Moving to Fairfax from Philly : ( (Arlington, Alexandria: to rent, townhouse, university)

[ninjarecruiter]

For all of the right reasons I am leaving Philly and moving to Northern Virginia. However, I've been back and forth and so far Fairfax reminds me of New Jersey in so many ways. Philadelphians know what I am talking about. Anyway, from what I've read and observed so far there are over 1M people in the Fairfax area made of mostly Indian, Caucasians, Asian, Mexican and an African-American or two.

I love Philly, the good and some of the bad. And leaving Philly is going to be painful. There is so much here that I will miss from the culture, GREAT RESTAURANTS AND CUISINES, parades and festivals, a soulful hip connection, music, diversity, one license plate, shorter traffic lights, Rittenhouse Park, the shops on Walnut Street and King of Prussia, WAWA coffee, crazy and passionate sports fans, chicken cheese steaks (Glenside Pizza), my church, my friends and family.......

What I won't miss is the crime/murder rate, pot/a**holes, the invasion of personal space, the rude children, the high mobile taxes, the littered streets, drugs, homelessness, the Eagles without McNabb. I can go one but I think people get the point.

As for the food in Fairfax or NOVA (not to be confused with Villanova), so far Costa Flats is has become one of my favorite restaurants. Like Wegman's the service and the food is very good.

What I am looking is a place where the foodies go. An area with some culture, style and pizazz to hang out on the weekends. What about Restaurant Week? Cool happy hours? Cool cuisines like African, Malaysian, Thai, Jamaican? Comedy Spots?

Hope I am not asking for too much but I am curious.

Thanks in advance for any input.

[Doppelganger69]

You are not asking for too much. You are asking to live in DC, not NoVA.

You forgot to list what I think is Philly's coolest attribute: a wide variety of different public transport vehicles, some seen nowhere else.

[OrangeFish]

You are asking for Clarendon (Arlington). To a lesser extent Virginia Square/Ballston. My Philadelphia-roots friends love living in Arlington.

[FindingZen]

Hello.

Northern Virginia is essentially the United Nations. In terms of people if not always food, we're all over the map.

What suburban areas did you like in Philadelphia? You may be asking for Center City/University City/South Philly-style amenities while living in the equivalent of King of Prussia, Yardley or West Chester.

Assuming you've already found a place, Clarendon is as good as it gets in NOVA to spend your leisure time, especially if you're under 30. Old Town Alexandria may work otherwise. But ultimately if you want urban-style options, you'll be heading in DC. Outside of Arlington and Alexandria, NOVA is mostly sprawl. There are some pleasant walkable towns and some hidden culinary treasures here and there...but it's not the city.

[CAVA1990]

Originally Posted by ninjarecruiter

Anyway, from what I've read and observed so far there are over 1M people in the Fairfax area made of mostly Indian, Caucasians, Asian, Mexican and an African-American or two.

I've run across no Mexicans around here, which explains the dearth of truly Mexican restaurants. Rule of thumb: if you see pupusas on the menu, it ain't real Mexican.

[CAVA1990]

At the risk of guffaws, here's a place you can get a great Philly-style sandwich:

http://www.taylorgourmet.com/

Was as good as anything I ever got at Reading Terminal Market. They have two locations. The one shown here is on K Street but they also have one on H Street a few blocks from the back of Union Station.

[ninjarecruiter]

Great responses, thank you guys!

@ Doppel....You're right. But I don't miss greedy Septa. I can never mentally justify their cries for fair hikes for the same crappy service.
@ OrangeFish....A co-worker also mentioned Arlington. We'll have to take a visit over there.
@ Tone....Sorry, I should have mentioned that I'm coming from West Mt. Airy/Chestnut Hill area. I'm working in the Dulles area and have a pretty decent commute from Fairfax. Anything more that 30 minutes will feel like driving in 76 and you guys know what that's like, right? Just found out today that someone else grabbed a townhouse that I was interested. So, I'm still looking for something to rent. Anyway, thanks for the cool suggestions. I will certainly look into them all.
@ CAVA1990...thanks for the recommendation of Taylorgourmet. Love the website and will have to check it out. Wait a minute, you've come across no Mexicans in the area? Really?

[Stephen 81]

Originally Posted by ninjarecruiter

@ CAVA1990...thanks for the recommendation of Taylorgourmet. Love the website and will have to check it out. Wait a minute, you've come across no Mexicans in the area? Really?

I can vouch for Taylor Gourmet, although I'm not a Philadelphian. They even ship their bread daily from some well known bakery in Philly. Hoagies are probably more expensive there than in SE PA, though.

And no, there aren't many Mexicans here. NoVA has a lot of Salvadorans (2nd largest community after SoCal), Peruvians and Bolivians (largest community in the country), but not many Mexicans. It's a great area if you like pupusas, pollo a la brasa or saltenas...and if you haven't had those, you need to try them once you're here!

[FindingZen]

Originally Posted by ninjarecruiter

@ Tone....Sorry, I should have mentioned that I'm coming from West Mt. Airy/Chestnut Hill area. I'm working in the Dulles area and have a pretty decent commute from Fairfax. Anything more that 30 minutes will feel like driving in 76 and you guys know what that's like, right? Just found out today that someone else grabbed a townhouse that I was interested. So, I'm still looking for something to rent. Anyway, thanks for the cool suggestions. I will certainly look into them all.

Ha. Rush hour on I-76 is business as usual on I-66 or this area's section of I-95. Fortunately, it looks like you can avoid that for now. But you will have to compromise and prioritize your wants in this area. Everything comes at a cost, directly or indirectly. Many people here dream about a half-hour commute. If you can get by with Fairfax City - or maybe Reston Town Center - until the weekend hits, you'll be okay.

Eventually you might want to look into Falls Church; it's the rough equivalent to Media. It will also put you next door to Arlington. The "catch" is that your commute will be longer and possibly more expensive if you take the Dulles Greenway.

Good luck...and welcome!

[FindingZen]

Originally Posted by ninjarecruiter

@ CAVA1990...thanks for the recommendation of Taylorgourmet. Love the website and will have to check it out. Wait a minute, you've come across no Mexicans in the area? Really?

It's very possible that you're actually come across Central Americans. There are certainly a number of Salvadorean restaurants, for example.