JenMac

I like Monitor street. It's a cute, residential street with a lot of really lovely apartments. It's quieter and cleaner than a lot of streets in the area. And, it's close to both McCarren and McGolrick parks which is great. But, there are a lot of things about the street that make it so that I would probably never live on Monitor. For one, it's kind of in between neighborhoods. It's almost in Greenpoint and almost in the Graham area of Williamsburg. But, it's about a 10 minute walk toward either area before you come across any bars, restaurants, shops . . .even a deli. I feel like this would be a major thorn in my side all of the time. I loved living across from Khim's Deli. it was so easy. Having to walk ten minutes in the winter to get a coffee sounds really unenjoyable. It also sounds a bit scary at night. It's not a bad street and it's safe as far as anything in New York can go. But, the streets that have no nightlife on them scare me a little. They're a little too quiet at night for my liking / walking. It's also a bit of a walk to the Graham Ave L train stop which can be a pain sometimes.
But, the thing I mostly don't love about Monitor is that so many of the buildings have been converted into "luxury" homes that the street is now insanely expensive. I can't justify spending hundreds of dollars more to live with nothing fun around me than to live on Graham or Lorimer. It makes absolutely no sense to me why anyone would pay over $2000 / month to live 10 minutes away from any sort of convenience. But, I guess people do. I just think it's a shame because it's a really lovely street that I wouldn't mind if it were actually less expensive than the hip streets.

Melrose has really cheap rent -- and, by cheap I mean you can get a two bedroom apartment for the price of a one bedroom in Williamsburg proper. But, that's legitimately the only plus side to living on Melrose street. It's a really ugly street that's kind of in the middle of nowhere in Bushwick. And, it's fairly close to all of the Bushwick bars and restaurants: Roberta's is a few blocks away and Melrose connects with Flushing which is the major strip in the neighborhood. So, I can see the appeal for living on it with students, hipsters, artists and other people that are a little strapped for cash. But, I just don't think there's quite enough to do or quite enough conveniences in the neighborhood to live here. And, it's dangerous. And, it takes a while to get to Manhattan. You add those things together with the fact that Melrose looks like a dump site for run down warehouses and it's not exactly an enticing street to live on. But, then again, I'm not twenty years old. It's just really ugly and sketchy even during the day.

McKibben Court Ct is a tiny street off of, surprise, McKibben Street. It's actually a pretty cute street and it reminds me of all the little, quaint, really expensive alleys in the West Village. The apartments are old and nice looking and the street is quiet. The bad thing about this street, though, is that it's not one of those quaint alleys in the West Village. It's a cute street off of an ugly street in Bushwick. And, Bushwick isn't the best neighborhood. It's up and coming but it has been for some time. I guess McKibben Court wouldn't be awful to live on as far as little streets in low rent areas go. But, I feel like most of the youngsters and arty people who moved into the neighborhood kind of want to be in the thick of things and this isn't it. I don't know. I'm not a huge fan of Bushwick, in general. But, if you want a quieter street that's in a cheap neighborhood and you're not scared of the occasional mugger on the neighboring streets, then this might be a place to look for an apartment.

Oh, McKibben Street. I can't think of this street without thinking of the McKibben Dorms. The "dorms" are a massive two building converted factory living situation wherein you pay almost a thousand bucks a month to rent a room with shared bathrooms on every floor. That has got to be some sort of sad joke. Also, there's a housing project just east of the dorm so now you know you're in Bushwick. The funny thing is that these rooms actually rent. They go out to a lot of the youngsters, artists and hipsters that have come into Bushwick in droves over the last five or so years. And, I can't for the life of me figure out why they don't just get into groups of three and rent a three bedroom actual apartment for about the same price just up the street. Which brings me to my biggest complaint about the street: why is the rent here so high?
Yeah, it's significantly lower than Williamsburg proper, but McKibben is in Bushwick which is still a really scary neighborhood that just happens to have a lot of hipsters and hipster bars trickling in. It's kind of like the wild west out here. Cowboys and Indians are fighting for who gets the land. And, yes the cowboys are going to win because the rent is already ridiculous for this neighborhood. But, I don't think the Indians are going down without a fight and a lot of muggings. Yeah, McKibben isn't a completely awful street. And, there are a lot of things to do popping up in the neighborhood. But, it's not nearly safe enough, aesthetically pleasing enough, fun enough or close enough to Manhattan to justify the amount you pay for living in a rat den in between "artists" and criminals.

Maspeth is actually a really cute street just until after Cooper Park. It is only a few blocks away from the Graham Ave L stop and all of the bars and restaurants in the Graham and Metropolitan area. But, this is a really residential street so it's much quieter than Graham and Metropolitan. The street is maybe a hairline less safe because it's east of Bushwick Ave and because there isn't any sort of commerce on the street -- there's really no one out on Maspath at night. But, it runs right into Cooper park which is great. It's not a huge park but it's charming and there's a great little dog run. Plus, living around any sort of green is always a bonus.
The apartments are a mixture of old, three or so story buildings, a few townhouses and a lot of new condos or "Fedder" buildings. The newer buildings tend to be west of the park. And, the neighborhood around the park and a little bit of east of that is a bit older of a demographic with families, retirees, etc. This part of the street is largely Italian and they've been there for some time. But, I kind of like that. It makes the street have a neighborhood feel. The part of the street west of the park is a mixture of Italian, longtime families, hipsters and yuppies (who live in the newer buildings). So, it's a pretty broad mix of people. I like Maspeth and I would live on it. I would just walk briskly back to my place after dark.
Oh, the street runs right into an Industrial cloud just after the park so you have to live as far west as possible or else you're getting into scary territory.

Marcy Ave is a pretty big street in south Williamsburg, and I keep on thinking that it's going to get really popular .. . but, it still hasn't. There are some great apartments on this street. And, the rent is much cheaper than a lot of other streets in Williamsburg. And, if you live on the street close to Broadway then you're just a hop skip and jump away from great bars and restaurants (Moto is my favorite -- it is lovely). But, the street, itself, doesn't have much to do on it in the way of fun. And, it is pretty shoddy looking in some parts, well, in a lot of parts. And, the street is close to a train. The JMZ actually has a stop on Marcy so getting into Manhattan isn't difficult at all. The only bummer about this stop is that it's an outdoor station, so waiting during the winter isn't ideal.
It's not a terrible street to live on, as long as you keep to the north side of it, but it's not great either. The cheap rent is lovely and there is close transport. But, it's still really sketchy at night on most of the street. And, the trickle down of youngsters and hipsters hasn't quite hit yet south of Broadway so there isn't a ton to do. I suppose I may be more likely to live here than go into 'Bushwick if I needed cheap rent, but it would be a hard sell.

As with any other street that runs through or close to the Broadway Triangle, Lynch Street isn't great. It has the plus side of cheap rent and maybe a bit more space for your money. But, that's about the only up side to living on Lynch street. The street runs from the Broadway Triangle which is a span of land with old abandoned factories and a bunch of low income housing projects so that's not exactly enticing. And, to make things even better, it only runs down to nearly Bed Stuy, which is a really shaky neighborhood, but doesn't run quite into the now trendy Fort Green area around Pratt. So, it has a lot of near misses with fun, young areas and a lot of hits with crime heavy, abandoned looking areas. And, there's not a whole lot of convenience around Lynch. It's a pretty long walk to even a decent deli or coffee shop. And, any bar or restaurant venture requires a car ride unless you're willing to brave a sketchy street at night (which I'm not). Sure, the rent is reasonable, but that's not enough to entice, in my opinion. Furthermore, the street is pretty ugly with no energy to it.

Yikes, this street is far. Lombardy Street is so far north in Willburg, that it's neighboring on the northern part of Greenpoint and Queens. There's really nothing up here and it's bordering on the part of the neighborhood that's heavily polluted which makes it not exactly ideal. And, the southern part of Lombardy has some really beautiful homes and apartments that are pretty cheap with a lot of space (a lot of them even have yards which is crazy). But, the northern part of the street looks like an industrial wasteland with a bunch of warehouses. Getting a three bedroom apartment with outdoor space for less than $2500 / month is a pretty great deal, but you have to pay for it in other ways.
For one, transportation is criminally far away from Lombardy Street. So, if you have to commute into Manhattan, it's really a pain. And, the walk to even a deli or market is pretty far, let alone any sort of restaurant or form of nightlife. Running out to get coffee is a bit of a chore on Lombardy. And, the northern end of the street is pretty sketchy at night because it's so vacant. It's really a toss up. You have all of this space for a reasonable price, but you have to really enjoy that space because walking anywhere else isn't exactly pleasant or easy.

Lee Avenue is a decent looking street and the rent is definitely cheaper than many other streets in Williamsburg. But, I wouldn't want to live on it. For one, it's pretty deep in South Williamsburg, neighboring on Bed Stuy. So, if you're living on the southern part of Lee, you're right on the border of a pretty rough neighborhood. It's not exactly close to transportation, and while there are little shops and restaurants, they're pretty much all catering to the Hasidic Jewish population that dominates this street and surrounding ones.
Lee is in the thick of the Jewish part of Williamsburg and that's pretty much the only people who live on this street. I'm not Jewish and certainly not Hasidic and while I wouldn't mind living in a Hasidic neighborhood, they don't seem to like foreigners on their turf. They stick to their own which makes neighborly interaction pretty difficult if you're not Jewish. And, there really isn't much in the way of food outside of Kosher restaurants. It's quite a hike to get to other restaurants, cafes, etc and there isn't a bar within spitting distance of this street. I feel like people move to Williamsburg because it's so lively with food, bars, art, etc and it's a bit cheaper than Manhattan. So, why move outside of Manhattan to live in a still pricey neighborhood with nothing to do? It doesn't make much sense to me. I feel like there are far better streets than Lee that aren't too much further up, price point wise.

i'm still not totally sold on Bushwick as far as safety and having a whole lot to do in a neighborhood. But, there are an awful lot of youngsters that seem to like this neighborhood and Knickerbocker is one of the main streets in it. I guess if you were going to live in Bushwick, this would be the street you would want to live on. There are a lot of condo converts that have popped up on Knickerbocker in the last five years or so. And, I know that's a sign that the neighborhood is taking off, but I can't get around the price of them. Or, the rental prices in Bushwick, in general. Because the young and arty have flocked here over the last few years because of rent hikes in Williamsburg, the neighborhood has become somewhat popular. But, that was because the rent was cheap. And, it's nearly the same as Williamsburg now without nearly the number of bars, restaurants, shops and art venues. There are a few, of course, but not enough to justify not living in Willy. And, there are some streets in Bushwick that still have significantly lower rent. But, Knickerbocker isn't one of them. I guess this is because this street and the streets that cross Knickerbocker have the most going on. And, it's pretty close to a number of train stops. But, I still wouldn't call this street safe. There aren't enough young and arty people on it yet to have completely gentrified the street. So, it's still pretty sketchy at night. And, it's not especially pretty . . though most of north Brooklyn is pretty ugly.
I guess if you can find a cheaper rent and you're young, this wouldn't be a bad street to live on. It has enough going on that it's decent. It's just not enough to entice me.

