Are there still corner stores?

[BurtWorm]

Thirty years ago, every little town had a darkly lit place that smelled of cigars and chocolates where you'd go to get your bubble gum, comic books, popsicles and Coke. They wouldn't ring anything in on the ancient cash register. They'd do the figuring on a paper bag, then round off to the nearest nickel.

In NYC there are, indeed, bodegas all over the place. Some feel like they've been owned by the same family for decades. But I don't know how they survive, and I would be very surprised if they're still around in 20 years.

In the town where I grew up in Central Maine, almost every last mom and pop store has been turned into either a yuppie cafe, a 7-11 or a chain drugstore.

What's the status of corner stores where you live?

[vivalarev]

1. in philly...

there are still a ton of little corner stores. not as many as there used to be, but there are still many.

[freetobegay]

2. Still alive & well in S.E. Kentucky

[Tom_Foolery]

19. The same in NW Kentucky. n/t

[Speck Tater]

3. I live several miles out of town

in a small rural community of about 1000 that has a genuine mom and pop country store. For serious shopping I drive into town and hit the malls and supermarkets, but I still find good reasons to walk to the corner store a couple times a week.

[Burma Jones]

4. We have them here but only because of our county alcohol laws

Montgomery County Maryland only allows two stores operated by the same company to sell beer or wine, hence, grocery stores do not really sell beer/wine. As a result, many, many Beer/Wine stores have existed here for decades. These are our corner stores and have been an entry point for many immigrants starting their own businesses.

[zanana]

6. There's a corner store on my corner...

It got robbed last night, but it's a corner store.

[aden_nak]

5. Northern New Jersey

So yes and no. Yes, there are some non-chain stores in my area, though none of them sell general goods. They are all specialized locations (pizza, ice cream, that sort of thing), and they often TRY to seem as much like a larger chain as humanly possible.

[Snow]

7. When I lived in Minneapolis, I picked up an interesting book on

the geographic history of the town - but not a dissertation type thing, aimed at the general audience. One of the most fascinating points talked about the stores that used to be at every corner in towns like Minneapolis - they were there largely because that's where there was a trolley stop. People rode the trolleys home from work downtown, got off, stopped in the store for whatever was needed at home (where there most likely was not much in the way of refrigeration), and walked home with their purchase. Different world.

[DinahMoeHum]

8. Funny, the one in my old hometown IS called The Corner Store.

and it sells newspapers, magazines, other stationery, candy and gum, some smokes, some general items. No food or drink, though, never has. It's been there since before I was born (over 50 years). It has changed ownership a few times, but it's still independently owned.

There are also quite a few others all around Westchester County, NY (north of NYC) Others in Fairfield County, CT, too.

:smoke:

[slackmaster]

9. Yes, they're all run by Chaldeans from Iraq

San Diego County has one of the largest concentrations of Iraqi expatriates in the USA.

[maveric]

18. Theres one on my corner thats owned by Chaldeans.

It seems like there are thousands of Chaldean-owned marke/liquor stores here in San Diego. Its like every liquor store I've been in over the past 15 years or so have been Chaldean-owned.

[slackmaster]

20. No exaggeration - every liquor store, small grocery, etc. within 2 miles

of my home is run by Chaldeans.

I live in South Park BTW.

[Commendatori]

10. I haven't seen one in ages

I live in D.C.

Any DC DUers who know of any such local stores, please let me know.

[BurtWorm]

12. There was one in Adams Morgan a few years ago

that I know of, run by a Korean family, on Connecticut near one of the squares (the name of which I forget). A real authentic country store, with jars of bubble gum and nickel candies on the counter.

[Commendatori]

14. I live in Woodley Park

and the closest thing we have to that these days is a Korean liquor store across from the zoo. Sad.

[sbj405]

22. Franklin's in Hyattsville

In addition to being a brewpub, they have a general store which was at one time a hardware store. Lots of funky gift ideas, penny candy, etc.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

25. I love Franklin's!

They've got terrific brews, and good food.

But I can't ever recall a shop owner doing their figuring on a paper bag and rounding to the nearest nickel, as BurtWorm has mentioned...except at yard sales.

[Commendatori]

26. Many thanks, I'll be checking this out. Cheers. (n/t)

[underpants]

11. 4 and a 7-11 within three blocks of our apartment

Richmond Va.

Hell the one at the corner used to let you run a tab (I probably still could) payable every Friday.

[livinginphotographs]

24. I live in Richmond as well....

My old neighborhood (where I will be returning to in the next few months) had a 7-11 and several corner stores.

One is owned by an Iranian guy who I had some pretty interesting conversations with before the war in Iraq. He was pissed that Saddam had gassed his friends who'd served in the war, and now we were going after him for the same weapons which we sold him in the first place.

I also used to frequent another gas station that was staffed by veterans of the Iran-Iraq War. After that, they probably had no problem handling the occasional trouble-making crackhead.

[Kahuna]

13. Yes. They're called bodegas.

:D

[Kat45]

15. There are a few left in my area, but even of those, most have

turned into keno parlors. Keno is one of the Mass State Lottery games in which they constantly pick numbers and they're shown on a screen or something. These "stores" pretty much only sell lottery tix, and maybe cigarettes, and they put in some small tables and chairs so the old men can sit around smoking and playing keno.

A few others are still corner stores, but if they didn't sell lottery tickets, they'd have been out of business a long time ago; that's their biggest business. Most are now owned by Indian immigrants. They are also the group running/working in the convenience stores (independent and chains like 7-11).

[curse10]

16. We've got a few- but where I live doesn't allow chains

the South End business coalition doesn't allow them in-- there is a walgreens, but I think it was grandfathered in.

My favorite is Don Quixotes- a little joint ran by some guys from Mexico. They've got the wierdest shit in there.

[Az]

17. Yep, got one here, and it has an interesting story with it

Moved into a house in Detroit near Grosse Pointe. Neighborhood store down at the end of the street. About the same time we moved in a comic book store leased the adjacent building to the store. They immediately started getting protestors because they were also licensed to sell adult mags.

Well things got interesting after that. They quickly put up art that consisted of a giant demon shooting fireballs from his eyes. This drove the local fascists crazy. They began stepping up the pressure and since the grocery store owned the building tried to get them to add to the pressure.

The grocery store asked them to remove the graphic art from the side of the building. They refused. Their contract was pretty clear that they could paint what they wanted. So the grocery store (which owned the parking lot) erected a huge white billboard next to the wall. IT sat there blank for a time. The comic book store countered with a large placard of a skull over the building. They move this placard around so the grocery store cannot block it.

Its turned into quite a little war. I shop at the grocery store and would shop at the comic book store if they carried manga (japanese graphic books). But I can only voice my support for their case.

[Shakespeare]

21. The Congress Market-corner of 5th & A NE in DC.

I miss that place (it's still there, but I'm not). Used to see Carville in there all the time.

[Champ]

23. Everywhere

J & M, One Stop, and Westwood Liqours are all in a 1 or 2 block radius from me.