Ave Bentos

When first learning that we were going to construct bentos as a class , I pictured the only "bento" which I had ever had, which was on the ave. The bentos there are not only incredibly unhealthy comparatively, but they are  huge.  The food is of a much greater proportion that a traditional bento box, almost to the point of not being able to finish them, which is quite ironic now knowing the tradition in Japanese culture of being required to finish everything in your bento. The benos which I have had, usually consist of rice, chicken teriyaki, small sushi rolls, and gyoza. When you're done eating a bento from the ave, you're typically full for the rest of the day. When I ate the bento which we made in class, I was hungary almost immediately. 

The flavors of the ave bentos are also dramatically different than those of the traditional ones. Everything in the ave bentos seems to be coated in either salt and sugar, to appeal to the american pallet. This theme is one which I have realized carries over to many American takes on foreign cuisine. You won't find a chalupa in mexico. Thinking about this, I wonder why we feel the need to recreate traditional food which is already good. Rarely do you hear someone eat out and say "it's just as good as the real thing". Typically, you hear, "it was good, but the traditional version is better". A friend of mine recently traveled in Italy and came back ranting and raving about the food there, saying it was better than anything she had ever tasted. Sense then, I have yet to hear of her rant of Italian food in the states, and even from places which claim to be 100% authentic. I think what it comes down to is unless there's an old woman with family recipes in the back, and ingredients that were grown around the corner, it really just doesn't have the same effect. 

I experience this phenomena quite frequently as I work as a server in an Afghan restaurant. The food, which by what I hear is traditional, is also modified for the American diet. The owner, who grew up in Kabul, has told us that he's had to change a few things in order to please the masses. One example of this a rice dish called Palaw, which is traditionally studded into a pig, and then cooked. This technique however probably not only violates health codes, but is probably not appealing to many Americans. Then again, we eat stuffing which as been shoved up the rear of a turkey, so you never know.