The High Speed Rail(HSR) of Taiwan has roots from Taiwan’s decades old train railway system. And after years of development and construction, the HSR finally opened a couple of years ago with much public fanfare and to the dismay of the domestic airlines. One tradition the HSR brought with them was the bento box meal. Whenever I was on those trains, when I was a kid, I looked forward to lunch with a bento box. I remember always looking out for the snack and bento vendor back then, as I did, recently, on the HSR.

The 便當, the bento box, on the old trains was famous for being scrumptious and yummy. There was always chicken or pork with a boiled egg, with the vegetables, served hot is a metal bin or paper box. The bento box today, is in a sealed recyclable plastic container, with pork or chicken. But with preparation a little more refined. The meat is sliced and marinated nicely. The vegetables and others are presented in a six sided bento box.

The taste, quite different from the hearty train meals, is a good attempt in showcasing Taiwanese cuisine, yet still retains the simple cultural iconic Asian meal – meat with rice staple. The sliced pork is light and more than adequate on these short trips. Keep in mind, the trip to Taichung from Taipei, is a little less than an hour long. Whereas before, these trips would last almost 3 or 4 times of that. Then I had some of the vegetables and what I thought was a lion’s head – a ground pork meat ball. All this less than 4 USD, about NT$120.

Rating 2 Pigs $$

Taiwan’s HSR Stations throughout Taiwan. www.thsrc.com.tw

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