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want to meet at fmd_good Brew Lab
want to meet at fmd_good Vintage Avenue
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Shinjuku Convenience Store Enigma
Zeimusho-dori runs one way and the Family Mart there is on the wrong side for a quick in-and-out if you're coming from most of the hotels near the station, so factor in an extra few min. On the cat: the ones I've actually clocked in Shinjuku konbini tend to be near the loading door out back, not the front, because staff prop it open during deliveries around 4 or 5am. A pic vanishing off your phone is just Tokyo being Tokyo, I've lost shots the same way.
For the Kyoto run, forget the onigiri debate and grab a hot conbini coffee plus a tamago sando at the Family Mart, it holds better on the train than cold rice. The ekiben at Tokyo Station are better but you're boarding at Shinjuku so that's moot unless you're connecting.
Family Mart Zeimusho-dori specifically is a smaller store, so the onigiri case is genuinely picked over by around 10 or 11pm, and the staff there don't always restock before the morning rush. If you're on a 6am-ish shinkansen, the better move is the 7-11 just north of the Shinjuku west exit taxi loop, it's tiny but stays stocked and the tuna mayo is fresher than what you'll find sitting overnight. On the cat thing, what you probably saw was a store cat, and a few of the older konbini around Kabukicho keep one for the mice, though they usually stay behind the counter or by the register, not out on the floor.
cats in konbini are def a thing, not jet lag. the ones that hang around are usually store cats the staff feed, or neighborhood cats that figured out the automatic doors. i've seen one posted up on the magazine rack at a 7-11 in kagurazaka like it owned the place
for ur early shinkansen run from shinjuku, family mart on zeimusho-dori is fine but check the onigiri stock before like 11pm, they thin out overnight. the salmon & the mentaiko are safe bets. if u want something better for the train, hit the newdays inside the station once ur through the gates, they do a decent ekiben-adjacent set
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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.