ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Ekiben

Ekiben is a word from Japan that means "station bento," which is a little box of food that you can buy at train stations.

Now, what is a bento? A bento is a lovely little lunch box that has different sections, like a tray, where you can put different kinds of food. People in Japan have been bringing bentos to school or work for a long time. But when you're on a train, you maybe don't have your own bento with you. That's where the station bento comes in!

These station bentos are often sold at train stations, and they have all kinds of delicious food inside, like rice balls, sushi, noodles, pickles, meat, and seafood. You can even find ekiben that represents the local cuisine of the place where you are traveling. For example, if you're traveling to Hokkaido, you can find an ekiben with fresh seafood and vegetables from the island.

People all over Japan love to try different ekiben when they're traveling from one place to another. It's like a fun little challenge to see how many different kinds of ekiben you can eat during your trip. So if you're in Japan, make sure to stop by a train station and check out the ekiben!
Related topics others have asked about: