Nizga Liquors

Love!!! Every time I’ve gone here, one of the guys that works there gives me the best recommendations. He always stays in my price range, even when it’s under $ 10, and he is always very attentive to what I want and what regions, or wines I favor :)

Completely and overwhelmingly overpriced. $ 20 for a bottle of banana schnapps? $ 30 for lychee liqueur? You guys are out of your mind. Not only that, but you’re a bullet proof glass away from looking like any other liquor store so there’s no value in the atmosphere.
Oh to top it off, the staff is rather rude. Seriously, skip this place EVERYONE.

I don’t usually write reviews on Unilocal,but my experience here was so awful that I felt the need to share.
I recently moved into the area, and since this liquor store is very conveniently located, and really the only one in the vicinity, I’ve stopped in here quite a few times to pick up wine. This place just has a seedy feel to it when you walk in, but frankly the selection is okay, and the prices are decent so I didn’t really mind.
There’s some goon that follows you around while you browse, asking if you «need help», clearly to make sure you’re not stealing anything. I wouldn’t mind this, except that, when I actually DO need help, he’s clueless. Very annoying.
One evening I was on my way home from work, carrying my work bag, and a small grocery bag from Union Market. I decided to stop in here to pick up a bottle of wine. I wasn’t in the store for 2 minutes, before the guy comes up to me, and asks to take my bags from me, to keep behind the counter while I browse. Just me, and no one else. At first I begrudgingly agreed, but seconds later thought better of it, asked for my bags back, and left the store.
I understand that you have to protect your business, but asking to take my bags from me is incredibly insulting – not to mention I was a regular customer.
I won’t be returning to Nizga Liquors – and what the hell kind of name is that anyway?

I always buy my wine for Passover here. I plan to go tomorrow. They always have a good selection of dry Passover wines, both red and white, as well as the typical sweet kind.

I don’t understand the bad reviews here. Though I will thank one reviewer for informing me of the high quality of their wine selection.
If you’re buying hard liquor, which is the only thing I’ve ever bought here, they have a good selection and perfectly acceptable prices.
One thing that no one has mentioned here is that they are the only liquor store in this neighborhood that is open until midnight, which is a big plus for me.
The whining about their turnstile is absurd and I’ve never had a problem with the staff, but I always know what I want and do not need help.
It’s an old school liquor store that’s been in this neighborhood for a long time. Recommended.

They should call this place niggas liquor, cuz they always be frontin. Even want to check my hoodie for stolen goods. Wack ass store don’t go

Last night I was having dinner at a BYOB place. And, while I was on a self-​imposed drinking ban, I felt my dining companions, one in particular, NEEDED a drink. (*One of them rushed out of an extremely busy work day, only to show up to dinner over an hour early — she took a cab back to work. When she returned to the restaurant, I had a nice glass of wine all ready for her.)
Anyhoo, back to this liquor store. I only came in here because I didn’t know of another place that I would pass by before getting to the restaurant. So, I just took my chances and popped in here. Upon entering, there was a turnstile and an open walkway. There was no directional marker, so I walked through the walkway. I was already into the aisles when suddenly, the lady behind the counter started shouting.
Since I couldn’t understand her as she was talking pretty unintelliglbly, I assumed she was speaking in another language and to her staff. When I finally looked over, she motioned for me and insisted I leave my bag with her. Having entered the store, I felt it was probably mostly frequented by vagrants and drunkards, so I was leery but released my bag to her after removing my valuables (wallet/​iPad).
Although there were many bottles of wine and liquor crammed into the store, I didn’t really find much I recognized. Also, I noticed many bottles with torn and discolored labels, which didn’t instill much confidence in the wines. I settled for a bottle of Folonari Montepulciano d’Abruzzo for a whopping $ 13, which I’m sure I could’ve gotten for less than $ 10 elsewhere. I just went ahead and got it anyways because of my lack of knowledge of wine shops in this neighborhood.
So, with the skeevy clientele, the weirdo lady (possible owner) and the obvious price mark-​ups, I wouldn’t come back here.
P.S.
Although not familar with Folonari, the Montepulciano was enjoyed! Yay — at least the visit to this establishment wasn’t a total waste…

I purchased a bottle of wine from here that was bad. I didn’t drink any of the bottle and called the store in advance to ensure I could exchange it and one of the staff said I could. I came in the store and not only did the manager refuse to exchange the bottle but shouted at me that I was wrong that her wine wasn’t bad. The wine tasted and smelled like vinegar and I lost $ 20. There are enough liquor stores in the area to not promote stores with bad attitudes, bad products, and terrible customer service. I urge you to never go here.

