loves snacks, which makes Universal Yums perfect.

Let’s Talk About the Box

Universal Yums is different from several subscriptions on the market because it picks a country and ships snacks and sweets to your door. Basically, you’ll get snacks from all around the world shipped straight to your door every single month. The foods are actually ordered from distributors in the country, so they’re 100% legit.

The boxes cost $14 or $25 per month. The Yum box is $14 monthly and has six or more snacks for you to try. However, if you want to spend a little more, you can try 12 snacks or more with the Yum Yum box, which is $25. We order the $25 box for maximum flavors!

This Month’s Theme: Indonesia

This month’s theme was Indonesia, which was great. Indonesia is such a unique country with Dutch influences mixed with the classic flavors of the people who have lived there for centuries. To represent more than one taste, I reviewed this box with my fiancé, who’s a bit of a picky eater.

Why Universal Yums?

The reason we love this box is pretty much the same. It’s interesting to see what other countries reach for when they’re feeling the munchies or they want something sweet. You can experience what the other countries love. In this box, we found out that corn, cheese, and ginger have a huge place in Indonesian culture.

You can also learn about the history of each country. In the November Indonesian box, we discovered that the Dutch colonization had a huge influence on Indonesian food, which introduced cheese–particularly Swiss cheese–to the country in a way we’ve never seen before.

For each snack, we’ll let you know how it tastes and we’ll drop a link so you can order it yourself and give it a shot.

Dua Kelinci Hotnuts

Tyler: It’s mostly just a peanut. I’m not sure what the coating is, but it tastes like a peanut. Not hot at all.

Shannon: Definitely tastes like a peanut with some sort of hard coating on the outside. The spiciness is made mild thanks to the slightly sweet white outside coating. It’s definitely not spicy at all.

Beng Beng Chocolate Bar

Tyler: It has a little bit of caramel to it. It’s reminiscent of a KitKat, but with a super mild flavor. The wafers aren’t as dense as a KitKat.

Shannon: It’s like a KitKat with caramel and a Krackle outside because of the crunch rice. The chocolate definitely has a mild flavor–I can hardly taste it at all.

Speculaas Ginger Cookies

Tyler: I don’t like the aftertaste. Originally it wasn’t that bad. It dissolves really nice?

Shannon: Straight ginger should never be a cookie. Ever. Never. Nasty. It’s so nasty. It’s like Biscoff cookies were defiled by fresh, grated ginger on top. It’s nothing like a gingerbread cookie because the ginger is super spicy and takes over the sweet flavor.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to find a place to purchase these cookies, but you can purchase the Dutch spiced kind by the same company, which are much more delicious. You’ll never taste a spiced cookie like this. You’re not missing much with these ginger cookies.

Momogi Keju Cheese Stick

Tyler: It’s like a slightly sweet Cheetos puff.  The flavor is milder than a Cheeto, though.

Shannon: Smells like Cheetos puffs, but slightly sweet. It’s not horrible.

Tyler: If I wanted something like that I would just go buy Cheetos puff.

Shannon: Yeah, I would just buy a bag of Cheetos puffs. It was apparently the flavor “Swiss,” too.

Momogi Roasted BBQ Corn Stick

Tyler: This one is also a little sweet, like a less-sweet Corn Pops with a Cheeto Puff texture.

Shannon: It does not smell good. It has the same texture as a Cheeto puff, but with this weird sweetness to it like corn pops.

Sin A Ginger Chews

Tyler: I can’t even separate it from the wrapper.  (It came in a paper wrapper and a wax paper wrapper on the inside to hold the candy in place. It looks like it was cooled on the wax paper, which made it incredibly sticky.)  Oh, god, it’s so gummy. Why is it getting spicy?! It’s really gummy. It’s kind of like gummy Red Hots. It was shocking that it ended up spicy.

Shannon: On a scale of 1-10, how much do you like it?

Tyler: Maybe a six. It was one step above neutral.

Shannon: Alright, I cheated with this one. I read the pamphlet that comes with it and saw that it was ginger. I hate ginger, which sucks because ginger is apparently huge in Indonesia. I hated this one.

Tic Tac Spicy Crackers

Tyler: I can’t taste anything. When I opened it, Tyler smelled them, and immediately just shook his head. The little things are so tiny. They’re clearly not something you’d give to a little kid unless you wanted to get a mess everywhere.

Shannon: Even though these are called “spicy crackers,” they’re much less spicy than the ginger when you eat a tiny little one. They’re about half the size of an American “Tic Tac” breath-freshener.

