page_title: Taiwan Railway Mealbox
section_title: Ingredients and distribution
hierarchical_section_title: Taiwan Railway Mealbox / Ingredients and distribution
caption_attribution_description: 中文（繁體）‎: 臺鐵便當本舖1號店，位於臺北車站1樓。
context_page_description: Taiwan Railway Bento Boxes are a type of ekiben manufactured and distributed by the Taiwan Railways Administration at major railway stations and in train cars. It is estimated that, with five million boxed meals sold per annum, the annual revenue from bento distribution is 370 million NTD.
context_section_description: Known primarily for their pork chop, Taiwan Railway Mealboxes contain a variety of side dishes apart from rice, including a braised egg, a piece of dried tofu, several pieces of dried white radish among others.
  The Taiwan Railways Administration has established five catering zones at Songshan, Taipei, Taichung, Kaohsiung, and Hualien railway stations, where staff members of the TRA hand over mealboxes to car attendants for on-board distribution. On board during meal time (11:00-13:00 and 17:00-19:00), car attendants ask if there are passengers who would like a bento in Mandarin and Hokkien along the aisle with a trolley cart.
  The containers used to be made of stainless steel, which were returned and washed after the contents had been consumed. However, due to  exceedingly high costs and low return rates (passengers brought the steel boxes home without permission), the administration instead provide food in disposable paper boxes.
caption: A distribution spot at Taipei Railway Station.
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