Kingsland Ave is a tough one because it has a lot of goods and bads. The blocks of Kingsland closer to Metropolitan are great and they're not too far from the L train or any of the bars and restaurants in the Graham Ave area. One of my good friends lives on Kingsland right at Skillman it's not too bad as far as convenience goes. He also has a back yard in his apartment which is nearly unheard of for anywhere in New York. The street is definitely a younger one. There are a lot of artists, students and hipsters on it because the rent is a bit cheaper than parts of Willy that are even off of Graham which is only a few blocks away. And, the further north you go on Kinglsand, the cheaper the rent gets because the further north you go, the further you are from any sort of convenience. It's a really residential street so if you live up toward Greenpoint, there's nothing in the way of bars, restaurants or delis near you. But, the walk isn't too bad. The other bad thing about Kinglsand is that the northern chunk of the street has a lot of pollution problems. It's right under the BQE and a lot of the new, expensive condos on the street are built on former factory sites that had sewage problems. Also, a lot of the buildings were put up really quickly so they have sort of tape and glue problems (i.e. poor insulation, electrical issues, etc). I guess I wouldn't mind living on Kingsland -- especially if I could have a yard -- but I would definitely live as close to Metropolitan as possible and I wouldn't live in one of the newer "luxury" buildings.

Keap street is a little too far out of the way for my liking. But, it's not a bad street. It has a decent neighborhood feel too it and it's quiet because it's far from most of the Willburg happenings. And, it's a few blocks away from some of the great bars and restaurants in South Williamsburg. It's really close to one of my favorite restaurants, Moto, and there are all kinds of things popping up in the vicinity. So, it's probably going to have a bit more bustle in the next couple of years. The thing I don't like about, Keap, though, is that it's still not exactly the most convenient street. It is a couple of blocks from any sort of restaurant, bar or even coffee shop. It's a bit of a hike to the JMZ line and that stop is outdoors so in the winter that's not ideal. Also, it's a little bit scary around here at night because nobody is out on the street because of the lack of night time activities. Anything around Kent or Wythe is a little desolate late at night to me. You add to that the fact that it's at Wythe in south Willy and it's even more absent of people. And, there are a ton of luxury condos that have gone into former factory buildings on this street so you're not exactly paying a reasonable amount. The condos are really nice but I don't know that I'd want to pay $400 k for a one bedroom loft close to the middle of nowhere. It seems kind of unreasonable to me. It's not a bad street, but for the most part, I couldn't justify the price to live on it at this point.

Juliana Place is in the boons. It's a quiet street and you can find a great deal on a place (a lot of them are condos for sale). But, the reason you can find a good deal is because it's pretty far out of the way from pretty much everything. It's really far south and west and that's not a bad combination as far as being in a bad area, but it's not ideal. The street isn't unsafe, per say, but it's pretty scary looking at night because most of the apartments are in converted, old factories. There's not a neighborhood feel and there's not a lot of green around. It's pretty spooky around here and it feels like a ghost town.
And, the convenience factor to Juliana is awful. The closet restaurants are up at Broadway and though they're both fantastic, that's a bit of a hike to get to the closest place to eat. There's also a wine shop and a little deli on Broadway but that's pretty much it. And, it's not exactly at the end of the block. You have to walk pretty far just to pick up a coffee and the walk isn't exactly picturesque. The worst part about the location (as if having to walk six blocks to get to a deli isn't bad enough) is that getting to any sort of train is at least a 15 minute walk. So, any sort of commute into Manhattan is about an hour which is depressing considering you can see it from your window if you live on Juliana. There's just not enough happening on this street to justify living here at this point, in my opinion.

I could really go either way about Judge street. It's a few streets away from where I lived when I lived in Willy and it's a fine street. It's a couple of blocks away from all of the bars and restaurants on Graham street. And, since there's nothing actually on Judge, the street is a bit quieter than Graham. But, Graham's not a crazy loud street so I kind of liked that there's a little bit more going on at night. Judge doesn't feel quite as safe as a street like Graham simply because of the lack of people walking on it. And, anything across Bushwick seems just a little bit shadier to me.
It's not a bad street though. It's close to all of the bars and restaurants, close to Cooper Park, and a few blocks away from the L train so getting into Manhattan is pretty easy. The apartments look, roughly, the same as they do on any other street in the neighborhood: mostly older three to four story walk ups mixed in with a couple of newer "condo" buildings. And, the rent is pretty comparable to other streets: it's around $1800 / month or so for a one bedroom in one of the walkups. You definitely get more space around here for your money than you would around Bedford or even Lorimer. And, the street is a mix of longtime residents and the younger more hipster crowd, leaning more toward the hipster side. But, for some reason, Judge just looks a little bit shoddier than other streets in the area. Maybe it's less trees or that the buildings aren't taken care of to the level that others are, but it's just a little shifty. I feel that because the rent is exactly the same around Graham, I would rather live on the other side of Bushwick Ave. There's more to do directly around you and it's just a little bit safe feeling.

There is only one good thing about Ivy Hill Road: The street sign. This street is so far east and north, it's almost like it doesn't belong to a neighborhood at all. And, there's nothing up here. It looks like the sort of street where body dumping happens. A lot of nameless warehouses and nothing else. But, the street sign is pretty cool. I don't know if it was forgotten about because it's so out of the way. But, the sign for Ivy Hill Road is from the 1940's. It was never replaced and is one of the only signs in Brooklyn that hasn't been touched. So, it's kind of like you went into a time warp in a horror film on Ivy Hill. Other than that, there's no reason to ever go up here (especially not to live). And, I'm not sure that an old street sign is really enough for anyone to make the effort for that matter. It's far from everything, the street is scary looking and you'd be living in a warehouse. This is a no fly zone

Irving Ave is a small street in Bushwick. It's pretty far into Bushwick too so there's no fibbing about this being Williamsburg or even "East Williamsburg." It's within fair walking distance of the bars and restaurants in Bushwick as most are on or near Flushing. But, I just don't think there's enough close by for this to be a great street to live on. First of all, it's off the Jefferson stop of the L train which is a really sketchy stop. And, Irving's not the sketchiest street in the neighborhood, but this neighborhood isn't exactly safe yet. And, living on a street without a lot going on in a sort of scary neighborhood is a bad idea, in my opinion. There's not enough people on the street late at night and I feel like that's just asking for trouble.
The plus side of living on Irving is that the rent on this street is dirt cheap. You can get a two bedroom place on Irving for less than a one bedroom place around Graham Ave in Williamsburg. And, the two aren't that far away from each other, technically speaking. Though, they look like night and day and sort of feel that way too. There are a lot of young artists and hipsters that have moved on Irving but there's still a mix of them and the old demographic which keeps the rent down because it's still a little less than desirable (unsafe). I wouldn't live on Irving because of the safety factor and because it's just too far from Manhattan. But, a lot of young people don't mind it.

I feel like Ingraham is the street that let's you know that Bushwick is where all the artists live now. It's how I imagined streets in Williamsburg proper to have looked fifteen years ago. Ingraham is a really ugly street. It looks like a string of abandoned warehouses that are actually apartments. There are no trees anywhere. It's pretty sad looking. And, gritty. But, that's how hip people like it, I guess. Because there are all kinds of hip things happening here. There are a lot of trendy, Bushwick bars on and around Ingraham (like Alaska, which I guess is my favorite in the area). And, there is a cafe cum art gallery just up the street. There's a production space here, a music venue . . anything that artists do, you can find it on this wasteland of a looking street.
But, here's the thing I don't understand. It seems like the real estate on this street got a little ahead of itself. Usually, the arty people move to an area because it's cheap. And, then they make the area cool so the area gets expensive and fun. But, it's already not cheap on Ingraham and it's not cool enough or safe enough to warrant the price tag. There's not enough here yet. And, most of the spaces haven't been renovated. There are a handful of restaurants compared to Williamsburg and barely any conveniences. Plus, it's still kind of a sketchy area so if you can afford to live on Ingraham, why would you? It makes no sense.

I - 278 is actually a freeway, not a street you can live on. It's part of the BQE and it actually runs through all five burroughs of New York. The Williamsburg part of it is pretty small as it starts just after the Williamsburg bridge and runs up to Queens (which is pretty close to Williamsburg). I-278 isn't the most productive or fast freeway in New York, but it connects to just about every other freeway, directly. So, you can get to the airport, the Hamptons . . Connecticut. . . you name it, from this guy. Not much else to say about it, other than, don't live under it if you can at all help it.

