The "Nice Mall" vs. the "Yucky Mall"

[KillarneyRose]

Do you all have the nice mall and the yucky mall in your area? Our nice malls around here are the Annapolis Mall, Columbia Mall and, that outlet mecca, Arundel Mills Mall. They have stores like Hechts, Nordstrom, Bailey Banks and Biddle, Yankee Candle, Bebe, Banana Republic, etc.

The yucky malls, Harundale, Marley Station and Glen Burnie, have things like Dollar General, Rave, Glamour Shots, Payless, Value City, Sears, lots of boarded up storefronts and more mullets that you've seen since 1985.

It's kind of sad, because I understand that the yucky malls were once nice malls. Guess you never can tell what's gonna happen!

[Thrillhouse]

Yeah that mall in Glen Burnie is poo. Its only about half full now I think as opposed to 10 years ago when it was nearly full. I love the Anapolis mall even though traffic there is always crowded. I don't like malls much though, I like the stores that I can drive up to and run in to grab something

[LeslieAGD]

Troy has two malls: Oakland and Sommerset...Oakland is the ghetto mall and Sommerset is the rich people mall. Sommerset has a North and South building with a skywalk built over the main road to connect them. (stores include Neiman's, Tiffany's, Sak's, Armani, FAO Shwartz, The White House/Black Market, Kenneth Cole, J Crew, and Nordstroms, to name a few).

[juniorgrrl]

Baton Rouge definitely has "A tale of 2 malls" going on.

In its day, Cortana was awesome. Its HUGE. But its definitely gotten more ghetto since Mall of Louisiana opened up. Mall of LA has stuff like Abercrombie, B.Rep, Ann Taylor, etc (which, unfortunately, is upscale for this town). The clientele is what makes the difference. Cortana is in a scary neighborhood and at night, it looks like there are lots of gangs there. Mall of LA just feels safer.

[ZTAngel]

The Coral Springs/Boca Raton area has two malls.
One is in Coral Springs and it is called the Coral Square mall. All the little middle school wannabe gangsters hang out front. Many stores have been abandoned and replaced by crappy stores. Payless, Sears, and no name stores are there.
The Boca Town Center has stores such as Bebe, Louis Vuitton, Bloomingdales, Nordstrom, Banana Republic, etc. are there and people come to the mall wearing something that they would wear to a Beverly Hills Oscar party.

[33girl]

ha ha you know this one Tracy.

Nice: Ross Park
Yucky: Northway

Nice: South Hills
Yucky: Century III (although it is appearing less yucky lately)

Around here we more have outdoor plazas or town centers which are more downmarket and then the enclosed malls have the nicer stores. I don't consider a plaza a mall. Although that's changing with the Waterfront development - it is located where the largest steel mill around here used to be. You do feel sort of weird, for lack of a better word, when you first see it and see some of the old steel works around it, but you get used to it - the jobs might not be paying the same $$$ but it's a hell of a lot less depressing than driving by the empty steel mill.

[newbie]

Luckily, all the malls in San Fran are absolutely gorgeous and have all the best stores :D. Here, there are malls of boutiques, and malls of more popular stores and big department stores.

But, there is one mall in the Bay Area that I don't particularly like -- Serramonte Mall in Colma (Daly City, CA -- about 30 min from SF). That one isn't the best.

[dzsaigirl]

Yes!

In my area of Houston there is Almeda (the yucky mall) and Baybrook (the kick ass mall). The only mall I like better than Baybrook is the Galleria, but it's farther away.

[AchtungBaby80]

Yep, on one end of town we've got Fayette Mall, which is lovely and is supposedly the biggest mall in this area...then on the other end of town, we've got Lexington Mall with decor left over from the 70s and about two shops.

[DZTUBAGIRL]

Killarney, Ha ha that is so funny!! I have always said that Marley Station is a nasty mall and no one ever listens to me. I won't go in it for anything. And don't forget about Laurel Mall, it is pretty bad too! Annapolis is awsome!! I do all my shopping there. I worked at Hechts this summer...great discount!

AchtungBaby, I came all the way from Morehead to Lexington to go to the Lexington mall and got there and saw that there was no mall!! I was so mad! But Fayette mall is pretty good. I want to go to the mall in Ashland and see what they have there.

Anne Marie

[shopgirl]

Can anyone tell me about the malls in Tampa/St. Pete?
Which are the biggest/best?

Thanks!!!

[Betarulz!]

Yep that's definetly the way it is in Suburban Kansas City.

We have Oak Park Mall, which has to be one of the best malls ever with a Nordstroms, 2 Dillards, JC Penny's, the Jones' Store, Eddie Bauer, 2 Abercrombies, Hollister, American Eagle, Disney Store, Gap, and a bunch of other good stores too. People here in Nebraska will ask me about it when I say where I'm from.

On the Yucky side however we have Metcalf South (but no Metcalf North...interesting) and also The Great Mall of The Great Plains. Metcalf South is absolutely vacant, it has a Sears, but the Jones' Store is leaving their location there for Oak Park. My dad said that MS Mall is going to be torn down by 2004 or something like that, but it's old and vacant so no big loss. The Great Mall is an entirely different story. It's in a town called Olathe (another suburb) and it was O-towns first mall, and it opened my HS Freshmen year to a load of fanfare. The gross intake for the mall in it's first two weekends was something ungodly like 75 million dollars or something just absolutly Huge. They said that every resident of Olathe went to the mall in those first two weeks, and with a town population nearing a hundred thou, that's pretty impressive. I think total number of visits was close to half a million in the first month, you could barely walk the halls of the place. This was huge news!!! Fast forward just two and half years later and it became the mall with the greatest number of shoe stores you could ever imagine! Now, you go there, even on a weekend and it's pretty empty. A couple of nice stores, like an OffSaks 5th Avenue, but the decor is horrible, and the rest of the stores suck. Go there on a weekday afternoon, and you find that the stay at home moms have discovered that the long straight halls are perfect for letting bands of 2 and 3 year olds just run away all their energy. I think the last time I was there I saw no less than 5 "gangs" of stroller moms...all with about 6 toddlers just running, and a couple of infants in the strollers. It was kinda amusing b/c there was always one little kid in each group who had fallen down or something yelling at the others to slow downhttp://www.plaudersmilies.de/rofl.gif.

[Peaches-n-Cream]

I'm not really a mall shopper since we have many of the nice mall stores separately on the street of New York City. There are a lot of malls on Long Island, but not too many in the city. Or maybe those are the 'Yucky Malls.' :rolleyes:

[PM_Mama00]

Originally posted by LeslieAGD
Troy has two malls: Oakland and Sommerset...Oakland is the ghetto mall and Sommerset is the rich people mall. Sommerset has a North and South building with a skywalk built over the main road to connect them. (stores include Neiman's, Tiffany's, Sak's, Armani, FAO Shwartz, The White House/Black Market, Kenneth Cole, J Crew, and Nordstroms, to name a few).

