Murray Hill

Murray Hill is a wealthy, established neighborhood located on the east side of midtown Manhattan. It is bordered by East 34th Street to the south and East 40th to the north, with Madison Avenue and Third Avenue providing its western and eastern boundaries. The streets are filled with a variety of residential options while the avenues are lively commercial hubs. This gives the area a slightly schizophrenic personality, with stately 18th Century townhouses sitting next to white brick office buildings and commercial parking lots. And Murray Hill is still growing, with new office towers under construction.

Murray Hill residents are split about 50-50 between singles and couples, but only one of ten households has children. Schools are good in the area, but kids will probably be enjoying ‘play dates’ with friends in other neighborhoods. You’ll find ‘power couples’ and ‘power singles’ here, individuals with advanced degrees. They are hip, urbane, and with a fair amount of disposable income, and attracted by the moderate living expenses in Murray Hill – compared with ‘big money’ neighborhoods like the Flatiron district just a few blocks south or the ultra-luxe Sutton Place area a few blocks north.

Commuting to and from Murray Hill is simple with an abundance of buses running on all the north-south avenues, and reliable cross-town buses on 34th and 42nd Streets which connect to prime destinations including Times Square, Macy’s, the Port Authority Bus Terminal, and Pennsylvania Station. The Lexington Avenue subway provides fast service up and downtown and a 2nd Avenue subway is currently under construction that will create an additional commuting option.

Murray Hill is a ‘destination location’ due to the number of restaurants and bars that dot its streets. The energy is subdued, however, and unlike other Manhattan neighborhoods, the nightlife here is not accompanied by noise or crime problems. It’s a slice of the good life.

Murray Hill is a pretty neighborhood on the east side of Manhattan. It runs from East 34th Street to East 42nd Street First to Madison Avenue. The neighborhood has a different feel depending on where you are. The noisiest and busiest part is just outside the midtown between 36th and 34th Street between Second and Third Avenue. The rest of the area is residential and relatively quiet with many charming tree-lined blocks. There are many nice and affordable restaurants and bars, along with several grocery stores, including a Gristedes on Third Avenue and 32nd Street and D'Aogstinos on Third Avenue and 35th Street.

While the area does have an active night life, especially along Third Avenue, mostly filled with young professionals, I would also consider this to be a family friendly neighborhood. Murray Hill is also known as "Curry Hill'' due to the number of Indian restaurants along Lexington Avenue from about 30th Street to 27th Street.

Baruch College of the City University of New York is located on 23rd Steet and Lexington Avenue. It is well known for its strong undergraduate and graduate business programs. The college was recently refurbished with a new library and classroom space. Some of the city's top business executives are Baruch alumni and regularly visit the campus to share their experience with students.

There are also several diplomatic missions in the area which is in very close proximity to the United nations on 42nd Street and First Avenue.

The farther north you go the more upscale the neighborhood becomes which becomes apparent in sales and rental prices. The neighborhood has both tall apartment buildings as well as charming brownstones. If you work midtown area, Murray Hill is a great area to live since you can walk to work. This is the main reason that property values are so high in the area.

The NYU Langone Medical Center and its sister facility, The Rusk Institute of Rehabilitation are located on First Avenue and 33rd Street and East 34th Street respectively.

Transportation is somewhat limited with the 4,5, and 6 trains on Lexington Avenues. There are also buses that run on a fairly frequent schedule.

Murray Hill is like a mini-suburb of Midtown Manhattan. There is not a whole lot here except residences, a few colleges, and some Indian restaurants. Essentially, the best part of Murray Hill is not the neighborhood itself but its proximity to the financial district and Midtown Manhattan.

The rents here are your average Manhattan prices. Good luck finding a good deal. If you live here or want to live here, its only real advantage is its proximity to nearby office buildings. Most of the people who live here do so to make their commute much more bearable. At the same time, this means that most people living here will be your generic New Yorker in a suit, on his way to or from his gig at one of the city's many financial institutions. The people are nice enough but the neighborhood just does not bring a whole lot to the table. Bland and boring and only really good to live close to work.

