Waverly

Barely anyone lives in this neighborhood. (Only about 300 people.) This is not only because it is relatively tiny, being crammed in a tiny pizza slice between 27th and Grand, with Broadway on the western end and Harrison on the eastern, but also because this is mostly an industrial/commercial area.

The main reason to come to this area, however, is not to find an apartment or get your car fixed—though you can do both of those things here—but to check out some of the night spots. One of these cool spots is the Mua Lounge. Mua is part restaurant, part bar, part art loft, with art work on its high ceiled walls and a lounge balcony that looks down on the space. You can have everything from the home-made sausage or mac & cheese (both excellent) to a crab sandwich. MUA also has nightly djs spinning funk and soul—and given the high proportion of Vampire Weekend fans who make up the clientele of this joint, it is always worth a good laugh watching their uncoordinated attempts to get down (who needs to go to the Improv with this kind of entertainment). What is no laughing matter however, is the MUA signature cocktails like the Strawberry Ginger Lemonade, the Pineapple Martini, and especially the Crazy Pisco (with Brazilian cachaça). These drinks are so seriously addicting that you are bound to find yourself joining those fools on the dance floor, and thinking that the white man’s overbite is cool again (as if it ever was).

If you’re into slightly overpriced coffee spots, you will love Farley’s right by the epicenter of fun places Broadway and Grand. This is the kind of place that girls with names like Kendall and Chantelle just go gaga over and where they do things like get the foam on your latte to morph into the shape of a heart. This is nice enough, I suppose, but it just feels like they are trying too hard at this location. The books and art on the walls are nice, too. (Go to the Farley’s in SF and get the authentic Farley’s experience.)

This is also home to TD Café (nothing to write home about), Manaida Thai (sp?) (okay if you want some Thai though there are better in the area), Soprano’s Pizza (must be a front for organized crime because the pizza is just so-so) and Trueburger—definitely the place to go for a burger, especially if you are off the meat, Vegans love this place.

So, in summary, MUA is the place to go in Waverly!