Herbert street is a pretty decent little residential street that has a tiny chunk in Williamsburg but is mostly in Greenpoint. One of the downers is that it runs directly the BQE which doesn't do much for the aesthetic or noise level of the street. But, then again, there's not much aesthetic in Williamsburg anyway. The nice thing about Herbert is that it's a clean, fairly quiet street that's almost completely residential. There are some single family homes mixed in with older apartments and new condo developments. There's also a middle income housing project on Herbert which is either good or bad depending on how you look at it. You're a few blocks away from both the Graham and Lorimer stretches of bars and restaurants. And, just a few more walks away from all the chaos to be had at the Bedford stop. It's nice to be a couple of blocks away because the streets a lot cleaner. But, it can also be a bad thing because you can't just run across the street to grab dinner. That sounds lazy but when there's a blizzard, those few blocks seem a lot longer than they are. And, the walk home can be a little scary because the people on the street really start to dissipate the further away you get from those big areas.
The other major attraction you're right next to on Herbert is McCarren Park. This is also both a good and a bad thing. For one, it's fantastic to be this close to such a big, great park. I would have loved to be a smidge closer to McCarren when I lived in Willy. The bad thing about this, however, is that though Herbert isn't on the park, it's close enough that the rent reflects living on a park. So, the rent is a bit astronomical, in my opinion, for a street that's not directly on a park, isn't all that close to a train, and is a few blocks away from any sort of social activity. And, it's not like the homes are big on this street. They're old so you're not exactly getting a lot of bang for your buck. This is a deal breaker for me as far as Herbert is concerned. I just feel like, why would I pay 2 g's a month to live practically in Greenpoint and next to nothing? It makes no sense.

I remember the first time I walked past Harrison Place. I was going to Roberta's (my now favorite restaurant in the area) for the first time and kept on thinking that I was being walked to my death. This street is beyond ugly and scary looking. It looks like a series of warehouses where dreams go to die. And, you would never know that little gems are just around the corner. There are a lot of gems, like Roberta's, in Bushwick. But, there aren't enough, for me, to justify living on this street. And, I know that the hipster set like their buildings to look like abandoned warehouses because it ups the cool factor. But, I'm just not that cool. The insides of some of the buildings on Harrison are remodeled and very nice . . .but the outside. Dear of dear. It's as if no trees are on this street simply because they revolted. It's really scary.
And, the area is still pretty scary, in my opinion. It's scary during the day. The Morgan stop of the L train is right here and it looks like there's no train because almost no one is walking around at any given time. For any New Yorker, that's really creepy. There's nothing around here. At all. Around the corner toward Flushing, there are a few restaurants, bars, cafes, etc. But, absolutely nothing is on this street but what looks like abandonment. The neighborhood just hasn't developed enough yet that streets like Harrison are reasonably safe. And, I don't think any kind of cheap rent is worth that. I'd rather pay a little bit more and live a bit further west. But, if you're a brave, little hipster that won't let a potential mugging threaten your good time, this may be the street for you.

It's a shame that Harrison runs through such a not yet there part of Williamsburg because it's actually a rather pretty street. It's tree-lined throughout the majority of its run. And, there are quite a few single family homes that are pretty inexpensive which is extremely rare for any part of New York City -- especially a part that's so close to Manhattan. The homes are older and lovely and even the apartment buildings are pretty, structure wise. And, did I mention that they're cheap? You can get a two bedroom condo on Harrison for $2000 / month which is next to unheard of in Williamsburg or even most of Bushwick for that matter.
But, there's a reason that everything is so cheap on this street: it's not a great part of the neighborhood. Anything around Broadway triangle is pretty much in sketch town. And, Harrison runs right through it. Broadway Triangle is predominantly public, low income housing. And, that's never great for energy or aesthetic in a neighborhood. There is somewhat of a trickle down of the hipsters, artists and students from the northern part of Williamsburg into this area. But, it's just not enough yet for Harrison to be, I guess, gentrified, for lack of a better word. It's decent enough during the day because the buildings are pretty and there is some green. But, it's scary at night and just not safe yet. And, because hardly any of the trickle down has happened in this area yet, there aren't really any bars or restaurants, etc on or near Harrison. So, you have to walk pretty far just to get to a decent market. You're close to the JMZ line on Harrison and that's a pretty good train line but that's not really enough, in my mind, to justify living out of the way of everything, including safety. I think it'll be a great street in a few years but I wouldn't live on it just yet.

Grattan street is such a bizarre street. It feels like it's in the middle of nowhere though it's right in the midst of the new hipstertown. It's right where the (absolutely fantastic) restaurant, Roberta's is. And, yeah, there are a lot of bars, restaurants, cafes, etc popping up right around here because of the influx of hipsters and students over the last six or so years. But, it's still quite a hike away from Williamsburg proper. And, it's still not particularly safe. And, it's also ugly with an abandoned warehouse kind of vibe. This street, especially looks scary as all get out even during the day. I would pee myself if I had to walk to my apartment here late at night. There aren't enough hipsters and kids here yet for it to be even remotely pleasant to walk around after dark. And, there's not quite enough that the area has to offer yet to consider living this far away from Manhattan, in my opinion.
So, the thing that actually blows my mind is: how on Earth is the rent on this street so expensive? A lot of the apartments are in old, converted warehouses so I get the cool factor involved with them. But, a one bedroom one bathroom apartment on Grattan for $2100 / month? They have got to be joking. I lived in a big one bedroom on Graham and it was less expensive than that by a few hundred dollars. This street isn't safe yet! And, it's not bustling with all kinds of cool things to do yet! And, it's far! I cannot imagine for the life of me why anyone would even consider paying that or even $2700 / month for a three bedroom. People pay $900 a person to share an apartment in Bushwick? Seriously . . I can't take this street seriously. If you're going to pay that, live on Graham or Lorimer so you can actually sleep at night without thinking you're going to be robbed.

Gerry street has a lot of strikes against it especially against other streets in the neighborhood. It used to have these really cool clapboard tenement houses on them with old school store fronts, but I guess the city decided that those were even too ugly for this part of town so they tore them down. And, unlike other streets in the area that replaced the tenements with other, bigger versions of low income housing, this street has remained predominantly vacant. There's almost nothing on this street but vacant lot. And, vacant areas anywhere in New York freak me out even during the day.
There are a couple of apartment buildings on the street and while they are really cheap, there's really no good reason to live here outside of the fact that they're cheap. You're next to a lot and have to walk for what seems like a million years to get to any sort of bar, restaurant or even a decent market or deli. And, because any sort of life is so far away, there's no one walking on this street at night. Add that to the huge vacant part of the block and you're just cruisin for a bruisin, I think. It's sketchy is a horror film sort of way. No kind of cheap could get me to live on that.

Franklin Avenue is actually a really pretty street through most of its run through Brooklyn and the little chunk that it touches in Williamsburg is no different. There are some lovely, old brick buildings and a surprising amount of trees considering that this is about as far south as you can get in Williamsburg before the neighborhood switches to Bed Stuy. That's the problem with Franklin in this neighborhood, though. It's right on the border of Bed Stuy which is not a safe neighborhood at all. And, not only is it not safe, it's also not charming or neighborhood feeling or offering of anything to do.
Franklin is so far south, that it's quite a hike to any stretch of street that has bars or restaurants. And, it's not terribly far from the JMZ train but it's not a walk that I would want to make late at night. Because there are no bars and restaurants in the neighborhood, the only people out on the streets are usually up to no good. It's just not safe or inviting despite the pretty buildings.
The plus side is that the rent is really cheap to live in a cool apartment. You just have to be a trained streetfighter that doesn't mind a 15 minute walk to have dinner or pick up stuff from a decent deli. I do not fall under that category.

Forrest is a little street that's right near the thick of the popular part of Bushwick. And, I know that Bushwick is becoming more and more popular every year with the kids and arty set, but I still don't consider it all that gentrified or safe. There are definitely a few little bars and restaurants within short walking distance of Forrest. And, there are some great restaurants (like Roberta's) within a five or so minute walk. There's even a yoga studio nearby which wasn't even close to the case when I moved into Williamsburg. But, there aren't a lot of conveniences around. And, the neighborhood is pretty desolate looking. It's not the kind of street you feel really safe walking down late at night.
And, though the Morgan stop of the L train is close, it still takes about a half an hour to get to the city from here. If you have to go back and forth that can start to wear on you. And, staying in Manhattan all day with everything you need on your back can start to wear on you too. It's a pretty even mix of hipsters, young people and the people who lived in Bushwick before the Williamsburg crowd started to push east (which isn't necessarily always the kind of person you would want as your neighbor). And, the street is getting there. But, it's not there enough for my taste. The rent is really low, though and some of the apartments are spectacular and big. So, you have to weigh out the pros and cons if you're on a budget. If you're not, I would pass on Forrest.

Fillmore Place is a really special street because it's the only street in Williamsburg that is considered a historical district with landmarked buildings. Because this one block street is landmarked, the buildings haven't changed much since they were built in the mid 19th century. The block consists of a row of townhouses and rowhouses that are designated predominantly as rentals for three different families. It used to be that there was a storefront on the ground and one apartment on each of the two remaining stories. But, now the ground floor is a bigger apartment with each floor still taking up a different residence. The apartments aren't huge but they're pretty big for the area and they're really cool. Plus, you're the only one on your floor which is nice. And, this street is pretty quiet and really charming. But, it's close to all of the Bedford Ave bars and restaurants and semi close to both train lines.
The down side to living on Fillmore is that it's around the Bedford stop so it's insanely expensive -- even more so than living in a landmark would be on its own. And, this particular part of the neighborhood runs a little bit older than college aged but there are still a lot of kids around here so it can be a nightmare at night. Plus, it's right on the border of north and south Williamsburg so the walk home isn't exactly the safest though I wouldn't worry too much. I would live on Fillmore. It's close enough to everything while not being directly on top of it. And, the buildings are just so beautiful. One fun fact: Henry Miller lived in his grandfather's place right on the corner of Fillmore and Driggs. He talks about this street a lot in Tropic of Capricorn.

