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One thing unaccounted for in the comparison is the type of housing that each respective city affords. Housing costs may be similar (Houston is still less compar

One thing unaccounted for in the comparison is the type of housing that each respective city affords. Housing costs may be similar (Houston is still less compared to NYC in the article), but Houstonians are certainly getting much more space, both inside and out of their home, than NYC residents. This matters when it comes to things like larger families. Spending time on the road is definitely a huge pain in Houston, but in the end where you live doesn't just come down to a numerical comparison. You pick your priorities.

rjkennedy98 7y ago
> getting much more space, both inside and out of their home I recently visited Dallas (which I assume is similar to Houston) and I asked my airport Uber driver what there is to do in Dallas and he couldn't name a single thing. I ended up spending my small time there at a Texas Roadhouse (on recommendation) which is some horrible corporate restaurant chain getting served luke-warm mushy green beans that were mostly inedible. Say what you will about space, I don't know how anyone could live in a place as culturally dead as Dallas.
- aianus 7y ago
  You can't understand why someone would prioritize basic life necessities over culture?
- nilkn 7y ago
  I'm pretty sure you can find chain restaurants anywhere, including right on Times Square. Just because someone recommended it to you doesn't mean you suddenly lost all agency. If you know that you dislike chain restaurants, why would you make one the primary place you visited in the city?
  - Merrill 7y ago
    No Texas Roadhouse on Times Square, but there are 8 in the surrounding counties, e.g. at New Rochelle, Deer Park, and East Meadows, NY. It was founded in Indiana and is now headquartered in Louisville. There are a few hundred locations, and Texas Roadhouse bears the same relationship to Texas as Outback Steakhouse bears to Australia.
- criddell 7y ago
  You visit a city apparently without doing any planning or research, you rely on an Uber driver for recommendations, then declare the city culturally dead when you end up at (what is essentially) Applebee's? I currently live in the suburbs of Austin and I hope that one day I have a self driving car so that I can live further out of the city and have more space because I want a big workshop. I'll gladly trade easy access to restaurants and museums for access to tools and quiet.
  - rjkennedy98 7y ago
    It was a last minute thing. My girlfriend wanted me to swing by to attend her friend's wedding.
    - CydeWeys 7y ago
      For your future last-minute trips, it only takes a few minutes to pull up TripAdvisor for the city you just arrived in and look up the top things to do. I tend not to plan most of my trips until the last minute, but at least this way I'm seeing the highlights.
  - imtringued 7y ago
    How does a self driving car help you live further out? You're still limited by speed limits, traffic lights and so on.
    - o-__-o 7y ago
      The monotonous drive between Texas cities
    - criddell 7y ago
      If I'm not driving I don't care if my commute is 10 minutes or an hour.
- geogra4 7y ago
  That's really not fair to Dallas (I have family there) - Deep Ellum, Bryan Place, Uptown, etc. aren't exactly Manhattan but Dallasites make due. Long term I'm more concerned about climate change making texas uninhabitable though.
- o-__-o 7y ago
  You are basing your entire review of a city off of a single Uber driver? Bad times lie ahead... Dallas has the best bbq, it’s a little podunk restaurant near the Cisco office. Dallas has an entire jazz nightlife scene in their hipster district. Dallas has tons of American history with one of our favorite presidents being assassinated in that very city where his Vice President was from... Something tells me you were not trying very hard to fit in with the Dallas culture (as weird as it is)
- kodablah 7y ago
  It is similar to Houston, and there is very little culture. You still shouldn't base your opinions on some restaurant chain and a cabbie.
- hylaride 7y ago
  I felt the same way on a road trip that took me through Dallas and Houston several years ago. Even though I knew they were sprawly and car oriented, I was a bit surprised about the vibe as the cities are old enough to in theory have nice old traditional down-towns. There were some neat spots, but what's seared in my memory are multi-level parking garages and ground-level retail few and far between. Reading up on it after, apparently the cities built under/overground tunnels between many of the buildings to keep people out of the heat, especially at the height of summer. This sucked life out of the streets. > Say what you will about space, I don't know how anyone could live in a place as culturally dead as Dallas. Culturally dead is the wrong word, I think. You don't have millions of people in one place and no culture. The streets lacked vibrancy from what I could gather from two days in each city, making it hard to find it (which is a major problem). I live in the central area of a major city (Toronto) and I love the fact that I don't own a car and can rent one when I need it. I have shopping/groceries/bars/work/parks/museums all within a 10-15 minute walk from home so I get where you're coming from. When I visited Edmonton, Alberta about a decade ago, my first impressions were very similar until my cousins took me out to all the things they do and I had a good time (still wouldn't want to live there).
- jeegsy 7y ago
  I think you might just have highlighted why a taxi driver and an Uber driver are not the same thing. For all you know, the Uber driver might have arrived in Dallas just a week before you.

