East 9th St, East Village

A lot of cool stuff and a ton of cool little restaurants reside on West 9th. It's definitely a hipster / young person kind of street.
I talk a lot about hotels and the like but the Brevort on the corner of 5th and 9th is probably the most interesting. It was the first hotel on 5th Ave (it's now apartments) and it was noted in many publications as being where all the artists and radicals stayed. Mark Twain, Buddy Holly, Isadora Duncan and Eugene O'Neill all lived here. It had a really bohemian vibe and I just imagined that the common rooms were filled with all kinds of crazy on any given night. Man, it would have been cool to stay here in the early 1900's. Directly across the street was Mabel Dodge's famous parlor where she housed parties and salons for a lot of writers like O'Neill and Robert Frost as well as a lot of political gatherings. The Beauclaire (at Uni) is a lovely old apartment building with huge and very expensive homes. Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins and Richard Gere and Cindy Crawford have lived here.
The Knickerbocker is a restaurant at the corner of 9th and Uni and I am obsessed with this place. It has kind of a diner / the original Palm sort of feel to the place. It's mostly old, grumpy men hanging out and old, dark wood. It serves comfort food and it's not the best food in the world but I still have a warm spot for the place. My dad and I have a lunch just the two of us every time my family comes to visit. He loves it just as much as I do and he's even kind of snobby.
Between Broadway, and, say, 2nd Ave is a mixture of little restaurants and insanely ugly, giant buildings. It is not an ideal area to say the least . . although there are worse.
2nd Ave and 9th is my fave diner: Veselka. It is open 24 hours, it has great Ukrainian food and free Wifi. You really can't beat this joint at any hour. It's always bustley, too, but never insanely packed. I have been known to stay for hours at this place. Mud Cafe is across the street and it would be ok as a place to go if Veselka weren't right there. A lot of people like Mud but I don't get it. There are a lot of cute vintage stores on this street if you're in the mood to hunt after lunch.
There are actually 2 parks on 9th in Alphabet City and the streets / apartments are quite lovely and old. If it weren't for a transportation issue (buses are pretty much it around here), I wouldn't mind living here.

E 9th St runs from Avenue D to 5 Av. It is mostly a residential street and in its western side hosts some NYU buildings and offices. At the corner with 3 Av, there is an excellent bookstore, where one can find almost every book (at least for what concerns books in English). I find this street slightly noisier then other streets in the East Village.

The higher the street in the East Village, the higher your rent seems to go. The excessive restaurant and bar activity that goes on in the lower streets seems to peter out, as well, as the neighborhood becomes more and more residential. There are still college kids that live in the area, however, even if there are just as many old ladies walking their dogs (and not picking up poop).

East 9th Street is one of those streets that has managed to mix residential and commercial space together flawlessly to create a cohesive look and feel. Next to residential buildings there are small boutiques and shops. A shoe repair store might sit sandwiched between two stone residential buildings. Small restaurants and fashion boutiques also line the street. There are pizza places and kebab shops all along the way. It offers residents just about anything they could need in just a few short city blocks. It is a nice representation of the Lower East Side and the way it has changed over the course of a couple decades.

Living close to Mexico had its perks: authentic Mexican food, not tex-mec, but really really really wonderful cuisine! Burritoville is here and clearly is NOT Mexican food. But, hey: in a big city, you take what you can get. fro something more authentic, try Veselka, for great Eastern European cuisine. The street is otherwise mainly residential, diverse, and pretty lively. I would look into living here if you're new to the city.

East 9th is close to the following metro and is accessible to many buses. Foot traffic is moderate, and it is a good neighborhood for young people!!