VickiS

I have lived in Riverdale for over 14 years, moving here in 2000 with my middle school aged children. For those with families who work 34th street and above in Manhattan, it is a dream commute of 25 minutes on Metro North to Grand Central. You get the best of both worlds here. You can be walking in the woods in 5 minutes or can be on the Upper West Side in 15 minutes. While you don't have the same restaurant choice as Manhattan, there are still plenty of good restaurants in the area to choose from and many you can walk to. For those lucky enough to have a Hudson River view (I do), it is like living on a lake and yet you are so close to Manhattan. A short 20 minute drive north gets you to the Cross County Mall or the newer Ridge Hill Mall. Fresh Direct delivers to Riverdale, but there are also lots of stores for food shopping (Garden Gourmet Market, Stu Leonard). Van Cortlandt Park is nearby and there are many hiking trails there. The New York Philharmonic does an annual summer concert there, with fireworks, and it's a much more enjoyable experience than Central Park's crowds. House/co-op/condo prices are far cheaper than Manhattan and Brooklyn. I am amazed that so few people seem to know about this hidden gem.