Tamer than it used to be but still a funky place with a young population and a rockin' nightlife.
The East Village has an average violent crime rate and a below average property crime rate for New York City.
Once a bohemian, funky neighborhood of artists and hippies, the East Village has followed the general upward trend of lower Manhattan and now features luxury condos and upscale eateries. Still, it retains a grungy, indy vibe compared to many other Manhattan areas and is an incredibly vibrant neighborhood.
If you're looking for something peaceful and quiet, this is probably not the neighborhood for you. But if you like having a ton of stuff to do within a few minutes from home, then it could be just right. The East Village has hundreds of restaurants and bars, a number of theaters (cinema, stage, and live music), unique stores, and tattoo parlors. And it got its own brewery in 2012 to satiate the thirst of its hipster residents.
Housing mostly consists of old walkup brownstone and townhome apartments on the smaller side (and by smaller, we mean say goodbye to that queen bed unless you've got some serious cash), although new development is bringing more lux homes to the area.
The East Village is bordered on the north by Gramercy Park and Stuyvesant Town, on the east by the East River, on the south by the Bowery and Lower East Side, and on the west by NoHo.
Commute:
Wall Street: 3 miles / 10-20 minutes by car / 20-30 minutes by transit
Rockefeller Center: 3 miles / 15-35 minutes by car / 25-30 minutes by transit
Jersey City: 8 miles / 25-50 minutes by car / 40-45 minutes by transit
East Village LOCAL schools
East Village Local Flavor 
Established in 1854, McSorley's is the oldest continuously operated bar in New York City. Abe Lincoln and John Lennon both drank here. They keep it old school with two types of beer: light and dark.
Ippudo NY is a ramen noodle restaurant with a cult following. A bowl of their ramen will only set you back $15.
The pizza here has earned mentions in The New York Times, The New York Post, and numerous other food blogs, websites and publications. Fans say the hype is worth it.
Come get flexible any day of the week at the only donation-based yoga studio around.
Since 1973 this has been a go-to spot for literature, music, theater, performance art, poetry slam, Hip-Hop, and more.
Late night staple for late night food cravings. Bonus: there's a speakeasy in the back you enter through a phone booth.
Photo Credits: Thanks to Leonard J. DeFrancisci, @heydavina, @mark_maker, @donnaleefowler, @stillcavort, @jigsays, @hanbanana124, @petraccas, @jordimarce, @agathearoundtheworld, @jonaspcv, @hollandpintarch, and @mka0391 for your great photos of this neighborhood!
