It's not a deli; it's a bodega.
When the Caribbean was filled with political turmoil, Cuban, Puerto Rican, and Dominican immigrants moved into NYC; and in 1920 what came with them was a whole new concept of convenience - bodega enters the chat.
Your local hole-in-the-wall offering cheap eats and convenient essentials; a spot where you can grab some loose cigarettes, a gallon of milk, some cheap beer, or your morning 'beiconeganchi' (bacon, egg & cheese). But it wasn’t always like that.
Although Cubans coined the term bodega - meaning convenience store, it was really the Puerto Ricans that popped them off all over Manhattan. After WW2, many bodegas sold comfort food to Puerto Rican factory workers. Bodegas were filled with Puerto Rican staples like fresh cilantro and recao, ripe avocados, plantains, yucca, and even Latin music records. Puerto Ricans used to be able to walk into a bodega and grab all the fresh ingredients they needed to make aspaos and carne mechada. Fast forward to where we’re at now, and bodegas are known for a chopped cheese or a new vape.
Around 13,000 bodegas are in the city alone - many being open 24/7. If you live anywhere in the Burroughs, there's probably one right on your corner; with its resident cat roaming around of course. This scene is nothing new for Iason Rouvas - growing up in Astoria, Queens, they become part of your daily routine. “These bodegas are shaped by the neighborhood they serve — I go to grab a quick coffee on my way to the train, and walk out with a home-made empanada.”
*All images & copyright belong to the original owner unless otherwise stated*
Your local hole-in-the-wall offering cheap eats and convenient essentials; a spot where you can grab some loose cigarettes, a gallon of milk, some cheap beer, or your morning 'beiconeganchi' (bacon, egg & cheese). But it wasn’t always like that.
Although Cubans coined the term bodega - meaning convenience store, it was really the Puerto Ricans that popped them off all over Manhattan. After WW2, many bodegas sold comfort food to Puerto Rican factory workers. Bodegas were filled with Puerto Rican staples like fresh cilantro and recao, ripe avocados, plantains, yucca, and even Latin music records. Puerto Ricans used to be able to walk into a bodega and grab all the fresh ingredients they needed to make aspaos and carne mechada. Fast forward to where we’re at now, and bodegas are known for a chopped cheese or a new vape.
Around 13,000 bodegas are in the city alone - many being open 24/7. If you live anywhere in the Burroughs, there's probably one right on your corner; with its resident cat roaming around of course. This scene is nothing new for Iason Rouvas - growing up in Astoria, Queens, they become part of your daily routine. “These bodegas are shaped by the neighborhood they serve — I go to grab a quick coffee on my way to the train, and walk out with a home-made empanada.”
*All images & copyright belong to the original owner unless otherwise stated*