I hate when people say "only in New York kids, only in New York!!" but I feel like the corner bodega experience really IS unique to New Yorkers. The day I moved to Brooklyn was the first time I'd heard the word, and my first memories of my first one one are of me flyin' & Rrthur (YES, ladies, THAT Rrthur!) and Mrs. Rrthur buyin' another 6-pack of Budweiser tallboys; within a week I felt I'd had at least a "good to see you again, friend!" nodding relationship with the Koren owners.
From an article a few years back:
I’ve lived in the same New York City apartment for over 15 years, which means I have made [consults abacus] somewhere in the neighborhood of 400 billion trips to my corner bodega. Jorge’s Deli is practically an extension of my home. Everyone there calls me “boss,” except the one dude who calls me “big guy.” I call everyone “my friend.” They know they’ll keep the change, but they still offer it anyway.
That's exactly how things were at the bodega around the corner from 100 Metro was for my 14 1/2 years there. I'd get a bacon, egg & cheese on a roll, peruse the chips rack and settle on Party Mix for the variety, grab a Daily News and then spend the next 15 minutes cursing at the heavens over the amount of fucking pretzels in the goddam Party Mix bag.
Here's the bodega on Grand & Berry (right across the street from Kam Sing - magic corner!) I must've visited over 2,500 times from 1998-2012.
Here's my old gang, we used to rob bodegas. I miss this crew! 🤣
Bubble Up, Tutti, Frutti)
Shit I almost forgot the entire reason I started yammering about bodegas - there's a short film coming out about "bodega relationships:
A new short film that debuts Tuesday tells the stories of relationships that develop inside New York City bodegas.
“Gut Punch” follows a New York City resident, named Dan, who is looking to buy probiotics at a local bodega. From there, the movie explores friendships created at these neighborhood hubs.
Enjoy! And you're welcome, Earf!
No comments:
Post a Comment