Bodegas: Living the American Dream

Bodega is the Spanish word for a small neighborhood store, but in New York City, it’s a small store that plays a very large role in the community. Maria Hinojosa of NPR visits a few of the 10,000 family-run businesses that dot the city.

[@Tr0nzoid]

These are the places that get robbed in just about every movie set in New York City or Chicago.

[@bmike3808]

In my hometown the bodega workers will pull guns and shoot right back at anyone who try’s robbing them or causing any problems . At least from what I’ve seen and all the ones around my neighborhood they don’t take nobody’s crap period .

[@ErichHoneckerDDR]

😂😂😂 wtf

[@nothinghere6227]

There wouldn’t be a New York City without the bodegas

[@ginacleveland7995]

🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌

[@JoieDeVivre35]

Amen

[@AntiMessiah2023]

So a Bodega is basically a Mom & Pop Grocery store run by immigrants from Latin America & the Middle East.

[@JwGina]

AntiMessiah 7 11s are run by immigrants.

[@AntiMessiah2023]

***** But they dont have the luxury of selling anything they like, right?

[@chirish86]

Pretty much any local mom and pop store. I don't think ethnicity matters. Though each usually have general items with one or two unique specialities, food/liquor/etc exclusive that big markets don't sell. They always give me a blast from the past of nostalgia, as there pretty unchanged even with all technology nowadays.

[@dengster8884]

Nowadays, most of them are run by either Dominicans or Yemenis .

[@kinqmav226]

Matt bodega are owned by Latinos, deli and smoke shops are owned by middle eastern

[@PabloCruise91]

You know it's a bodega when you can't even see the inside of the store from outside.

[@sir.fuentes7642]

Bodegas were begun by the first Puerto Ricans that arrived in NYC almost 100 years ago. At that early time, there weren't many, if any people who spoke Spanish, let alone somewhere where they could find their food staples, spices and ingredients. They opened food stores that catered only to them selling food products they consumed. They called these stores Bodega which is a Spanish word for Cellar because this was the place where their food was stored and sold to their communities. In the early to mid 70's most of these Bodegas were sold and bought by Dominicans who were then beginning to arrive en masse to NYC.

[@einsteindarwin8756]

I understand how Diana feels. My father did not want me to run our small business so now I do what the reporter does and it’s hard work too.

[@JoieDeVivre35]

God bless our bodegas we can’t survive without them

[@Demonfireangel]

How do you run a news-segment about bodegas, but leave out the bodega cat?

[@truckmoney484]

I don't get why this is so amazing....is the gap between the rich and poor that wide that the rich can't understand the existence of corner stores

[@ginacleveland7995]

.....maybe, but who cares🤷‍♀️

[@Xozona]

Yeah I’m not understanding what Is so awe I-inspiring about literal run-of-the-mill convenience stores. we have these in East Boston and we just call them corner stores - no need to create some mysterious narrative around the most common type of establishment on the planet

[@cnacks4835]

Don't underestimate the ignorance of a yuppie.

[@Tomdelongpenis]

I will say this there are very few convenience stores with fresh hot food in the midwest I've been to two through work (one we did landscaping for and they gave us free burritos:) the other I stopped to grab a red bull and saw a full retro diner counter in a gas station everywhere has convenience stores but typically the food is ya know 711 nachos and I enjoy those but that chili is questionable (I still eat it buy ya know)

[@julianathomas8597]

The dude who owns it looks like my Italian uncle lmao

[@ginacleveland7995]

Yesss!!! Everytime I go back to visit family, I HAVE TO get a sandwich! And everytime, the owners are awesome!!🥰

[@seanlamont8501]

In Philly, we call it the Papi Store. 😁😁😁😁

[@irisshalurhad7901]

I get the sentiment of the bodega and the familiar faces who run them in those communities, but it is basically a packed convenience store with fresh made food.

