Orchard St, Lower East Side

Orchard is THE Lower East Side street to me. It's what everyone thinks that all the streets in LES are like because it is jam packed with people, bars, restaurants . . you name it. And, it's very catered to the young, hipster set. Yes, hipsters can be awful, but man, this street is great.
As soon as you cross Houston and get onto Orchard, you're bombarded with things to do. The original hipster shop, American Apparel, is right on the corner across the street from a Turkish deli / restaurant that's open 24 hours and actually really good. But, if you're not into Turkish food, then you're in luck. There are Italian, Thai, BBQ and French restaurants within the next five buildings down. You don't even have to walk 100 yards to find food for everyone. And, there's a pizza place and a noodle shop at the end of the block if none of that works. There are also two bars on the block: The Sixth Ward and The Skinny. I prefer The Sixth Ward and I imagine so do most people. It's a pretty great bar. There are also around five boutiques on this block just in case you get drunk at the Sixth Ward and want to shopping without having to move very much. That's a whole lot of stuff happening on one block. But, it just keeps going . . .
The corner of Orchard and houses The Slipper Room (a scary bar with a fantastic show called Sweet on Monday nights) and an equally creepy French restaurant that I have hung out at more times than I would have liked while waiting for Sweet to start. The rest of the block is pretty much all shopping and the stores are all great, funky boutiques. Across Rivington, there's even more shopping but for some reason this block really seems to like leather goods. Dolce Vita is probably my favorite shop on the street (shoes) but they're all great if you're into leather goods of just about any sort.
The corner of Orchard and Delancey houses my favorite museum in the city: The Lower East Side Tenement Museum. The museum consists of multiple tours through the tenements of the neighborhood. The guides describe life of real families that lived in the actual building and some of them have been completely untouched so you get a genuine feel of what life was like for these poor people not so long ago. The gift shop of this museum is my go-to spot for gifts. I have a lot of jewelry I bought for myself at this gift shop as well.
Across Broome is more shopping, bars and restaurants. The two most noteworthy on this block are Gus Pickles and 88 Orchard Cafe. I love 88 Orchard no matter how many hipsters stare at me when I go there. Once you cross Grand, you're getting into Chinatown and the street energy changes pretty drastically. Pretty much all the shops and restaurants are Chinese and the vibe is completely different. Some people love Chinatown but I am not one of those people. I find it to be crowded in an obnoxious way and dirtier. So, I don't really go down Orchard past Grand much. And, I definitely wouldn't want to live past Grand.
There are some great apartments on Orchard but you definitely can't live there if you don't like noise. It's a rowdy street especially on the weekends. And, because most of the buildings are former tenements, I really wouldn't recommend living on Orchard if you have kids. Taking a stroller and groceries up to a fifth floor walkup every day is not my idea of a good time. But, if you're young and like being in the mix, this is one of the best streets to live on. Oh, and Meatball Shop on Stanton at Orchard is an absolute must. I have dreams about that place.