rjkennedy98 7y ago

> getting much more space, both inside and out of their home I recently visited Dallas (which I assume is similar to Houston) and I asked my airport Uber driver what there is to do in Dallas and he couldn't name a single thing. I ended up spending my small time there at a Texas Roadhouse (on recommendation) which is some horrible corporate restaurant chain getting served luke-warm mushy green beans that were mostly inedible. Say what you will about space, I don't know how anyone could live in a place as culturally dead as Dallas.

aianus 7y ago
You can't understand why someone would prioritize basic life necessities over culture?
nilkn 7y ago
I'm pretty sure you can find chain restaurants anywhere, including right on Times Square. Just because someone recommended it to you doesn't mean you suddenly lost all agency. If you know that you dislike chain restaurants, why would you make one the primary place you visited in the city?
- Merrill 7y ago
  No Texas Roadhouse on Times Square, but there are 8 in the surrounding counties, e.g. at New Rochelle, Deer Park, and East Meadows, NY. It was founded in Indiana and is now headquartered in Louisville. There are a few hundred locations, and Texas Roadhouse bears the same relationship to Texas as Outback Steakhouse bears to Australia.
criddell 7y ago
You visit a city apparently without doing any planning or research, you rely on an Uber driver for recommendations, then declare the city culturally dead when you end up at (what is essentially) Applebee's? I currently live in the suburbs of Austin and I hope that one day I have a self driving car so that I can live further out of the city and have more space because I want a big workshop. I'll gladly trade easy access to restaurants and museums for access to tools and quiet.
- rjkennedy98 7y ago
  It was a last minute thing. My girlfriend wanted me to swing by to attend her friend's wedding.
  - CydeWeys 7y ago
    For your future last-minute trips, it only takes a few minutes to pull up TripAdvisor for the city you just arrived in and look up the top things to do. I tend not to plan most of my trips until the last minute, but at least this way I'm seeing the highlights.
- imtringued 7y ago
  How does a self driving car help you live further out? You're still limited by speed limits, traffic lights and so on.
  - o-__-o 7y ago
    The monotonous drive between Texas cities
  - criddell 7y ago
    If I'm not driving I don't care if my commute is 10 minutes or an hour.
geogra4 7y ago
That's really not fair to Dallas (I have family there) - Deep Ellum, Bryan Place, Uptown, etc. aren't exactly Manhattan but Dallasites make due. Long term I'm more concerned about climate change making texas uninhabitable though.
o-__-o 7y ago
You are basing your entire review of a city off of a single Uber driver? Bad times lie ahead... Dallas has the best bbq, it’s a little podunk restaurant near the Cisco office. Dallas has an entire jazz nightlife scene in their hipster district. Dallas has tons of American history with one of our favorite presidents being assassinated in that very city where his Vice President was from... Something tells me you were not trying very hard to fit in with the Dallas culture (as weird as it is)
kodablah 7y ago
It is similar to Houston, and there is very little culture. You still shouldn't base your opinions on some restaurant chain and a cabbie.
hylaride 7y ago
I felt the same way on a road trip that took me through Dallas and Houston several years ago. Even though I knew they were sprawly and car oriented, I was a bit surprised about the vibe as the cities are old enough to in theory have nice old traditional down-towns. There were some neat spots, but what's seared in my memory are multi-level parking garages and ground-level retail few and far between. Reading up on it after, apparently the cities built under/overground tunnels between many of the buildings to keep people out of the heat, especially at the height of summer. This sucked life out of the streets. > Say what you will about space, I don't know how anyone could live in a place as culturally dead as Dallas. Culturally dead is the wrong word, I think. You don't have millions of people in one place and no culture. The streets lacked vibrancy from what I could gather from two days in each city, making it hard to find it (which is a major problem). I live in the central area of a major city (Toronto) and I love the fact that I don't own a car and can rent one when I need it. I have shopping/groceries/bars/work/parks/museums all within a 10-15 minute walk from home so I get where you're coming from. When I visited Edmonton, Alberta about a decade ago, my first impressions were very similar until my cousins took me out to all the things they do and I had a good time (still wouldn't want to live there).
jeegsy 7y ago
I think you might just have highlighted why a taxi driver and an Uber driver are not the same thing. For all you know, the Uber driver might have arrived in Dallas just a week before you.