My Cherry Blossom bento box!

About time I showed off my main bento box!

Purchased at Tokyo Hands (fairly sure it was the Ginza branch) for a reasonable price, along with a number of accessories - I couldn't resist.

So, here it is!  My pretty little cherry blossom patterned bento!

I just fell in love.  Moment I laid eyes on it, I knew this was the box that was coming home with me.  Didn't stop me trawling through the rest of the shop just to be on the firm side of certain, but hey!  A girl has to spend her money wisely!  I'm not trekking a few thousand miles back again to return a box because I rushed my decision!

The elasticated strap slips on and off easily - it serves to keep the lid on tight.

Inside we can see that it's not just one box; there's a second smaller box inside.

Both parts are open design, no compartments.

They stack neatly and by having two boxes I can keep wet and dry foodstuff separate should I need to.

I also purchased these lovely little cases - instant compartments!

They fit in quite nicely!  Just helps to keep things separate should I so desire.

Just a quick demonstration as to the capacity of the boxes and the cases.  At a glance they don't seem particularly big, but do consider that traditionally bento lunches are made up primarily with rice.  Rice is quite filling so you don't need vast amounts.

Not my idea of a lunch(!) Just to help give some idea of scale :)

Of course, I couldn't resist getting a proper bento bag to go with it.  Some of the bento boxes had matching bags - the box I picked out didn't, so I went and had a good look at what was available.  I wasn't wowed by the colours or designs generally, so I ended up with a bag that was more practical than visually pleasing to my eyes.

Not as pretty as I'd hoped for - but it'll do just fine!

In keeping with the Japanese way, I couldn't pass up the chance to pick up a set of 'lunch sized' chopsticks.  A bit shorter than the ones used for the evening meals, these are obviously smaller in order to fit inside lunch bags.

The chopstick case tucks nicely into the side pocket.

The bag is pretty versatile - should I opt for taking a soup flask to work inside of the bento, I can easily turn the bag on its end and carry the flask this way!  The handles simply pull out to either side.  I could even do this if the bento is sufficiently and tightly packed.  The strap will keep the lid on and the contents won't fall about if the box is packed tightly enough, or isn't going to be ruined if it gets tossed about a bit.

Inside, there's proper insulation.

And on the side of the bag, there's a handy little zipped pocket with a cool gel packet.

Just sit the packet in the fridge to get nice and cold the night before, pop it in with your lunch and it'll help to keep your food cool until you're ready to eat.

Here you can see there's still space after tucking the bento box right in.

Room for a small apple!  Or a small yogurt pot that otherwise wouldn't fit inside the box itself.  I'm partial to bananas - I'm sure I could get one to fit inside.

As much as I'd like to contain my entire lunch inside the bento box, it's probably not going to happen. Providing I don't go adding too much into the extra space then it's all good.

So there you have it!  My main bento lunch box and bag!  Now that that is sorted out, I feel like now is a good time to actually get onto the 'chef' aspect of this blog. :)

Bring on the food!