With easy access to delicious lunch packs at the lowest prices, living frugal in Japan isn’t as difficult as one may believe.
People often have a perception of Japan being an expensive place to live. Naturally, with Tokyo being listed as the most expensive place to live in the world in a real estate sense, it’s not necessarily true when it comes to daily living.
Sure, you could easily splurge in Japan and eat expensive top-tier sushi or A5 wagyu beef everyday but if you plan to live here long-term, you’ll need to balance your week with cheaper eats. This is where the phenomenon of dirt-cheap lunch packs comes into play.
Convenience Store Lunches
Convenience stores are one of the most intriguing aspects of Japanese society, truly embodying the meaning of “convenience.” From withdrawing money to printing and scanning and even delivering packages, your local 7-Eleven does so much more than just sell food.
For budget buyers, these combinis (Japanese convenience stores) are a safe haven for big savings. In the refrigerator section, you will see shelves upon shelves of bento boxes (lunch packs) which are offered at insanely low prices.
The best part is these lunches aren’t just your usual sandwich or hot dog you find at other stores (though these are available), but rather skillfully crafted lunch packs high in nutrition and low in cholesterol.
A typical lunch pack includes a combination of rice, meat, and vegetables. For just 350 yen (less than 3 USD), you can enjoy a meal consisting of two rice balls, two pieces of karaage (fried) chicken, two pieces of tamago (sweet egg omelet), and a side of pickled radish.
Don Quijote Takes Cheap To Another Level
Don Quijote, Japan’s biggest discount store chain, offers a plethora of cheap bento boxes in the food department. Around the evening time, these lunch packs go on special, having their already low prices slashed again.
Of course, there’s a bit of competition involved trying to get your hands on one of these, especially at the peak hour when prices are at their lowest. Despite arriving just when the price slash happened, I found only a small handful of lunch packs left to choose from.
Starting at around 300 yen, this omelet rice dish was slashed down to 250 yen, essentially making it a 2 dollar dish. Having eaten this meal for dinner, I can say it did the job of keeping me full of balanced nutrition.
In fact, I purchased three lunch packs at Don Quijote to cover my breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the following day. The total price came up to 650 yen, meaning I was able to feed myself for the day for less than 5 USD!
So whether you’re backpacking across Japan, on a quick holiday, or living here for the long run, you can always rely on these handy lunch packs to save yourself a ton of cash!
Of course, if you are planning to visit Japan, you’ll need a way to get around the country as efficiently and affordably as possible. Japan Rail provides an abundance of travel passes to suit your travel needs. So whether you are traveling individually or as a group, the JR Pass is every traveler’s go-to for getting around and making the most of your time in Japan!