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want to meet at fmd_good Wildlife Reserve
want to meet at fmd_good Market Deli
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shinjuku mystery?
honeslty there's a bunch of old storage spaces in those shinjuku buildings that got turned into weird little bars or staff rooms. i used to work near there and found a door like that behind a family mart that led to a tiny basement izakaya, no sign outside. prob just an employee break room but if u heard a giggle at midnight id check it out just for the story. worst case it's a mop closet, best case u find a secret karaoke room
ngl you prob heard the fridge compressor, those old units make weird noises past midnight. but there's a specific 7-11 near the shinjuku gyoen side that has a basement level that used to be a members-only host club, still got the old velvet curtains down there. a friend of mine worked night shift and said the door leads to a narrow hallway that goes to like three different buildings underground, total maze. if it had a keypad lock it's nothing, if it had a simple latch then yeah maybe peek next time
honestly those older convenience stores in shinjuku have weird layouts from when they converted office basements. there's one near the yotsuya exit that still has a staircase down to what used to be a pachinko parlor in the 80s. probably just staff storage but the giggle thing is creepy. next time check if the door has a keypad or just a regular handle, that tells u everything
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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.