Evergreen is a really ugly street in Bushwick (not Williamsburg) that is right smack in the middle of all the other Bushwick streets that actually have things to do on them. I'm still a little too timid to be pro Bushwick because I just don't think enough of the youngsters have moved in yet to warrant the neighborhood safe. But, there are definitely a lot of young people and hipsters in this area. And, the rent is pretty cheap on Evergreen so I'm sure there will be a lot more to come. As they trickle to this street, I'm sure more bars and restaurants will pop up. But, it's still up and coming which is what it has been for about the last six or seven years.
Roberta's, my favorite restaurant in the area, the bar the Wreck Room, Arena, Miles and Tavares are all within a couple of blocks of Evergreen. But, unlike streets close to restaurants in Williamsburg proper, this street doesn't have the trees and quiet that make up for having to walk a few minutes to eat or drink. The street kind of looks like a truck stop which I guess is why it's only popular for the young and artsy set. It's pretty ugly and so are all the buildings. But, there a few amount of little spots to hit in the area, a yoga studio, a cool deli, etc, all within quick walking distance. And, the rent is far better than just a few blocks west. If you're young or in a bad, you just have to weigh the pros and cons of living on Evergreen. It's close to the train but at least 30 minutes to the city. It's a little sketchy at night but probably won't be in a couple of years. It's ugly but cheap, etc.

Dunham Place is a abandoned factory looking street near the water in South Williamsburg. It's one of those developed streets that isn't really taking off and I can imagine why. There are a couple of brand spanking new buildings on Dunham that are made for half luxury condos for sale and half luxury condos for low income rent. People that pay a lot of money are living with people who don't pay more than $700 / month. And, I can't imagine the high paying residents are all that happy about that. I also can't imagine that they're all that happy about living a pretty hefty hike away from any sort of bar, restaurant, deli, etc. There's nothing out here. It's kind of close to the water taxi to Manhattan but that only runs during the summer. And, it's definitely a hike to the train. If you only had to pay $700 / month, you can shove those complaints. But, I would never pay what they're asking to live on this street. I don't care how nice those condos are. It's outrageous to pay that kind of money to live in the middle of nowhere on what used to be a toxic waste area. And, the surrounding abandoned factories are cool during the day. But, at night, they're pretty scary. And, no one is around in this area so it's like you're just asking to get mugged. Unless you fall under the low income category, don't live on this street.

The nice thing about Debevoise Street is that there are actually some single family homes that are massive and pretty cheap considering the size of them. The bad thing about Debevoise Street is nearly everything else.
I'm not a huge fan of anything around Broadway triangle because I think the area still looks and feels like a slum. The hipsters and artists are definitely making their way in but it's just not there yet, in my opinion. The street is close to a couple of great Bushwick restaurants (like Roberta's) but you have to walk through an urban wasteland to get there. It's scary doing that walk even during the day. I would not want to walk back to my apartment on this street late at night, that's for sure.
Not only is the street sketchy, but it's ugly too. It's run down and really loud during the day with street traffic and foot traffic going in and out of all kinds of bizarro stores. This area kind of looks like Tijuana to me. I don't know how any of these stores stay in business. It's really weird and off putting both in energy and aesthetic. There are so many great neighborhood kinds of streets in this neighborhood, that I can't imagine the appeal of living on this one.

Debevoise Ave is actually a pretty great street around Cooper park. For one, it's right on the park which is always a bonus in a city that's a little lacking in green. It's not a big park but it's a nice one with a little dog run. It's a lovely park to live on or near and Debevoise is a lovely little street that compliments it. It's filled with older homes and apartment buildings that offer a bit more space than other parts of Williamsburg. And, the street is tree-lined and quiet. It's a bit of an older demographic on this street but there is definitely a trickle in of hipsters and young people. It's a little bit of a hike to the L train but nothing terrible. And, it's only a couple of blocks away from all the great restaurants and bars on Graham which is nice. You live close to all the good stuff but not directly on it so you don't have the noise and trash. The one down side to living on a quiet street, though, is that it's a little scary walking late at night. No one's out on this street and you add that to the park and it's a little bit sketchy but nothing terrible.
The part of Debevoise however, where the street picks up again (north of the park) is a completely different. It's not nearly as pretty, it's more desolate and it's way too far from everything, in my opinion. I wouldn't live on this run of the street. I don't think you should have to walk more than 10 minutes to get to any sort of convenience in New York. I don't care how cheap the rent is.
All in all, I would live on the street. I would just make sure to live close to the park. The rent is reasonable, it's quaint, and you're close to a lot of things.

Cypress Ave isn't a bad street. But, it's not a great street and it's pretty far back in Bushwick. This can't even be considered "east Williamsburg." This is Bushwick verging on Queens. It's starting to gentrify quite a bit as all arty / hipster / student demographic is pushing further and further east. But, it's not gentrified enough for me to want to live this far out. I know there are some great apartments over here for next to nothing so it's fantastic for young people. And, the restaurant and bar situation around here is really taking off. One of my favorite restaurants in the area, Roberta's is just a few blocks away and there are some cool places on Starr and Wycoff. But, the street is still a little bit gritty and a little bit scary at night for me. And, while Cypress is pretty close to the Morgan stop of the L train. It still takes at least 30 minutes to get into Manhattan from here and if you have to go back and forth every day, it's kind of pain. I feel like in a couple of years, this area will be so hipsterfied, that it will be pretty safe and have a lot of great things to do. And, it's almost there but it's not there enough for me to justify living this far east. But, for students and artists, this is a pretty cool street with some huge, cheap apartments and a burgeoning little scene. It's definitely a street for the young.

Cook is a pretty scary street, in my opinion. It's a small street that runs through a part of the neighborhood called Broadway Triangle which is sort of where Williamsburg, Bed Stuy and Bushwick all kind of merge. It's a pretty shoddy part of all the neighborhoods and the street is taken up with mostly low income housing projects. There are some weird little stores like mom and pop electronics and dollar shops as the street hits Graham but there are no restaurants, bars, neighborhood things to do within many blocks. So, it's a really unappealing street. It's dirty and pretty desolate especially at night. I would be terrified to walk home at night if I lived on Cook. I'm even a little timid to walk around this part of the neighborhood during the day. There is a little bit of hipster infiltration in this area but not enough for there to even be a decent deli or cafe yet. And, the projects don't exactly do much for the neighborhood aesthetic. It's really noisy during the day which is a sharp contrast to the dead silence at night. And, the noise isn't a good kind of New York noise. Yeah, the rent is really cheap and it's close to the JMZ train which makes getting in and out of Manhattan pretty simple. But, that's not enough of a perk, in my opinion, to offset all of the bad things about this street. It may be hipsterfied in the next few years but it's not even close yet so I don't even go here.

Conselyea is a pretty good little street in the neighborhood. It's the next street east of the street I lived on for a couple of years and I wouldn't have minded living on it at all. It's a really residential street. It's all old apartment buildings that has a mix of some of the long time residents and hipsters -- nowadays the hipsters are definitely the bigger of the two. It's not as tree lined or neighborhood looking as a street like Devoe. But, it's not bad. The apartment buildings in the neighborhood, in general, kind of look they aren't real. They kind of look like old movie set apartments and that's no different on this street.
The nice thing about Conselyea is that it's just a short block away from Graham so you get all of the great restaurants and little shops. There are ton of bars on and just off of Graham. The L train is right there. But, there's nothing on Conselyea aside from apartment buildings so it's a bit quieter than Graham or Metropolitan. It's not my favorite street in the area, but it's a pretty good street. And, the rent is a lot better on Conselyea than it is in a lot of other parts of this neighborhood.

Clymer street is a decent street that runs through the Orthodox Jewish area of south Williamsburg right on the border of Bed Stuy. There are actually some really pretty buildings on this street. There are some great, old factory buildings and some lovely brick duplexes and townhouses. And, the rent is pretty cheap as are the sale prices of the buildings. You can actually buy a duplex for under a million dollars which is really cheap for New York. But, the street has way too many drawbacks for me to ever consider living on it. Because it's a predominantly Orthodox Jewish area, there's nothing to do within blocks that isn't catered to that. The only public building around is a synagogue. And, if you're not Jewish, you won't have many friends within quick walking distance (they tend to kind of stick to their own). It's not the greatest area either. It's still really gritty around here and none of the Williamsburg has trickled this far south yet. You have to walk all the way to Broadway for any sort of good restaurant or even a deli. And, it's desolate at night which is especially scary because of all the old factories. It's pretty sketchy at night and sometimes even during the day. It's quiet, though, and kind of pretty. But, it's hard to leave the neighborhood because transportation is so far and there's nothing to do in the neighborhood, so you're kind of at a loss.

I wouldn't really consider Classon as a street that runs through Williamsburg: it's more like Bed Stuy . . . which isn't good. Surprisingly, this is kind of a pretty street. There's a lot of green around here which isn't all that common in New York, in general. Unfortunately, it's somewhat of a driving street. And, being that it's in Bed Stuy, it's really not an ideal neighborhood street to live on. And, by not ideal, I mean I wouldn't live around here if you paid me to. While Williamsburg is doing a lot of trickling into Bushwick, it's not making nearly as much headway south into Bed Stuy. It's still a pretty sketchy part of town. And, there is absolutely nothing to do around here. Nothing. There's not even a good deli on Classon and isn't that one of the best parts about living in New York. I love that fact that I can walk one block in any direction and run into something to do (or eat). And, that's not the case on this street. You have to walk for a while to get to any good restaurant or even the train for that matter. Plus, it's right under the BQE which isn't picturesque or appealing. Also, like I said, it's in a really sketchy area. I would be scared to live here.

Cherry Street is a really interesting name for a abandoned looking street that is basically in Siberia. I don't know anyone that lives even close to this far north and east in Williamsburg. And, there's nothing around here. There are no bars and restaurants and really nowhere to live. This street is, essentially, the pickup street to get onto the BQE just before the bridge into Queens. It runs directly underneath it and serves as the last onramp before you have to cross the water. So, there's nothing over here but a lingering sewage smell.

Central Avenue kind of looks like Tijuana to me, so I guess you could say I'm not a fan of the street and don't really intend on living there. It's too far east and south for my liking. And, though it's only a couple of blocks away from Roberta's (my favorite) and another restaurant that just opened a couple of months ago, there's really nothing else in the area. This neighborhood is sort of known for its bars and music / art scene so to have to walk several blocks to get to just one seems a little beside the point of living here. And, though really no part of Williamsburg is aesthetically pleasing, Central looks especially dumpy and run down. There are a few little weird, Tijuana looking stores on the street and a lot of traffic. There are a lot of people out during the day but no one you'd really want to run into at night. And, it's about four blocks from the nearest train station which puts you at thirty minutes to Union Square on a good day. If you work in Manhattan, that's not ideal.
On the plus side, the rent is really cheap and you're not crazy far from bars and restaurants. But, I wouldn't want to walk down this street at night. And, one of the great things about New York is that there are so many things to do just outside your door. Why live on a street where that's not the case if you can afford it?

