I recently accepted a job offer in Davis, CA, and it looks like we’ll (my darling hubster and I) be moving out there from Iowa sometime in the fall. We’ve only visited Davis once, and I’m not sure whether we’ll be able to make it out to there for another visit before the big move. So I was hoping that local Dopers would be able to offer some insight into the area.
First, what’s the real estate market like? What are the good areas of town, and are there any places to avoid? Also, I’m pretty enamoured with the idea of biking to work. What should I be looking for with respect to that?
Second, the Hubster is going to need to find a job, preferably something biotechy. How much biotech industry is there in the area?
Third, what’s the entertainment scene like? I’m talking restaurants, theater, music and the like (especially the food parts). Granted, I’ll be in the lab most of the time so I probably won’t get a chance to do much, but I like knowing that the possibilities are there…
Finally, this will be my first time living on the west coast, after bopping around the south and midwest for a while. How much culture shock am I in for?
Davis exists for the University. It’s very liberal. It’s gotten pretty expensive, and you might be for a bit of sticker shock as compared to Iowa. This is the understatement of the year. I’ve only been there a couple times since I graduated from UCD in 1980, but I think these thoughts still remain true. My sister lives there in her million dollar house, which is pretty nice but not a mansion by any means. People are very friendly and like you mentioned, everybody rides their bicycle everywhere.
Davis’ arts community is centered about the University, but it is pretty active. They have the Mondavi Center which is pretty bitchin’ and attracts pretty big names.
I’m moving there this fall too! We should totally hang out. I am going there to attend UC Davis.
I was only there for a short visit but I was raised in Ohio so I might be able to answer some of your questions based on my first impression during the weekend I spent up there. One, everyone was very friendly there. More so than in other parts of California. People seem to bike and take their dogs everywhere too. It has a small town feel yet is fairly diverse. I went to good Korean restaurant, had some nice bagels, and stopped to eat a California restaurant. Compared to the rest of California, it is a cheaper place to live but compared to the midwest it is more expensive.
I’m looking for a place to live myself within biking distance of the campus. I’ve seen two bedroom houses for rent 1200/month. I plan on taking my bike and the buses everywhere so I am looking for a place near “downtown Davis” which is the nice little shopping area. I’ve been told to avoid having to cross the train tracks to get to your work but there doesn’t seem to be a bad part of Davis from what I’ve been able to tell.
Congrats! There are quite a few Aggies and ex-aggies amongst the Dope, so you should be in luck for advice. Personally, I’m both a UCD alum, and parent of a current student.
There are no bad parts of Davis – part of why real estate prices are fairly high. The only real question is whether you want to live in a student-dominated area like north Davis, a less-studenty area like east Davis, or somewhere in between. You can bike to work from anywhere in Davis. All the main streets (and a lot of less-main streets) have bike lanes.
If you decide you can’t afford Davis itself, be wary of most of West Sacramento and parts of Woodland. East Davis has lots of folks who commute to Sacramento. If you do have to commute, Sacramento-to-Davis is the counter-commute direction.
As for culture, Darryl already mentioned the Mondavi Center, which is definitely a great place. And you’re only 15 minutes from Sacramento, so you can find pretty much any kind of culture you want. And if there’s not enough for you there, San Francisco is barely an hour away. If you like small-venue folksy music, check out The Palms in Winters.
And for a 2-hour drive you can be on the beach, or in the mountains. And don’t forget to visit Napa Valley, where many UCD grads are employed.
I’m not sure what the current biotech situation is, employment-wise, but UCD is pretty much the center of whatever there is; several of the more well-known biotech companies have their roots in Davis.
On a nice, hot day (there will be plenty of these to choose from) head down to the Sudwerks brewery and order a nice big mug of their hefeweizen. If they’re still serving it like they were when I was there last, back in 1996, it will come in a glass that can easily be confused with a pitcher, but they intend you to drink it all yourself, and it will come with at least a half of a lemon squeezed into it and floating on top. Sooooooo damn good.
Definitely click around the wiki to get the feel. Real estate is pretty expensive, I believe. For biking, get fenders for any bike you get to keep the rain from splashing up. search for “freshman stripe” on the daviswiki. Also get a good lock and a cheap bike; its less likely to disappear that way.
Be prepared to never see the sun for a few months in the winter. Cold drizzly rain and tule fog are not your friend. I’d get seriously hating life during winter quarter. Also, it can get hotter than hell in the summer, which most students miss 'cause they go home.
also check out radio station KDVS, I used to be the general manager there.
