If you've ever bought an inexpensive small bento box at a 100 yen shop or via eBay, the chances are pretty high that it was made by one company, Nakano Co.. They are the ones responsible for the bento boxes carrying the mysterious Lube Sheep logo. After visiting their company web site, I still have no idea what it actually means, and it probably doesnt mean anything at all - it's just a cute piece of Japanglish that someone in the company thought sounded good. (Yes, I know it sounds a bit dirty, but let's try not to go there.)

The last couple of featured bento boxes have been strictly practical. This week I'm returning to the realm of the sublime, with these handcrafted wooden and lacquered bento boxes from Akita prefecture in northern Japan.

The sturdy, microwave-safe Ikea 365+ food savers are great inexpensive bento boxes. They look good too.

The minimalist white bento box offerings from Muji.

In case you read Just Bento but not Just Hungry - I'm finally embarking on a project I've always intended to tackle, but never got around to: putting together a good listing of Japanese grocery stores around the world. I'll include bento supplies too, since many people who are interested in bento making are also interested in Japanese cooking, and vice versa.

If you have any stores, mailorder sources, and so on to recommend, please head on over here. With your help I'm hoping to assemble a really useful list!

This is not your everyday bento for sure. Offered by a bento maker in the town of Nikko, the Nikko maizoukin (Nikko treasure) bento costs 150,000 yen, about US $1340 at today's exchange rates. It can only be ordered in Japan of course, and must be pre-ordered.