About this season
"Ekiben" are lunch boxes sold at train stations enjoyed during train journeys which are filled with the charm of each region of Japan! Let's embark on a journey to encounter a selection of lunch boxes from all over Japan!
Episodes (7)
1. Curry Framed by 400 Years of History
Aired 8 January 2025 • 15 min
This curry rice bento, made with local spices and beef, comes in Arita porcelain ware, a 400-year-old art treasured by royalty. Its rich heritage is sure to enhance your travel memories.
2. Meaty Mushrooms Grown in Winter Cold
Aired 26 February 2025 • 15 min
Tottori's shiitake bento features thick, sweet, wood-grown mushrooms. The rice, seasoned with Japanese pepper, pairs perfectly with the deep flavor of the shiitake enhanced by special local soy sauce!
3. The Taste of Home in a Port Town
Aired 25 May 2025 • 15 min
This ekiben from Kamogawa in southern Chiba features sanga-yaki, made from minced fish, and is packed with regional flavors like thick, tender Boshu hijiki and the long-prized Nagasa-mai rice.
4. Sakura's Gift: The Flavors of Spring in Tohoku
Aired 1 June 2025 • 15 min
In April, as cherry blossoms bloom in Aomori, the Sakura Bento goes on sale along the Tsugaru Railway, filled with spring flavors like local scallops, tender kombu, and miso with a wild spring plant.
5. An Ekiben of Volcanic Memory and Blessing
Aired 10 August 2025 • 15 min
The Volcano Bento uses only local ingredients, grown in the Shimabara Peninsula's soil shaped by Mt. Unzen's eruptions. It's a heartfelt bento from locals who know the volcano's dangers and gifts.
6. Reclaiming the Ocean's Blessings
Aired 14 September 2025 • 15 min
Noto's nature was scarred in the 2024 earthquake, yet the abalone bento still celebrates the peninsula's premium shellfish, enhanced with local salt.
7. A Bento that Brings Comfort at an Old Train Station
Aired 14 December 2025 • 15 min
The carefully made Kareigawa Bento, featuring local Kagoshima cuisine, is sold at a wooden train station more than 120 years old, which tells the story of people brought together by the ekiben.