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But the vibe the feel is what matters more, not just the function. if there are no 'suavemente' type sounds and goya is not prominently featured on the shelves it's different. Thats more just a corner store or minimart, IMO. I'm not saying you need a bodega cat-but it helps. As Space League posted- many of the bodegas in MA and CT are PR or DR owned and they feature all the 'classic' bodega elements aside from extended hours.
A packie and a bodega are two totally differently and absolute unrelated things lmao.
“They’re called a packie in MA”??? Noooo
A packie is a liquor store or an “LQ”
a bodega is a ‘Spanish corner store’
Bodega isn't Spanish for corner store though and doesn't really have a set meaning in the US. They can certainly sell alcohol and still be a bodega depending on local and state laws. What we call "liquor stores" in LA are very much like bodegas in NYC. Same idea, different names.
Bodega isn't Spanish for corner store though and doesn't really have a set meaning in the US. They can certainly sell alcohol and still be a bodega depending on local and state laws. What we call "liquor stores" in LA are very much like bodegas in NYC. Same idea, different names.
A Packie and a Bodega are two entirely separate things in MA. Virtually no relation as corner stores can’t legally sell liquor (I.e. packages) and rarely do they sell beer. Anyone saying they call them the same is just wrong in that context- that’s two separate cultures with two separate functions. Our liquor stores serve only liquor beer wine juice and chips it’s not at all like a bodega or corner store.
Mmost places we’d call a packie are owned by white people. An LQ (same exact thing) is said by black people and typically owned by Indians or Arabs. Our bodegas are almost always owned by Dominicans. And secondarily Ricans. A 7-11 is more for Arabs/Indians.
Bodega
New Oxford American. Dictionary: (in the US) a small grocery store, especially in a Spanish-speaking neighborhood.
Dictionary.com
Definition of bodega
noun, plural bo·de·gas [boh-dey-guhz; Spanish baw-the-gahs].
a small, independent or family-owned grocery store, usually located in a densely populated urban environment, traditionally serving a Hispanic clientele.
Cambridge dictionary:
(in a neighborhood with a lot of Spanish-speaking people) a small store that sells food and other items for the house:
A true bodega is also typically yellow and red but can also have blue or green in there.. as long as there’s some yellow, I’ve been told by an elder Puerto Rican woman from the Bronx (now in Hartford) this is an important feature and indeed, there’s actually a good bit written in this fact. If you look at the bodegas Space League shared every one except for one incorporate yellow and red in some way, but also blue. These things + Spanish owner + in a multi family housing building being you closer and closer to ‘quintessential’ bodega.
Last edited by BostonBornMassMade; 05-25-2022 at 06:43 AM..
A Packie and a Bodega are two entirely separate things in MA.
My point was that selling alcohol doesn't disqualify a place from being a bodega. What you call a packie in Massachusetts and what you call a bodega are different things, but each have elements of what you would find in a NYC bodega, so I think that they both meet the OP's ask.
I think that we're looking at it differently. My understanding of the OP's ask was where else has stores that function like NYC bodegas no matter what they're called. Perhaps I misunderstood. I only know of one store in LA that's actually called a "bodega" (because it's in the name), but we have tons that fill the same purpose and even look like NCY bodegas. They're just called liquor stores here.
Here's an example near me, but it is on the large size and not Hispanic.
My point was that selling alcohol doesn't disqualify a place from being a bodega. What you call a packie in Massachusetts and what you call a bodega are different things, but each have elements of what you would find in a NYC bodega, so I think that they both meet the OP's ask.
I think that we're looking at it differently. My understanding of the OP's ask was where else has stores that function like NYC bodegas no matter what they're called. Perhaps I misunderstood. I only know of one store in LA that's actually called a "bodega" (because it's in the name), but we have tons that fill the same purpose and even look like NCY bodegas. They're just called liquor stores here.
Here's an example near me, but it is on the large size and not Hispanic.
I'd just kind of call that a store or liquor store. Pretty different than Most MA liquor stores
OP did say it should have a Spanish name. But I think that's too clean and modern looking for a bodega. Anything like that seems like something you'd see in a white community-at least in MA, and wouldn't have a Hispanic owner.
Tons of things serve the core purpose of a bodega. General stores, country stores, corner stores.
What makes bodegas in NYC unique are (essentially what would make the ultimate bodega):
Latino Independent Owner
Late hours
Serves Alcohol
Serves Hot Food
Red and Yellow exterior Color
Bodega Cat
Very Crowded inside
Latin Music
A part of a multi family building
Based on those criteria there's a good amount of these in CT (Hartford especially, many perfect examples) MA RI NY State and NJ. Also some in Chicago I'm sure.
and to be clear its rare anywhere outside of NYC hits all these boxes, very rare.
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