Near Hanazono Shrine, there is a bento shop. I had known about it before but had never bought anything until now! These traditional bento shops seem to be disappearing lately, so it was surprising to find one in the heart of Shinjuku! I bought a salmon and fried chicken bento, and the salmon wasn't too salty, which was great! The fried chicken and rice were piping hot and very delicious! (I added some broccoli from Seven Eleven as a side dish, haha)

After watching a Korean drama in the morning, which has become a daily routine, I went out for shopping and a walk. It's not as cold as I thought. First, I bought a bento box at this shop. The bento box included premium salmon, with side dishes such as chicken Karaage, croquette, burdock tempura, fish cake with seaweed, pickled ginger, and sautéed spinach. The salmon had a strong smell or taste, which was quite surprising. The croquette was a light yellow color with corn inside. The ginger was quite spicy.

962nd relaxed chain store in Tokyo. The fried chicken bento for 480 yen including tax is delicious with 6 pieces of fried chicken. I'm grateful that I can eat it in Shinjuku. The store is not particularly clean, but they are doing their best, including foreign staff. During lunchtime, a 120 yen single side dish is served as a bonus. It's nice. They accept electronic money payment, which is a bit confusing, but it's fine at such a bento shop. I enjoyed the meal. I plan to use it again.

The location is on the outskirts of Kabukicho, halfway between Shinjuku-sanchome Station and Higashi-Shinjuku Station on Meiji Street. The area is known as Shinjuku 5-chome, with a nostalgic Showa-era atmosphere and a quaint bento shop that closes at 8pm. While bento shops are common in Saitama and Tama regions, they can be surprisingly rare in the Yamanote Line area for those living there. The shop offers handmade bentos, with the popular choices being the fried chicken bento, but I opted for the ginger pork bento at 580 yen and the shrimp fry (side dish only) at 400 yen due to cholesterol concerns. The price of the ginger pork bento is more like that of a set meal at a restaurant, especially for pork, while the shrimp fry at 400 yen for only two pieces seems a bit expensive. In the suburbs, you can get a bento with four shrimp fries and rice for under 500 yen. Opening the bento at home, I found the ginger pork bento to have thickly sliced pork and onions stir-fried in ginger sauce, with some shredded cabbage and penne pasta mixed with tomato sauce below, along with a small portion of pickled cucumbers. For the price, I would have liked a bit more in terms of variety. The shrimp fry resembled a cream croquette with a whole shrimp inside, but the breading was a bit thick, with just shrimp meat and breading inside. Other reviewers recommend trying the pilaf or rice bowl dishes, which might be better options.

I was feeling hungry on my way back home and spotted a warm bento box. There was a Family Mart nearby, so I decided to buy a bento box and some tea to eat in the car. I chose the grilled meat bento box for 580 yen and added some pickles for 120 yen. It only took about 2 minutes to prepare! I'm sure they just microwaved it. I bought some tea from Family Mart and headed back to the car. Oh no! Edamame... why edamame? The meat wasn't piping hot, but it was tender and delicious. I tried to eat the edamame with my hands, but ended up using chopsticks. Edamame... at least they could have included macaroni salad or cabbage. Edamame... Thank you for the meal! ψ(｀∇´)ψ

Exiting from the E1 exit of Shinjuku Sanchome Station and heading towards Shinjuku Station on Meiji Street, you will find a bento shop called "Hot Bento." Despite its generic name, it is a popular spot in the area, with people sometimes lining up on the narrow sidewalk. In addition to bentos, they also offer side dishes like hijiki, stem seaweed, and u-no-hana for 120 yen each, and salads like potato and macaroni for 150 yen. Their specialty is fried dishes, so I decided to save that for another day and picked up some hijiki for tonight's snack. While it's not particularly outstanding in taste, it's at a level where it wouldn't be out of place to serve it as an appetizer at a nearby izakaya for around 300 yen per serving for two people.

Honestly, I wasn't expecting much from this bento shop's dry curry. I thought it would be mushy, but it was delicious! The dry curry was flavorful with just the right amount of spices, not greasy, and had a nice crispy texture. The karaage (Japanese fried chicken) on top was also crispy and tasty, much better than the usual ones. The menu is diverse and there are many other delicious options, so if you happen to pass by, definitely give it a try! However, it's hard to believe that two men can make such great bento in that small space (laughs).

I ordered a fried chicken bento and a shrimp fry bento. Both were made fresh in about 6 minutes. The portion size was amazing! The cost performance is very good. The fried chicken bento came with 6 large pieces of thigh meat for only 270 yen per piece. The shrimp fry was also large, with firm shrimp. Compared to chain stores and other bento options, the price is the same but the taste and portion size are better at Hoka Hoka Bento. They also offer delivery to Shinjuku 1-5 chome and Kabukicho. I would definitely order again.

This is a bento shop near Hanazono Shrine in Shinjuku. They offer great value for money and also provide delivery service. I highly recommend their fried chicken bento and ginger pork bento. The fried chicken bento comes with 6 large pieces of chicken. They also offer one side dish for free starting from 11:30 am, priced at 120 yen. The portion of ginger pork in the bento is generous and satisfying. The fried chicken bento costs 530 yen, while the ginger pork bento costs 630 yen, which is very affordable. Although the prices have increased slightly, I still think it's reasonable. They offer free delivery for bento orders starting from one piece in Kabukicho 1-2 chome, and for orders over 1000 yen in Shinjuku 1-6 chome.