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want to meet at fmd_good Wildlife Reserve
want to meet at fmd_good Market Deli
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Where do you change your money? (Foreign exchange)
honestly skip the banks, their rates are garbage. check out Interbank near Ueno station or the Daikokuya currency exchange shops, they're all over Shinjuku and Shibuya. rates are way better than what you'll get at a bank counter and no lines half the time
if you're near Shinjuku, the Daikokuya right outside the east exit is pretty solid. just bring your passport, they'll ask for it. the rates change daily so check a few places if you have time, but you'll prob save a few hundred yen compared to a bank
yeah the tatsumi place is solid but if you're out east, try interbank in ueno. right near the station, rates are usually within a yen or two of the mid-market rate. just bring your passport and cash, they won't touch cards
also fwiw, avoid the currency exchange counters at bigger department stores like isetan or takashimaya. they're convenient but the spread is brutal, you'll lose like 5-7% compared to a proper shop
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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.