Ahh yes! Somerset Mall. I feel extremely uncomfortable walking through there! The malls Downriver include the ghettofied Southland Mall which contains a few shoe stores, a bunch of stores like American Eagle and Forever 21, some cell phone booths, and some other stuff. Other than that, it's a 2 minute drive from my house, and has my fave store so I'm good with it!
The other mall is Fairlane Mall. It too is ghettofied to the highest degree, yet has variety.

[prospectiverushee]

Yucky Mall New Orleans- The Plaza of Lake Forrest
Nice Malls- Lakeside and Esplande

Here in North Dallas where I live, there are about 7 or 8 different malls near me. I've been to about 5 of them

Here are my rankings:

Nice Malls:

Galleria( cause it has Sacks,Norstroms,Ann Taylors)

Stonebriar-fairly new mall has Eddie Bauer,J Crew,Talbots

Shops of Willow Bend- I've never actually been there,but it's in Plano and Plano is a very rich section of North Dallas

Middle Tier:

Vista Ridge, Valley View

Kind of Yucky:
Collin Creek, Richardson Square

[RockChalk]

Fast forward just two and half years later and it became the mall with the greatest number of shoe stores you could ever imagine! Now, you go there, even on a weekend and it's pretty empty. A couple of nice stores, like an OffSaks 5th Avenue, but the decor is horrible, and the rest of the stores suck. Oh lord, yes! The Great Mall of The Great Plains should be shown to every interior design student as an example of what not to do! The carpet in that place gives me a headache.

[dzsaigirl]

I wouldn't really say Vista Ridge is middle tier...it's pretty good.

Northpark is really good.
Irving Mall is kinda yuck.
Golden Triangle up in Denton SUCKS!!!!!

Otherwise I agree with your Dallas ratings. Dallas is sort of my second home. I went to school there for a while and my entire extended family lives there, my parents lived there until I was born, etc. I think that as a rule, Dallas malls are better than Houston malls, however, the Houston Galleria is better than the Dallas Galleria.

I will have to agree that the malls in San Francisco are awesome!

I have also been to one mall in Providence (Providence Place) and it was surprisingly good.

[IowaHawkeye]

There's all kinds of good malls by my house... the one like 5 minutes down the road, Orland Square, has Jcrew, Banana Rep, Gap, Ann Taylor Loft, Express, Arden B, Rampage, A&F, AE, Charolette Russe, Marshall Fields...

Like 20 minutes away there's Oakbrook - one of my favorite malls - its all outdoors and there's fountains and flowers everywhere in the spring and summer - goregous. It has the likes of Tiffany & Co, Sephora, Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, Lord and Taylor, Neiman Marcus, Nine West, Crabtree & Evelyn.... plus they have a Maggianos Italian Restaurant here (if youre from chicago you know what i'm talking about)

within a decent drive from me i have Woodfield Mall, Gurnee Mills, Old Orchard, watertower, and of course the Magnificent mile :)

Bad malls around me = Chicago Ridge mall, Ford City - theyre just dead and don't have any good stores...

[juniorgrrl]

Originally posted by prospectiverushee
Yucky Mall New Orleans- The Plaza of Lake Forrest
Nice Malls- Lakeside and Esplande



ROFL. The Plaza is just downright scary. Calling it ghetto would be a COMPLIMENT. When I was little, we'd go there all the time, but then Slidell (a 'burb of NOLA) got a mall (which sucks now, incidentally) and now no one goes to the Plaza. The only department store left is Dillards. I think there are a few "urban wear" boutiques and that's about it. In its day, it rocked. Had an ice skating rink and everything. Now people are damn afraid of that area.

Lakeside was starting to get kinda gross and then they got major upscale. Added Bebe, Nicole Miller, expanded the Mignon Faget to 10 times its old size, Sharper Image. It rocks.

The best, and most upscale mall shopping in New Orleans is The Shops at Canal Place. They've got Saks, either Gucci or Chanel (can't remember which one), Pottery Barn, White House/Black Market, Mignon Faget.

[TigerGirl52]

I gotta agree with you about Baton Rouge's malls juniorgrrl. Cortana used to be the place to go when I was in like junior high. Now I try to avoid it at all costs. Most of the stores in there are really picked over and kinda trashy.

OH...and I love the Shops at Canal Place. Too bad I can't afford a damn thing there! :D

Allison

[prospectiverushee]

Originally posted by juniorgrrl


ROFL. The Plaza is just downright scary. Calling it ghetto would be a COMPLIMENT. When I was little, we'd go there all the time, but then Slidell (a 'burb of NOLA) got a mall (which sucks now, incidentally) and now no one goes to the Plaza. The only department store left is Dillards. I think there are a few "urban wear" boutiques and that's about it. In its day, it rocked. Had an ice skating rink and everything. Now people are damn afraid of that area.

Lakeside was starting to get kinda gross and then they got major upscale. Added Bebe, Nicole Miller, expanded the Mignon Faget to 10 times its old size, Sharper Image. It rocks.

The best, and most upscale mall shopping in New Orleans is The Shops at Canal Place. They've got Saks, either Gucci or Chanel (can't remember which one), Pottery Barn, White House/Black Market, Mignon Faget.

We use to live in the East, so we'd always shop at the Plaza. But now that we live Uptown, we shop at Lakeside. I haven't been to Lakeside in ages, so I wasn't aware of the changes

[prospectiverushee]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by dzsaigirl
[B]I wouldn't really say Vista Ridge is middle tier...it's pretty good.

Northpark is really good.
Irving Mall is kinda yuck.
Golden Triangle up in Denton SUCKS!!!!!

I based my ratings on malls that were on my side of 635 :D I've never been to Northpark cause it's in the Greenville area. I don't get to that side of 635 that often. I wouldn't go to Irving if you paid me. If I ever get into grad school at UNT, then I'll have to take a trip to Golden Triangle

I shouldn't say Vista Ridge is middle tier. I just don't like driving on 35 to get there. Out of all the malls that I named, Vista Ridge is actually the closest one to me,but I always find myself going to Collin Creek or Stonebriar

[KappaStargirl]

Originally posted by IowaHawkeye

Like 20 minutes away there's Oakbrook - one of my favorite malls - its all outdoors and there's fountains and flowers everywhere in the spring and summer - goregous. It has the likes of Tiffany & Co, Sephora, Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, Lord and Taylor, Neiman Marcus, Nine West, Crabtree & Evelyn.... plus they have a Maggianos Italian Restaurant here (if youre from chicago you know what i'm talking about)

within a decent drive from me i have Woodfield Mall, Gurnee Mills, Old Orchard, watertower, and of course the Magnificent mile :)

Bad malls around me = Chicago Ridge mall, Ford City - theyre just dead and don't have any good stores...

