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want to meet at fmd_good Nature Park
want to meet at fmd_good Corner Diner
want to meet at fmd_good City Market
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Naitomachi Nightlife?
honestly naitomachi is perfect for what you're after, it's a little pocket of yanaka that feels like old tokyo. skip the main strip and duck into the alley behind the 7-eleven on yanaka ginza, there's a tiny place called toribune with maybe 8 seats, they do amazing yakitori and the owner is this old guy who'll just pour you sake til you tell him to stop. it's not on google maps or anything, just look for the red lantern with the chicken painted on it, you'll smell the charcoal before you see it
fwiw the other replies are spot on but if you want something a little different wander over to the corner where the yanaka cemetery path meets the main road, there's a tiny okonomiyaki place called Goro's that's been there since the 70s, it's literally just a counter and a griddle, no menu just whatever veggies are in season that day plus pork or squid. the old lady who runs it speaks zero english but she'll gesture for you to pick your toppings from the basket on the counter, it's like 800 yen for a full meal and a beer, and the place gets packed with construction workers and students around 7pm so you'll prob have to share a stool with a stranger
If you're up for a bit of a walk, head toward the Nezu Shrine side of Naitomachi. There's a small sake bar called Sake no Ana tucked between a laundromat and a used bookshop, no sign in English, just a white noren curtain. They only serve sake and a few simple dishes like pickled vegetables and grilled fish, but the owner really knows his stuff and will chat your ear off if you show any interest. It's the kind of place where you'll end up sharing a table with a salaryman who insists on buying you a round.
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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.