Real estate is hideously, hideously expensive. It’s been a few years since I left, but word was that year not a single house in town sold for under $250k, and we’re talking some real shacks in some cases. My last year in town my roommates and I shared a four bedroom house that we rented for $2200 a month.
They’re right that there isn’t a bad part of town though, it’s all very nice.
There’s lots of good food, one of my favorite restaurants ever is the Kathmandu Kitchen, really wonderful Indian/Nepalese food.
Other favorite places in town: Armadillo Music (directly across the street from Tower Records and going strong), and the California Raptor Center. If you visit, say “hi” to Rosa and Thor for me.
I really am excited about the move to Davis. Everyone I’ve talked to just raves about what a great place it is to live.
Since we’re moving in the fall I think we’re going to miss the majority of the hot weather (we’ll get that in Iowa instead) and jump right into the rainy season. The hubster is just thrilled to be moving to a place that doesn’t have a soul-crushing winter. I’m exicted to be moving to somewhere not in tornado alley, but I will miss thunderstorms. And fireflies. And good, cheap pork and corn…
Be sure to check out the Farmer’s Market in Central Park (It is called Central Park, right? My memory hasn’t completely gone?) It’s a community event. There’s one Saturday morning all year and one Wednesday afternoon part of the year.
Don’t know how the prices are going there currently, but you should be able to get corn, when it’s in season locally. There are also permanent roadside stands along I-80 that sell fresh produce. Also check out the Food Coop on G Street. I always do when I’m back in town.
Oh, just remembered. I didn’t mention pork because you probably can’t get it at the Farmer’s Market and probably not much selection at the Coop, but then I remembered the Cole Facility. I never tried it because I never had the freezer space and they sell in quantity, mostly. The Cole Facility does carcass analysis for farmers, students, and researchers who are doing animal feed studies. As a sideline it sells the meat, but does it in bulk and as available. Hours were short. Probably still are.
Fifteen year old information, but they were in business for the fifteen years I was around. I always wanted to try it.
Woodstock pizza was pretty good pie. They have a nice selection of ales on tap. They really, really should not serve Stone IPA in quart glasses, but they do. If you choose not to drive, you can still be detained at the option of the Davis police. The Yolo county hoosegow is pretty much in BFE, and good luck getting a cab. If you walk about 3 miles toward what appears to be the nearest sign of civilization, you will come to a Mall, where a cab still won’t come, but you can catch a bus to Davis. Yes, this knowledge all relates to the same chain of events. Oh yeah, the cashiers in Davis get really pissed if you don’t empty your handbasket on to the counter.
Yay! Welcome (in a few months) to the area! I haven’t got anything specifically about Davis, but the Valley in general is pretty good. Great mild winters, hot but not unbearable summers, especially with the beach 2 hours away, lots of agriculture = cheap produce. You might have some problems in the spring from allergies (from the agriculture), but all in all, a great area. Lots of things to go and see in Sacto, Davis having a lot of events, thanks to the university. Welcome!
ps- we do get really great thunder-and-lightning storms, but they are only once every 3 to 5 years.
I suppose that’s true. Keep in mind that those numbers seemed enormous to my minimum-wage-earning college student self, and still seem high to my Oregon resident, home-owning self.
How’s this? I now pay less on my mortgage per month than I paid for one rented bedroom living in Davis.
I lived in Davis for a year and hated it. I could never adjust to the weather (I’m from Boston), the University (didn’t care for the way they treated me or the other students), or the fact that a box of cereal cost six dollars. However, there are things there I miss. Pedricks, in Dixon is the best produce store I have ever been to. You can see it from I-80. Dixon White Diamond corn, tomatoes, nuts, oranges, ect are the best. I miss San Fransisco, not that I got there very often. The biking was great as well. And they have double decker buses.
I don’t mean to rain on your parade, I know a lot of people that are happy there, it just wasn’t for me.
And I should the winter there to very unpleasant. Give me snow any day of four months of mist.
It’s not the snow, I could definitely handle snow. It’s the cold. When the temperature doesn’t hit double digits (Fahrenheit) for a month at a time and your tears freeze it tends to break your spirit. Oh, and that’s not even talking about the wind… More snow would make things better. My personal mantra about winter is that if it’s going to be cold and miserable it may as well be pretty.
My poor husband is from Houston, and he has declared winter to be stupid. Even though I’m a Yankee at heart, I’m beginning to agree.
That would be awesome. This long-term lurker would enjoy that
Thanks again, everyone, for all the information (and the welcomes)! Keep it coming!
