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Lost in Matsunoki
ngl the key to matsunoki is the convenience stores. there's a family mart near the station that has a weirdly specific green awning, and a 7-eleven two blocks south that always has a cat sleeping out front. if you can find either of those, you can triangulate pretty much anywhere
also that ramen shop's closed on wednesdays just fyi, learned that one the hard way. the old lady at the tobacco shop by the shrine knows all the shortcuts if you catch her before noon
The trick is to look for the yellow utility poles. Every corner in Matsunoki has a small metal plate on them with the block number, and if you memorize your station's block number (it's 2-chome), you can always follow the numbers back down. The ramen shop is in 5-chome, so you're heading uphill from there.
Also, that pachinko parlor you passed three times? It's actually the best landmark in the neighborhood because it's the only building with a clock tower that actually works. If you stand with your back to it, the station is directly behind you, but you have to cut through the narrow alley beside the soba shop, not the main road. That main road loops around and dumps you out near the shrine instead.
honestly the trick is to use the train tracks as your north star. if you can hear the yamanote line rumbling, you're never more than a 10 minute walk from the station. the backstreets curve around in weird ways but they all lead back toward the tracks eventually
also that ramen shop's real name is something like "menya takumi" but the sign's been faded for years so everyone just calls it "the good one". if you find the vending machine with the weirdly faded coke logo on the corner of the third alley, you're two blocks away
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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.