Varick St, SoHo

If you've ever had to sort out a visa or other passport issue, you may well have come down to Varick Street and spent hours in waiting rooms at the Varick Street Immigration Court. Outside of issues of legality and border control, however, Varick Street has little significant to offer. It's by no means an unpleasant street - on the contrary, it's a perfectly scenic downtown street running through Tribeca and the West Village, well-located near a variety of "neighborhoods," each with their own lively restaurant and bar scene. But Varick Street seems to be "always a bridesmaid, never the bride" when it comes to the attention lavished on its neighbors. It's always in proximity to the Next Big Bar Street without ever attaining that honor.

In many ways, this is quite a good thing. Given the relatively small size of New York City's downtown, the bars and clubs of other downtown areas are but a five minute walkaway. But Varick Street itself benefits from this tiny distance, making it an eminently more livable street (especially on a Friday and Saturday night at bar closing time). Just don't get into any trouble with Immigration!

Varick Street is going through some serious changes and it's heading to trendy quickly. City Winery and Greenhouse are two interesting additions to the neighborhood and loft office space is bringing a rush of people in. Varick has been such a "no name" street for so long that it's about time it had something of note on it and that's all going to happen in 2009.

Varick Street has been nothing special for sometime, but that is getting ready to change. The street that runs north to south intersects some of the most popular spots in lower Manhattan and because of that it has long been considered a mere pass through. The M20 runs up and down the street and several subway stations are located on it. The street is currently home to warehouses and office space but very interesting changes are coming to the area. City Winery announced their plans to open in the neighborhood early in 08 and will be officially open for business shortly. The winery is a unique dining and entertainment experience that really deserves to be visited. Former club, Shelter, has been transformed into a two story nightclub experience by the name of Greenhouse. It is targeted towards the hip, trendy and eco-friendly types and will likely be a hit. The nightlife is really heating up on the street. More changes and additions are slated for 2009, so Varick St. is one to watch.