Ohhh LORDY I love Oakbrook. Takes about 40 minutes to get there from my parents' house (in the Near Northwest suburbs), but it's worth it. Great stores, but I have to wonder who came up with the idea of building an outdoor mall in Illinois??

Ahhhh, Woodfield. My little came to visit me over Thanksgiving one year and I took her there and she just about had to be dragged out. Did you know it has more stores than the Mall of America? Water Tower is great, too, but Gurnee Mills doesn't impress me. Old Orchard is the closest decent mall to where I grew up, about 20 minutes up Golf Road...gosh, I remember that mall BEFORE it was remodeled. By far, the ickiest mall around there is Golf Mill, in Niles. I go there to pay my Express bill and that's about it. It's tiny and teenybopper. Blech.

33girl, I miss the Ross Park Mall. I used to go there and then afterwards I would go to the Mad Mex in the North Hills for curry chicken burritos. Then I would feel the need to walk back to my apartment in Squirrel Hill. :)

There are two really great malls near me, about 15 minutes drive in opposite directions. The South Coast Plaza, in Costa Mesa, is from what I understand the top moneymaking mall in the nation. I feel like I have to dress up when I go there. They're known for all their designer shops: Prada, Chanel, CD, Gucci, Armani, Cartier, Dolce and Gabbana, the list goes on. There's also stores for those of us that don't make six figures: J Crew, Banana, Origins, and a HUGE Victoria's Secret. They kinda fall down on department stores, though. That's where Fashion Island, in Newport Beach, picks up. They have a Bloomie's, Neiman's, Macy's, Robinson's-May, etc. Oh, and neither mall has enough bathrooms. Do native SoCal's pee less than the average person??

Even though I live in the midst of southern California consumer culture, my favorite mall in the entire world is the King of Prussia Mall in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. It's enormous, bright and well-lit, they have all kinds of stores and restaurants AND...you can practically eat off the floor. Every time you turn around there's someone cleaning something.

[Thrillhouse]

Originally posted by IowaHawkeye
There's all kinds of good malls by my house... the one like 5 minutes down the road, Orland Square, has Jcrew, Banana Rep, Gap, Ann Taylor Loft, Express, Arden B, Rampage, A&F, AE, Charolette Russe, Marshall Fields...

Like 20 minutes away there's Oakbrook - one of my favorite malls - its all outdoors and there's fountains and flowers everywhere in the spring and summer - goregous. It has the likes of Tiffany & Co, Sephora, Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, Lord and Taylor, Neiman Marcus, Nine West, Crabtree & Evelyn.... plus they have a Maggianos Italian Restaurant here (if youre from chicago you know what i'm talking about)

within a decent drive from me i have Woodfield Mall, Gurnee Mills, Old Orchard, watertower, and of course the Magnificent mile :)

Bad malls around me = Chicago Ridge mall, Ford City - theyre just dead and don't have any good stores...

What about the Michigan Ave stores? Or is that too far of a drive ;)

[IowaHawkeye]

Originally posted by Ex greek


What about the Michigan Ave stores? Or is that too far of a drive ;)

Michigan Avenue is part of the Magnificent Mile ;) and no - its only like 30 minutes away (chicago thing - we measure distance in minutes not miles :D)

[KillarneyRose]

33 Girl: See, that's what I mean about time changing the malls! I remember when Century III opened when I was a little kid and everyone thought it was the greatest. LOL, it was the first time anyone in Pittsburgh had ever seen a foodcourt! I agree that Ross Park Mall is awesome, though. Plus, it was the mall closest to my parents' house so it was where I would go whenever I needed anything. I still go there when I'm home and stock up on clothes; no clothing sales tax in Penna :D

This is going to be a stretch of the imagination, but do you know Allegheny Center Mall on the North Side? Now I understand that it's mostly empty storefronts, the stores that are there are yucky and the mall itself has sailed merrily past "ghetto" all the way to "you're taking your life in your hands in the parking garage". When I was little, I used to look forward to my grandma taking me to ride the Easter train and to get my picture taken with the Easter bunny and Santa Claus there!


IowaHawkeye: Ooooooh, I know Maggiano's! The nearest one to me is at Tyson's Corner Mall in Virginia (The ultimate in mall luxury:) ) and when I'm doing a day of serious shopping there I always stop in for lunch. Yummmmmm!

[dzandiloo]

You Dallasites are making me laugh. I moved to a much smaller town from Cedar Hill/Duncanville almost 2 years ago. We have ONE mall, and it doesn't even have a Foley's (but we have a Bealls, a Sears AND a Mervyns!!! Classy...). Big change from rating malls geographically based on I-635! I used to eat lunch at the Galleria or Northpark every day!!! How I miss Nordy's (Thank God the Dillard's in Lubbock at least has a M.A.C. counter!).

Living in D'ville, you had to travel to go to a mall because all we had was SOUTHWEST CENTER MALL (formerly Red Bird Mall), and we never really felt like taking our lives into our own hands just to go to a Dillards that was full of junk, and see a bunch of jewelry kiosks with gigantic gold medallions for sale!!! My step-mom was carjacked there once (she was not harmed), and we had 3 cars stolen from that parking lot...and that was only on the edge of the hood! Wheee!

We ended up at the Parks in Arlington most of the time--I'd say top of the middle tier. Willow Bend & Stonebriar didn't open up until after we were gone, but I liked Stonebriar when I visited...Willow Bend was a ghost town & way too snooty. Of course, I remember the days when Prestonwood was the top-tier mall (have they torn that place down yet?)

What a funny thing to reminisce about...I guess I never really thought about the malls while I was there! Ooh-I just remembered the Festival Marketplace mall! yikes.

[UofISigKap]

::Sniff sniff:: I miss Woodfield whether I'm two hours away in "Chambana" or 13 hours away right now...Gosh, I love that place! It is truely a great thing. :D I need a Woodfield out here.

[KappaStargirl]

Originally posted by Ex greek


What about the Michigan Ave stores? Or is that too far of a drive ;)

Are you talking about the 900 North Michigan Stores? That can be a hike to something like the State Street Marshall Field's.

[RubberSoul]

We have so fricking many malls around here....fortunately there are quite a few good ones. My favorite is Beachwood mall, which has a Saks, a Nordstrom, J. Crew, Sephora, BCBG, Dillard's, Abercrombie, Neiman Marcus Gallery, all the Gaps, Banana Republic, etc etc. Yeah there are some REALLY BAD malls here but they are generally in the really bad areas where you just don't go unless you want to get carjacked.

[bucutie02]

I have three malls in equal distance from my house. They are west oaks, willowbrook, and katy mills. Willowbrook is the nicer mall of the three, then probably katy mills and then west oaks. I hardly go to willowbrook because it is always so crowded, katy mills has a ton of stores, but not many that i shop in. I normally go to west oaks because im a fan of gap, foley's, visible changes, victoria's secret, and express.

