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Hanazono Shrine's Secret?
The gate behind the cedar is probably the old entrance to the Inari sub-shrine, the one with the small kitsune statues. Fwiw the shrine dates back to 1624 and used to serve as a guardian for the Naito family's estate before Shinjuku grew up around it, so there are a few sealed-off side paths from the Edo period. If you go back, check the flea market on Sundays, its one of the better ones in Tokyo and runs along the back gravel path, not the main courtyard.
honestly most of those side gates at Hanazono are just shut for groundskeeping, the kannushi opens em early morning when they sweep the back paths. if u really wanna see whats tucked away go on a weekday around 7am, theres an older guy who tends the smaller hokora near the east edge and he doesnt mind if you peek as long as you dont touch the ofuda. the flea market thing is real but its only the 2nd and 4th Sundays i think, not every week.
that little gate behind the cedar is likely the entrance to the inner grounds, most people just stick to the main haiden & never go past it. hanazono is one of the few shrines in shinjuku that actually kept its inari shrines tucked back in the trees, small red torii trail going up the slope, easy to miss if ur not looking. i usually cut through on my way to golden gai since its like 3 min from the yasukuni dori exit, way quieter than the main approach on weekends
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.
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