My favorite place to purchase alcoholic beverages is a bodega on the corner of 189th and Hughes in the Bronx. It's one of the only places my friends and I go and it's mainly due to the people that work there. There are two guys we know that work there. One is named Rey and he is the friendliest bodega man I've met so far. He always greats us with a smile and a look of joy even if it's from behind the glass of the refrigerator door while he stocks beer. The other employee is only known to be called by shouting, "BODEGA, BODEGA." One night a couple of my friends and I went into the bodega before we were on our way to a party. Rey and BODEGA, BODEGA helped us get in the mood to party by blasting the music, turning off the lights, and lowering their disco ball from the ceiling. We all started dancing and were chanting "BODEGA." The best part was the guy innocently trying to get past us to the counter to buy his toilet paper and he told us he was going to call all of our parents. It was one of the best kick offs to senior year and their bodega continues to be a central place we go to if we want a familiar face and a nice cold brewski.
~Shannon Harman