My favorite malls in houston, however, are First Colony Mall and of course the Galleria. The Galleria is the best mall ever!! Has every store imaginable, an ice skating rink, movie theatre, many many restaurants, and cute guys! ;)

dzsaigirl- i have never been to baybrook, but its because that is too far of a drive for me! Maybe one day ill check it out

[lilsnakeyk]

I live in the middle of the shopping mecca of the world.......Los Angeles and Orange Counties. I swear that every block there is another mall or shopping center or something.

My favorite malls (better known to all the LB Sig Kaps as the "Motherships"): Fashion Island in Newport Beach, South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa, Beverly Center in guess where, and Robertson Blvd in L.A.

Some of the "less desirable malls": Fox Hills Mall in Century City is down right scary, Lakewood Mall in Lakewood (this is actually where the whole Tupac/Biggie mess got started.)

My all-time favorite mall is Pentagon City near Washington, D.C. I don't know if it is the mall itself or the surrounding city, but I just love it there.

[alphachiohmy]

At home(St. L):

St. Clair Square: mid-level your typical Sears, Pennys, Famous-Barr and Dillards, inside stores everything from Payless to Express to Abercrombie to Rave. Crowd fluctuates too, but mostly nice when you are in a hurry and live in Illinois burbs.

Plaza Frontenac: Uppity, but inside is plush with couches and arm chairs. Does not look like a mall. Upscale stores.

Galleria: A must-go once location. A big mall with awesome stores. Moreso upscale.

And on the lower end:

St. Louis Centre (downtown) - once a nice location, now only two anchor stores a downstairs Dillards and a Famous Barr that leaves much to be desired. There's an office max, no wait it closed. a Lerners. But most stores sit vacant. A popular hang out for homeless. A nice food court that draws a lunch crowd is the only thing keeping the mall alive. its a shame bc its not bad looking, but shopping in downtown stl is not that big.


Theres already been alot said about Chicago malls. I have fallen in love with Woodfield(10 min near work) and Oakbrook. Downtown is always awesome, state and michigan and watertower. I have a tiny mall near me named harlem-irving plaza, and it only has a kohls, carson pirie scott, express, lerner and limited, but I like it for quick clinique or new outfit out fixes.
And although its not a mall, there are cute shops where I live including a benetton boutique less than a mile from my apt.

[Dionysus]

You forgot about North West Plaza, it's the lowest of the low.

[TaraHopeful]

Originally posted by ZTAngel
The Coral Springs/Boca Raton area has two malls.
One is in Coral Springs and it is called the Coral Square mall. All the little middle school wannabe gangsters hang out front. Many stores have been abandoned and replaced by crappy stores. Payless, Sears, and no name stores are there.
The Boca Town Center has stores such as Bebe, Louis Vuitton, Bloomingdales, Nordstrom, Banana Republic, etc. are there and people come to the mall wearing something that they would wear to a Beverly Hills Oscar party.

ZTAngel: I live in the boynton beach area...have you ever been to our mall? totally disgusting! Although it's been renovated and looks nicER, it's still a sh*thole. It has the fabulous Rave, Sears, KBToys, The Dollar Tree, etc. I do like Town Center though. It has Tiffanys and A&F, plus my brother's boyfriend (yep, hes gay) works in the Banana Republic...so i'm partial to getting discounts. Another mall i like (for the most part in our area) is the Sawgrass Mills Outlet mall. Do you like it? Some poeple hate it, some people love it... OOh OOh, another fab mall is The Gardens. Ever been? It's great...it's so clean and well kept..it's always worth the drive. The only problem is some of the prices...arg. Oh well, what's a girl to do?
Just thought it was neat how you lived in the same area as me...let me know of any other good malls...i'm eager to find some more...
~Tara~

[h2oot]

Originally posted by TigerGirl52
I gotta agree with you about Baton Rouge's malls juniorgrrl. Cortana used to be the place to go when I was in like junior high. Now I try to avoid it at all costs. Most of the stores in there are really picked over and kinda trashy.

OH...and I love the Shops at Canal Place. Too bad I can't afford a damn thing there! :D

Allison

I do most of my shopping on the Northshore in Mandeville. They opened several nice shopping areas. Canal Place is ok but too expensive and too much trouble to get to.

In Baton Rouge there isn't much except the Mall of Louisiana which seems to stay picked over.

[juniorgrrl]

Originally posted by h2oot


I do most of my shopping on the Northshore in Mandeville. They opened several nice shopping areas. Canal Place is ok but too expensive and too much trouble to get to.

In Baton Rouge there isn't much except the Mall of Louisiana which seems to stay picked over.

I find that the stores at the Premier Center in Mandeville are pretty picked over most of the time, actually. I live over there and when I'm home we go probably once a week, if not more, just becasue its one of the few things to do over there. But its a lot more conveinent than going into Metairie to Lakeside, for the exact same stores.

I can't wait until they build the Target in Covington though.

[ZTAngel]

Originally posted by TaraHopeful

ZTAngel: I live in the boynton beach area...have you ever been to our mall? totally disgusting! Although it's been renovated and looks nicER, it's still a sh*thole. It has the fabulous Rave, Sears, KBToys, The Dollar Tree, etc. I do like Town Center though. It has Tiffanys and A&F, plus my brother's boyfriend (yep, hes gay) works in the Banana Republic...so i'm partial to getting discounts. Another mall i like (for the most part in our area) is the Sawgrass Mills Outlet mall. Do you like it? Some poeple hate it, some people love it... OOh OOh, another fab mall is The Gardens. Ever been? It's great...it's so clean and well kept..it's always worth the drive. The only problem is some of the prices...arg. Oh well, what's a girl to do?
Just thought it was neat how you lived in the same area as me...let me know of any other good malls...i'm eager to find some more...
~Tara~

Yes, I've been to the Boynton Beach mall. It's a lot like the Coral Square mall. Really crappy.
I like Sawgrass but I can only stay in that mall for maybe an hour at a time. There's too many people and all of them are tourists. I lose my temper too quick.
I like the malls in Miami especially. Aventura is my personal favorite but it's too bad it's an hour away from where I use to live in Ft.Lauderdale.

[Dionysus]

The Nicest Mall: Plaza Frontanac-Nieman Marcus, Tiffany & Co., Saks, J Crew, etc.

Nice Malls: The Galleria and West County Shopping Mall-Lord & Taylor, Nordstrom, Bananna Republic, etc. St. Louis Mills is a nice mall if you're not into shopping, there's an ice skating rink (sometimes you can watch the Blues practicing :cool: ), a huge arcade, and mini race car track.

Ok Malls: Chesterfield Mall, Crestwood Mall, South County Mall, St. Louis Mills (store wise)

Yucky: Jamestown (ghetto) and Mid Rivers Mall (hoosierland - lots of mullets!)

