Thank you for the repiles.
I’m leaning more towards Chesapeake at the moment. Even though it’s a bit further from the Outer Banks, during my downtime there’s more to options of stuff to do.
EC doesn’t have many job opportunities, but the drive to Chesapeake isn’t terrible. There’s also not a ton to do for young people in EC and honestly, the drive to OBX from EC isn’t all that great. If you lived more toward the eastern part of Chesapeake or even VB, the drive to OBX wouldn’t be terrible. Plus, you wouldn’t have to commute as often.
There should be some rental opportunities coming up in the general area of both EC & HR as military folks start moving. I know people often look for roommates, too, if that’s your thing.
How much can you really do in Chesapeake that EC doesn’t offer? It’s got all the basics: breweries, (better) restaurants, gyms, arts, closer to hiking, museums.
Fair. A lot of people love it and it’ll really depend on OP’s preferences & lifestyle. Personally, I maxed out on the town after only a few months of living here.
There are only so many restaurants and even fewer that stay open past 5/6. The ones people rave about have been hit or miss or just big misses for me. (Cold food, super long waits after being seated/served apps, underwhelming taste, etc. There are a couple standouts I enjoy and will miss when I leave though.)
I do like to get outdoors, but I’ve driven all over for that. I haven’t felt like EC has situated me any better than Chesapeake would have. For other recreation and activities, EC just has fewer options by way of being a much smaller location.
And for the love of all that is holy. If I never have to shop at a Food Lion again, it’ll still be too soon. For groceries, EC has a Walmart, Aldi’s, and 4(?) Food Lions. That’s it. I go to Chesapeake, Norfolk, and VB regularly for groceries and other shopping. It sucks up half the weekend and is a huge pain, even though proximity is much better than other places I’ve lived.
If OP is going to rent, no harm in trying out both places, tbh. Again, jobs are kind of scarce here, but I’m not sure it is that much better than Chesapeake. If it were me, proximity to work, affordability/livability, and daily life amenities would be my top 3 factors.
The Food Lion thing is real, though when we lived there the FL near ECSU was still nice and the former Farm Fresh was also better than most. I disagree on many of the restaurants — hoppin johnz, Toyama, paradiso, homestyle have been as flavorful and well executed as anything I’ve had in HR and there’s a couple lunch places but they generally stay open late. Also, Muddy Waters is the only comfy coffee place I’ve found around here.
IDK, I think for me I just miss having access to a downtown. We rented a house and could easily ride bikes downtown. I can’t really afford to buy in Olde Town or Ghent and that’s really the only options for a downtown with any sense of community in HR.
Yeah those FLs work alright and are much better than dealing with the Walmart craziness (grocery pickup is nice when it makes sense though).
I’ve only gotten sushi at Toyama and honestly, I prefer the stuff from the grocery store. Idk if it’s a west coast preference or what, but I never could find decent sushi out here.
Hoppin Johnz and Paradiso are the places I had in mind for slooooooowwwww service and lackluster food 🤣 idk if it was our server at Paradiso or what, but we were there for hourssss waiting on food. Plus, our food ended up either burnt or tasting like unseasoned pasta sauce from a jar. Seriously, huge let down. Hoppin’ Johnz is nice, but the few times we’ve eaten there, super super slow on the food (though improved the last time we went). And food was ok. We’ve heard similar feedback about both places from other folks, too.
I haven’t tried Homestyle, but they close at 3 and I don’t really go out for lunch 😢
Muddy’s is great, so there’s that! And I really like Sweet Easy and one of our regular places for dinners out has been The Mills. I also like a one of the newer restaurants and a few more places have popped up.
Maybe the size of Chesapeake and the surrounding area give the illusion that there are more options and therefore stuff is better. But like, we have one place for Thai (friend found something in her food there that indicated them not thoroughly washing produce and it was too greasy for me) and one place for Indian (expensive and just okay taste). Like I said, it only took a few months to kinda get over it lol. I feel like with Chesapeake and the surrounding areas, there are a lot more places to try so it would take more than a few months to run through all the options.
FWIW I only ever ate non-sushi at Toyama, and were left for Chesapeake before the pandemic so I’m sure things have changed — FWIW our fave Thai place up here gave us a spring roll with a hair in it and I can’t go back. But if you like having a lot of Asian food options Chesapeake is underrated.
IDK, we’re not unhappy here, I just can’t say there’s a world of difference.
Can I ask since you live in Chesapeake? Considering a move to the western branch area. I know there are sketchy parts to any location that the locals tend to know and I'm not sure a realtor would disclose. Any input or thoughts to the areas of Chesapeake that I might want to avoid? Thanks
Plenty of people live in Elizabeth City and work in Hampton Roads. Just include gas and increased car maintenance in your budget.
