Talk:Bodega

Warsaw café

For possible inclusion: Perhaps the first use of the term in this context: “Life in Poland under the heel of Nazi conquerors” The Evening Star Friday 9 August 1940 a report by Michael Sobanski, the American born son of a Polish army colonel. He and his friends opened a convenience store called the Cafe Bodega.

This seems like just a coincidence, the café is described here.--Pharos (talk) 20:20, 5 September 2022 (UTC)

Bodega disambiguation page

The bodega disambiguation page indicates that this article is for the usage of the term in New York City, yet there's a template asking for a more global view of the subject on this article. Yet bodega is a New York regional term in this usage. Either this article should be moved over the disambig and the disambig moved to (disambiguation) naming, or the template should be removed, IMHO. Andre🚐 20:03, 5 September 2022 (UTC)

We currently have the anomalous (and unfortunate) situation that https://bdgastore.com/ is the top Google search result for "Bodega", apparently because their algorithm believes our Wikipedia article is about that particular chain, and that the other link is the official corporate page. Although moving this article over the disambig might make sense in the long run, I think for now I would just suggest Bodega (New York City). Pharos (talk) 20:26, 14 September 2022 (UTC)

IMO the Bodega page should be moved to Bodega (disambiguation). Look at the content of the current disambig page. The first link to convenience store is actually about this entry. The others are dictdefs/Spanish translations. Then all the other uses and locations are fairly obscure. Andre🚐 22:07, 14 September 2022 (UTC)

I removed the template. It was misplaced by an IP editor. This article is about the unique northeastern business called a bodega. My question is... what is the regional ranges of bodega's? Would make an awesome map. I dont know if this complicates things but I added a quote about Bodega's from Mir Fontane from Camden, NJ... Perhaps Bodega (New York metropolitan area) is a more accurate name but also a mouth full and i'm not sure if it covers the full range because I believe there are bodegas in Pennsylvania... Wil540 art (talk) 22:57, 16 September 2022 (UTC)

In any case the appropriate place to propose a move would probably be Talk:Bodega, so that the discussion has more international exposure. Pharos (talk) 02:53, 18 September 2022 (UTC)

Prehistory of the bodega

I don't object to mentioning the likes of Gem Spa somewhere, but given it's a 1920s Jewish candy store, it probably belongs in some section on the precursors of the classical bodega. (In the 21st century, we may very well be in the post-bodega age, or at least in the era of the beyond-bodega.) Pharos (talk) 02:58, 18 September 2022 (UTC)

I agree, I think there's a thread from the luncheonettes and soda jerk candy stores and so-called drugstores of the 1920s through 1950s, to delis, diners, coffee shops, and the birth of the bodega (many of which contain a small pharmacy). There's also a thread of how convenience stores and major chains, chain pharmacies, and gas stations exist and occasionally muscle in on bodega turf - I came across a few examples of this but haven't figured out how it fits in. There's also a theme of the 24 hour late night culture starting in the 1980s and 1990s. Some of this is my own experience of the candy store heritage of post-war Brooklyn, but I think that is kind of the same zeitgeist from which emerged the canonical immigrant bodega or diner, be it Puerto Rican or Yemeni or Greek. I do think there are sources that have looked at this a little bit, though a lot of them are more on the deli side than bodegas per se. Andre🚐 01:32, 23 September 2022 (UTC)

Who wants to visit the Bodega Truck?

There is a food truck called the Bodega Truck operates in the Bronx and/or Queens? The article says Bronx but the Yelp says Queens...

https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/news/2021/05/26/bodega-truck-serves-up-chopped-cheeses-and-nostalgia-in-the-bronx

https://www.yelp.com/biz/bodega-truck-astoria?osq=Bodega

Who wants to take a field trip with me? Wil540 art (talk) 03:23, 18 October 2022 (UTC)

"Korean Bodega"

In popular culture, want to add this Fun Lovin' Criminals song? It's all about what Dave Chapelle was talking about.

