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Finding that perfect onigiri
The Family Mart by Takano is solid but if you walk 4 min west to the 7-11 on Yasukuni-dori theyve got a seasonal one with shiso and pickled plum that slaps. Also check the onigiri at the depachika under Isetan Shinjuku, the rice is noticeably better and they do uni and ikura ones for like 300 yen. avoid the salmon at conbini chains near the station, its fine but boring, the tarako butter at 7-11 is the real local pick.
Everyone fixates on the filling but the rice is what separates a good onigiri from a forgettable one. Famima actually salts their rice a touch more than 7-11, which is why their plain shio musubi and the simple kombu one hold up better than the fancier stuff. My pick at that Takano location is the takikomi gohan onigiri when they have it, seasoned rice with root vegetables and a bit of chicken, no strong filling competing with it. It's the one you won't find at most conbinis abroad and it sells out by mid-afternoon, so grab it early.
if you're at the Takano Nishishinjuku famima you're like 6 min from Shin-Okubo station, so just walk over there instead. the Korean conbini and the little delis on Okubo-dori do onigiri with things like bulgogi, kimchi, and even cheese tteok fillings that you won't find at any Japanese chain. the rice isn't as good but the fillings are way more interesting. grab one with the spicy pork and a corn one, that combo is kinda a local late-night thing.
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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.