Catherine is a little street close to Cooper Park that is entirely residential. It's a very hipster street, in my opinion. It's far enough away from Graham so that the rent is a bit cheaper but it's close enough to the bars and restaurants. I'm sure all of the longtime Williamsburg residents that live on Catherine are a little less than pleased about the influx of hipstertown because Catherine is actually a little noisy considering it's a residential street. It's not nearly as bad as Graham or Metropolitan but it's not as sleepy sounding as it looks. I, personally, like that because it makes me feel safer when I can hear people.
The apartment buildings are pretty standard looking for the area from the outside but for whatever reason I feel like they're not as nice as the some other streets. I could be completely making that up because the street seems hipster to me, though. Catherine is really close to a nice little park and not too far from the Graham stop of the L train. It's a couple of blocks from all the Graham Avenue bars and restaurants, but there aren't any of those on Catherine itself which makes it a little quieter. Catherine's not too shabby of a street to live on. I just feel like it's for the younger set.

Calhoun is a little whisp of a street that's just off a little park. I forget if the park is called Olive Park or Maspeth Park but I used to take my dogs here every other day when I lived in the neighborhood. The area surrounding the park is quiet and very neighborhoody but in a older sort of way. This street is a bit off the beaten path from all the bars, restaurants and general Williamsburg crowd. So, there's nothing to do on Calhoun aside from the park and a little coffee shop a couple blocks away. And, Calhoun is probably the least attractive out of all the streets surrounding the park.
The rent is definitely cheaper than a few blocks west at Graham and Metropolitan. But, you lose a lot of the younger sort of the neighborhood feel with not having any bars, music venues, restaurants or cafes. It's not a terrible place to live and it's close enough to all of the good stuff as well as to transportation. But, it's lacking in energy. And, it's a little too quiet at night for me to want to be walking home down this street.

This area is so close to being hip and hipster enough for me to think I wouldn't stay up all night, scared. But, I just don't think it's there yet. Bushwick Place isn't a terribly dangerous street to live on. And, there are definitely a lot of students, artists and hipsters in the area for it to be cool in a gritty sort of way. But, the actual street is scary looking even during the day to me. And, you're close to some of the great Bushwick restaurants like Il Passatore and Roberta's. But, there's nothing on this street but apartments. There's no neighborhood vibe on this street and it seems a bit like a wasteland.
The rent is cheap and some of the apartments are really cool. And, it's only one stop away from Graham which has a ton of bars, restaurants, music venues, etc. But, I guess I'm spoiled with being able to walk somewhere and not having to keep looking over my shoulder when I'm walking home. I feel like this is a street for young people. It's for people in the art community or university that have roommates, energy and not a lot of money. But, I think it's going to be just as safe as Willy within the next five years.

Bushwick Ct is a tiny little offshoot on the lower end of Bushwick Ave. There's not much to say about this street other than it runs for a little block and has a couple of apartment buildings on it that look pretty scary to me. It's pretty barren around here, and I don't consider the lower part of Bushwick Ave to be safe by any stretch of the imagination.
It's way too quiet on this street, way too far from any sort of bar, restaurant or neighborhood feel. And, the couple of buildings on the street are really ugly. The bonuses are that the rent is really cheap, the L train isn't terribly far away (though it's not ideal) and you're pretty close to Roberta's which is my favorite restaurant in the entirety of Williamsburg / Bushwick. But, that's not enough of a draw for me to want to live in no man's land. And, it looks unsafe here even during the day.

The large majority of Bushwick Ave runs through the neighborhood of Bushwick, not Williamsburg. But, a lot of people (in real estate) are starting to call the western part of Bushwick, "East Williamsburg," in order to make moving there a bit more palatable. And, in a way, I suppose it is a bit of an extension of Willburg because the people who made Williamsburg cool have been pushed further and further east on account of ever rising rent in the neighborhood. Bushwick is still dangerous, in my opinion. Or, at least more so than the major parts of Wiliamsburg.
Bushwick Ave is one of the bigger streets in Bushwick and it's definitely starting to come into it's own. But, I don't think it's there yet. There are a couple of great places on the street such as Vaudeville Park and the Tradesman. And, the restaurant Il Passatore is great and quite cheap. There's a very hipster sort of vibe to the street since most of the newcomers are young and often arty. But, it doens't quite yet have the energy that Graham has which is only a few blocks away. There aren't as many people out on the street at night and that's always a big worry for me. And, there's not a plethora of things to do on the street just yet. But, I think there will be soon.
On the plus side, the rent is really cheap compared to Williamsburg. And, a lot of the apartments are massive by New York standards. And, Bushwick is close to two L train stops so hopping into Manhattan is easy -- though it's about a twenty five minute ride to Union Square. It's not a bad street to live on, but I think it's still a little sketchy for my taste. If I were a young guy, I would have no problem living here.
vaudeville park
il passatore
tradesman

There's not much to say about the Brooklyn Queens Expressway as far as reviewing a street to live on or visit because it's a freeway. You can access it starting at the Williamsburg Bridge and you can access both airports, Queens / Long Island and the Hamptons via this freeway. Traffic on it is pretty standard for New York City but there's no avoiding it if you're trying to do a quick summer beach visit (unless you're going to Jersey). The only bad part about the freeway is that it's not exactly pleasant to live on any of the streets that are directly under it.

Technically, Bogart street is in Bushwick, not Williamsburg. But, a lot of real estate people are trying to market this part of town as East Williamsburg to entice renters. And, Bushwick is really starting to hipsterize so it is somewhat of an extension of Willy nowadays. A lot of the arty kinds of people started to push back into this area when the rents in Willy became nearly comparable to Manhattan. And, this part of town isn't quite as lively or safe as Williamsburg (though nowhere in New York is technically "safe"), but it is starting to come into its own. Bogart Street has a couple of little bars and restaurants such as the Morgan, a little sushi joint, a cafe, etc. And, there is a great 24 hour bodega so now you know the kids have started to arrive. My favorite restaurant in the Williamsburg area, Robertas, is just off of Bogart and it is an absolute must for anyone who lives nearby. Being that Robertas is always packed, I'd say it's a good indication that this street is just about there. But, it's still not quite yet, in my opinion. Parts of it can be a little wasteland looking and it still seems scary at night. I would live here if I were a young guy, but as a woman, it still is a little precarious to me. Oh, and the trip to Manhattan is at least 30 minutes which is a major downer if you work in the city.

I don't know much about Boerum Street and I think that's kind of saying something considering I lived in the neighborhood for a few years. It runs from the southern part of Willy into Bushwick and I think it's a little too south. The hipsters and artists are just starting to trickle into the area but there aren't enough on Boerum to warrant the trickling in of bars, restaurants and conveniences. It's right on the cusp of the arty part and the dangerous part and I don't like being that close to danger.
There are some really nice apartments on Boerum and the rent is really reasonable. And, there are a few townhouses on the street and living in an actual house in New York isn't exactly cheap. These are under a million dollars but I think too expensive still for this part of the city. Parts of the street look really run down and other parts look almost abandoned so I would be really hesitant to live in something kind of nice amongst all of that. And, transportation is ok but you only have the JMZ line and I wouldn't want to walk from it late at night down this street. It's just not safe enough here, yet, and there's nothing to do within several blocks.

Beaver is a tiny little guy that merges with Bushwick after about two small blocks. It's better than any of the surrounding streets because it's kind of tucked away, but it's still not a good street. This part of the neighborhood is still pretty dangerous. And, it's really ugly. There are a lot of old factory buildings around here and a massive abandoned Pfizer factory just up the way so it looks like an abandoned industrial area except for it's not abandoned. There's nothing in the way of bars or restaurants and there's only one bodega nearby. So, there's nothing in the way of a neighborhood feel and there are no conveniences nearby. It's about a 10-15 minute walk away from the JMZ train which is a pretty good train but it's only one train option and it's not exactly a block away. And, one of the bigger housing projects is at the end of this street. Basically, what I'm saying is that it's boring, ugly and really unsafe. It may come up in the next ten years as Williamsburg continues to push east and south, but for right now, I wouldn't live here. The only plus side, really, is that the rent is really cheap and you're not a terribly far way away from fun things to do. You just have to walk through scaretown to get there.

Eh, Beadel isn't a terrible street; but, I wouldn't want to live on it. It's in the northern part of Willy just across the BQE from Greenpoint. So, the plus side is that you're basically in between two pretty hip neighborhoods. The bad part is that you're on the outskirts of both. You're about a ten minute walk away from a park, but the park is McGolrick park which isn't the better one of the two Greenpoint parks. But, it's definitely quieter than McCarren. And, you're about a 10-15 minute walk away from the Graham stop of the L Train and the Nassau stop of the G train. That's no terrible but it's not great during a blizzard or when you're in a hurry, that's for sure.
The rent is much cheaper up here than it is in the thick of Greenpoint and especially down by the Graham. And, there are some really nice apartments on this street mixed in with ones that are a bit dated but bigger than anything you can find around Bedford. But, there's not much around here except for like one deli. You have to walk at least 10 minutes for a bar, restaurant, store, etc which makes it pretty inconvenient. And, because there isn't anything near this street, there aren't a lot of people out at night which makes it a little sketchy in my opinion.