[@kapetatex]

That lil boy was too cute

[@playerhaterr6172]

Red alert this comment

[@maka8551]

@@playerhaterr6172 you made it weird

[@allierandolph6910]

My family has owned restaurants for over 35 years and my husband and I have run them for about 20 years ... my family said the same thing about doing something different... we wouldn’t change anything we love our restaurants and our patrons...keep your dream alive girlfriend... it’s ALL WORTH IT ... would love to visit after COVID is stomped out ✌️😌

[@davanmani556]

Pamela (Nina) love. I love her confidence and swagger.

[@believeinyourself7511]

These Bodegas are located in Food Deserts.

[@kingsittystudios2400]

Not true, they have bodegas in Midtown Manhattan. This is NYC,B.

[@user-r8or-pko3dfg]

@@kingsittystudios2400 "Food Desert" refers to communities with retail outlets that mostly stock and sell processed foods, without much fresh veg, meat and dairy.

[@barbekyewsauce]

New York City gang know the vibe at a bodega

[@SupaEMT134]

_Wow._ Can I date Diana?

[@SuperMario97376]

SupaEMT134 Diana marry me !!

[@dengster8884]

SupaEMT134 she looks Asian (I know she is DR)

[@kikicorniel6222]

Is because Diane father own twelve bodega

[@flip1sba]

That's why when I visit NYC, I usually get a deli sandwich at any local bodega than the known tourist trap delis around Manhattan;

[@nickthehater]

yoooooo I need someone to find that chick ig!!!

[@blakebooming999]

nick p fax 😍

[@scaleoftrutheyeopener6698]

Hard to find man....

[@steveycarter9194]

sorry im late but better late than never instagram.com/itsdianarodriguez/?hl=en

[@daveeast4272]

She not that nice dawg

[@wyldcardsam]

@@steveycarter9194 goat

[@masterimbecile]

This sounds like establishments that'd be common in southern California, though I've never been in one. Must have been in a different part of town. I'll keep an eye out for one next time!

[@NahTerrific]

uuhhh this is a east coast thing buddy

[@DonJulio510]

In california latinos dont have bodegas. We have carnicerias.

[@leslieelaine8499]

I LOVE THE BODEGA FOOD PYRAMID!

[@bmike3808]

I live in PA and we got bodegas on every single corner . They got the best hot food coffee snacks etc

[@Flecha57]

Loved it. Welcome Maria Hinojosa. :))

[@decnijfkris3706]

Impossible to do that in my country. You'll need a separate sanitary clean tiled room with fridges to keep your eggs at 8° degrees Celcius. You will need a chefs diploma to treat food. So basically all these bodegas we had in the past went broke or were closed down by our FDA for not complying with local and national rules. It is even hard to sell only cigarettes, gazettes and beverages. You can't do lottery. So, they all close. In Belgium communist government is against capitalism of any kine unless the rulers get their fair share in profits. Nobody can open a small shop without the obligatory professional and administrative formation. Europe is a kafkaian dictocracy. Read Das Prozess by Kafka to get a taste. Some businesses are allowed to distribute freely Chinese smartphones worth 600 USD cuz they get refunded by the state and they compete in the same market with companies that have to sell their smartphones and don't get state money. All this my government does to maintain equality, good citizenship and fair trade. Thank you.

[@bago510]

In California Our Version of Bodegas are Corner stores or Liquor stores ANd are almost all owned by Arabs and sometimes Indians or Asians To be honest I never ever seen one owned by Latinos out here. Latinos mostly Own Mexican food or Latino Food product stores or Small Grocery stores in the West Coast.

[@3941602]

I walk into a bodega and it always feels sketchy. Also I dont live in a big city yet so so many bodegas.

[@frankm7254]

What I got out of this is Michael, the young customer, has a fantastic mom. He refers to Diane and Miss Diane.

[@bl6797]

Why can’t they have bodegas in every city in the country!?

