Back to School with Sunsella Bento Style Plastic Lunch Boxes: Review

The kiddo turned 4 today, and next week will be her first time in school.  It was important for me to find a way to reduce our waste while also finding something that she was able to open on her own on school days.  Sunsella Buddy Boxes filled those needs beautifully.  I was provided a set of these from Sunsella through Tomoson.com in exchange for my honest review.

This 4 pack plastic bento style boxes come with 4 different brightly colored lids.  Because she only needs lunches for 3 days out of the week, I can pre-pack her lunches for the week if I really wanted to get all my work done at one go.  Doing so would still leave me a box if I were to need to take lunch out for a day.

Sunsella includes the following information about the Buddy Boxes:

• Child-friendly, easy-open lids (WARNING: NOT leakproof).

• Premium quality, BPA, phthalate and lead free, highly durable, meets FDA standards.

• Microwave, dishwasher and freezer safe. Conveniently stack together for space saving storage.

• Save money on sandwich bags & plastic wrap. Great for color-coding lunches for the whole family.

• Dimensions: Length 9.5 x width 6.2 x height 2.2 inches – 1st compartment: 3 1/2 cups, 2nd compartment: 1 1/3 cups, 3rd compartment: 1 cup.

What I loved about the Sunsella Bento Boxes was that they were easy to open and close.  My daughter was easily able to open the boxes on her own, even on her first attempt without me showing her how.

They also nest into each other really well for storage or packed in the fridge on top of each other.

The sandwich portion of the box was large enough for me to fit two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (if you’re using thin bread and not making thick deli-style sandwiches).  I believe the size of the sandwich side is large enough that if you wanted to place different foods in silicone cupcake sleeves, you could do so.

I know they state they are NOT leakproof, but I had to see for myself.  I ran some water in one of our used boxes after lunch and put the lid on.  Definitely NOT leakproof.  For a younger child, one that doesn’t leak might be more suitable except that you sacrifice their independence to open their own lunchbox.  At my daughter’s age and that she’s going to school, her independence probably trumps the need for preventing leaks, right? I think so!

Another really great feature is that these are dishwasher safe.  As much as I want to not buy plastic baggies for single use and trash, I also didn’t want to have to hand wash every box that came home.  I spend far too much time in the kitchen as is.  I love that I can put these in the dishwasher and not think about them again until time to pack another lunch.

Currently, Sunsella Buddy Boxes sell for about $20 for a 4 pack on Amazon  (as I write this post, I notice they are on sale for $15.99).

Now that I’ve got my lunch boxes, it’s time for me to start planning her lunches!  Give me some ideas on different lunch ideas for a first time preschooler … bonus for gluten free lunches!!

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