The Yuckiest: Northwest Plaza - I'm scared to go there alone even in the daytime! A guy has been shot and killed inside a department store. Numerous carjackings happened regularly in the 90s. Three young black women has disappeared (at separate times - can you say serial killer?).

[Munchkin03]

Originally posted by Dionysus
The Nicest Mall: Plaza Frontanac-Nieman Marcus, Tiffany & Co., Saks, J Crew, etc.

The Yuckiest: Northwest Plaza - I'm scared to go there alone even in the daytime! A guy has been shot and killed inside a department store. Numerous carjackings happened regularly in the 90s. Three young black women has disappeared (at separate times).

D'oh!

The Mr.'s little brother works at the Plaza. We went once to visit--when we were there, there were about 3 different stores selling brightly-colored suits. The "ghetto" mall FO SHO.

I've been trying to get him to take me to Frontenac. He doesn't want to go, and it just annoys me. :mad:

In my hometown, there's only one mall. It's okay--but really geared towards old ladies and teenyboppers.

Now, I pretty much just stick to the department stores.

[Optimist Prime]

do they yucky malls have baby clothes and tennis shoes?

[honeychile]

Originally posted by KillarneyRose
no clothing sales tax in Penna :D

The best reason for living or shopping in Pennsylvania!

I must be the only person here who doesn't like Woodfield Mall - it's too dark and gloomy! I love Oakbrook, though. My Chicago friends tease me because the first place(s) I ever learned to drive to in Chicagoland is Oakbrook Mall!

Question to KC Mall goers: which is the yucky mall that has wonderful and inexpensive quilts for sale?

[winnieb]

Originally posted by honeychile

Question to KC Mall goers: which is the yucky mall that has wonderful and inexpensive quilts for sale?

Let's see... I believe Great Plains Mall (in Olathe) has some stores that sell quilts --- and I might be wrong here, but I believe there is a quilt store in Metcalf South Mall (95th and Metcalf in Overland Park).

[AXO_MOM_3]

I feel so deprived...we only have one mall in my little hometown! Lots of shopping centers though. I usually save up for our trips to Chicago, New York and Charleston so I can do some serious shopping then!

[honeychile]

Originally posted by alphagam-alum
Let's see... I believe Great Plains Mall (in Olathe) has some stores that sell quilts --- and I might be wrong here, but I believe there is a quilt store in Metcalf South Mall (95th and Metcalf in Overland Park).

Great Plains sounds right... There were a lot of outlets in this mall, and of course, a theatre. But then again, we were very close to Overland Park. Ack!!

[AOIIsilver]

Columbia Mall
Does the mall still have a fabulous flea market in the parking garage on Sundays in the summer?
I found the most amazing objects and antiques at that flea market!
Silver

[docetboy]

Way to revive an old thread.

[astroAPhi]

I grew up like 3 miles from Woodfield Mall, so that is where I always went to do my shopping.

I have to say, Chicago really does have great malls. The few crappy ones were mentioned earlier.

[honeychile]

Originally posted by astroAPhi
I grew up like 3 miles from Woodfield Mall, so that is where I always went to do my shopping.

I have to say, Chicago really does have great malls. The few crappy ones were mentioned earlier.

I'm asking this only because I really do want to know the answer: do you like Woodfield because of the stores, or despite the lighting? I find that darker malls make me shop less.

[preciousjeni]

I go to only two malls up here:

Paramus Park (in New Jersey) - mixture of ghetto and expensive - very interesting

and

Palisades Mall (in New York) - supposedly the fourth largest mall in the country. It is the most hideously ugly eyesore of a building I have EVER seen but it's got a lot of store. It's four levels with a carousel and movie theaters galore...it's got an IMAX theater, a regular multiple screen deal and some sort of 4D theater.

Eww! It's so ugly though! It looks like someone paid a WHOLE lot to build it up on the inside (which, by the way, is hideous too!) and left the outside to look like some sort of high security prison!

[blueGBI]

Philadelphia Area Malls

Best to Worst
King of Prussia- no one compares.
Cherry Hill Mall
Willow Grove
Christiana Mall
Plymouth Meeting
Oxford Valley
Lehigh Valley
Franklin Mills (just because of Neiman Marcus outlet, Nordstrom Rack, and Off Saks)
Gallery at Market East
Echelon and Deptford Malls (are they even still open?)
Cheltenham Mall- the worst mall in the area, Id rather shop down 69th Street than go here. It has Lerners, KB, the UA movies and every ghetto-rific store you can find. Even though, I have to admit, I've shopped at Lady Blue

[preciousjeni]

I should have mentioned the ATL's neighborhood malls:

"The Mall West End"

(West End Mall in the SWATS)

*More of a flea market than a mall but it has AMAZING deals on off-quality name brand stuff.

"The Gallery at South Dekalb"

(naw playa - that's the south dekalb mall - don't get it twisted!)

Stores:
A to Z Accessories
Acceptance Insurance
Accessory World
Allure Apparel
Bare Feet Shoes
Beauty on the Go
Bernard’s/Hat Mania
Champs Sports
Cleopatra Hair Salon
Diamond Treasures
Fashion Cents
Fashion Villa
Georgia Power - Oh yeah, the power company set up shop!
Glamorous Hair Salon
Gold Treasures
Hollywood Shots
LIDS
Nails First
Payless Shoe Source
Peppermint Music
Planet Sunglasses
Popeye’s Chicken - actually I could go for some right now (though I prefer Church's)
Susan’s Wigs
The Burning Sands
Wireless Universe
Zig Zag Hair Salon

[tnxbutterfly]

Originally posted by prospectiverushee
Yucky Mall New Orleans- The Plaza of Lake Forrest
Nice Malls- Lakeside and Esplande

Here in North Dallas where I live, there are about 7 or 8 different malls near me. I've been to about 5 of them

Here are my rankings:

Nice Malls:

Galleria( cause it has Sacks,Norstroms,Ann Taylors)

Stonebriar-fairly new mall has Eddie Bauer,J Crew,Talbots

Shops of Willow Bend- I've never actually been there,but it's in Plano and Plano is a very rich section of North Dallas

Middle Tier:

Vista Ridge, Valley View

Kind of Yucky:
Collin Creek, Richardson Square


My rankings for Dallas have changed a little bit since then:

Nice Malls:
Galleria

Stonebriar-although it's a totally family-type of mall

Shops of Willow Bend- They just opened a Saks Fifth Ave recently

Northpark- Has a Douney and Burke store and a Tiffany and Co store and a Lacoste

Mid tier:
Collin Creek and Vista Ridge

Kind of Yucky:
Valley View, Richardson Square

And when every I have a chance to go to our super mega outlet store mall, Grapevine Mills, i'm sure it will rank in with the nice malls

[Glitter650]

HEHEHE yeah in SF we have Stonestown Galleria which is the nice mall (although rather small) and Serramonte which is ghetto... but a bit bigger.. although they are remodeling to make it nicer and attract new business. THen there is the totally ghetto Tanforan which I never go to because it literally smells.