[@donovanpowe8309]

Because then it loses flavor that's the unique thing about bodegas got to go get it it's not going to come to you

[@spdnb]

Even if it were to end up being some bougie corner boutique owned by Becky that tries to sell "impossible chopped cheese", bodegas would be indispensable in the food deserts that comprise of most residential areas all over America. Proly not the big cities (...cause they already have them), but in suburbs, residential parts of "highway towns" away from the main strip and the various "belts" (corn belt, rust belt, bible belts) where jobs are at their highest demand, the concept of the bodega could breathe life into a dying community. Who knows - they may actually gain traction once people realize they don't HAVE to be owned by hispanic or middle eastern people😏. This IS America, after all...

[@robr.5044]

Looks like a convenience store to me.

[@alecsandoval2541]

I bought my first bong from the bodega

[@SanoKei]

If you go to a bodega get a chopped cheese (a chop cheese). You haven't experienced New York or are a real New Yorker if you haven't eaten one.

[@BLaCkKsHeEp]

in Philippines, those are called "sari-sari store" "sari-sari" roughly translates to "variety"

[@jbolo5378]

C B Walker brought me here..."This is not a bodega!"

[@fishhooksmom1597]

She should definitely be a business major.

[@heru-deshet359]

Bodegas provided a link to Puerto Rico everything from the products they carried to the towns in Puerto Rico from which they derived their names. There are leadership roles the owners of these businesses hold in the community. Bodegas are places where friends and neighbors would meet up to socialize. In the past. it was the social fabric of the Puerto Rican community in addition to serving the Hispanic population of New York City.

[@sprinkles512]

you mean a convenience store?

[@playerhaterr6172]

Yes white people term, welp I need to skedaddle up on out of here

[@CastleVaniak]

50 Cent has a song called Corner Bodega

[@Splursy]

The best coffe 😂🤣🤣🤣

[@melow8261]

Which block do i find Dyana tho

[@spitfire3984]

Bodegas are a staple in NYC. If you took away the bodegas or changed them, the city wouldn’t be the same.

[@AarohiXO]

I’m here after watching in the heights

[@Ericasentertainments]

I wonder if a big name convenience store came in like 7-Eleven etc. would it change the demographics of the people coming in there? Every time I hear of a bodega it’s because something bad has happened there.

[@mikewest6569]

Before the Bodegas, there were the Jewish/Italian luncheonettes. NYC is always changing.

[@jagtaggart936]

looking up Kyo Kusanagi specials and strategies brought me here.

[@LD-tk7qf]

I’m a white woman and I love these bodegas

[@karenpaciocco8277]

The music is great in this segment. I love me some Romeo Santos!!

[@earldeanpowell]

I thought it was Spanish for warehouse, used for a local grocery store. No?

[@juancarlosortegagarcia2609]

You're right! Bodega is Spanish for warehouse.

[@Ryguy-lg2xz]

Here on the west coast we just call them convenience stores

[@reneejohnson9256]

They use to have a lot of corner stores, just like bodega's, in LA, bck n the day! Majority were black owned! Now most are gone! Nice how new York keeps their tradition going! Maybe 7-11 made them disappear! Well basically people sold out!

[@Endymion766]

Bodegas are nice but i cant imagine living off the food there. It's all sodium laden junk food. I know they gotta sell what makes money but where's the grocery store?

[@SanoKei]

These places loan out money to shady people. That's how they make most of their money.

[@jaystackz3425]

ok mr detective

[@user-r8or-pko3dfg]

In Cal, the stereotype is the convenience store, like 7-11, owned and operated by Indian, Korean, Middle-Eastern men, that are often hit on by gangstas.

[@bmike3808]

Chop cheese baby !!!!!!

[@leoarzola4791]

Bodega are showing that self checkouts are not the future. Some just like the social aspect of talking to the cashier

[@robertthorpe2401]

Bodega means “warehouse” Not neighborhood store, At least in Mexico it is.

[@DonJulio510]

Robert Thorpe in el slavador as well.

[@TioElon]

La tiendita de la esquina for us in México, right

[@ctdieselnut]

Bodega sandwiches are awesome and cheap.

