Austin vs Dallas (Round Rock, Manor, Maud: restaurants, moving, food)

[TanikaW]

I live in Austin, but due to work have to spend alot of time in Dallas. The biggest difference in the two is the WEATHER....I rarely find a nice day in Dallas. If it starts off nice, it does not stay that way for long....

But other than that...it just depends if you want that Big City or Small Town feel....

[BJB817]

Thanks for the responses so far everyone!

Well, Longhorns, Cowboys, whoever, I'll still pull for the hapless guys in purple no matter where I live. If I end up in a neighborhood that allows it, a Vikes helmet mailbox would look really good at the end of my driveway.

As for hockey, I don't know what went wrong with me, must've fell on the ice one too many times as a kid. Supposedly games in person are fun, but I just can't watch it on TV, I've tried. It still blows my mind that the NORTH Stars ever left. This is about as dyed-in-the-wool hockey state as you'll find. Good ol Norm GREED.

Anyway, back to the matter at hand, the more my wife and I keep thinking about it, Austin is more appealing than Dallas. THe feedback I've gotten here so far seems to back that up too. Even though it may be a little harder to find a job in the Austin area, it seems like overall the positives far outweigh the negatives. That more laid back, smaller town feel where you can actually get to know your neighbors without the "keeping up with the Jones" attitude is definately what we're looking for. Sounds like while it's doable, it's harder to find that in Dallas.

Brad

[patriot]

dallas is great move there....jobs here suck ....better shopping in dallas....air quality is much better....lots more affordable housing

[southaustingal]

Originally Posted by BJB817

That more laid back, smaller town feel where you can actually get to know your neighbors without the "keeping up with the Jones" attitude is definately what we're looking for.

Be very careful then about where you live in Austin. There are neighborhoods that have seen a huge increase in recent immigrants from more pretentious parts of the country, and they have definitely brought their values with them. Picture limos for school kids' birthday parties (not just high school--middle and elementary school, too) and gossip about who has what furniture from what store in their home, who hired which decorator, and who took a Norwegian cruise versus a <gasp> Carnival cruise out of <horrors!> Galveston. Yep, I've lived it right here in good ol' South Austin, but I'm hoping my recent move has left people like that behind.

I'd suggest talking to neighbors first before buying. Or at least wave and see if they wave back.

[patriot]

yeah the yuppie crowd is taking over....but nieman marcus is coming too town /shrug....yuck!

[BJB817]

Southaustingal- just curious, what type of neighborhood do you live in now and where are you moving to? I'm guessing that the types of neighborhoods my wife and I are looking at (150-200k) wouldn't have quite that pretentiousness, but I guess anything's possible. I'm sure there's plenty of people from pretentious parts of the country moving to those types of neighborhoods too, but I assumed (possibly naively) that the folks in that income bracket are trying to flee that type of materialism and not bring it with them.

From what I've gathered so far, some people like living in a very large city and for them Dallas is a better fit. I guess I'm not sure that appeals to me as much. The more I think about it, other than jobs, the Austin area offers us more of what we're looking for: outdoor recreation, better winter weather, laid back and plenty of house for the money. I won't say friendliness since it seems as though that depends on the luck of the neighborhood you end up in though!

BRad

[southaustingal]

We just moved to Belterra in Dripping Springs. So far it's been great because of the people we've met here. There are three native South Austin families living on our street, as well as several Eastern European families and retired folks from the Houston area. We've got some Californians, too, but most seem to buy the McMansions, which this ol' gal can't afford.

I moved from the Circle C area (no offense to the C'ers). If you want to keep your home values high, move to Circle C. You won't go wrong on the real estate front. But the area just wasn't right for our family. We're much more relaxed out here in Drippin'. I haven't seen the level of competition for material things (including plastic surgery) and the number of helicopter parents is much smaller. It's refreshing to see kids' school projects actually be done by the kids and not the parents!

Like I said, just take time to look around and get a good feel for a place.

[Trainwreck20]

Southaustingal - I live just north of Circle C, and the increase in pretentiousness as you cross south over Slaughter lane is pretty amazing. I fear it might migrate north towards my neighborhood some day, and that is a truly scary thought.

[southaustingal]

It seems to me, though I can't say this with any authority cause I don't live there, but the Escarpment Village has made the area north of Slaughter on Escarpment very appealing to newcomers, not that all newcomers are pretentious. I've noticed many more people with the baby joggers and such on Escarpment walking in that Legend Oaks area. When that shopping center went in, I thought it was so cool that Legend Oaks would have grocery shopping within walking (albeit some slightly pricier shopping--have you seen the prices of Miller Lite over there? ). I hope that area remains intact and doesn't succumb to the materialistic crowd.

[Trainwreck20]

The new HEB is about a 300 yards as the crow flies from my house, I think, although a little longer by road, and I have to say it is a god-send. I can't stomach Randalls (that is another story), so I had been shopping at the HEB off Brodie, which was (is?) beyond capacity.

Anyway, although the new store is a bit 'posh' for an HEB, it still is an HEB, so I think that at least cancels out any added snootiness. The Mangeris pizza has been great, the food has been great and the staff has been very laid back as opposed to formal. You order at the counter and sit and wait for the food, generally delivered by a local high school kid. Waterloo just opened, so I haven't made it by yet. The ice cream place is locally owned and I hope it makes it. The liquor store is waaaay too expensive, it must be targeting Circle C . And Starbucks....oh, well, I guess you can't avoid em. Personally, HEB has better coffee for half the price and much less wait.

Oh, my wife will probably be joining the legions with jogger strollers soon (we have a 3 week old), but don't look for designer outfits .