Shops in South Bronx / Melrose

The oldest continuously running music shop in New York, opened on Prospect Avenue in 1941 as Casa Hernández and bought in 1969 by the Puerto Rican musician and composer Mike Amadeo, who has run it since. It sells Latin records, sheet music and instruments, and it is on the National Register of Historic Places for what it did for Latin music in this country. Amadeo wrote songs that Tito Rodríguez and Celia Cruz recorded and he is usually behind the counter.

Roughly Mon to Sat, 10am to 6pm. The shop posts no fixed schedule and the hours track the owner, so call before a long trip

Noëlle Santos opened this on Alexander Avenue after the Bronx was left without a general bookstore, having raised the money for it in public. It is a bookshop with a small bar in it, so you can buy a novel and drink a glass of wine without leaving. The selection leans hard on Black and Latino writers and on the borough itself. It is one large shop rather than a chain of departments.

Tue to Thu, 2pm to 7pm. Fri and Sat, 2pm to 8pm. Closed Sunday and Monday. This is the conservative reading: the AALBC directory posted a wider Sunday and Monday noon to 8pm and Tuesday to Saturday noon to 10pm in August 2026, so call 347-955-3610 if the afternoon matters