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One night in Tokyo. Shibuya or Shinjuku?
honestly with just one night i'd go shibuya. the scramble is cool but the real move is heading to the backstreets near nonbei-yokocho for a drink, it's a tiny alley of hole-in-the-wall bars that feel more local than golden gai. shibuya's also got better late-night ramen options imo, like ichiran if you want the solo booth thing or afuri for yuzu shio. plus you can walk to daikanyama in 15 mins for a quieter vibe if the crowds get old
I'd actually say Shinjuku purely for the convenience factor. You can drop your bag at a locker or capsule hotel near the station and be out exploring in under 10 minutes, which matters when you're short on time. The area around Kabukicho Tower has some solid conveyor belt sushi places like Nemuro Hanamaru that stay open until 11pm, and you can hit the observation deck at the Tokyo Metropolitan Building for free city views until 10pm. Shinjuku's just more of a one-stop shop for a quick night.
if you're only there from 4pm to 10am, i'd actually say stay near shinjuku but not right in the chaos. pick a hotel around yotsuya or ichigaya, it's a 5 min train ride to shinjuku and way quieter. that way you can hit shinjuku for dinner and drinks then crash without the noise. plus yotsuya has some solid izakayas along the train tracks that are more chill and less touristy
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Where can I find crispy, pan-fried bacon similar to a certain international style?
if u have a costco membership the kirkland thick cut is the move, 4 packs of 500g for around 2500 yen and it crisps up proper in a cold pan. for smaller runs, precce in azabudai hills & the basement at isetan shinjuku both carry imported US & danish brands in the chilled case, just read the label for "thick cut" or "smoked" and not "loin". also worth knowing japanese bacon is often wet-cured so pat it dry before frying or it steams instead of crisping
kaldi coffee farm is hit or miss but their smoked bacon from denmark shows up pretty regular, the 200g pack runs about 600 yen. what actually works better for me is asking the butcher counter at peacock or life to slice the block bacon thick, like 5mm, they do it for free and it crisps way better than the pre-packed stuff. also fwiw cheap bacon crisps faster, the fatty supermarket kind at 300 yen a pack works fine if u cook it from cold in a dry pan and pour off the fat as it renders.
tbh the gyomu super store brand bacon is surprisingly decent for crisping up, its not thick cut but if you cook it low and slow it gets pretty crunchy. the key is the dry cure vs wet cure thing, wet cure steams. also check hanamasa if you have one nearby, they sell big packs of american style bacon thats actually smoked and firm.