Visitors can enjoy the many Indian restaurants or one of the many pretty good bars or restaurants in the area. No sightseeing to do unless you like looking at the exteriors of colleges and diplomatic missions.

Personally, I wouldn't live here when nicer neighborhoods are available at better prices but I enjoy a neighborhood with some personality and don't have to commute daily to a job at Citibank.

Murray Hill runs from East 34th Street to East 42nd Street east from Madison Avenue. I used to work in this neighborhood, so I'm fond of it, although it's very different depending on where you are within the neighborhood. I prefer the 30s from Lexington Avenue east. It's relatively quiet, quaint, and residential with plenty of restaurants, bars, and grocery stores. It isn't trendy, but there's a thriving bar scene on Third Avenue, mostly filled with young professionals. I would also consider this to be a decent area in midtown for families.

If you want Indian food, head to 28th Street also known as "Curry Hill." There are some decent Indian restaurants here alongside some that aren't very good (so choose carefully.) A lot of diplomatic missions are in this neighborhood, too – most of them closer to the East River.

As you go north, you get a bit more upscale on Park Avenue as you reach Grand Central Station, and it's certainly more commercial on Park and especially Madison. If you work in one of the nearby office buildings, though, it would be great to live in this 'hood. You could walk to work, which is always a plus in NYC. But while the rents here aren't the most expensive in the city, there's nothing cheap about them. You're in midtown where you have the convenience of being close to everything, and you'll definitely pay for that.

With a few minor exceptions, Murray Hill is a neighborhood that could exist in any other city in the country. The area is inhabited with people from across the country who went to college in New York and then stayed on because they got jobs at Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan. It’s all corporate, all the time, with a severe lack of creative types or anyone else very interesting. The nightlife caters to the residents, with rows of generic sports bars serving up shot specials to speak to the inner frat boy and sorority girl of these post-collegiate paper pushers. There’s nothing charming or undeniably “New York” about Murray Hill, with, as stated, a few exceptions. For every few blocks of fake Irish pubs brimming with suits-gone-wild who are reliving their college glory days, there is a charming block with a café, a flower shop and a great, hidden gem bar. And two bars in Murray Hill are so great, they’re worth putting up with carbon-copy clientele: Ginger Man and Rattle ‘N Hum, both beer bars with astounding lists of craft brews. Ginger Man is luxurious but affordable, with a dark wood interior lit by candles and spotted with leather couches – that you’ll never get to sit on unless you show up on a Tuesday at noon. Rattle ‘N Hum is more relaxed, with a sports bar feel minus the sports – instead it’s bedecked with beer paraphernalia and is always having some awesome event involving a brewery from somewhere in the country making an appearance and taking over the taps. For eating, Curry Row is worth the trip, since any restaurant you stumble into will no doubt serve up some tasty, authentic Indian fare. Other than that, though, there’s not a whole lot going on in Murray Hill, unless you’re one of those nostalgic frat kids.

There's a reason Murray Hill is known as Curry Hill. And that, of course, is the high number of Indian restaurants. Which are delicious, but being edged out by higher class joints like the famous Anthony Bourdain's Les Halles and a plethora of Greek places. The eating is fantastic in this neighborhood, and reason enough on its own to visit.

Though Murray Hill is considered part of Midtown, it has very little of the businessy bustle during the day and the echoing high rises at night that characterize much of Midtown. There are fewer tourists and fewer major chain stores and restaurants. In a few words, it’s just cuter and more neighborhoody than nearby sections of town. However, like much of Manhattan, Murray Hill is being invaded with high rise condos and Gaps. Starbucks waged a successful invasion which began and ended years ago. There are still quirky, independently owned cafes, but the green mermaids of Starbucks swim on every corner.

