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Apollo Station Okubo SS Nightmare?
Apollo Station Okubo SS is actually out west in Okutama, not Shin-Okubo in the city, so the earlier reply is mixing up two different places. If its the one on Route 411 near Okutama, prices there run high because its basically the last full service before the mountain roads, think 180 to 190 yen a liter vs around 170 back in Ome. I'd top up in Ome or Hinohara instead, the trails off Okutama lake are reachable on a full tank anyway so you wont get stranded.
honestly the Okubo SS thing is a bit of a trap for road trippers. its not that the gas is wildly overpriced for Tokyo proper, but Okubo sits right by the Shin-Okubo area and you're paying a location premium. if you're heading out toward Okutama or the Chichibu trails, just fill up at a cheaper self-serve like a Cosmo or an apollostation out in the burbs before you leave the 23 wards. the detour is worth it, you'll save maybe 10 to 15 yen a liter.
Worth knowing that Apollo Station Okubo SS is a full-service stop, so part of what you're paying for is the attendant, not just the fuel. If you're the type who'd rather not deal with the prepay machines or figure out the pump prompts in Japanese, that convenience has a real value, especially after a long drive when you're tired. For a road trip out toward the Okutama trails, I'd treat it as a top-up spot rather than your main fill, and do the bulk of your fueling at a self-serve in Ome or Fussa where the price gap actually shows. One practical tip: the station sits close enough to the lake trailheads that you can gauge your tank there and skip it entirely if you've still got a comfortable margin.
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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.