[@migspeculates]

In the Philippines, bodega is where we store old and broken things. So expect cobwebs, rats, spiders and roaches together with old memories when you go to our bodega. 😂😂😂

[@vjiggy81]

that young girl is beautiful

[@lui8586]

bodega for Northern mexico means warehouse. but went i hear bodega with caribian accent i know what they are talking about

[@gladimirsavinon104]

Portoricans are the ones that call it Bodega. In D.R. the word is Colmado

[@rip1rip290]

Quarter waters

[@yaboijojo792]

It's a locally owned Exxon

[@koostory1776]

Thank you TACO 🌮 people.

[@kisa4748]

so its 711 but owned and ran by a local

[@SoulOfTheSouth]

Dallas Penn from The Combat Jack Show

[@datnorfsideoflongbeach]

Diana is beautiful

[@ajfadeaway99]

This ain't nothing but a corner store for us in Miami. I dint see what the big deal is because we had these forever

[@dave32195]

Got the faragaaaaaamooo

[@bajajablasted]

Came here after JLos order

[@FernandoMartinez-jq8wx]

Woooo😋

[@Santiag0Camach0]

Jose Alba is innocent

[@Vortex493]

HE AND HIS BROTHERS OWN 12 OF THEM, LOL SO THATS WHERE ALL THE DRUG PROFITS ARE GOING

[@gladimirsavinon104]

Bodegas are very profitable. Most people think those businesses struggle, because that's how they're depicted in movies.

[@Ericasentertainments]

💀🤣🤣🤣

[@Ericasentertainments]

@@gladimirsavinon104 Every bodega I’ve seen in the movies is depicted by rude employee,some sort of drug deal going on inside or outside the store and a fight. but it seems the movies are not too far off considering the news especially as of lately with so many robberies and murders.

[@lordbenito007]

OMG bacon egg and cheese

[@moisepicard8855]

🇭🇹🇭🇹🇫🇷🇫🇷

[@AzizaSaleh-hh9uf]

It’s basically a dukan

[@mb24777]

whats diana IG brooo

[@chardelraconner7324]

leaving by foot hinge pressure cloat ain't traditional

[@chardelraconner7324]

wind draft included ALWAYS

[@chardelraconner7324]

automated... man... kart weight

[@turbopower130]

Now explain how it's a front for drugs and criminal enterprises

[@GRINGOf10]

Bodega actually means "storage" liears

[@louievillasenor3111]

So these men are just Money laundering. Just making everything community legit. Hats off too you

[@giovannivivar471]

Working since she was six isn't that ilegl

[@TheMijman]

Land of opportunity

[@jazlyn2648]

They scare me

[@itsnottheone1]

It’s called a deli

[@nagasaki8031]

Thirty years in America and still can’t speak English

[@2abbaking]

Neither can trump

[@TheMijman]

Why would they need to? It's not legally required to speak any specific language in America

[@lancebaker1374]

WRONG!!!! Bodega is a cellar. A wine cellar is the most common way to use the word. Tienda is a small store or shop.

[@SanoKei]

That's also wrong. . . It means warehouse. . .chill

[@eddiev4785]

30 yrs and she dont speak english

[@Koval4191]

Apparently you don’t either it is speak not speek

[@edwinlucianofrias1643]

She “doesn’t.” I don’t You don’t He/She/It doesn’t We don’t They don’t You know...English!

[@edwinlucianofrias1643]

She doesn’t!

[@TheMijman]

No national language. No legal requirement

[@seanjuth]

Suffers from diabetes? You guys have definitely been hit in the head. Mind your own damn business

[@juanshaftpatel7488]

so child slavery is ok again?

[@judybrown8258]

English in America

[@edwinlucianofrias1643]

Judy Brown F America!

[@kimper_ayqpa]

Jajaja. Colorado Montana Oregon California tejas florida nevada nuevo México jajajaa

[@federalbureauofinvestigati7638]

I’m calling ICE😂

[@eddies366]

Bodega is a warehouse not a convenience store. Just another example of Puerto Ricans messing up the Spanish language and the east coast following suit.