The neighborhood has many Indian and Greek families along with a huge number of yuppies and the upwardly mobile. There is a strong Jewish population, due to the presence of the female section of Yeshiva University. There are a few bleeds of people from the idiosyncratic neighborhoods of nearby Gramercy and Stuy Town. It’s an interesting mix of people which leads to a fun neighborhood feel

And, as a side note, though many reviews are calling Murray Hill a cheaper option than Midtown, it’s still pricey housing and shouldn’t be looked at for those on a very limited budget.

No self respecting New Yorker could ever admit to enjoying Midtown, of course, but Murray Hill isn't the Midtown that tourists flock to - rather, it's a more low key version of the neighborhood. That's not to say that it isn't noisy and crowded, it's just less crowded and noisy than the area directly west of it. Residents complain of noise and traffic often, apparently, even if it does get worse elsewhere in Midtown.

If you're browsing the real estate market for a surprisingly affordable (for a New York City brownstone, anyway) brownstone, there are plenty to be had in this area - this is an area that would make a great permanent residence for established families, but as a young person who enjoys New York City nightlife I wouldn't even consider moving to this area. The area noticeably lacks trendy bars and whatnot, and therefore isn't a hot spot of the singles circuit.

The neighborhood is an appealing one for families, however, as there are plenty of high quality medical facilities as well as good schools in the area. Its proximity to the Long Island Expressway and the FDR Drive make it an easy neighborhood for drivers to access - which is good for residents in that they can easily return to their own neighborhood, but also bad for them in that traffic flows endlessly through the area.

A lot of people frown upon Murray Hill, but I don't mind it so much. It's less prestigious than it's UES and Gramercy neighbors, but there are definitely worse places to live.
There are a few great restaurants in the neighborhood: El Pote Espanol being one of them. Its at 2nd and 38th and the paella is pretty knock your socks off. The atmosphere is a little formal but the menu is rich and it's a cool place, nonetheless. Ess-a-Bagel at 1st and 20th rivals the famous H and H, and in my opinion, it is far superior. The Rare View (37th and Lex) is on top of the Shelbourne Hotel. It puts you right in the face of all of the midtown skyscrapers and has a tropical ambience and a pretty good burger. Kalustyan's isn't a restaurant but it carries spices and food products from all over the world and it's so New York to me. There aren't stores like this in any other city.
FDR drive from 14th up is an amazing place to watch 4th of July fireworks. There are a lot of people so you have to get there early, but the fireworks go off, literally, right above your head.
Murray Hill isn't a bustling place for entertainment and it's not the prettiest neighborhood in the city (it still is midtown, afterall), but it's cheaper than it's neighbors and definitely more homey than midtown proper.

Murray Hill is known as an affordable alternative to neighborhoods like Midtown and Gramercy Park. While the prices for real estate are certainly lower, Murray Hill is nowhere near as vibrant as Midtown, and nowhere near as stylish as Gramery Park. Murray Hill also is the location of a large concentration of embassies and consular offices, plus several large industry headquarters. As a result, the people who work in Murray Hill are either in diplomacy, or else work for large international corporations. It is also the location of several large cultural institutes, including the New York Public Library's SIBL branch, The Nordic Center in America, the Mexican Cultural Institute. My favorite cultural spot in the area, which beats out even the New York Public Library, is the Pierpont Morgan Library, a gorgeous mansion the houses important Old Master artworks as part of its permanent exhibit. It is a perfect place to spend a quiet, reflective Friday afternoon, and to forget all about the busy Manhattan streets. Because of the presence of so many international and cultural institutions in the area, Murray Hill is a rather formal neighborhood, one in which the nightlife isn't an especially great attraction.

Murray Hill - the easternmost section of midtown - is a jungle of high-rise apartment buildings, at once modern and with classically breathtaking high views. It's a haven for those seeking lower-cost housing than is available elsewhere in Midtown or the East Side, and has a self-contained neighborhood feel. It's very residential - so don't expect couture shopping or high-end nightclubs - but there's definitely a great selection of "local" restaurants, bars, and pubs. The AQ Cafe inside the Scandinavian House/Nordic Center is one of the most high-end venues, along with the Tea Shop Franchia, an elegant Korean venue, and famous bars include the beer-focused Ginger Man and the trendy Alchemy Room in the Hotel Dylan. More common, however, are Indian restaurants; this neighborhood has earned the appellation "Curry Hill" for a reason, although the designation refers just to restaurants, rather than population demographic.

