#Viral tweet sparks debate over NYC bodegas vs. grocery stores

A comedian’s viral Twitter ode to New York bodegas has sparked a heated debate on what exactly sets the city corner mainstays apart from suburbia’s grocery and convenience stores.

“People who live outside of NYC and don’t have bodegas: where do you go to buy two Diet Cokes, a roll of paper towels, and oh also lemme get some peanut butter m&ms since I’m here, why not,” wrote funnywoman Alison Leiby on Monday.

“(this is also about how candy is kept behind glass and is only accessed by the owner or, when he is not there, his 8 year old son),” added Leiby in a follow-up tweet.

The initial post, which as of Tuesday afternoon had garnered more than 53,000 likes, primarily provoked two distinct reactions, each equally as visceral: Those who said Leiby had simply described a supermarket or convenience store, and those who rushed to defend bodegas’ honor as a unique business.

“In PA there’s this thing called Wawa,” wrote one user, who described herself as a former New York City resident of 17 years, in reference to the convenience store chain. “In CA there’s this thing generally called stores, but you drive to them instead of walking to the corner.”

Replied another user to Leiby’s rhetorical question, “Literally everywhere within 10 minutes of my house. Your idea of a unique quirk is a f–king store.”

Sniped a third, “Literally any place with a cash register.”

Other users were quick to praise the one-of-a-kind charm of a big-city bodega.

“There’s nothing like them,” wrote one bodega backer. “I lived in NYC for 10 years, LA 5, Atlanta 3. Used to get bacon, egg, and cheese on a roll, toilet paper, white vinegar, and a turkey sandwich all at once and all delicious. Nothing similar in LA or Atl, sadly.”

Wrote another, “A bunch of bitter people are saying the grocery store but the real answer is nowhere comes close. There isn’t one stop for dishwasher detergent a turkey sandwich a kombucha a pack of starbursts a bag of doritos and some chocolate covered shortbread cookies.”

And the popular Brooklyn-based @Bodegacats_ account offered a reminder that there’s more to a bodega than the products on the shelves.

“You mean, where do you go to pet your cats…,” the account wrote.

A few in the middle agreed with Leiby’s love of New York and bodegas, but questioned how she made the point.

“there is so much stuff you can only do at a bodega but you just described a 7/11,” read one such reply.

“This is ‘View of the World from 9th Avenue’ in a tweet,” wrote another user, referring to the famous city-centric cover of The New Yorker. “I love New York, but people who live in New York really need to leave New York once in a while.”

As Leiby’s tweet exploded, she cracked wise about whether the attention worth it.

“If they don’t talk about all this on NY1 tomorrow then it was all for nothing,” she wrote late Monday.

By Tuesday morning, the debate indeed spilled over to the cable news channel’s morning show, leading Leiby to proclaim, “THIS IS THE BEST DAY OF MY LIFE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”