81.79.49.249 (talk) 11:36, 5 September 2023 (UTC)

Licensed Grocers ( LGs) in Victoria Australia

In Melbourne there are many licensed grocers, they operate as a bottle shop and sell common items, much like what used to be called milk bars but with grog as well. I think these are close to botecas/ bodegas- a shop with grog and food stuffs/ house holds sundries. 220.253.221.179 (talk) 09:51, 9 December 2024 (UTC)

Support per nom. Agnieszka653 (talk) 22:45, 27 October 2025 (UTC)

Requested move 25 October 2025

The following is a closed discussion of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. Editors desiring to contest the closing decision should consider a move review after discussing it on the closer's talk page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

The result of the move request was: moved. Consensus supports that the “store” meaning is the WP:PRIMARYTOPIC for “bodega”. The article receives significantly higher pageviews and represents the common modern usage in English. One editor raised global usage concerns, but the majority found the English usage overwhelmingly refers to the small convenience stores (notably in New York City). The article Bodega (store) has been moved to Bodega, and a Bodega (disambiguation) page created. (closed by non-admin page mover) --Warm Regards, Abhiimanyu7 talk  05:01, 1 November 2025 (UTC)

---

• Bodega (store) → Bodega
• Bodega → Bodega (disambiguation)

– This is the WP:PRIMARYTOPIC for bodega. Pageviews analysis shows a 10x difference between the pageviews here and the pageviews for any other Bodega article, and this is the only one whose name is a non-proper noun. BanjoZebra (talk) 23:29, 25 October 2025 (UTC)

• Support per nom. Thanks, Glasspalace (talk | contribs) 03:45, 26 October 2025 (UTC)
• Support per nom.--Ortizesp (talk) 05:41, 26 October 2025 (UTC)
• Support as per nom. 162 etc. (talk) 18:49, 26 October 2025 (UTC)
• Merge with convenience store. Einsof (talk) 20:05, 26 October 2025 (UTC)

  There are multiple reliable sources cited in the article that all refer specifically to bodegas. See WP:SIGCOV. 162 etc. (talk) 20:15, 26 October 2025 (UTC)

  Perhaps it should be at "Bodega (New York City)" then. Einsof (talk) 20:26, 26 October 2025 (UTC)

  Why? It's not an ambiguous term in common use. voorts (talk/contributions) 00:53, 27 October 2025 (UTC)

  Because despite the generality of the opening sentence, the article is functionally about convenience stores in New York City. For example, the history section muses that "Although they were initially documented in the 1930s [...] the first bodega may have opened even earlier", which is a vacuous statement if you take at face value the article's geographically agnostic definition of "bodega" as "a small owner-operated convenience store serving hot and prepared food"—such establishments have been around well before the 1930s and likely go back to prehistory. And in that circumstance, the distinction between a "bodega" and a convenience store is unclear.

  Essentially, this article is trying to have it both ways. If it is intended to be about a certain kind of convenience store without geographical restriction, then it likely needs to be reworked to remove obviously incongruous statements like the one I quoted above. If it is intended to be about New York City specifically, then "New York City" should probably appear in the article title. Einsof (talk) 01:23, 27 October 2025 (UTC)

  The specificity to New York City is a non-sequitur here, it doesn't change the fact that this is the only non-proper usage of bodega and is what most people are referring to when they mention or search for "bodega". BanjoZebra (talk) 15:47, 27 October 2025 (UTC)

• Support per nom. The use of "bodega" has spread beyond NYC. -Wil540 art (talk) 23:34, 26 October 2025 (UTC)
• Support Per nom, and a bodega is not a typical convenience store as envisioned elsewhere. For one, bodegas are mom and pop shops rather than chain stores like 7-11. ᴢxᴄᴠʙɴᴍ (ᴛ) 05:03, 27 October 2025 (UTC)

  Where is this "elsewhere" that doesn't have independent owner-operated convenience stores? Einsof (talk) 13:12, 27 October 2025 (UTC)

• Support per nom. Whether or not the article should be merged is a separate issue, but at the moment this is the primary topic among articles that are titled "Bodega". Station1 (talk) 12:40, 27 October 2025 (UTC)
• Support per nom. Absolutely the primary topic. ⇒SWATJester ^{Shoot Blues, Tell VileRat!} 22:50, 27 October 2025 (UTC)
• Oppose. Maybe in America this is the primary usage, but elsewhere primary usage is the Spanish term meaning a wine cellar or bar. Therefore no primary. -- Necrothesp (talk) 09:59, 29 October 2025 (UTC)
• Support per nom and 'support' arguments made by others. The store is the primary topic and needs no disambiguation. They are a distinct category of convenience store that is strongly associated with New York City but not found exclusively there. —Myceteae‍🍄‍🟫 (talk) 01:43, 30 October 2025 (UTC)

The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

Bodega bros and Mamdani's plans

Hi Einsof! I wanted to make note here of my edit removing the paragraph about the "bodega bro" being fired and shortening the content about Mamdani's proposed city-run grocery stores.

