Rank The Downtowns (Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood: house, university, living)

[SoUninformed]

Would love to see a ranking of downtowns in the FLL area in terms of available restaurants and overall safety (one ranking considering those two things). What are your thoughts?

[BNBR]

Is there more than one?

[SoUninformed]

Is there more than one?

Good question from me! I guess I'm thinking of downtowns with respect to collections of local restaurants (for example, restaurants on Las Olas vs a strip mall in Plantation).

[blueherons]

Originally Posted by SoUninformed

Good question from me! I guess I'm thinking of downtowns with respect to collections of local restaurants (for example, restaurants on Las Olas vs a strip mall in Plantation).

You are comparing apples to oranges.

Plantation is a suburb.

Fort Lauderdale has a downtown.

Miami has a downtown.

West Palm Beach has a downtown.

There is no comparison between Las Olas and a strip mall in Plantation.

[BNBR]

Originally Posted by blueherons

You are comparing apples to oranges.

Plantation is a suburb.

Fort Lauderdale has a downtown.

Miami has a downtown.

West Palm Beach has a downtown.

There is no comparison between Las Olas and a strip mall in Plantation.

I guess, based on the OPs definition... The Fountains, Pembroke Gardens, Sawgrass, University Coral Springs, etc.

It's still apples and oranges and all are great

For what it's worth, I don't feel there is a great cluster of restaurants anywhere in Broward. There are a couple good spots on Las Olas, but when I think of "THE" places, it's totally scattered all over the county.

[blueherons]

Originally Posted by BNBR

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For what it's worth, I don't feel there is a great cluster of restaurants anywhere in Broward. There are a couple good spots on Las Olas, but when I think of "THE" places, it's totally scattered all over the county.

I think Himmarshee Village probably has the best concentration of good restaurants: OB House, Taco Craft, Rok Brgr, Himmarshee Public House, Tarpon Bend, Sushi Song, and I know I'm leaving something out.

Plus the vibe sitting on the street is just so amazing.

[BNBR]

Originally Posted by blueherons

I think Himmarshee Village probably has the best concentration of good restaurants: OB House, Taco Craft, Rok Brgr, Himmarshee Public House, Tarpon Bend, Sushi Song, and I know I'm leaving something out.

Plus the vibe sitting on the street is just so amazing.

None of those are "THE" spots... maybe OB House But they are just good/decent restaurants. Most areas have something similar. Pembroke Gardens has a ton of great restaurants, as does Coral Springs, Weston Rd/Town Center, etc. We are not lacking in great food in Broward.

[Nolefan34]

I don't think the OP's question was unreasonable. He said the "FLL area". The area has several other significant downtowns besides just FLL. We have downtown Hollywood, Hollywood Boardwalk, Hollywood Hardrock area, Wilton Manors, Plantation/Fountains, Mizner Park (Boca), Fort Lauderdale Beach, Lauderdale By The Seas, Hillsboro Mile/Deerfield Pier, Pompano/Atlantic, Sunrise City Center, and other pockets. Each of these areas have small, but growing downtowns with concentrations of restaurants and nightlife.

Las Olas would be ground zero currently in terms of most restaurants. Followed by downtown Hollywood, Himmarshee, and Mizner Park. The rest would lag behind. This is just my opinion. Others may differ. Downtown Delray Beach would actually be #1 for me, but I do not consider it within the "FLL area".

[Mr. Lee]

As others have written, apples to oranges, it all depends on what a person seeks. IMHO shopping out west is much better than shopping on the east side. Also there are great restaurants all over Broward country, so for me even a 20 minute drive does not mean much if I like a particular place to eat. We now live east, used to live west, so lots of our friends are still west, thus we often eat out on both sides of town. I find some of the restaurants out west to be less expensive or give more for the buck than the ones on the east side, probably at least partially due to higher rents and maybe cost of labor on the east side.

I happen to like living on both sides of town but had found out west to be quieter at night.

[Clark Park]

I like downtown Hollywood which has a lot of different kinds of restaurants and lively drinking establishments, nicely landscaped, parking not too difficult, and some interesting galleries and shops.