Bartlett street is on the border of South Williamsburg and Bed-Stuy which is still a pretty bad neighborhood. South Williamsburg is starting to be quite hip although it's still pretty gritty. But, the movement into South Williamsburg and even Bushwick hasn't exactly reached Bed-Stuy yet. And, I don't think it's going to for some time still. It's pretty scary walking around here, quite frankly. And, I've walked around this street during the day. I wouldn't live here if you paid me right now because I feel like I would never sleep at night.
On the plus side, rent's really cheap and some of the apartments are cool looking because this used to be a big factory area. And, the JMZ train isn't that far which is a pretty reliable train with a nice view into the city. But, there are no bars, restaurants, or conveniences anywhere nearby. And, I doubt any of your friends will be living down the street. It's really ugly and it's really just not safe yet.

I lived in Williamsburg for two years (about five years ago) and I had no idea this street existed. I actually had to go find it . . . and it wasn't pretty. It's right under the BQE way the hell out in the middle of nowhere. It's closer to Greenpoint than any of the popular areas of Williamsburg and I'm not sure many people in Greenpoint know where this is. It's on the other side of the Industrial wasteland part of Greenpoint and it looks pretty much like an industrial wasteland. There's nothing here except for apartments and lots. Contrary to what one of the previous posters said, it's not a quick walk to the Graham stop on the L train. It's about a 30 minute walk from the Graham stop and about a 20 minute walk from the Nassau G. So, it's really not ideal for anyone needing to use public transportation. And, because there's nothing around, I don't feel like it's safe. If you wanted to go to a bar or restaurant, you'd be in for a bit of a hike. And, then you'd have to walk back in the dark in a neighborhood where no one is out which I don't like. And, what about groceries or even a deli? The only plus side I can see to living on this street is that the rent is insanely cheap and a lot of the apartments look like loft buildings which means they're probably quite spacious and pretty cool looking in a gritty way.

Devoe is one of the quieter streets in this part of Williamsburg and I think that's a good thing. You're right in the mix of everything that Williamsburg has to offer, but you're not right on top of it so you don't have to deal with all the punk kids coming home on your street late at night. You're close to the L train on Devoe which is great, and you're within two blocks of about fifty different hip bars and restaurants. But, there's almost nothing commercial on Devoe itself aside from one coffee shop / bakery that I'm convinced is a mob front. Seriously, there's never anyone in there aside from the same old Italian guys every day and that place has been open forever. It pumps out a fantastic smell, though.
I think because it's one of the quieter streets, it has an older demographic than most of the other streets in the neighborhood. I walked my dog down Devoe every single day when I lived in the neighborhood and made friends with all the old Italian people. There are a lot of them here that haven't been pushed out by the hipsters yet which is because of rent control, I'm guessing. But, it's such a young neighborhood that I wouldn't have a problem living on the street at all.
The rent is comparable to the rest of the neighborhood. It's cheaper the further east you go but still pretty expensive for a burrough outside of Manhattan. The plus side, however, is that you get a lot more bang for your buck on Devoe. And, you're so close to so many things to do. A lot of streets in Willy have a bit cheaper rent but it's like a five block walk to the closest restaurant which doesn't sound bad . . .until it's either 100 or 10 degrees outside. I would live on Devoe if I still lived in the neighborhood. The buildings are almost all walk ups but they're rarely above four stories, and there's a real neighborhood feel to the street. It's not hipster hell yet like everything around Bedford.

Ainslie is one of the better streets to live on in Williamsburg simply because of its location. It's just in between a ton of major streets but it's quite small and residential. It runs parallel to Metropolitan so no matter where you live on Ainslie, you are within two blocks of the L train and if you live by the Lorimer stop, you're also right next to the G train (not the G is good for anything aside from wasting time).
The apartments on Ainslie are all pretty much the same as far as age, price and amenities. There are a couple of newer buildings on the street, but for the most part, they're all around 3 or 4 story walk ups. And, the facades are all pretty similar. This whole part of the neighborhood looks almost identical, in fact. I remember when I first moved to the neighborhood and I kept thinking that all of the apartment buildings looked like movie set buildings. The front of all of them almost doesn't look real. The price in this neck of the woods has gone way up in the last five or so years because of all the hipsters and art people that flocked in, but you still get way more space for your money than you would in Manhattan or even around Bedford in the neighborhood. And, this street is pretty quiet. It's like a real neighborhood street where you can walk your dog without sirens and people everywhere in the morning. But, because it's now the hipster neighborhood, you are within a block of great bars, restaurants and music venues. Some of my favorite restaurants and bars in the city are on Union, Metropolitan and Graham so you have your pick of about twenty within a five minute block of Ainslie but because nothing but apartment buildings is actually on the street, you don't have the noise and trash that come with all those good times. I really like this street, and anyone looking to live in Williamsburg should definitely try to find a spot here.

The start of Madison's run through Murray Hill is very education oriented. There's a massive building right at 34th that used to be a department store and then became a learning based sort of conglomerate with Oxford Uni Press, a library and a travel book shop included in the building. The building, itself, is pretty stunning as it was constructed with an ornate facade to blend in with the townhouses that used to rule this part of town.
The block at 36th used to be quite fancy. FDR lived in what is now a big furniture store on the west side of the street and JP Morgan's carriage house used to be on the East side where there is now a massive luxury condo building where they shot the movie Sliver. And, the old timey / Morgan legacy carries on in the next block up at the Morgan Library. The Library is gorgeous and features such items from Morgan's personal collection as Thoroeau journals and an original Dickens Christmas Carol Manuscript. It's a really lovely museum and I highly recommend everyone go take a look. Plus, these few blocks still retain some of the old New York and that's kind of hard to find in this part of town.
There are a couple of high end hotels covering the next couple of blocks up (like a Morgans Group hotel) with a couple of their high end restaurants in them (like Asia de Cuba). But, the rest of the street is dominated by advertising. The term Mad Men was coined because of this specific stretch of Madison where all the major advertising agencies took up shop. The same is still true today and it makes the street take on a very suit and power lunch kind of vibe.
The street changes quite a bit as you head north but it definitely maintains the big avenue kind of vibe throughout. It's not really a street you'd want to live on because it's so catered to commercial affairs. And, there's not much of a neighborhood vibe because there aren't any local haunts. But, there are a few cool things to see on the street so I can't forsake it by any stretch.

Lexington runs through Murray Hill from 34th to 42nd street. Lexington is one of the more notable and busy Avenues in the city and its run through Murray Hill is no diversion from the norm. It's a very commercial street in a pretty commercial neighborhood. So, a lot of the buildings are dedicated to business rather than living -- and the residences on Lex are predominantly luxury high rises so even those look like businesses.
Lex comes into Murray Hill at 32nd and the Opus Dei headquarters is right on the corner. The secret offshoot of the Catholic church gained recognition in the book the Da Vinci Code. I don't even think I thought this thing actually existed when I read the book and I'm kind of horrified that one of their headquarters is in New York. What a creepy thing to have to live next to . . .
The next few blocks hold a lot of business buildings mixed in with uninteresting apartment buildings and a little old hotel with a great burger joint on the ground floor. There is one interesting building, however, at 36th. There's a little house. An actual house that looks like it should be in the Village or Sutton Place and it's smack in the middle of all these skyscrapers. I have no idea what's in the house but I love the surprise of it. It's a beautiful house, too, but most of them are in this city.
The remainder of the street through Murray Hill is exactly like the beginning: boring. It's a bunch of bank buildings, corporate headquarters, etc. The only thing that really changes is that the skyscrapers start to get taller, the closer you get to midtown. It's pretty uneventful. And, there's no energy around here. There are no neighborhood joints and, seemingly, no neighbors. It's very much a work street that I wouldn't want to live on at all. It would be such a bummer to have to get into a cab every single time I got hungry.

The name is exactly as it sounds: it's the exit or off ramp street from the Queens Midtown Expressway . . . basically, it's the exit from a freeway. You can't live on this street, and it's pretty desolate around the street. I can see why; who the hell would want to live off of this thing? It's dirty, crowded and loud pretty much all day. And, the fencing around this and the approach street don't exactly do anything for the neighborhood aesthetic.
The street is a necessity because we, obviously, need more than one way out of the city. But, I definitely wouldn't live around it.

There's no a whole lot to say about the Tunnel Entrance street other than it's exactly what it sounds like. It is right off of 1st Avenue around 36th and it's the street you take to get onto the Queens Midtown Expressway which provides access to both La Guardia and JFK as well as Long Island / the beaches. It can get pretty backed up but most of the time it's not ridiculously congested. It has a park on one side of it which I refer to as the saddest park in New York. It has got to be weird to try to enjoy a picnic or a softball game right next to a freeway entrance . . . so I guess that's why a lot of people don't go to this park.
You can't live on the Tunnel Approach street and even if you could, you definitely wouldn't want to. Streets around freeways always seem to have a drug den kind of feel to them in my opinion. It's great for getting out of Manhattan but is terrible to live around.

Sniffen Court is a really lovely little court just off 36th that was built in the mid 19th century as a stand alone courtyard and then converted into stables shortly thereafter. It was converted into residences in the early 1920's and the residences are kind of like living in little condos. They're really cool and Sniffen Court used to be a big artist enclave I'm guessing because of the secluded courtyard mixed with bungalow kinds of apartments. Sniffen looks a lot like the alley or mews streets in the West Village. It's very charming and the properties are stunning inside and out. And, because it's so secluded, there's very little in the way of noise or traffic. Most people don't even know it exists. The homes are are pretty spectacular on the inside and have roof decks, old accents, etc. Needless to say, the days of the artist enclave are over as buying property on Sniffen Court will set you back a few million dollars. There's a little theatre in here, as well, that has been around for about 150 years which I think is really cool. It's a very old timey little alley street. And, I don't think anyone would complain about living here.

