Choco Home Run Ball 초코 홈런볼

♥ brought this much Choco Home Run Ball  초코 홈런볼  by Haitai 해태...^^~

Here are the actual contents. Yes, they do look like mini cream puffs.

Based on this picture, you can estimate that one pack this size has about 20-21 chocolate-filled puffs...er... home run balls 홈런볼스?

The puffs have tiny holes were the creamy chocolate filling must have been pumped in. They're not there to achieve a donut or cream puff look, are they? I even read that some Koreans call it a butt hole  똥고. ^o^

Product Name: Home Run Ball...홈런볼... it reads the same way as it's spelled...(homreonbol). I bet you know what a home run ball is... WIN~!


Hole in the Pocket: from ♥... probably not more than PhP 80. But I really  don't know. ^^;


First Impression: The baseball theme is obvious. There's a kid with a baseball bat ready to hit a home run. However, I don't know the connection between cream puffs, chocolate and baseball. But if I were to over think it... maybe it's so delicious, it hits the home run spot of my stomach! I also think the container is a little too spacious for the 20 pcs. or so of puffs which means that you have to finish eating it all or find a sealed container for the leftovers. Or in my case, find a sticky tape or stapler and seal it so tight that no air shall pass!


Taste Buds Say: It's oddly not crunchy, but more like a chewy/aired out cream puff. It actually looks like baby/mini cream puffs. You can just let it melt in your mouth and suck the living chocolate out of it. haha! Kidding aside, it's a really good alternative for chocolate cream puffs. The chocolate is not very sweet and the dough covering tastes like plain cookie (minus the crunch!). For me, eating home run ball 홈런볼 is not very fulfilling because it's not that heavy of a snack. Anyway, I feel the same way about eating cream puffs. 


Reminds me of: Like I said... choco cream puffs.


K-rating: 3/5... I'm not really a fan of cream puff...or baseball.

Bungeo Samanco Gold Label 붕어 싸만코 골드 라벨

Bungeo Samanco Gold Label 붕어 싸만코 골드 라벨's mainly red package.
Notice the label stamped on the upper right "자일로스 설탕" (Xylose Sugar).

Back of the Pack... Gold Label (Premium Style).

The wafer design and size still looks the same.

Every food judgment starts with a bite.

After taking a bite and savoring it, the difference between Bungeo Samanco Gold Label  붕어 싸만코 골드 라벨 and regular Bungeo Samanco 싸만코  became apparent. See the pic below for the visual difference.

As you can see, the bean paste 팥 in Samanco Gold Label (left) is more refined and pasty. However, plain Samanco's bean paste 팥 is syrupy and contains soft whole beans. 

Before anything else, for the sake of comparison, I already made a review of the plain Bungeo Samanco 붕어 싸만코 here.


Product Name: Bungeo Samanco Gold Label 붕어 싸만코 골드 라벨... just with an additional 골드 라벨 (Gold Label) Premium Style making it sound more superior.


Hole in the Pocket: PhP 50.00 in Mashitta (Korean Restaurant)


First Impression: Because I adore the regular Bungeo Samanco, I think another version in "gold label" would still be good. The only difference in the package is the color. Gold Label is red/red orange whereas regular Samanco is cream-colored/off-white.


Taste buds say:  It's still a delicious overload, but the new consistency of the bean paste somehow improves the eating experience because there'd be less bean skins/pulp getting caught in your teeth and less roughness, thereby making the whole eating experience smooth and richer in flavor. Bungeo Samanco Gold Label (붕어 싸만코 골드 라벨) also uses Xylose Sugar 자일로스 설탕 which is a healthier alternative to ordinary sugar because it's not readily absorbed by the body which means less carbohydrates stored as fat.


Reminds me of: Bungeo Samanco 붕어 싸만 before it became Gold Label 골드 라벨...;)


K-rating: 5/5 ... perfect made better.

Goraebap 고래밥

Here's the front and back of Goraebap 고래밥's box.

Of course, I wouldn't pass on the opportunity to show my English prowess. The matching activity doesn't only help in teaching English names of animals, but also introduces you to 4 of the sea creatures that you'll meet inside. It also has a website: www.goraebab.com, but I can't open it. I wonder why... must be my settings or something.

I like how most Korean snacks have this kind of packaging / box where it opens in the middle (like a box of Kleenex). Look! Cute drawings inside too! Must be an activity, but I'm too lazy to try and translate. ^^;;

~ Funky Sea Creatures ~

I tried to "catch them all", but I missed three: turtle, octopus, and shrimp.  I'll update this as soon as I open my second box. *pinky promise*

Product Name: Goraebap 고래밥...  고래 is Korean for "whale" and 밥 can mean "rice", "meal", or "food" depending on how you use it in a sentence. Most blogs and info in the net translates Goraebap 고래밥 as "whale food", of course it doesn't literally mean that you're a "whale" if you eat it. I think its name goes with the whole theme of marine animals. By the way, typing 고래 밥 in google translate gave me "Bob whale" and was a quick laugh. Kkk...good thing I don't have a fat friend whose name is Bob cause I'd be tempted to you know..secretly call him 고래밥 behind his back. >_<;


Hole in the Pocket: This was from ♥. Surely it's not more than Php 70 in your friendly neighborhood Korean store.


First Impression: How cute is that 3D whale with a bump on its head? Although whale food in reality is mainly krill and plankton, they might actually snack on fish or squid every now and then. I doubt they eat turtles, dolphins or octopus though. The package gives me an impression that the whale is thinking about its food and is quite happy about it.  


Taste buds say: The box says 볶음양념 맛 ("stir-fried in sauce flavor")... and it tastes like a generic "vegetable" flavored snack with a little more zing. Still delicious though and much closer to "chicken barbecue" in flavor if you ask me. It's crunchy and you'll actually feel like a whale devouring small sea creatures for pleasure. I find it more satisfying to throw 5-6 pieces (sometimes even more) into my mouth and chomping away.


Reminds me of: Vegetable snacks (e.g. Regent's Snacku Rice Crackers).


K-rating: 4/5 ... 'coz I'm tired of categorizing animal crackers.