On the Corner

I’ve lived in the area for 2 years now and this has been a staple in my Brooklyn life. They have great sandwiches, their salads are always fresh and have a great selection of beers, ice creams and drinks. They also have a good mix of generic brands and the «fancier» ones like (Annie’s and Amy’s Organic). The guys that work here have always been very nice and they’re open for insane amount of hours. I’ve seen them come in around 6:30am or earlier but I’ve walked by around midnight/​later and they’re still open!

I love this place. Salem is awesome, it’s right down the street from me and they are super friendly and have a huge selection of healthy stuff and beverages.
I get everything from morning coffee to afternoon kombucha here. Or vegetarian food.

Great mix of healthy food and total junk, with your standard emergency cleaning products to round out the mix. Remarkably hip beer selection for 4^th Avenue. Bonus for the cleanliness factor.

BEST BODEGA IN NYC, according to The L Magazine:

Great selection and a super friendly staff.
I live across the street, and one night my roommate found a cockroach in our microwave. If there’s one thing that I have zero tolerance for, it’s cockroaches (I know it’s NYC but STILL). So neither of us could find it to kill it, and I just wouldn’t be able to sleep knowing that the little guy is scampering around in our apartment. So my next plan is to get the microwave out of the apartment. Unforutnately, again, neither of us could muster up the strength to carry it out, knowing that a little critter could pop out at any second, and we would both throw the microwave down the stairs.
So I look out the window and the Corner is still open at 1:45AM! (Now, the first time I went there, I got a sandwhich and the guy threw in a banana for free. Sure, the banana was about to go bad, but I appreciate the added potassium.) I figure that the guys who work there are pretty nice, and they go out of their way. AND their awning says, «come in as a customer, leave as a friend,» so I’m technically friends with them. So I coyly walk over there, and start chit chatting with them, and awkwardly ask them if someone could help me out. They looked around at each other slightly confused and one of them agreed to assist me with my vermin. I had to wait a couple more minutes for them to close, but sure enough, they got my microwave out of the apartment and gave me peace of mind.
THANKS GUYS!

First of all it’s bright and clean! This is always important for me when I go to a corner store/​bodega/​deli.
The owners are friendly and knowledgeable on the products they sell. Great choice of beers at regular prices.
This is definitely a mandatory stop for a late night ice cream or beer run.
Their hot sandwiches, despite being a little too expensive were great.
«Were» because, and that’s how they lost a star in my heart, they stopped carrying pork products.

Formerly Margaritas. Same owners, same great service, same great items.

OK. So in defense of the former Margarita’s, I don’t think I know who this Margarita lady was. However, the former shop did give me an opportunity to practice my Spanish on occasion, but as for selection they had NOTHING except like the laundry detergent for the laundromat and some beer or soda, plus they weren’t open late. Fast forward. The guys who opened the new Margarita’s stock the New York Times for crying out loud. They have Danish beer! They have organic food!
Far from being a bunch of gentrifying twats, they are actually from the neighborhood. It’s a group of four guys who are business partners, correct me if I am wrong, but they all have other jobs in the city, this shop is their baby, their labor of love and they are all locals. They grew up in the neighborhood!
They are responsive to people who live nearby, they will stock certain items if you request them, and in fact if you call them up, they will throw a burger on the grill for you and have it ready when you arrive. They go out of their way to make shopping there a pleasure. If you stop in for breakfast, a bagel or an egg sandwich is their specialty, and it’s better and cheaper than the corporate dunkin donuts down the street (even though the manager at dunkin is a great dude).
there were a few kinks at first with the refrigerators being left open and sometimes you have to be careful about the dairy products but I think they have worked through that problem, but that shouldn’t affect you if you are vegetarian. they have a cat too, and this is one bodega that doesn’t usually smell like cat piss, they have a litter box!
the one drawback might be that there is little fresh fruit or veg but when rossman’s is so close and open 24 hours, who can complain?
The officers from the police precinct down the street frequent the establishment, it is a safe place to shop late at night.