If you're sick, Murray Hill isn't a bad place to be. Three of the city - let alone the world's - best hospitals and medical centers are located there. If you do have health concerns, or are living with someone who does, Murray Hill is therefore a highly convenient location to live or stay.

Murray Hill which stretches from 23rd Street to 42nd street from the East River to Park Avenue South and Fifth Avenue can be described as a mix-use neighborhood which is home to several commercial establishments as well as residential townhouses and tall, full service condominium buildings. In fact the area of the Murray Hill which is located along First Avenue is commonly referred to as ‘Hospital Way’ as it hosts several doctor’s practices (the Murray Hill medical group, Murray Hill OBGYN LLP) as well as hospitals and medical centers like the Bellevue Hospital Center, the NYU Langone Medical Center and the NYU college of Dentistry.

Actually Murray Hill has within its boundaries several other mini-neighborhoods like Kips Bay whose boundaries roughly extend from 23rd street to 33rd Street from the East River all the way to Lexington Avenue. Kip’s Bay is home to the towering Kip’s Bay tower complex which was designed by renowned architect I.M.Pei in the early 1960's . This complex which consists of two towers also hosts a multi-screen cinema house, restaurants and outlets several popular stores.

Also located within Kips Bay is ‘Curry Hill’ or Big Apple’s Little India neighborhood which is located along Lexington Avenue from 26th to 29th Streets. This area is home to several good South Asian restaurants like Sarvana Bhavan, Tamil Nadu Bhavan, Dhaba, Haandi along with specialty grocery stores like Kalustyans and several other ethnic stores that sell saris and other knick-knacks. The well respected City University of New York, Bharuch College is also located nearby as is imposing building that houses the historic 69th Armory which is now used as an event space.

Aside from these ethnic restaurants, the neighborhood of Murray Hill is peppered with various other restaurants like the Vezzo Thin crust pizza, Primehouse Steak house, Il Trulli, Sushi Samba, Meli Melo, Dos Caminos and Artisanal all of which are the regular haunts of the young professionals who favor the neighborhood for its relatively affordability, convenience and myriad entertainment options.

The only drawback to living in Murray Hill is the fact that you have to deal with the constant roar of traffic as it moves towards the Queens-Midtown Tunnel whose entrance is located on E34th street .

I lived in a converted 5 story brownstone at 29th and Lexington for almost two years. I like the neighborhood as a whole. It was more "human" than most of the mid-Manhattan areas. From downtown, you have to walk through the peaceful Stuy Town and picturesque Gramercy Park, which makes Murray Hill all the more grungy.

There are several good restaurants in the area, and probably 100 South East Asian take-out restaurants at your disposal (earning it the title Little India). My favorite restaurant is a little place called Rice on Lexington and 28th. They have really good, really cheap pan-Asian food with a huge rice menu. My favorite night spot was most definitely Rodeo, on 3rd and 27th. I am a displaced Southerner, so I appreciated the country/bluegrass vibe.

Murray Hill is really convenient for getting around Manhattan (or into Brooklyn/Queens). You're never more than a few blocks from the subway. Union Square is a 10 minute walk as is Grand Central. I hardly ever took a cab, and never felt unsafe walking at night, even when things were pretty deserted. I took several visiting relatives to the UN building, and it is very close to the tourist hotspots in midtown. You are really close to hospitals and grocery stores and the farmer's market. There's several street markets on Madison Ave on Saturdays.

The only real downside of Murray Hill is that it is insanely expensive to be as unglamorous as it is. I paid 1000/month for a 10 by 10 room in a three bedroom apartment, which was the best deal to be found in a rather old building. Murray Hill is not hipster or trendy, so the price should go down.