Here is the third and fourth of a few of the bento that I made prior to the blog…
A REAL Bento Box
In a REAL Bento Box (August 8, 2010)
Not that my other containers weren’t working, but I got obsessed with buying a real bento box. Because I wanted to lay hands on one before I bought it, I scoured the internet looking for a clue that might lead me to a local store… nada. I looked at various “fancy” grocery stores… nada. I literally drove myself nuts looking for one. Then I found H-Mart, the mother of all asian markets in a suburb of the DFW metroplex. (cue the Angels singing)
That place is CRAZY and I got to go shopping by myself, a very rare occurrence. I think I spent 3 hours in that store, but that is another post altogether!
So, I packed my first lunch into a REAL bento box! This doesn’t actually happen to be the one I packed… I think I bought it in May of 2010, but this picture was the first one I took with the new box.
Ingredient List: spinach lasagna, grapes, pretzel fish, cheese sticks, raw green beans, carrots
Tools: a REAL divided bento box, large and small silicone cup dividers, Wüstof paring knife
Learn:
- The Good: getting better at packing
- The Bad: could have filled in spaces a bit better
- The Ugly: pretzel fish probably need to be sealed so that they don’t get stale
Breakfast Bento
Breakfast bento
I also made a breakfast bento for the first time… in a REAL bento box. Still could have packed better, but I got to use two of my NYC Japanese grocery acquisitions – a very cute, small forest creature bento box and a fancy sauce bottle. (The whole NYC Japanese grocery experience is definitely another post.)
Ingredient List: pancakes, raspberries, syrup
Tools: small bento box, small silicone cup divider, sauce container
LITTLE o Bento 
I can’t wait to read your bit about the trek thru the streets (and funky staircases and back hallways of funky stores) of NYC…Don’t forget to mention the cupcake place 🙂
These are adorable artistic little lunches. I would like very much to hear the origins and/or rules of making an obento!
(I would also love to hear about your NYC shopping adventure and the oriental store in DFW…)
@Kelly, as far as I am concerned, there are no rules for obento except that it is a wide variety of food in relatively small portions that is neatly or artfully arranged in a container so that foods don’t “contaminate” with texture, moisture, or flavor. There origin seems to be simply in workers using leftovers to pack a lunch!
Thanks @Terri and @Kelly! Terri knows first hand about the NYC shopping experience because I drug her down there with me!
I hope you are having fun with the bento stuff Gina and I got you! By the way, the little eyes are my favorite!
Hey @Amber… I am working on a post especially about my bento haul at Christmas! I made her a duck sandwich with the candy eyes… you will see it here soon.