The Refugees

Is it possible to find satisfaction in the suburbs? The New York Times investigates “Is It Worth It?”:

It’s a springtime ritual: Like pollen shaking loose from the trees, many young Manhattan families are preparing to scatter toward the suburbs and a new phase of life. Others are merely thinking about it, wondering about the tradeoffs, and the psychic toll.

Is there any way to know in advance whether moving to the suburbs will work out – or be a big, expensive mistake? Will fine schools, backyards and breathing room compensate for tedious commutes, fewer conveniences and a possibly somnolent lifestyle? Will the suburbs be populated by like-minded transplants or insular unsophisticates? Are the restaurants really that bad?

The answer to that last question is an emphatic “no”:

But one thing many transplants never adjust to is the food. Barbecues aside, “the food in New Jersey is some of the worst food I’ve ever eaten in my life,” Mr. [Nick] Aloe said, citing the generic quality of many restaurants. “How can you explain a 40-minute wait to eat at Chili’s?”

Beth Little of Summit, N.J., said a good selection of restaurants is “the one thing we always say we miss.”