In the area I grew up in we had Stanford mall.. which is the "nice" mall... only expensive stores... (They recently kicked out the Limited and Disney stores and remodeled the McDonalds with a grand piano and put in a BCBG) and there is Hillsdale Mall half an hour away, which while fairly nice is older and has cheaper stores.

[mu_agd]

in Boston, i usually end up at Copley, the Pru or Newbury and Boylston St. in the city, i can't think of anything bad. Natick Mall and Cape Cod Mall used to be horrible but they've rebuilt both of those.

[KSigkid]

Originally posted by mu_agd
in Boston, i usually end up at Copley, the Pru or Newbury and Boylston St. in the city, i can't think of anything bad. Natick Mall and Cape Cod Mall used to be horrible but they've rebuilt both of those.

I'm a big fan of Natick Mall...has lots of good places and is a nice mall overall. Copley and the Pru are great too, and once in a while I'll head over to Newbury if I need something specific.

Cambridgeside is ok...but not as good as the others.

[ZTAngel]

There's not really any "yucky" malls in Orlando. We just have some that are nicer and have more expensive stores than the others.

The Really Nice Malls
The Mall at Millenia (stores: Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdale's, Macy's, Gucci, Chanel, Jimmy Choo, Burberry, Louis Vuitton, Tiffany's, Lacoste)- This is THE mall to go to in Orlando....it's very, very nice.
The Florida Mall (stores: Saks, Nordstrom's, Burdines, Williams-Sonoma, Arden B, Banana Republic)- This use to be the best mall in O-Town until Millenia was built 2 years ago.

The Nice Malls
Oviedo Marketplace (stores: Burdines, Dillards, Express)- has ok stores but in a nice part of town
Fashion Square Mall (stores: Burdines, Express, Dillards)- has ok stores but in a not-so-nice part of town
Altamonte Mall (stores: Abercrombie, Burdines, Express)
Seminole Town Center (stores: Burdines, Dillards)
West Oaks Mall (stores: Parisian, Dillards, American Eagle)

We also have a ton of outlet malls like Festival Bay, Belz, and Premium Outlets.

[33girl]

This isn't a mall in specific, but remember when Foxmoor used to sell nice, classy, preppy clothes and now they sell...umm...ho-clothes?

[MoonStar17]

In Miami there are too many malls.. but here is my rankings of the one's I LOVE :) and HATE :mad:


Near me:

NICE Mall
Dadeland
(burdines/macys, sephora, coach, nordstroms, kenneth cole, bannana rep. etc etc.)

NICE Mall (outlet)
Dolphin Mall
GREAT stores that are outlets, BEBE, forever21, Kenneth Cole, American Eagle Outfitters, Bannana Rep., NINE West, off fifth, burlington, linens and things, marshalls, bakers, old navy, gap, also HUGE!!!

NICER Mall
The Falls
great stores including pottery barn, restoration hardware, bloomingdales, macys, sephora, william senoma
its outside and filled with waterfalls all throughout the walkways...very pretty

NICEST Mall
Aventura Mall
OMG i love this mall...and i often get lost,
it is near my parents house (45 min from me) and it is the bestest
it has: Macys, Burdines, Bloomingdales, Sears, JCPenny, it used to have a Lord and Taylor, sephora, coach, nine west, besty johnson, all the limited companies, all the gap companies, a bunch of designer shops which i cant remember off the top of my head... but they even have stands in the middle of the mall that sell CAVIAR!!!! LOL

YUCKY (somewhat) mall
International Mall
it has a buncha cheepy stores, some good ones (the limited stores) but thats about it.. alot of boarded up shops and very VERY hard to find anything worth the trip over there.. Dolphin Mall is directly across the street and it is WAY better.

* There are more, But I would need a BUNCH of pages to write about them all... those are just the few i go to. :)

[DGqueen17]

Originally posted by 33girl


Nice: South Hills
Yucky: Century III (although it is appearing less yucky lately)



So true. I go to Century when I dont have a lot of money. And I have a little bit of a DEB obsession but I will never admit that in person.

South Hills is awesome. I love bebe, Rampage and Banana Republic.

[aephi alum]

My town isn't big enough to have a nice mall and a dirt mall, so we just have a nice mall. Anchor stores are Lord & Taylor, Macy's, Filene's, JC Penney, and Sears. Other stores include Sephora, Williams-Sonoma, Bombay Company, various flavors of Gap, Sharper Image, the dreaded Payless, Men's Wearhouse, etc.

Near my office is a very nice mall. I haven't had much of a chance to just wander through it, but they have Tiffany, Coach, Metropolitan Museum of Art store, Needless Markup (erm, Neiman Marcus), Sephora, Elizabeth Arden spa, Bombay Company, Louis Vuitton, Brooks Brothers, Apple, Bose, etc. Bring your platinum card :p

[DGqueen17]

Why's everyone hatin' on Payless? I get cute shoes there all the time.

[sigmagrrl]

In Rhode Island/So. MA:

Best Malls:
Providence Place (http://www.providenceplace.com) :
Only about 5 years old...Very nice. Attached via skywalk to the Westin. Has lots of stores, great food...BUT, because of the proximity to high schools via the RIPTA, lots of gang stuff has occurred...Can't base what's good and bad on anything nowadays it seems...

Emerald Square Mall (http://www.simon.com/mall/default.aspx?ID=335)

Was THE mall to go to when I was in college (pre Prov Place). USED to have my fave snack food of all time, TJ Cinnamon's (BETTER than Cinnabon)...But Sadly, no more :(


OK Malls:
Warwick Mall (http://findri-01.findri.com/warwickmall/main.html)
The mall you went to when you didn't have a car! LOL

Need a Facelift Mall:

Rhode Island Mall
Just a piss poor mall...Can't even find the website...Pitiful

[sigmagrrl]

MoCo, MD/DC/NoVA malls:

There are SOOOO many, so I'm just going to list the names...

Best Malls:
Montgomery Mall (MD)
Pentagon City (NoVA)
Tysons Corner I and II (two separate malls w/in 1/4 mile of each other) (NoVA)
Dulles Town Center (NoVA)

OK Malls:
White Flint Mall (MD)
Union Station (NOT really a mall, but DC is seriously lacking. A new mall will be opening in downtown DC soon!)
Lakeforest Mall (MD)


"Need a Facelift" Malls:
ALL the malls in Frederick, MD (just had to mention it)
Wheaton Plaza (ICK!!)


I'm sure I forgot a few...There are LOTS of plazas here (strip malls with the same great stores that are in a typical mall)...