Park Avenue South turns into Park Avenue proper at 32nd street and there is definitely a distinct turn in architecture on this block if not necessarily as swift a turn in energy. There are some great art deco buildings at 32nd street from the 1920's. Ayn Rand worked in the one on the corner at 33rd before The Fountainhead came out. There's also a great wine and cheese place on this block called Artisanal. I kind of like this block despite it being commercial. It's a older version of New York to me and surprisingly quaint for a commercial kind of street.
The next block up is really beautiful. It holds the Vanderbilt apartment building which used to be the Vanderbilt Hotel -- one of the nicest hotels in New York. It's a stunning castle looking kind of building with a fancy steakhouse underneath. There's a skyscraper technical high school across the street with sculptures at the front. It's a weird looking building but I kind of like it and there's something so New York to me (albeit bizarre) about the thought of kids going to high school in a sky scraper. It's like the Victorian era and the future are directly across the street from each other on this block.
The next couple of blocks are very residential but more in the apartment vein wherein they used to hold homes. There are some beautiful and I'm sure very expensive apartment buildings at 34th and a gorgeous smaller apartment building at 35th that used to be a one family mansion. It's massive and decadent and you can tell it used to be a home for a very very wealthy family. I love that building.
Once you get past 36th there's an even mix of old smaller apartment buildings and massive modern high rises that continues on you start getting into Upper East Side territory. It's a cool looking street but I think it's a little too commercial and there's a little too much traffic for me to want to live here. There are some little restaurants but the noise on the street doesn't come for local energy, it comes more from people going to and from work.

Park Avenue is, generally, known as the fancy street in Manhattan, but Park Avenue south is more like the step child of fancy. It's very commercial in a business - oriented kind of way rather than a ritzy store and doorman apartment building kind of way. The Murray Hill part of Park Avenue South starts around 28th though the distinction between where Kip's Bay ends and Murray Hill begins is a little muddy. They're pretty similar aesthetically and energetically.
At 28th, there are a couple of moderately expensive, nothing-special kinds of apartment buildings and commercial towers. There's nothing that stands out amongst the architecture and the street has a very work oriented energy. One of Anthony Bourdain's restaurants is right here and it's almost overlooked because the block just has a suit sort of feel. The next block up has even more of a commercial feel with a little hotel, commercial high rises and a slew of little take out hole in the wall joints (basically, fast-food).
There are a couple of little shops and a health food store mixed in with the big buildings at 30th but it's not a block I ever stop on for anything. The street only starts to have a sort of Park Avenue personality just as it's ending at 32nd. There are a couple of cool commercial buildings with interesting details like an old street clock and bizarre sculptures. It's a very Manhattan looking street in the way you would imagine a city street to look but there's no neighborhood to it at all. And, there are a couple of restaurants and bars but not enough to do to entice me or anyone I know to live here. It's a business street by my measure.

Interstate 495 which is often called the Long Island Expressway is a freeway that starts in the neighborhood right at the Queens-MIdtown Tunnel. It passes under the East River into Queens. It's a freeway so you definitely can't live on it, but it provides access to Queens / Long Island so it's a pretty well known freeway for Manhattanites. Long Island is where a lot of wealthy people live and many work in the city. It's also one of the easiest freeways to get to both La Guardia and JFK as well as the Hamptons which is undoubtedly the most popular summer vacation spot for New Yorkers. There's always a ton of traffic on this freeway but it's particularly grueling in the summer as people use it to get in and out of the city to hit the beaches. So, I never use it at normal hours if I'm trying to go to the beach. There's not a whole lot to say about it because it's a freeway but I guess it's a good thing it exists.

Like FDR as it runs through any neighborhood on the east side, it's more of a highway than a street. The Drive part of FDR Drive is pretty literal. It's a very quick way to get from lower to upper Manhattan; or, at least, it's very quick compared to any of the avenues. But, it's not a street you live on. There aren't any apartments on FDR in Murray Hill. It would be like having an apartment on a Freeway.
And, the apartments that are just off of FDR aren't ideal, in my opinion. They have a great view of the East River but it's very loud and kind of scary because traffic just flies by. It's not particularly safe to even walk next to FDR in most parts. But, if you need to get from Murray Hill to the Upper East Side, Queens, etc, this is the best way.

East 41st starts off with something few streets in Murray Hill have: a park. Granted, it's a really small park, but there is so little green in this area that I'm sure the people who live here take what they can get. It's also not ideal that the park is across the street from a soon to be demolished Con Ed building, but again, I guess beggars can't be choosers.
The entire block at 2nd is taken up by Tudor City which I am equal parts in love with and completely creeped out by. Tudor City is a big apartment complex that is designed in the Ye Olde English aesthetic. Everything looks like it jumped out of a Hans Christian Anderson story which is interesting but also so bizarre in the midst of all of the tunnel traffic and massive skyscrapers in the area. I mean, there's a castle replica in Tudor City! It's the weirdest thing ever. And, people actually live here.
The next couple of blocks house a bunch of shapeless apartment buildings and commercial spaces. There's nothing really exciting happening around here except for maybe Leona Helmsley's hotel at 2nd Ave. And, around Lex, the only interesting thing happening is the smorgasbord of architecture. There are some really interesting art deco buildings on the block mixed in with things like an oblong, black glass tower. I just wish the actual businesses in the buildings had to go along with the theme of the building . . but, I guess I'll have to wait until I'm mayor to enforce that.
There's not much else to the street aside from architecture firms, a few hotels and a couple of corporate restaurants with little cache. It's a pretty uneventful street that only has a professional suit kind of energy to it. It's not awful to live on it just seems like no one actually lives here.

There are a whole lot of apartments right out of the shoot on 40th street. And, little else. The street starts off on the back end of Tudor City which is this bizarre and kind of magical apartment community built in the Ye Olde England style. Everything looks like it's out of a fairy tale in Tudor City which is so bizarre in Manhattan. I kind of like it and it kind of creeps me out. Surrounding Tudor City, there are a couple of blocks of massive high rise condo buildings which I think makes the old English aesthetic stand out even more. It's kind of like the Jetsons meet the Flintstones in this area.
Around 3rd, the mix of buildings starts to get a bit more commercial, but there is one restaurant in the mix that's actually pretty local feeling and quite good. Docks Oyster Bar is one of the few restaurants in the neighborhood let alone one of the only ones that doesn't feel like a corporate pass along. It's pretty cool. There's such an interesting mix around here of old and new and commercial / residential. The block at Lex has all of these massive commercial towers and then a landmarked carriage house right smack in the middle of it. I love running into surprises like that when I'm walking through areas that I don't live in.
There aren't too many surprises as you continue west on the street, however. The street becomes very midtown and this area that is responsible for the nickname "Mad Men." Approaching Madison Avenue, the street is almost entirely filled with massive commercial towers, zero trees and a lot of advertising and architectural suits walking around. It's the kind of area that a movie would feature to show the hustle and bustle of the Manhattan white collar working block. And, it's not that exciting, in my opinion.
40th isn't a bad street to live on. . . there's just nothing to do. There's one library but who goes to libraries anymore? And, there are no parks, few restaurants, no local hangs, etc. it's very a much a street that you live on if you work in midtown, in my opinion. It's a Vanilla, high rise, no energy street.

39th starts off on the East River with an old Con Edison Plant that they're in the works to demolish and replace with high rise condos and commercial spaces. I'm not sure how I feel about this. For one, do we really need more high rise condos? Nobody that I know is looking to spend five grand a month to live in nowhere'sville Murray Hill. But, maybe I'm wrong. Also, these buildings are actually pretty cool and I doubt the new ones will be. But, it will probably stay the middle of nowhere as long as there's just a bunch of old, creepy power buildings and nothing else. It's really a toss up.
The block across 1st Avenue houses a very ritzy apartment building called the New York Tower. It's kind of a de facto banker's building which I will never understand. A woman who lost her job at a big bank jumped out of her apartment in this building in the early 2000's. And, that would be enough for me to pass on wanting to live here. Actually, no, Murray Hill would be enough for me to pass on wanting to live here. All of the blocks leading up to 3rd have really nice apartment buildings and nothing else. Plus, they're surrounded by entrance and exit tunnels to the Queens Midtown tunnel, so there's no aesthetic and nothing to do here but look at traffic. I don't understand why so many people with money would think that this is the spot to live.
At 3rd, there's an old publishing building that now does textbooks, I believe, but used to publish the likes of Edgar Allen Poe and Washington Irving. I'm sure they make a lot more money now but they definitely lost their street cred when they crossed over, in my opinion.
The block at Lex has an interesting mix of commerce, I think. There are two old hotels that have both been acquired by the W. And, an old distillery building that has now been acquired by Jim Beam. I find the very Vanilla W chain being next to the very dirt south Jim Beam really funny. But, I suppose the people working at Jim Beam all come to work with shoes on, etc so there's probably not as much of a war between them as I imagine in my mind. This block used to be the home of a city comptroller, Andrew Green. He is responsible for the New York Library and Met Museum. He was shot to death on this block on his way home. . . .not by a Jim Beam associate.
The next block is getting us into Midtown big commercial space kind of territory. There's a big pharma building, a smaller building dedicated to Jungian psychology and a massive commercial tower with all kinds of different businesses.
There's not much of a neighborhood feel around here though there are an awful lot of places to live. There's no nightlife or local hangouts in the mix. And, there's very little green. It's not a bad street and a lot of people like living here. I just think that if you can afford to live here, why wouldn't you live somewhere else?

East 38th starts off at the East River with an old Con Ed plant and an animal shelter. It's not exactly the most welcoming start to the street, but the Con Ed building is actually really cool looking and the animal shelter is no kill so I guess it's sort of uplifting if you actually think about it. This building (the Con Ed one) is going to be demolished soon to put in a luxury high rise and I think that's sort of a shame. I'm not often a huge fan of abandoned buildings but in some cases -- like this one and the Northern Dispensary -- I think they should just be left alone.
The next couple of blocks are marked by a series of residential buildings, some old and some new, and one fun little neighborhood bar. The owner of the bar lost her husband, a firefighter, to 9/11 and named the bar Bravest on 38th. It has a great energy and it is very much a neighborhood joint which I love.
Once you get up to 3rd, however, the block aesthetic shifts to a very old world, brownstone kind of street that is much more common to the Village kind of situation. It's a really beautiful block. There's a great old townhouse with a notable front garden that has been landmarked (thank god) and there's a global issues center (whatever that means) in a stable house from 1902. Dashiell Hammet and the Mount Rushmore sculptor both lived in homes on this block. It has a great history that seems to have not dissipated. And, the block at Lexington is even more lovely and timeless. The entire block is taken up by brownstones, townhouses and trees. You feel like a character in a Wharton novel walking down this street . . or at least, I do. The line of townhouses on the north side of the street dates back to the mid 19th century. And, the south side has an equally impressive line of homes that are partly still residential and part taken over by businesses. There's an architectural firm in here, an environmental group and a few other businesses mixed in with single family (rich) residents. But, I don't think the businesses take away from the charm in any way.
38th is gorgeous for enough of the street that it's not a bad street to consider living on. It's not my speed because of the lack of restaurants, etc. And, it's a bit removed from transportation. But, it's not a bad street at all for a family or someone that's a bit older.

