Bodegas are New York City's Hispanic-inspired answer to corner store convenience. They are a part of the city's DNA, and they're where you're most likely to find Mexican workers manning the grill.

Part market, part deli and part community asset, bodegas introduce produce, goods and resources into urban areas and "food deserts," and they employ a great deal of the city's Mexican immigrant population. Behind the scenes of storefronts, Mexican employees assemble sandwiches and wraps and draw together fresh ingredients to create salads.

Julian Puente, a student studying branding at the School of Visual Arts, discovered this when he began his thesis on the subject of Mexican visibility in New York City. During an interview with Latin Post, Puente shared his thoughts on the decades-long presence of Mexicans in NYC, their work in bodegas, and why they seem to be in the shadows.

"This time I decided to talk about the Mexican guys working in the kitchens, those who prepare your sandwiches and serve your coffee. Let's learn more about how they see the world," Puente stated on his blog.

Every nationality and ethnicity is well-represented on the sidewalks of New York City and likely to be integrated into the metropolis. Easily one of the most multicultural cities in the nation, 36 percent of the population is foreign-born, and 28.6 percent of people living in the densely populated area are Latino. However, even with Latinos claiming such a large part of NYC's numbers, some subgroups experience far more visibility than others.

In NYC, the Mexican population appears to be hidden, and less prominent than Dominicans, Puerto Ricans or Salvadorans. Nonetheless, the growing Mexican population is actually the third largest Hispanic group in NYC, bested only by Puerto Ricans and Dominicans. Approximately 80 percent of New York City-dwelling Mexicans were born outside of the country, and they mainly reside in Brooklyn, Queens, and Manhattan's El Barrio (Spanish Harlem).

Puente first began his thesis with an interest in Mexicans' involvement in New York City's art scene, but turned his mind toward an investigation into Mexicans' presence in NYC after a colleague misunderstood a question he'd asked and remarked, "of course there's Mexicans here, look at every kitchen." Swayed toward a new subject, Puente began going to kitchens, visiting 70 bodegas throughout Brooklyn, Queens and Manhattan, where he heard the stories of dozens upon dozens of Mexicans who spoke about their lives in New York City.

"My people, Mexicans, are invisible. We don't see them. We go, we grab our coffee and our sandwiches, we move on with our day. It starts and it ends. We stop there, and we don't interact," said Puente, who is Mexican-born and in NYC to complete graduate school.

On average, the bodega workers who spoke with Puente lived in NYC for 10 years but felt that that they did not belong to the city. Many didn't share their names because they lacked legal status but were happy to offer their experiences. Puente commented, "They do not know me, but I am not a stranger to them," explaining the openness than he felt when surveying the men.

For many of the men, the choice to work in the kitchen offers a sense of being home. Machismo in the culture may regard cooking as "women's work," but the kind act of serving food to someone and working beside men, with whom they maintain strong bonds, creates a sense of community and camaraderie within the bodegas that isn't always reproduced outside it, except in the home.

"They work a lot, a lot of hours...but, they say, 'if I'm hungry, we can eat. We can grab coffee.' Imagine that your work world is in your mom's kitchen," said Puente. "You're standing, smelling great things, and there's a very good vibe, in general. These kitchens replicate their home environment, in a way. They even play music in the back."

But, there's a visible difference between bodegas depending borough and neighborhood. Bodega staff are more engaging in Queens and Brooklyn, where it isn't as busy. Bodegas in the Financial District and the Upper West Side in Manhattan are less friendly, maintaining a quicker pace, and serving high-earning clientele. There, local rules dictate a sense of competition rather than a sense of community.

Despite Mexicans' attraction to bodega life, there's no sense of legacy in the stores. Bodega employees don't begin employment with an expectation of remaining there for an extended period of time, nor do they want their American-born children to hold similar positions. Instead, Mexican immigrants arrive at bodegas looking to save up funds for family in Mexico or to save money to pay for their child's education. While there's no shame in the work at bodegas, it's meant only to be temporary. Some even move back to Mexico after they fund their children's education and save money.

Puente also discovered that there is resistance to integrating and assimilating because Mexican immigrants fear the loss of their culture. They don't want to lose access to their language, change their culture, or eat different food -- which is, perhaps, why Mexican invisibility is an issue in NYC.

To learn more about "Bodexico" and Mexican identity revealed through with their work at bodegas, visit Puente's blog.

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