I was in the hood and stopped by Nizga Liquors. I had a very pleasant experience. Perhaps my brother and I were just giving off the right sort of vibe. But I got to admit, people seemed to ask me questions to help me rather than to make sure that I wasn’t stealing.
A few things:
1. The employees seemed more there for surveillance than wine beverage knowledge. They left me alone — so I can’t complain as others did, but I felt like they didn’t know the difference between regions or bottles. A total shame, because as tiny as this place is, they have a very descent affordable wine selection.
2. They overprice their Champagne. There is no way in hell I would ever pay $ 69.99 for Veuve Cliquot that isn’t vintaged. If they price it there, it means their supplier is charging them too much. At this point in time $ 39.99 makes you the price to beat, $ 45, puts you at market, $ 49.99 makes you expensive. anything with a 6 handle puts you off the dart board all together. 1 star off for working with a supplier that would force you to charge that much for Veuve to make margins meet.
3. The weirdest thing is that their wine selection is fairly excellent. I think, the reason is because they tend to get bottles that have ripped labels. They have a huge selection of $ 13 – 19 2008, 2007, and 2004 from Italy and France, all excellent years that you can’t screw up. This includes Burgundies, Bordeaux. On the Italians, it’s the typical table wine and Amarones, Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, chiantis and more. The bottles are great, I think because the labels are in shreds. The thing is, if I’m getting wine for a party, I don’t actually care that the label is ripped, because I want to drink it. This brought the otherwise 2 star place up to 3.5 in my book.
The turn style thing is a bit annoying and they oddly want everyone to exit in a particular sort of way. All very confusing to me, as the area has gentrified. I stand by my 3 star rating, though. If you’re in the area, and forgot to buy wine for your friend’s house party, go the bottles with the non-​perfect label. You’re getting a good deal on that wine. My estimate is between 20−30% off (which you should get given the condition of the label).

This is the twilight zone of liquor stores. While it’s well-​located on Avenue A, every visit is guaranteed to be packed with weirdo customers and even stranger staff. Walking in, you may ask yourself, «Hey, why do I have to walk through this seemingly useless turnstile?» Apparently they have so many people trying to run out of here with booze that there’s only one, narrow way out once you walk in.
The wine is so packed on the walls that I have to tiptoe around to avoid brushing something off with my bag. On a positive note, there are two refrigerators of wines and bubbly, and if you want a cold bottle of liquor they more than likely have one in the back.
And then there’s the random guys that stand around the narrow aisles. Not to help you, but to stare down at you as if you’ve already pocketed a liter of Pinot. And when you’re checking out the cashiers are similarly wary. You have to check shopping bags at the counter and last night I watched them try to actually pull a purse from a woman’s shoulder before she was allowed to browse.
Open from 9am to midnight, so you can enjoy cranky service, random alkies and pricey booze all the livelong day!

This place is open 1 hour later (until midnight) than other liquor stores in the nabe. I’m very grateful for that. Because, sometimes, you just find you have to buy liquor after 11 pm. They have a really good selection of sparkling wines.

Wow. I’m so surprised by the other negative reviews (I’m new to the city, so I sort of live by Unilocal).
But their Veuve Cliquot was $ 1 less than other EV liquor stores, they carry Citadel Gin (my favorite hard to find French gin), they had chilled wines from $ 10 to $ 100 (and very good French wines). St. Germain was regular price…
And everyone was perfectly friendly to me.
I stocked on bar basics and got a French rose that I’ll certainly buy again.
And they deliver!

I have lived in the East Village for 25 years and like to support small local businesses, but this one is atrocious and unworthy of patronage.
The crazy woman who owns the place treats every person like a criminal. I stopped in yesterday, against my better judgement, and attempted to purchase wine from her for the very last time. I voluntarily handed over my shopping bag to be «checked» (i.e., set on the floor) before being asked, and and she brusquely demanded my purse.
I am a 45 year old woman, was wearing heels and carrying an pretty obviously expensive bag. There was no reason for her to assume that I was there to rob her. I suspect that you could enter in an evening gown and a tiara and get the same rotten treatment.
I refused to hand over my purse, stating that it carried my wallet, phone, and ipod and her floor did not look like the safest place for my worldly possessions. She insisted, rudely, that I could not shop without dropping the purse.
So I left, walked 3 blocks down the street, and spent $ 50 at Discovery Wines, where they greeted me with a smile and offered assistance and tastings. I should go thank the addled bat for driving me out and to a much lovelier and more pleasant shopping experience.

WORST customer service. stopped going in here because even when I went in every week for nearly a year they still treated me like a stranger that could steal something at a moment’s notice. prices are outrageous also. avoid!

What up my Nizga?

Wine is double the price here as is the vodka. Not just a little markup — I’m talking DOUBLE. If you question it, they just shrug and laugh. Do not go here. Aka Discount Fine Wines & Liquor. Please avoid and spread the word. Word.

OK, here’s another gem hidden in the East Village. Open late and friendly service.
They even have chilled pints ready for you.
I also believe they don’t have a credit card minimum