East 37th starts off pretty depressing, but, unlike a lot of the streets in the neighborhood, it actually turns around. There are a couple of luxury high rises right on the East river that I'm sure are lovely with great views, but there's something about not having any sort of neighborhood convenience or local spots that turns me off to living on a block like this. It's just a couple of apartment buildings and then not much else. I also think that makes for a somewhat dangerous block. When there aren't people out at night on the street, it's a little bit scary.
The Queens Midtown tunnel takes up the street until 3rd Avenue which sort of adds to the nothingness of the street at the start. I also think it adds to the scare factor of having to walk home if you live in one of the buildings on the water. And, there's also an insane amount of traffic -- there's just no pedestrian traffic to speak of. Once you cross 3rd, though, a bit of neighborhood starts to take shape. There's a cool southern cooking restaurant and a little wine shop right on the corner as well as a lone standing, beautiful brownstone and a burger joint.
Across Lex, there are a series of gorgeous brrownstones mixed in with a couple of pretty apartment buildings. This block almost looks like a Village block and it's really a delightful surprise when walking from the east. And, the block at Park is even more beautiful. Almost the entire block is tree-lined and filled with brownstones and townhouses though many of the homes are no longer private residences. This is the area that the Murray Mansion used to be (the namesake of the neighborhood) and much of the original "neighbors" have remained. One of the townhouses is the home to the Union Club which is a weird sort of Republican club with alumni that include the likes of Teddy Roosevelt. The Morgan Musuem is also in one of the townhouses. This museum is a fantastic little treasure trove of original manuscripts from Dickens, Thoreau, etc and the building itself is quite the sight. This block is so beautiful, it's hard to imagine that you're this close to midtown.
There are a few little bars in the area and the architecture is great. It's not one of my ideal streets to live on but it's definitely one of the best in the neighborhood.

East 36th starts at the East River in Murray Hill and it's kind of deserted at this point. There's one luxury building with some spectacular views and nothing surrounding it. The only thing in the vicinity right now is an old Con Ed building that hasn't yet been turned to another luxury high rise. I guess it's a nice place to live if you like living in one of the very few parts of the city where there is almost nothing around you. There are, however, a lot of cars around you right here because it's where the Queens Midtown Tunnel is. Whenever I use the tunnel, I always, think, man, I would not like to live here. There's a little park right here that even seems depressing because it's in midst of all this traffic and pretty much nothing else.
The block at 3rd starts to perk up a bit with a luxury high rise on one side of the block and a really charming, beautiful apartment complex called Sniffen court on the other. It was an artist enclave for many years starting in the early 20th century. It was a series of stables before that and it's a really cool little court. It's such a shame to me that this building has no neighborhood to support it. There are no restaurants, bars, galleries. . . there's nothing around here. There are even a few little brownstones on the next block and still no neighborhood which is devastating to me. Brownstones are hard to come by . .
All in all, it's not an ideal street to live on if you like any sort of energy at all. Anytime you wanted to do something outside of your apartment, you'd have to leave your neighborhood which isn't ideal (especially in the winter).

East 35th starts its run through 35th at the East River. And, like most bits of neighborhood on the East River, it's kind of depressing around here. There's a lone luxury apartment and an old Con Ed building that's going to be a luxury apartment right on FDR. I'm sure the units of the building are lovely and the view is spectacular, but it's kind of scary around here at night because it's so quiet and sort of desolate. There's almost nothing for blocks because of the Queens Midtown Tunnel entrance and then there's a Cathedral and Park at 2nd . . .and then nothing again for over a block because of the Queens Midtown Tunnel exit. The sad thing is that this is one of the only parks even remotely close to the area and it's completely surrounded by tunnel and nothing else which makes it sort of creeptown.
And, just to add to the neighborhood aesthetic and energy, the block at Lexington offers a little women's school and then a series of abandoned buildings across the street. It's very uncommon to have any sort of abandoned building in Manhattan let alone one side of a block of them. 35th is kind of like an Urban Wasteland in some sense. I know it won't be for long, but it's not exactly a comforting street at this point. The street starts to pick up with apartment buildings around Lexington, but by then we're getting into Midtown proper, so poor old Murray Hill's 35th is sort of left in the dumps.

East 34th starts off its Murray run at a massive apartment complex This building isn't the tallest by any stretch but just to give an indication of how wide it is: there's a Guy and Gallard coffee, a manicure spot, a pet store and a restaurant all on the same apartment grounds. It's almost like its own city. Ayn Rand lived in this building at the time of her death. The building next door to it is equally as large, but peculiarly, a high school. It looks like a high school from the future with its sky scraper architecture, massive tower and statues in front. It is such a bizarre sight for a high school to anyone that didn't grow up in New York. There are a couple of little conveniences on this block like a mini market, a bakery and a cute Italian place, but the block definitely isn't the most exciting. It's not bad, it's just not the best.
The next block (at Park) has an interesting mix of old and new buildings. There's a beautiful three towered looking building right on the corner that used to be the Vanderbilt Hotel and is now a fancy residential building. It still has a very old world glamour to it right down to the fancy steakhouse with vaulted ceilings on the ground floor. There's another pretty, old apartment building across the street with an upscale deli on the ground floor (something the Vanderbilt's would never have, I imagine). There's a DOCS medical clinic next to that (this one is much faster than the Chelsea one) and a pharmacy next to that as well as a chiropractic building across the street. If you ever need a medical need tended to, this is a pretty good block to be. There are some other great conveniences on this block like a wine shop, decent to go Chinese and a little Italian spot. It's a pretty well-rounded block. It's just not that exciting.
The last block of the street's run through the neighborhood is taken up with banks and school. The CUNY Grad school building takes up the north side of the block and there's not a whole lot going on in terms of the south side. There is a Guy and Gallard outpost here but it's not my favorite. The CUNY building is gorgeous, though.
East 34th has some really beautiful buildings and some great neighborhood staples, but the feel of it is a little too midtown for my liking. There aren't locals just hanging about and that's something that I really need in my neighborhood. It's not a bad street to live on, but it's just a very city kind of street.

There's not a whole lot in the way of neighborhood energy at the start of 33rd's run through Murray Hill, but the block at 3rd is very much what I expect of a New York City block which makes it great (even if I wouldn't want to live on it). There are two delis right next to each other on the corner which is really weird but I guess it doesn't hurt business much seeing as neither have yet to close. There are also a couple of little home stores and quite a few good little restaurants considering what neighborhood this is. There's a place called Trio that has excellent little snacks, a cool French place, a sushi spot (if you're into that) and a curry joint. So, there's pretty much something for every kind of mood on this one little block. That's one of the things I love about this city. There's a school on this block as well which is in a beautiful Greek revival looking building. It makes all of my schools seem really shabby.
The block at Lex has a massive design center for all things related to interior design and an equally massive high school. This school is particularly interesting because it's more like a commercial skyscraper than what you would imagine a kid's school to be. I feel like that must be a daunting place to walk into every day. Midwesterners must gasp when they see this building and realize that thirteen year olds learn in there. It's very futuristic and surreal.
Speaking of buildings, the block at Park has some really interesting ones. There's an art deco building from the 20's on the south side of the street that Ayn Rand worked at before she wrote The Fountainhead. And, across the street there's a sort of three tower looking building from the early 20th century that used to be the Vanderbilt Hotel. It was one of the more fashionable hotels in its day - -as all things Vanderbilt were. And, though it has long since been converted into quite expensive apartments, the famous vaulted entryway remains intact. There's a really popular steak house on the ground floor called Wolfgang's which was started by the former head waiter of Peter Luger (one of the most famous steakhouses in the city).
The block after Madison begins to take on more of a midtown feel with sort of shapeless buildings with bizarre stores and little hole in the wall takeout places. But, there are some great buildings such as the one on the west corner with the massive, gorgeous arched windows. And, there is a, though, touristy, fun beer bar with an insane amount of beers just across the street. The kitsch starts to slither in around this block but the street isn't entirely midtown just yet . . which is a good thing.
I wouldn't want to live on 33rd because it's just too anonymous city for me. I need a neighborhood feel and this doesn't have it. But, it is one of the better streets in the neighborhood and it's not an unlivable street by any standard.

I consider Walker's run through Chinatown to start around Cortlandt. The architecture changes as does to commerce and before that, it's just very not Chinatown. The corner of Cortlandt and Walker holds an art space and a Chinese Baptist church. A lot of neighborhoods have this great little transitional period where they bleed into each other for a couple of blocks and I think the art space and Chinese church is a pretty good example of the bleed.
Once you cross Lafayette, however, you know you're definitely in Chinatown. There's a Chinese home store, a music center that is called Vien Dong, I believe, and an office building that has been completely feng shui'd. I think the office building thing is pretty cool but I always find that feng shui isn't necessarily aesthetically catching or practical. That's probably why my life is so chaotic, though . . no feng shui.
The street continues on with the Chinatown aesthetic and businesses right up until it runs into Canal. There's a pretty good Chinese restaurant right on this corner and a little information pagoda on the other side of the street. I've never actually been up to pagoda to ask what kind of information they give but maybe it's for tourists? I have no idea.
You can live on this street and the rent is, typically, cheaper than a lot of other downtown areas. But, I'm not a huge fan. A lot of the buildings look like old tenements and it's just not that pretty. Plus, there's not much of a neighborhood vibe here. There aren't a lot of local hangouts which I think is huge in shaping the feel of an area. It's not bad, it's just not my taste. Plus, it's always really crowded around here.