Customer Reviews

Kotobuki 280-129 2-Tiered Bento Box, Panda Face

5 star:		(52)
4 star:		(21)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I don't eat a lot for lunch so this is perfect! It fits about a cup of cooked rice on the bottom and lots of veggies on the top. It is very small, but if you don't eat much it's great. Plus, it's a /ninja panda/!

I ordered two pandas and two frogs for my 4 kids (from ages 2-10). They arrived today and I should probably wait for a day to see how they actually hold up going to school, but I am really excited about these boxes! On first glance they appear to be too small, but when I really think about how much lunch my kids are really able to consume in their short lunch period at school, I think it is just right and will prevent waste. I did try to close them up tonight and flip them over to see how lunch would fare in transit and, because of their small size and how tightly packed I had to make them, nothing moved. I didn't even use the inner tightly sealing lid on the top.

Edited: They made it to and from school without spilling. The kids were able to use the bands on them to reclose them. No problems whatsoever and they didn't even eat everything in the boxes!

I bought mine at Natural Pantry and it's just the right size for my son. I can fit his sandwich (cut in the panda shape) in one tray and everything else in the other layer. At first glance it seems to small but actually it's just right. His other lunch bag is big because of all the containers we use....now we don't need them. : )

He has used it a few times and so far it gets 5 stars from him that's for sure.

This was my first Bento Box purchase, and I can't decide if I want it for myself or will designate it as a Bento for my little girl- she's 2. It's really cute, feels like fairly good quality. My little one is a big eater. When I pack her Bento, I've found that if I set out the amount of food she will eat, then cut it into bite sized pieces, it all easily fits in the sealed top compartment of the Panda Bento. It IS a snug fit, but the idea is that the food is secure and will not shift around to allow items to crumble or bruise. I also purchased some Wilton silicone cups from Michael's Crafts to use as dividers- they make both traditional muffin cup shape and heart shaped cups. Both types fit great in the bottom tier of this box, but seem just slightly too tall for the top tier- it is still possible to put the inner cover on the top layer even with the cups inside, but it's just not quite as secure a fit. The Kitchen Supply mini- muffin silicone cups fit inside either tier comfortably, but there is a gap above the top edge of the cup though, so items could spill over that top edge in transit.

I was very curious about the number of milliliters this box holds, as I couldn't find that info anywhere, yet a lot of folks choose their Bento Box size by the number of mL it holds. So- I put water in the compartments and stacked/sealed them so that they were all filled to the brim, but only the actual carrying capacity would be measured. When I then poured off the water to measure it, I found the bottom tier holds 310 mL, while the top tier holds 220 mL, for a total of 530 mL if you use every single bit of space. According to Bento web sites, I probably need about 600-700 mL as I am a 5'9" active female. So- if I keep it for myself and want a satisfying lunch, I'll probably bring something else as a side snack in addition to what fits into this box.

After reading through the previous comments, I notice that the worst reviews were based primarily on the small size of this bento. Not so fast!

I'm a mom of two boys, 12 and 17. I had been wanting to try bento because I wanted to get my boys veered back into eating more healthy lunches. Bento is an excellent stealth way to get your kids to eat healthily, and not even realize it! Because the bento is small, you have to really think about what is going into the lunch. Although I admit I thought they would starve with the small lunch when I first opened this, that hasn't been the case at ALL! Here is an example of a typical lunch in this bento:

Bottom layer: this is where the main item goes. Easily a 1/2 cup brown rice or buckwheat(soba)noodles with curry or meatballs, etc. on top OR it fits a regular sandwich w/crusts cut off (I just use the top of the bento as a 'cookie cutter' so the sammich fits perfectly). The second layer, with the lid, will have some steamed broccoli/carrots, one small cookie (cut in half and placed side-by-side), and slices of 1/2 apple, grapes, or other fruit. Any room left over and I can squeeze a few mini pretzels or crackers, too! Believe me, the amount of food that can be put in this puppy will amaze you! Now, sometimes I do give them a whole apple in addition, but trust me when I tell you, even my always-hungry teen and tween report back as having a filling lunch. AND, yeah, they like the cutie bentos because girls think they are cute so, yeah. Who knew bentos were such chick magnets, lol!

I always send a bento box to school for my son's lunch and am always looking for new ones. This panda is so adorable and extremely functional. Please do note the size, it's great for a child or for smaller foods (I just don't want anyone to think this is large because it's not). It has a top which has a snap on lid and bottom and held together by the black band which is just too cute. I wash all pieces except the snap on lid and band in the dishwasher and they come out beautifully. To give you an idea what this box fits, here is an example of what I put in my son's...Bottom half are mini sandhwiches (I use cookie cutters for the different shapes) 2 slices of bread worth. The top I use the mini wilton silicon cupcake cups (4 of them) and fill that with nuts, cheese, baby carrots and mini oreos or something like that. This box makes his lunch fun and he always requests it :-) Don't hesitate it's very well made and perfect for a childs lunch for school and this box fits perfectly in a standard sized lunch box!

I bought this lunchbox for my son, age 2.

Pros:
Holds the right amount of food for him.
Super cute!

Cons:
The box falls apart if not held together with the band.
The black paint peels off after 8-10 rounds in the dishwasher (top rack).
Not so cute after the paint started peeling off!

This is a great little bento box.
The only reason I did not give it 5 stars is because the separated portion that has a lid (not to be confused with the top cover of the box) isn't liquid tight. It really just sort of fits over the top of that section so don't plan on using this for anything that might leak, because it will leak. I found that putting fruit in a small ziplock baggie inside it prevented the leakage.
There are other bento boxes designed for liquids, this isn't one of them.
Beyond that, I LOVE LOVE LOVE this box. So much I got this one and the frog one :)

Length:: 0:40 Mins

I received this as a gift last Christmas. I am in love with this bento box! Here is a quick video of it.

I would like it better if it was bigger. Why I like it is because it has two little containers inside of it.