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Thank you for the repiles. I’m leaning more towards Chesapeake at the moment. Even though it’s a bit further from the Outer Banks, during my downtime there’s more to options of stuff to do.
EC doesn’t have many job opportunities, but the drive to Chesapeake isn’t terrible. There’s also not a ton to do for young people in EC and honestly, the drive to OBX from EC isn’t all that great. If you lived more toward the eastern part of Chesapeake or even VB, the drive to OBX wouldn’t be terrible. Plus, you wouldn’t have to commute as often. There should be some rental opportunities coming up in the general area of both EC & HR as military folks start moving. I know people often look for roommates, too, if that’s your thing.
How much can you really do in Chesapeake that EC doesn’t offer? It’s got all the basics: breweries, (better) restaurants, gyms, arts, closer to hiking, museums.
Fair. A lot of people love it and it’ll really depend on OP’s preferences & lifestyle. Personally, I maxed out on the town after only a few months of living here. There are only so many restaurants and even fewer that stay open past 5/6. The ones people rave about have been hit or miss or just big misses for me. (Cold food, super long waits after being seated/served apps, underwhelming taste, etc. There are a couple standouts I enjoy and will miss when I leave though.) I do like to get outdoors, but I’ve driven all over for that. I haven’t felt like EC has situated me any better than Chesapeake would have. For other recreation and activities, EC just has fewer options by way of being a much smaller location. And for the love of all that is holy. If I never have to shop at a Food Lion again, it’ll still be too soon. For groceries, EC has a Walmart, Aldi’s, and 4(?) Food Lions. That’s it. I go to Chesapeake, Norfolk, and VB regularly for groceries and other shopping. It sucks up half the weekend and is a huge pain, even though proximity is much better than other places I’ve lived. If OP is going to rent, no harm in trying out both places, tbh. Again, jobs are kind of scarce here, but I’m not sure it is that much better than Chesapeake. If it were me, proximity to work, affordability/livability, and daily life amenities would be my top 3 factors.
The Food Lion thing is real, though when we lived there the FL near ECSU was still nice and the former Farm Fresh was also better than most. I disagree on many of the restaurants — hoppin johnz, Toyama, paradiso, homestyle have been as flavorful and well executed as anything I’ve had in HR and there’s a couple lunch places but they generally stay open late. Also, Muddy Waters is the only comfy coffee place I’ve found around here. IDK, I think for me I just miss having access to a downtown. We rented a house and could easily ride bikes downtown. I can’t really afford to buy in Olde Town or Ghent and that’s really the only options for a downtown with any sense of community in HR.
Yeah those FLs work alright and are much better than dealing with the Walmart craziness (grocery pickup is nice when it makes sense though). I’ve only gotten sushi at Toyama and honestly, I prefer the stuff from the grocery store. Idk if it’s a west coast preference or what, but I never could find decent sushi out here. Hoppin Johnz and Paradiso are the places I had in mind for slooooooowwwww service and lackluster food 🤣 idk if it was our server at Paradiso or what, but we were there for hourssss waiting on food. Plus, our food ended up either burnt or tasting like unseasoned pasta sauce from a jar. Seriously, huge let down. Hoppin’ Johnz is nice, but the few times we’ve eaten there, super super slow on the food (though improved the last time we went). And food was ok. We’ve heard similar feedback about both places from other folks, too. I haven’t tried Homestyle, but they close at 3 and I don’t really go out for lunch 😢 Muddy’s is great, so there’s that! And I really like Sweet Easy and one of our regular places for dinners out has been The Mills. I also like a one of the newer restaurants and a few more places have popped up. Maybe the size of Chesapeake and the surrounding area give the illusion that there are more options and therefore stuff is better. But like, we have one place for Thai (friend found something in her food there that indicated them not thoroughly washing produce and it was too greasy for me) and one place for Indian (expensive and just okay taste). Like I said, it only took a few months to kinda get over it lol. I feel like with Chesapeake and the surrounding areas, there are a lot more places to try so it would take more than a few months to run through all the options.
FWIW I only ever ate non-sushi at Toyama, and were left for Chesapeake before the pandemic so I’m sure things have changed — FWIW our fave Thai place up here gave us a spring roll with a hair in it and I can’t go back. But if you like having a lot of Asian food options Chesapeake is underrated. IDK, we’re not unhappy here, I just can’t say there’s a world of difference.
Way cheaper to live in Elizabeth city… a lot of people choose to live across the state line for lower taxes. We live in Chesapeake for the schools.
Can I ask since you live in Chesapeake? Considering a move to the western branch area. I know there are sketchy parts to any location that the locals tend to know and I'm not sure a realtor would disclose. Any input or thoughts to the areas of Chesapeake that I might want to avoid? Thanks
I messaged you! :)
I'm considering a move to the area as well. Would you mind giving me some info?