[sigmagrrl]

I just want to ask a question/make an observation: have you noticed that the majority of the "bad" malls are in minority neighborhoods?

I really hate that...

[smiley21]

Originally posted by blueGBI
Philadelphia Area Malls

Best to Worst
King of Prussia- no one compares.




i definitely agree. i love that mall. one of my favorite stores is Strawbridge's:D


as far Orlando, Mall at Millenia is so awesome. it is just an amazing mall.


here in jacksonville, the best mall is The Avenues (Sears, Dillards, Parisian, JC Penney, Belks, Abercrombie, A&E, Wet Seal, ........)

i think Regency Square Mall is okay. it is not that great, and i am not crazy about the stores

another good mall is Orange Park Mall. it has gotten a lot better in the last couple of years.

Gateway Shopping Center:rolleyes: i have no words for that mall.

Jacksonville Landing. it would be so nice if they would add a few new stores. it has so much potential. people just mainly go therem for the nightlife, cause of the restaurants and little nightclubs in the area.


we are getting a new mall next year and i am so excited. it is supposed to have all of the high end stores like Neimans, Bloomindales.....i cannot wait!!!

[Optimist Prime]

The best mall here is the Stony Point Fashion Park. Not a typical mall it is a bunch of stores that are outside and you walk to them but they have Oakley Express for Men etc. Other good malls: Short Pump


Okay Malls:
Regency Square
Virginia Center Commons
Chesterfield Town Center

malls white people used to go to:
Azalea
Willow Lawn
Cloverleaf

[MoonStar17]

Originally posted by DGqueen17
Why's everyone hatin' on Payless? I get cute shoes there all the time.

ME too!!!
Hey poor college girls need cute shoes too ;)

[smiley21]

dont hate on Payless. i love going there to look for shoes.

[syrinx]

When I lived in Norfolk (VA) the nice mall was and still is MacArthur Center....

The yucky mall is that dayum Military Circle.

[dphies00]

Nothern NJ:
Best Mall: The Mall at Short Hills
Worst mall: Livingston Mall

Livingston's only the worst cause it used to be so so good! And Short Hills, well, they have everything upscale and expensive - Fendi, Louis Vuitton, Jimmy Choo, Gucci, Dolce & Gabbana, Versace. And they also have awesome regular stores: A&F, J.Crew, Aldo, Arden B., Guess, Bebe, and Max Studio.Com. Menlo, Woodbridge, and Willowbrook don't cut it .

And for the college years:
Best fake Mall: Walnut Street
Best real mall: Ross Park
Worst Mall: Century III

Walnut Street edges out Ross Park because you could walk there with a cup of tea and enjoy a little bit of window shopping when the afternoon allowed it.

[33girl]

Originally posted by dphies00
Walnut Street edges out Ross Park because you could walk there with a cup of tea and enjoy a little bit of window shopping when the afternoon allowed it.

Not to mention there are more people walking their fuzzy puppies there per square foot than any other place on the planet. :)

[Jill1228]

You are so sick and wrong for making me homesick! I used to work in that mall! LOVED IT! Also my other favorite malls in that area were: Tyson's Corner, The Galleria at Tyson's II, and Fair Oaks

Nothing has compared as of yet! sigh...

Originally posted by lilsnakeyk
My all-time favorite mall is Pentagon City near Washington, D.C. I don't know if it is the mall itself or the surrounding city, but I just love it there.

[Jill1228]

In the area I am in now (within a 2 hour radius)

The nicest mall in the Vancouver area is Metrotown in Burnaby, BC

But to do some good shopping: Alderwood Mall in Lynnwood, WA

Killer shopping: Bellevue, WA

But none still match my Pentagon City or Tysons

[honeychile]

Okay, the other Chicagoland mall I was thinking about was Northbrook Mall. I found an evening dress at the Neiman Marcus there that is one of my absolute favorites - shatung silk and organza, in blues & greens. I feel like a princess in it!

And count me among the Tyson's Corners Galleria I & II junkies!! If you can't find it there, it doesn't exist!!

[KillarneyRose]

dphies00: I am with you on loving Short Hills Mall. It's not at the top of my favorites list, though, because it's too close to the in-laws' house :(

Honeychile: Tyson's Corner is just wonderful! And you are absolutely right about if it's not there, then you don't need it :)

[93shad]

Jackson has 3 major malls. Dogwood Promenade, Northpark Mall, and Metrocentermall. Dogwood and Northpark are the fancy malls, while metrocenter is the ghetto mall. Metrocenter has shootings and fights every week. It definitely a urban mall. Northpark and dogwood has stores like American Eagle, Abercrombie, Hollister, Ann Taylor, Gap, Cache, BCBG, Wet Seal, Banana Republic, and Chicos. Metrocenter has urban stores like Underground Station, Man Of Fashion, Ashley Stewart, Footaction, and other stores.

[tld221]

Up here in Yonkers, there is Cross County Mall, which has got to be the WORST excuse for a mall I've ever seen. First, its an outdoor mall. Second its being renovated. Third, their anchors are Macys, Stop-n-shop, Sears and freaking Home Goods/TJ Maxx/AJ Wright (in my head theyre the same thing). I always feel like little kids are peeing in the parking lot and what not. It is definitely one of those "ghetto malls."

Buy if you drive about a 1/2 hr north, there's this mall in White Plains (i forget the name of it) that's kinda nice, i think there's a Crate and Barrel there, among other stores.

But yes, i will almost always take the drive to Roosevelt Field for mall shopping. Even if its like 45-60 minutes away and have to pay a toll.

[justabeachbrat]

Fresno: really improved: Fresno Fashion Fair; added Cheesecake Factory, classier shops.
so-so if you are in a hurry, not as big but also not as good a selection, Sierra Vista.
River Park (oaks?) other side of town from me, is supposed to be nice, but am not up for the traffic.
Favorite mall, in hills above Balboa Island, in Newport Beach, Fashion Island

[ZTAMich]

Up here in Yonkers, there is Cross County Mall, which has got to be the WORST excuse for a mall I've ever seen. First, its an outdoor mall. Second its being renovated. Third, their anchors are Macys, Stop-n-shop, Sears and freaking Home Goods/TJ Maxx/AJ Wright (in my head theyre the same thing). I always feel like little kids are peeing in the parking lot and what not. It is definitely one of those "ghetto malls."

Buy if you drive about a 1/2 hr north, there's this mall in White Plains (i forget the name of it) that's kinda nice, i think there's a Crate and Barrel there, among other stores.

But yes, i will almost always take the drive to Roosevelt Field for mall shopping. Even if its like 45-60 minutes away and have to pay a toll.

The nice mall in White Plains is called The Westchester. It's beautiful inside. I was just there Friday. Has Nordstrom & NM as dept. stores. The Galleria Mall is also in WP with Macy's & Sears.

