Hello Friends!

Very soon! We are beginning inspections shortly and are targeting soft openings in February. We’ll share exact dates as soon as we’re cleared.

We’ll offer a wide range of affordable, everyday products, including: the staples (bread, milk, eggs), classic and healthy snacks, fresh coffee, beer and wine, prepared foods, amazing breakfast burritos, fresh produce, and so much more! We live on Nowita, so we had a strong sense of what the neighborhood wanted going into this. To make sure we didn’t miss anything, we put out a suggestion box—and the responses confirmed what makes this neighborhood special: a diverse set of tastes and needs.

Based on that feedback, we plan to carry a broad mix of products—affordable, organic, niche, indulgent, and everything in between. We will constantly iterate once we open and adjust offerings based on what the neighborhood actually supports. Feedback is always encouraged.

To start, our hours are limited by a conditional use permit issued many years ago. This permit restricts us to 8:00am–8:00pm, Monday through Saturday, and closed on Sundays. We’ll keep the community updated if this changes in the future.

All surrounding streets—Palms, Penmar, and Nowita—currently do not require parking permits, so street parking is generally accessible. Because we’re nestled in a residential neighborhood, there is no dedicated parking lot. We’ll have a bike rack on site. There’s also a fence along the Penmar side of the property that can be used for overflow bike parking.

During our research, we learned that this market has gone through many names and iterations over its nearly 90-year history. Like previous owners, we felt it was important to put our own stamp on the space while
respecting its legacy. We’re building a separate page that dives deeply into the history of the property (link coming soon).

When we worked with Victoria (Mr. Woo’s surviving wife) to take over the market after Mr. Woo’s tragic passing, a few neighbors asked us: “Are you the ones taking over the little bodega at the end of the street?” The word stuck. Since Palms Boulevard leads directly into the building before shifting slightly north, Bodega & Palms felt like a name rooted in place.

We know New Yorkers may raise an eyebrow—we’ll be missing a few traditional bodega elements—but we’ll do our best (yes, we’re hoping for chopped cheese, bacon-egg- and-cheese, and maybe even a bodega cat). Naming a store—especially one with this much history—is hard. We hope you’ll forgive us if the name isn’t your favorite. It wasn’t an easy choice.

No. No tips. No fees. No surprise add-ons. The price you see is the price you pay (excluding sales tax on prepared items).

We accept cash, all major debit/credit cards, Apple pay, and other forms of contactless payment.

We are going to do our best to make sure our prices still as low as possible. Here are what we believe are the three main controllable factors:
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1. Controlling costs - The easy way to run a business is to throw money at problems. But that spending always gets passed to the customer. We try to be relentlessly resourceful—doing more with less, minimizing unnecessary costs, and passing those savings on.
2. Resisting greed - A lot of pricing decisions are driven by how much money owners want to extract from a business. We believe in responsible capitalism—being honest about what a reasonable lifestyle looks like and not prioritizing personal gain while customers are struggling to afford necessities.
3. Being responsible with capital - Many businesses rely heavily on debt or outside investors. That pressure inevitably leads to higher prices to service loans or deliver returns. We funded this project ourselves. We don’t come from extraordinary means, and because it’s our money on the line, we take stewardship seriously. Operating within our means keeps prices honest.

So, why are you telling us all this?

Because we believe in radical transparency—on sourcing, pricing, and our story. Too many businesses operate as black boxes. We want the community to understand not just what we sell, but why we exist and how we got here.

We wanted to make sure this space remained a community market and didn’t become something disconnected from the neighborhood. Our goal is to preserve and progress the space at the same time. This neighborhood is complex, diverse, and constantly evolving.

We want the products, pricing, clientele, and overall vibe to reflect that. A true community market welcomes everyone. When markets gentrify—by pricing people out or “tasting out” locals—they stop being community spaces. They become markets for transients and travelers. Invisible barriers form. A velvet rope appears that only some people can cross. That kind of model creates division—across class, race, and background. We find it morally bankrupt and deeply unrewarding. This market is intended to be by the community and for the community. We’ve poured our time, energy, and resources into it, and we hope that comes through when you walk in the door.