After six months of living in Allston, the one word I can most aptly find to describe it would be "confused."
It doesn't seem to want to make its mind up....is it an ethnic area or a college town? Alternative or mainstream? To put it in universal terms, does it like Pabst Blue Ribbon, Magic Hat Roxy Rolle, or Bud Light bottle?
You prefer chain restaurants? Uno's at Harvard and Comm has the same menu as the one you go to back home - and the bartender is an Emerson grad.
Want a club scene where you can drink red bull-vodkas, dance till you sweat through your collared shirt and try to hit on some ladies? Hit up the Kels or Wonderbar. Or both; they're about a 3 minute walk away from one another.
Howabout some ethnic food? Take a walk down Brighton Ave. and it's like sailing on the Beagle with Charles Darwin...everything from Brazilian to Thai to Italian to good old college, take-out, beer food...ending with a staple of the Allston Village - Super 88.
Which bring me back to my original point...exactly how does Allston identify itself?
I would say Lower Allston has its mind pretty much made up. Take the 66 Bus over the Pike onto N. Harvard Ave. and the narrow, windy streets behind Allston Wine & Spirits all look like a hard-nosed, working class neighborhood should. Ask two of my roommates - they lived on Coolidge Rd. last year and each had their cars busted into.
But starting at Packard's Corner and veering left onto Comm. Ave or straight onto Brighton Ave. wields a different result. And I think the reason for Allston's identity crisis stems from this intersection.
For those unfamiliar, coming from Boston it's pretty much the entrance into Allston. B.U. is left behind you, and if you're on the B line, Packard's Corner is the stop right after you take that unexpected, jolting turn to your left that usually results in you having to put your iPod ear bud back into your right ear.
If you're driving, I say 'Good luck.' And if you're not from Boston and you're driving, I say 'Please get the hell out of my way.'
There's a vast, open expanse in the middle of Packard's Corner that, when looked at from an aerial view, slightly resembles the demarcation zone in between North and South Korea. This can throw the average driver for a loop, especially when confronted with the question of, 'Which one is Comm. Ave?'
While it may not exactly scream, 'Welcome to Allston,' Packard's Corner still sits as a central landmark in Allston. Its ability to bewilder can easily frustrate, but to me it shows that one thing is for certain - while puzzling and arguably "confused," Allston still has "Boston" written all over it.
