This year’s Halloween will be a special one. Most events will be held online, the streets will be quieter without the presence of the usual suspects, and we’ll all most likely opt for costumes that don’t include a mask — that, we’ve been wearing every day for the past seven months. But one thing we can do to spice up our Halloween this year, we figure, is trying to experiment with something new in the culinary field. So we did a random search on Instagram using the hashtag #HalloweenBento (#ハロウィン弁当) and the results were mind-blowing. Over 84,000 posts and counting, these culinary creations are beyond anything creative the world’s top chefs have invented for this holiday — and as far as we’re concerned, all these posts completely Nailed It all this year! Not convinced yet? Stay with us! 

The Healthy One

Made by a mother for her high-school-aged son, this beautiful obento might be too cute for a teenager, but moms are moms and kids will always be their babies. At least she made sure he’s eating his veggies!

 

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The Really Freaky One

This one is so real and dark from every angle that we’re wondering what exactly was running through the mind of the person who made it. We also want to see the face of the person who opens this lunch box. But in the end it’s all edible and sweet — the eyes, apparently, are placed on apple jelly.

 

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The Doraemon Within One

We know the sweet Doraemon, but judging from this lunch box, he also has a hidden cute, but demonic twin somewhere who only comes out on Halloween. In some people’s kitchens and lunch boxes.

 

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The Pennywise One

The kind mother who made this chilling to the bone lunchbox writes that she hopes her son would appreciate her hard work, now that his lunch is inspired by his favorite horror movie, It. That’s her sweet way of saying it, but what she’s really trying to say is… watch it, kid!

 

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The Too Cute To Eat One

Made by a mother for her daughter, this adorable pumpkin character came out of chicken rice and is accompanied by a fried shrimp and cheese on wieners that imitates a lit candle and a cute ghost.

 

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The Seriously Perfect One

Made for herself, this queen of the house’s Halloween lunch was inspired by a carrot salad sandwich she saw in a TV commercial and which her husband really likes. All that, plus a few baked ghost pastries and a pumpkin cookie. #LoveYourself is the theme at this house and we love it!

 

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The Ghost In the Onigiri One

Her daughter requested onigiri (rice balls) for lunch the day before and this creative mom came up with this adorable box of cuteness. The ghost-inspired onigiri have chili shrimps inside.

 

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The Simple One

By saying “simple” we meant the design, not the long hours it took to make this perfectly done lunch. Called “Quarantine Day 227 Soboro Gohan Halloween Bento Boxes,” this lunch is apparently the result of a cooking challenge. The obento consists of a high-protein “Jack-o’-lantern Soboro,” that uses ground beef flavored with soy sauce and eggs yolks for the pumpkin. The second box is a low-cholesterol and fat ghost Soboro using six egg whites and green beans. The faces are made with nori seaweed.

 

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The Apple of My Eye One

This apple is cut so well it makes us grin back every time we see it. An obento made for this super mom’s daughter for her school sports festival, this one is as spooky as it’s heart-warming in a way.

The ‘It Takes a Day’ One

Ok, it probably took even more than that. From every tiny detail in the noodles broom to the cat whiskers she forgot to add, this lunch, made for this mother’s youngest of three daughters for her school trip, is one of the cutest things we’ve ever come across to.

 

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Dare to try your own #HalloweenBento? Send us a photo if you make one! And Happy Halloween to you all!

Featured image by @hiro020612 via Instagram