• Re: bodega bro. The Yahoo News and news.com.au sources are both pretty standard retellings of viral videos and reactions. Neither really provide any secondary coverage, with both consisting almost entirely of quotes. The Reason article does draw additional conclusions, but is still mostly a direct retelling of the online drama with a couple speculations reflecting their POV. I don't think this 2022 viral video warrants mention in this article.
• Re: Mamdani's proposal, I've rewritten/shortened it to try and reflect the sources more broadly. I don't think we can pick specific quotes, especially when there are so many to choose from in these two articles, each reflecting a different position.

Best, Vermont (🐿️—🏳️‍🌈) 02:34, 7 June 2026 (UTC)

This is far worse than before. The version as I had it contained specific and attributable statements. Now it has been turned into sentence where vague, unattributed "criticism" has materialized from nowhere in particular. You do not need to retain exact quotes, but your replacement text should still be specific and attributable. In particular, removing the text noting that the "criticism" in question comes from an industry trade group does not really seem acceptable. Einsof (talk) 02:50, 7 June 2026 (UTC)

@Einsof: good call, it needs a subject. I've edited it to state:

...has been criticized by many bodega owners as potentially unfairly competing with bodegas.

To match the The Hill article's:

"Many grocers and bodega owners in New York say the plan would give city-owned stores an unfair advantage, allowing them to avoid costs that private businesses must absorb."

I don't think this phrasing runs afoul of WP:WEASEL: Likewise, views that are properly attributed to a reliable source may use similar expressions, if those expressions accurately represent the opinions of the source. The point of WP:WEASEL is that we do not overstep the bounds of an encyclopedia and synthetize opinions ourselves. That this plan has been criticized for this reason is well-supported by the sources. I'd think this is preferred over picking a specific quote from the dozen or so in these two articles. Best, Vermont (🐿️—🏳️‍🌈) 03:06, 7 June 2026 (UTC)

Both source articles subsequently included a response from Mamdani. Why was that removed? Also, the phrase "by many bodega owners" is not the subject, it's the agent. The subject of that sentence is "The plan". Einsof (talk) 03:07, 7 June 2026 (UTC)

@Einsof: I'm not sure how best to characterize a response, given we don't get much in the way of interpretation of the quotes. I don't think the earlier "Mamdani tried to diffuse any conflict by noting that..." wording is sufficiently supported.

The Gothamist piece includes, before the quote:

"Mamdani argued bodegas were not likely to sell the same items as the city-owned grocers."

The Hill piece ends with a quote from Mamdani vaguely on this topic but without much interpretation and afaict doesn't present a response from Mamdani's directly to the competition issue. Thoughts on how best to reflect what we have? Vermont (🐿️—🏳️‍🌈) 03:18, 7 June 2026 (UTC)

Then it should just paraphrase the quote that was in there earlier: Mamdani thinks (based on conversations with bodega owners) that they make their money from smokes and gambling, so they shouldn't feel like they're in competition with a business that's actually trying to feed people. Mamdani's phrasing of it was more tactful than that, which is why I pasted it in before. Einsof (talk) 03:22, 7 June 2026 (UTC)

@Einsof: true, and it'd be nice to have a way to reflect this in (or mostly in) encyclopedic prose. How's

In response, Mamdani argued that bodegas and city-run stores would not compete on all products, noting that "for bodegas, some of the primary revenue generators are tobacco products and lottery products" which would not be sold by city-run stores.

Which we'd cite to the Gothamist piece. Vermont (🐿️—🏳️‍🌈) 03:28, 7 June 2026 (UTC)

That sounds great. Thanks. Einsof (talk) 03:29, 7 June 2026 (UTC)