Convenience store riceballs

Different franchises use different names for rice balls: Lawson calls them “Onigiri”, Family Mart calls them “Omusubi”, while 7-Eleven uses both expressions.

The Awase of Musubi and Kiwa

Travel entails risk, no matter the times. For the networkers of Middle Age Japan, tying their waraji straw sandals and their packed meals was a form of prayer – a way to apply the power of musubi for protection in their journeys. The word, omusubi, for rice balls, comes from the act of tying furoshiki cloths around bento packs.
Today, we subconsciously sense the power of musubi in the omusubi lined up on convenient store shelves. The plastic wrapping seems almost magical; it keeps the seaweed fresh and creates the most exquisite sensation as we bite through the crisp seaweed to reach the soft rice inside. It is a delightful combination (awase) of musubi and kiwa – Japanese style at its best.