People have been accustomed to eating ekiben during their journeys back in the day,
but now, ekiben products are attracting direct attention.
Ekiben fairs held across Japan are very popular events, with many people attending.

When traveling aboard the old steam trains, one would spend quite some time in transit. For example, it took an entire 3 hours and 30 minutes one way on Nippon Railway’s Ueno to Utsunomiya route opened in 1885, whereas it takes less than 50 minutes on the modern Shinkansen. Before electrification and high-speed came to the railroad, trains would also spend long periods of time stopping at each station, and it was a common sight to see people opening the windows to buy ekiben from vendors walking around the platforms.

Ekiben evolved with the development of railroads, and it is a manifestation of Japanese cuisine as well as an essential part of travel.
Here, we will look back at the history of ekiben.

There are various accounts of the first appearance of ekiben in Japan, but the most commonly accepted version is that ekiben first appeared at Utsunomiya Station in 1885.
There are records that Shirakiya, which operated an inn outside Utsunomiya Station, started selling bento at the same time that Nippon Railway’s (now JR East Japan) Tohoku Line Utsunomiya Station opened. This bento consisted of two sesame-covered rice balls and pickled daikon radish wrapped in a bamboo sheath, sold for 5 sen (an old unit of currency; 1/100th of a yen).
This was quite an extravagance in an age where a cup of soba noodles was sold for 1 sen.

Initially, ekiben was only sold at some stations. However, it seems that the international situation of the time had a major influence on its subsequent wide spread. Until the end of the war in 1945, the military was a major customer of the ekiben industry. The troops within Japan were stationed at key transport positions, and when traveling by rail for drills, mobilization to the front, and so on, ekiben sellers at major stations would arrange bento for the officers and their men (called gunben, or military bento). For example, Utsunomiya was a key transport location, and before the war, the 14th Division of the now-defunct Imperial Japanese Army and others were stationed there. As such, bento sellers concentrated in places like Utsunomiya Station, as well as Oyama Station, Kuroiso Station, Nikko Station, and others. At Utsunomiya Station, there were three major sellers, Shirakiya, Matsunoya, and Fukido, and it seems they provided bento to soldiers coming from Gunma Prefecture, Ibaraki Prefecture, and Nagano Prefecture, as well as from within Tochigi Prefecture, where Utsunomiya is located.

As the war progressed, food and resources were prioritized toward military use, and the food situation became increasingly harsh. Price increases due to rice shortages, travel restrictions, closures of restaurant cars, and so on dealt a heavy blow to ekiben sellers.

During this period, old department stores in major cities like Tokyo and Osaka started to hold ekiben tournaments. Of these, the most famous is probably the “The Original Famous Ekiben and Nationwide Delicacies Tournament” held at a department store in Shinjuku, Tokyo, which had its 55th tournament in 2020. This event takes for a period of about two weeks place every January, with entries of over 300 different types of ekiben, and sales of over 600 million yen! The tournament has been firmly cemented as the biggest ekiben event. There must be a lot of people who want to get a small sense of travel by eating local varieties of ekiben, or perhaps to get a reminder of their home towns. Perhaps the charm of ekiben tournaments is in getting to experience this extraordinary atmosphere.

In 1993, the Central Committee of the Japanese Association of Railroad Station Concessionaries established Ekiben Day. April 10 was chosen for some elaborate Japanese wordplay. The word “bento” is written 弁当 in kanji (Chinese characters), and 弁 resembles 4 (which stands for April, as months are named numerically in Japanese) combined with the kanji 十, meaning 10. Meanwhile, 当 is pronounced in the same way as a Japanese word for “10.” This year, 2020, will be the 135th anniversary of the birth of ekiben.

In 1889, Japan’s first makunouchi ekiben went on sale at Himeji Station. This featured white rice, fish, kamaboko fish cake, and rolled omelet, nicknamed “the three sacred treasures” after the legendary imperial regalia of Japan. This was a luxurious bento that also included accompaniments like simmered items and pickles. Because the original bento was eaten during intermissions of kabuki performances and the like during the Edo period, it acquired the name “makunouchi bento”, meaning “between-acts bento.” This naming was passed on to the ekiben version, and since then, it has become a regular bento choice that can be enjoyed with all kinds of accompaniments.