I can see why Houstonians brag about their city. Im so glad I moved here.

[Veyron]

Originally Posted by AnonForThis

Houston isn't known to specialize in anything. Ask anyone in the US or even Texas what Houston is known for cuisine wise and you'll get a deer in the headlights look.

It doesn't help that online the reviews tend to be graded tougher such as on yelp. Someone from a small town goes to their nasty cafe that serves stale food and gets rave reviews, comes to Houston to find the reviews are graded lower and makes to the assumption there aren't any good restaurants here. When the exact opposite is true.

As far as women go, a full 2/3 are overweight and 1/3 are obese in the US and I'm pretty sure those numbers are higher in Houston and Texas. This has given us a warped sense of what the human body is supposed to look like. Can't tell you how many 5'3" 200+ pound women have playfully teased me for being skinny, even though my BMI is 25, which is where overweight actually begins.

Maybe I need to spend more time here. I haven't run into too many overweight women here yet. You guys have to remember I came from Hartford Ct and Uniontown pa. The women are hideous there. Maybe my standards have been lowered idk.

[katygirl68]

Originally Posted by Veyron

Maybe I need to spend more time here. I haven't run into too many overweight women here yet. You guys have to remember I came from Hartford Ct and Uniontown pa. The women are hideous there. Maybe my standards have been lowered idk.

It really depends on where you're meeting women. When I was younger and living inside the loop, club hopping, I never saw fat women. Of course, that was in the late '80s and early '90s, so you just didn't see that many fat people like you do today. I have noticed there are more and more fat people in this town, but I think that's happening everywhere.

[Veyron]

Originally Posted by Johnhw2

Houston is so crowded already without tourist or good mass transit transportation which allows for higher density and packs more people in per sm.

Houston goes its own way, no zoning which no major city would dare consider, it has pros and cons but contributes to the highly competitive food scene and lower cost of housing.

Being a world class city means following the rules some mysterious group decided a city must have to be so. When did people get so smart that one model fits all cities?

I like my cities with their own flare. Singapore is a city that Houston reminds me of weather wise but I rarely hear someone say Im going to to Singapore to site see.

I spent a lot of years in Houston and miss it but must say Dallas has that same Texas flare and attitude with slightly nicer fall and spring weather. Texas is the common thread

when you say no zoning does that mean its not hard to open a strip club here?

[Veyron]

Originally Posted by katygirl68

It really depends on where you're meeting women. When I was younger and living inside the loop, club hopping, I never saw fat women. Of course, that was in the late '80s and early '90s, so you just didn't see that many fat people like you do today. I have noticed there are more and more fat people in this town, but I think that's happening everywhere.

I geuss.

Well Im going to have no problems talking to these beautiful houston women at all.

[theSUBlime]

Originally Posted by Weatherguy

You must have blinders on. E.g., lack of distinct neighborhoods...are you serious? Here are some very distinct, well known, outstanding neighborhoods: Heights, West University, Southhampton, Southgate, River Oaks, Montrose, Lawndale, Timbergrove Manor, Oak Forest, Garden Oaks, Meyerland, Memorial Villages, Tanglewood...the list goes on and on. Aesthetics...I realize there are no mountains or hills, but many neighborhoods are really beautiful, and overall the tropical and subtropical greenery counts for a lot. Lots of really nice looking parks, greenbelts, hike-and-bike trails, and then there's Allen Parkway, a beautiful drive. Houston is no Seattle or S.F., but there's no need to overlook the nice things.

Neighborhoods are actually pretty indistinct here. It's not to say there are not nice neighborhood, but their boundaries aren't clearly defined. And these neighborhoods that are defined make up a small part of the city. So while there are nice subdivisions here, once you leave those areas, you're just in Houston, which has even less of an image than its neighborhoods. This leads to Houston having less of an image or brand overall, which can make it overwhelming to visitors and residents alike. Someone can say their subdivision and you probably haven't heard of it -- there are "woods," "springs," and "valleys" all over the place. It just makes Houston seem more homogeneous than it actually is, externally. A lot of times people don't even know what neighborhood they're in because for much of Houston there isn't a strong community or historical connection. WHY DO YOU THINK PEOPLE ASK FOR ZIP CODE INFO WHEN SEARCHING HERE? Because it's more exact than a general neighborhood for a city that's this large, and outside of a few neighborhoods, not well defined. If you went to a city of neighborhoods like the ones you listed and asked for specs on zip codes, people might look at you crazy.

[OducksFTW!]

Originally Posted by radiolibre99

Its true I have yet to have good Indian food elsewhere. Houston is tops for Indian food.

Same with Mediterranean food. Best Arabic food ever is in Houston.

Best Mexican food I've ever had was in New Mexico.

Asian = NYC and LA, no competition

Have you been to Chicago Devon Ave.? Great Indian food, trust me, im Indian. Houston's indian/pakistani food joints can't hold a candle against the eats there.

I will say the Oil & Gas industry does open up Houston to many middle eastern people which in turn fosters a great location for Middle Eastern food. But, again there are large Arab populations in other parts of the country, (DC,Michigan) and Houston is comparable to those places.

Originally Posted by Veyron

Part of the reason I came here was because of the lack of public transportation. It means more cars on the road and more miles driven which equals more work for me as an autotechnician.
You do bring up some valid points though. What do you mean by distinct neighborhoods?

What I mean by distinct neighborhoods is the lack of character and uniqueness in the outer suburbs. And I did mention the "small nucleus" neighborhoods. But honestly, outside of Houston, and Texas are these areas really known in the country. Whereas many people have heard of the burroughs of NYC, heard of Wrigleyville and Lincoln Park, etc. I'm not saying that Houston needs to have this, but you asked about being a world class city, that is another feature.