Visiting Denver/Looking for an Apt. (Lakewood, Littleton: apartment complexes, for rent, crime rate)

[marben]

Hello,

I am visiting Denver in June, and will be looking for an apartment in the following areas (Listed by the area that I am most interested in first):

Littleton
Lakewood
Englewood
Centennial
Denver
Highlands Ranch

A few things:

I am married, in my mid-twenties, am bringing a dog, no kids.
I'd prefer not to live in the city.
Ideally I would live within walking distance to parks/bike trails/and a bakery or coffee shop.
Somewhere safe, where my wife would feel comfortable walking the dog at night
We would like to pay between $800 - $1,100 for rent (1br or 2br)
Somewhere I could take public transit to the tech center/Denver
A commute under 30 minutes would be preferable

I will be working in either downtown Denver or the tech center. My company has not yet decided where to get office space. I'm wondering:

2. What your thoughts are about which area of Denver I should focus on for my apartment search? Do you think my areas of interest are prioritized correctly?

1. Where would be a good place to eat that is not found back east (in the areas listed above).
- Nothing fancy, even fast food, but something unique to an east coaster.

Any responses would be appreciated, I've done a lot of reading on this forum for the Denver area and the responses are always good! They convince me moving to Denver will be worth the effort.

[Moonwalkr]

There's some good mexican cuisine there, compared to the east coast. We're moving to Englewood next month, but we're purchasing so I can't really help you with renting questions. I wish you luck though, great area around there.

[alison_g]

Littleton's a nice area, kind of on the south end of Denver. There's everything I can think of there food, trails around small ponds and so forth and a lot of apartment complexes. I would not really suggest Centennial or Englewood for that matter. Crime rate I believe is a little bit higher and I didn't feel comfortable when we lived down there.

[Moonwalkr]

Originally Posted by alison_g

Littleton's a nice area, kind of on the south end of Denver. There's everything I can think of there food, trails around small ponds and so forth and a lot of apartment complexes. I would not really suggest Centennial or Englewood for that matter. Crime rate I believe is a little bit higher and I didn't feel comfortable when we lived down there.

Weird, when we visited the Englewood area we're buying a house looked very nice and we saw lots of kids walking to the elementary school. People seemed very friendly. Maybe it's a different part of Englewood? I don't know how big it is.

[masalamomma]

Um...don't listen to Moonwalker, because I found Colorado mexican cuisine to be laughable. But then I have lived a large part of my adult life in Arizona and Texas, where there is REAL mexican food to be had.

One restaurant you might want to try is a little whole in the wall nearby by to University of Denver called "Jerusalem". They serve some good but reasonably priced middle eastern food. Try there combo plate, where you will get a little bit of everything. It is really enough food for two.

As for an apartment to rent....one area I know of that would fit the bill for you is right off I-25 and Lincoln on Park Meadows Drive. There are three apartment complexes right next to each other - AMLI, Crestwater, and Avalon at Lincoln Station. Or maybe it is Metropolitan at Lincoln Station. I can't remember which...they changed the name while I lived there. Here is a link that has a little bit of video:

ForRent.com-Metropolitan at Lincoln Station Apartments for Rent in Lone Tree, CO by ForRent -- Revver Online Video Sharing Network

It would be good for you because you can walk to Light Rail Station - it is right next door. You can walk to a little shopping center nearby that has alot of restaurants and shops and the movie theatre. There is even a nice little bar where you can have a cigar and a glass of wine. And there is Panera Bread for a cup of coffee. There is Cheeburger Cheeburger if you are in the mood for a burger. There is an Indian resurant with a lunch buffet. A barbeque place. And a John Hollys Asian Cuisine for some good sushi. Just down the hill you can link up to a nice bike trail which leads to a Park for kids and some open space. And then walking the other way nearby to the rec center is a more rustic trail which goes into the hills. I never went on it though since someone got bit by a rattle snake on it, and my husband forbid it.

I loved our apartment, especially LOVED the parking garage. Besides it meeting all your requirements, Lonetree is my absolute favorite part of Denver. You will love it. The Rec Center nearby is really awesome. There are some really cute townhouses next to the Rec Center you might find on rent.

Good luck on your search.

[Moonwalkr]

Laughable maybe for you, but I'm simply answering OP's question of cuisine compared to back EAST where she's from. Yes, I grew up in the east, where there are a few decent taqueria stands but certainly not in the numbers out west. Perhaps it's the distance from Mexico?

To the OP, I'm not sure which part of East coast you are coming from, but generally where I've lived (more metropolitan areas) you have good seafood which you won't find abundant in Denver. I think all other cuisine are pretty comparable, but do try some of the mexican joints unless you are from Texas then I do apologize.

[marben]

Thanks for the posts everyone - I'm going to spend some extra time checking out the Loan Tree area now!

[masalamomma]

Originally Posted by Moonwalkr

Laughable maybe for you, but I'm simply answering OP's question of cuisine compared to back EAST where she's from. Yes, I grew up in the east, where there are a few decent taqueria stands but certainly not in the numbers out west. Perhaps it's the distance from Mexico?

To the OP, I'm not sure which part of East coast you are coming from, but generally where I've lived (more metropolitan areas) you have good seafood which you won't find abundant in Denver. I think all other cuisine are pretty comparable, but do try some of the mexican joints unless you are from Texas then I do apologize.

Wasn't trying to offend you. Mexican food is my favorite, and I WISH Denver had some decent food, certainly the whole time I lived there. But after trying three restaurants that people recommended, and finding it barely edible, I pretty much gave up. Those three places by the way were: 3 Margaritas, Morrisson Inn, and Blue Bonnet or something like that.

If you like California style Mexican food, then Wahoo's is actually decent. Personally, Tex-mex is the only way to go for me. Or authentic. I lived in Orange County, and just never took to the California style.

It was one reason I was happy to get back to Texas.