San Francisco City Market

This spot is the ultimate «neighborhood» store. The guys that work here are as friendly and gracious as anyone I have ever met. They sell the typical convenience fare but its the attitude of these dudes that keep me a loyal customer. On multiple occasions these guys have spotted me some coin until I came back and one the main man even loaned me 20 bucks once since I needed it on the fly. Great neighbors.
Plus, I have had some seriously hilarious convos with the employees and the working «girls» during some late night binges.

This is your city corner convenience store so ubiquitous in cities like San Francisco, Boston and New York City… a little bit of this, a little bit of that, packed into narrow aisles and tall shelves, with middle eastern proprietors that will call you «my friend» if you are nice and decent looking, which is unusual, since most people that come in here are on the fringe of society’s norm. There are those who are justing needing 1 item in the middle of the night, and live in the neighborhood, too, my friend.

The proprietor of this admittedly somewhat dingy, indubitably cramped, but eminently functional store nestled right on the corner of Post and Larkin is far nicer than could reasonably be expected of any person who braves the delightfully seedy crowd that traipses in and out at all hours of the day and night. Whether he’s posted up outside taking long drags off a cigarette, chatting animatedly on his Bluetooth, energetically mopping the linoleum floors, or simply leaning back and watching whatever the hell is on TV these days, he always greets me with a kind word and a genuine smile. He doesn’t mind when I’m only in there to spend a dollar, is as usually the case — I’ve gotta get my iced tea fix somewhere, after all — and is always more than willing to discuss the various trials and tribulations that the day has presented to the both of us.
His store is chock full of the usual sundry items you’d expect to find in a convenience store, although I’m a particular fan of the large variety of cereal and ramen selections — there’s nothing like a 75 cent dinner if you’re looking to keep your night on the cheap. There’s no alcohol, but a decent-​sized rack of cigarettes, at average but perfectly palatable prices, provides an outlet for vice. The prices overall are definitely the highlight here, with the aforementioned cereal being available for a measly $ 2.99, even the boxes that normally go for five or six bucks anywhere else you look. Everything else is similarly a bargain, and in my mind the hard-​hitting one-​two of a friendly shopkeep and great value makes stopping here a great choice every time — even if you do have to step around a transvestite or two. Or six.

I’m a lazy bachelor.
So lazy, in fact, that I go to the store to buy party ice instead of manually filling up ice cube trays.
And as far as shitty corner stores, go, this one has the best damn ice, bar none. A buck fifty for 8lbs, and it’s never stuck together. Additionally they always surprise me with their non-​gouging prices on other convenience-​store-​stuff.
It’s also a nice place to meet streetwalking transexual prostitutes buying condoms and candy bars on a Saturday night.