While always preparing an elaborate lunch for her husband, who works at night, as well as the
obento he takes to work, she sometimes merely leaves a loaf of bread and sandwich meat on the table for Linda and her brothers' dinner.
Sales of cooked noodles such as pasta, as well as rice balls, were strong thanks to brisk demand by holidaymakers and bargains offered by some store chains, while sales of ''
obento'' boxed lunches did not fare well, according to the association.
Bento or
Obento: for a lunchtime meal on the go, these lunch boxes contain a variety of foods, which can include rice, crumbed meat cutlets, pickled vegetables, tempura, sushi and more.
Walking around her tiny San Jose shop, she points to
obento boxes and small plates displaying artistic Japanese delicacies.
But most were sent there dressed and frozen.' The added value happens way downstream, when the Japanese hack big pieces into little chunks for
obento box lunches, fillets and other products.