Bento

"Bento" means pretty much "box lunch", but I feel like that doesn't adequately express what it is. A bento usually includes a main item, which could be really anything from katsu to sushi to fried chicken. Then they usually come with rice and a few other side items such as pickled vegetables, potato salad, kimchee, etc., but for your information, I've even seen spaghetti as one of the sides, with a hamburger patty as the main item. They are filling, and usually delicious. The reason I said "box lunch" doesn't adequately express the meaning is that I get the impression that I a lot of thought is usually put into a bento, more thought than what we generally think of when we hear "box lunch". The combinations of food are important, and I think they often include the Japanese idea that a good meal has many different colors in it. There's a certain number of colors that I can't remember, but I think it's somewhere between 10 and 31. I think the idea is that the meal is well-balanced, though these bentos aren't always well-balanced. Bentos can be bought at convenience stores, cafeterias, and bento shops, but people often make them at home and take them to school or work. That's probably where the idea of having a variety and well-balance of things came from, since I think that 30 colors idea mainly has to do with eating at home. I can't quite say I've made anything close to what I've described above, but I've brought rice and vegetables to school on many occasions. When I finally make my own, I'll be sure to take a picture and let all of you know. For now, he's a picture of the bento place next to my apartment.

Here's another one, closer to my school. This picture also includes my friend Vinit, who I took Japanese with at UCSC and is a video game expert and all-around rad guy, and he is holding a large chicken katsu that this bento place also sells. This place is our cheap destination usually, since they have a regular size bento that fills you up for only 292 yen, or about $3 I suppose. There's nothing special about the food, but seeing as it only costs $3 and fills you up, the fact that it tastes average actually makes it a really good deal.

Between these two places, the place next to my building tastes a lot better than this place near my school. As expected, it also costs twice as much or more ($6-$10), but they are really good. That's why a direct translation of "bento" to "box lunch" would cause a problem when simply saying "I spent $9 on my box lunch".