After some convincing, I managed to get Tyler to eat 10 at once, and he still complained they were very mild. So, this one is more-or-less a dud.  In retrospect, we read the description, and you apparently add them to soup. Maybe less of a dud if added to soup?

Deka ChocoBanana Crepes

Tyler: It’s really delicate and fragile. Just like a crepe. The banana is a lot milder than it should be compared to the smell.

Shannon: These smell absolutely wonderful. They smell like bananas. Needless to say I’m super excited for these. These are awesome. Everyone should try these. They taste like a banana with a slight hint of chocolate. It also doesn’t taste anything like artificial banana flavor you’d get in America. It tastes like a real banana.

Richeese Rolls

Tyler: It had potential to be really good. It had a really good texture on the outer coating, but the cheese feeling was just bad. It was unnecessarily sweet. It wasn’t cheese, it was too sugary. It was like they were making a cheese sauce and instead of salt they added sugar.

Shannon: It’s sweet again! Why?! It could have been really good, even if it was fake “EZ-Cheese.” That sweetness killed it for me. It tasted like a kid’s morning cereal in sweetness. That was just disappointing.

The exact product isn’t for sale, but these Richeese wafers should taste very similar if you feel like tasted this oddly sweet Richeese Rolls.

Nano Nano Sweet and Sour Candy

Tyler: It got really sour after I bit into it, surprisingly sour. I don’t know how to describe that flavor at all.

Shannon: The flavor is literally like nothing I’ve ever had before. It was grossly sweet and sour at the same time. I don’t know how Tyler kept it in his mouth for so long. It was also super salty–very salty.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t find this candy to purchase or a substitute. Sometimes, it’s worth it to be a subscriber to Universal Yums!

Choki Choki Choco Cashew Spread

Tyler: It’s pretty thick. It’s like a thicker Nutella.

Shannon:  To me, it tastes exactly like a Tootsie Roll, but in a more malleable form. It tasted great plain and it also tasted great on a cracker. I feel like you can’t go wrong with this spread.

Chiki Cheese Balls

Tyler: I don’t know if I like them that much. To me, it tastes like it’s a little burnt. It has a burnt after-taste.

Shannon: I don’t know how he tastes burnt. To me, it’s what you always dream your Cheese Balls to taste like. The cheese flavor is stronger, the corn is still there, and it’s just awesome.

Sadly, you can’t purchase Chiki Cheese Balls online. It looks like we’re stuck with American Cheese Balls for now.

Barley Mint Candy

Tyler: They have a lot of herb candy, don’t they? It tastes like they solidified mouth wash. I’m having mixed feelings. It honestly tastes so much like mouthwash, I don’t know if I should spit it out. I don’t get “household cleaner” at all. It’ll clear your sinuses.

Shannon: The first thing I have to say is that I don’t like Barley candy and the one I picked up says “don’t be afraid.” Tyler’s said “Just try.” The little messages are cute and remind me of Dove chocolates. I really don’t know if I like this at all. It tastes a little like a household cleaner, though. It’s a good palette cleanser.

While this is a different brand than we tried, it’s still a product of Indonesia and should taste very similar. However, you can also try a grape flavored mint from the same brand we tried, Kis.

Roast Corn Cheetos

Tyler: It looks like a Cheeto puff, size of the crunchy ones. It definitely has the roasted corn flavor. They hit that perfectly. It is a mix between a puff and a crunchy Cheeto, texture-wise.

Shannon: Sweet again. I’m so done. This one isn’t as offensive as the other cheese sort of flavors. It’s alright.

Superstar Triple Chocolate Wafer

Tyler: This tastes just like those chocolate wafers you’d buy from the supermarket with a light chocolate coating on the outside.

Shannon: I’m a little disappointed. I saved this for last because it looked good, but it tastes just like the regular chocolate wafers you’d buy from the store. It has a slightly stronger chocolate taste, though. I’ll give it that.

The Verdict: Is Universal Yums Worth It?

Overall, we were really happy with this this month’s Universal Yums box. The foods were definitely out of the norm from what we’d find in America. Even the most familiar snack, the Cheetos, tasted like nothing we’d find in the United States.

It was obvious that we both had favorites. Tyler loved the crepes. They had a really nice texture and the banana mixed great with the chocolate. He also loved the smell. It smelled just like a freshly peeled banana that was perfectly ripe.

My favorite was the cashew spread without competition. The banana crepes were super good and could have been my favorite, but I’m a sucker for spreads. If you love Nutella, you’ll absolutely love the cashew spread. It could be your new favorite. It’s certainly mine.