Fenchihu Train Bento

Fenchihu Train Bento

　　Fenchihu Train Bento has been famous for decades, but the railway bento you could buy on the Alishan train two or three decades ago is quite different from what’s available today. Due to the passage of time, most bento operations have now been taken over by the second generation. Driven by competition, the variety of bento offerings has become increasingly rich and reflective of each business's unique philosophy.

For example, Fenchihu Grand Hotel offers three types of bento: in metal boxes, cypress wood boxes, and wooden slices. The first two options are naturally more expensive, but the containers can be taken home as souvenirs after the meal. The traditional wooden bento box (or dining in the restaurant with a metal lunchbox) costs NT$100 per box.

Taking Yashanzhuang and Mountain Climbing Cafeteria as examples, their bentos each contain at least seven dishes. They always include Fenchihu’s specialty — broad beans (or asparagus lettuce). In addition, there are always braised chicken leg (or braised pork ribs), braised pork, braised egg, braised soybean curd, pickled mustard greens, red bamboo shoots, and yellow carrots (or pickled plums), all at reasonable prices, and each comes with soup. Some metal or wooden bento boxes feature a “Taiwan Railways” logo, come with an eco-friendly bag, and are sold as a set for NT$260 — filling and also make great souvenirs.

Most bento makers originally targeted railway passengers as their main customers. But A-Liang Railway Bento, located at the far end of the old street near the cypress forest, is a bit different from the others, having long provided bentos for local tea-picking women. Aside from the winter months when no tea is picked, bento demand remains high during the nine-month tea-picking season — a testament to the large volume of bentos supplied.

The contents of A-Liang Railway Bento are similar to the previous two, but the bento is served hot, with a special red yeast rice pork, and the vegetable selection alternates between broad beans (only available in October) and asparagus lettuce. In addition, there are pickled mustard greens, half a braised egg, red bamboo shoots, pineapple (or radish), high-mountain bamboo shoots, and high-mountain cabbage. The rice used is Guanshan rice.

Bento prices vary from NT$80 to NT$100. Visitors may want to take a look first before choosing their favorite type.