Expert: Steve Battisti - 7/10/2004

Question
Hello. I have another question. Can you please tell me how much bento lunches are sold for in public places? I have heard they are sold at train station, ferry docks, parks, and other tourist areas. I know they have many varieties. Could you please give me some prices? Either in yen or U.S. Dollors? Which is your favorite? In the U.S. our version of bento is really weak, mostly greasy hot dogs and limp sandwhiches. Please respond. Larry. Northern California USA.

Answer
Hi Larry,

I'll answer this question first.

Bento are usually in the range of 800-1500 yen. Depending on the exchange rate, of course, the US dollar figure varies, but for most of while I was there it was about 1:100, so you're talking $8-$15.

There are a huge variety of bento stores, and one of the most common places to buy bento are at train stations, where they are often referred to as "ekiben". "Eki" means "station." These bento often include regional specialties so that travellers can enjoy them even if they're just on a quick train trip through the area. This web site is fun to look at if you want to know more:

http://www.bento.com/morefood.html

Another neat article here:

http://web-japan.org/nipponia/nipponia11/spot01.html

These kinds of bento are almost like souvenirs. Of course, pretty much any "bag lunch" in Japan is referred to as a "bento." Traditionally, Japanese mothers would pack a meal in a lacquer box that the children would take to school with them. There are probably a million articles about the lunch boxes online. Here's one:

http://writeonline.sac.sa.edu.au/Archives/October_02/bento.htm

As far as which is my favorite, after I got over my cultural aversion to cold rice, I pretty much enjoyed everything, just trying all of the different things and trying to figure out what was a local specialty and so forth.

Anyway, I hope this helps! Let me know if you have further questions!

Steve