[Scandia]

Not so nice mall- University Square Mall
Nice mall- all 4 other malls in the county

[AlethiaSi]

Up here in Yonkers, there is Cross County Mall, which has got to be the WORST excuse for a mall I've ever seen. First, its an outdoor mall. Second its being renovated. Third, their anchors are Macys, Stop-n-shop, Sears and freaking Home Goods/TJ Maxx/AJ Wright (in my head theyre the same thing). I always feel like little kids are peeing in the parking lot and what not. It is definitely one of those "ghetto malls."

Buy if you drive about a 1/2 hr north, there's this mall in White Plains (i forget the name of it) that's kinda nice, i think there's a Crate and Barrel there, among other stores.

But yes, i will almost always take the drive to Roosevelt Field for mall shopping. Even if its like 45-60 minutes away and have to pay a toll.

LOL the cross county IS the worst! I hardly go there, and even though I've lived here for two years, I feel like I always get lost for a little bit, it's so damn confusing.
The Westchester Mall is hoity toity with Louis Viutton and Lord & Taylor, etc.. it's nice but I don't go there much... The Galleria in WP is ok... I go there for Forever 21 and Old Navy (but the Old Navy in Cross County is bigger and usually has the better sales...)
There is also Palisades which is right over the tappan Zee (yes 4 dollars to come back over...:rolleyes:) but I usually just go when my friends have EZPass lol.... The Palisades is nice, HUGE and good if you need about 5 bath and body works (there is one on every floor :rolleyes:) but there's a target and just about anything else you need (plus a huge movie theatre with overpriced tix ...) I don't go shopping much anyway but as far as grocery stores go, Stew Leonard's is the best (a GREAT liquor store...) and fresh produce... don't get freaked out by the animatronic animals though (I do... hahah)

[Taualumna]

Fairview Mal (http://www.fairviewmall.ca/home/index.ch2)l in Toronto used to be a very nice mall and even had a Holt Renfrew (http://www.holtrenfrew.com) store back in the 80s. In the 90s, it started to go downhill and became a hang out for the local high school. But things are changing. They're going through a makeover and they're becoming more mid-tier to upscale (though not as "upscale" as say, Bayview Village (http://www.bayviewvillageshops.com/) (mostly pricey boutiques) or Yorkdale (http://www.yorkdale.com/)) A BCBG will be opening in the spring.

[DaemonSeid]

Is there any reason why malls are going more for the 'outdoor strip' look?

[AnchorAlumna]

Is there any reason why malls are going more for the 'outdoor strip' look?
Because people hate walking so far to get to 1 store! Also...it's the newest thing.
Any Atlantans here?
I used to haunt Lenox and Perimeter. Lenox is keeping it up, but Perimeter seems to be going downhill. :( And that one in Alpharetta (can't remember the name) just seems to have the same old. Mall of Georgia has ALMOST everything...ALMOST.
Any other newer malls? I only get to Atlanta once every two years, so I have to make the best use of my shopping time!:p

[Taualumna]

The new outdoor malls up here consist mostly of big box anchors around here.

[ZTAngel]

Because people hate walking so far to get to 1 store! Also...it's the newest thing.
Any Atlantans here?
I used to haunt Lenox and Perimeter. Lenox is keeping it up, but Perimeter seems to be going downhill. :( And that one in Alpharetta (can't remember the name) just seems to have the same old. Mall of Georgia has ALMOST everything...ALMOST.
Any other newer malls? I only get to Atlanta once every two years, so I have to make the best use of my shopping time!:p

I actually like Perimeter more than Lenox. Lenox is so crowded and I end up getting annoyed every time I'm there. Plus a bunch of women were getting mugged out in front of Lenox in broad daylight a few months ago - some guys dubbed the "Buckhead Bandits" were holding the women at gunpoint and demanding that the women give them their engagement rings/wedding bands.

Atlantic Station is the new thing. There's not many high end stores but it's in a great location and the concept is nice. Plus the big H&M store will be opening in Atlantic Station sometime this spring.

I usually go to Cumberland since it's close to my house (I'm in Smyrna/Vinings). The mall was going downhill for a while but it's been on an upswing ever since they put in PF Changs, Maggiano's, Ted's, Cheesecake Factory and Stoney River. I like going to Cumberland in the morning before the crowds come in. I find it much easier to do my shopping when you're not having to wait for a dressing room or push through a mass of people while walking through the mall.

[catiebug]

When we were in Chile and looking to leave, my husband had two job offers for back in the US - one in South Dakota and one in Connecticut. When he was interviewing at each place, they gave him a bunch of brochures for the area. In each packet was a brochure for the local mall.

Well, he said I could choose the place. Connecticut had the better mall, so that's where we moved.

And, in all honesty, there was more (his mother in Boston was in hospice). But the mall played a big part in it.
:D

[Sister Havana]

We just had a new outdoor mall open up in my town last year, The Promenade (http://www.thepromenadebolingbrook.com/). It's really nice!

There have been a lot of Chicago-area malls discussed already. Some others I like: Fox Valley Mall in Aurora, Chicago Premium Outlets in Aurora, Yorktown in Lombard.

Not-so-good malls: The first one I think of is North Park Mall (http://www.labelscar.com/illinois/north-park-mall) in Villa Park. North Riverside Park Mall used to be good, but now...not so much.

[honeychile]

Well, he said I could choose the place. Connecticut had the better mall, so that's where we moved.

And, in all honesty, there was more (his mother in Boston was in hospice). But the mall played a big part in it.
:D
You have very good priorities! ;)

Seriously, had you ended up in South Dakota, you would have been on first name basis with several catalog people.

[PeppyGPhiB]

Where I'm from, we have Bellevue Square (http://www.bellevuesquare.com/index.php), which is an awesome mall. Then across town there's Factoria Mall, which stinks.

[KSUViolet06]

The malls in my area (northeast OH):

Nicest: Summit, Aurora Farms Outlets, Beachwood, Legacy Village (these malls have Coach, Nordstrom, and more high end department stores and other specialty stores that most malls don't have).

Okay: Chapel Hill, South Park (they have all your basic mall stores like AE, A&F, Hollister, etc. They're okay)

Worst: Rolling Acres (I honestly don't even think it qualifies as a mall anymore), Richmond, Randall Park, Tower City

[smiley21]

I saw the list I made in 2004, and it is a little dated.

Nice Malls:
1. The Avenues
2. I can't remember the name, but it is a new shopping center by the airport.
3. St. Augustine Outlet Center - I think going here can be a lot of fun, and the list of designer stores is just awesome.
4. Orange Park Mall

Nicest Mall:
1. St. John's Town Center (this mall = love) It has PF Changs, Maggiano's, Ted's, Cheesecake Factory, Capital Grille, BCBG, Juicy, White House Black Market, BeBe, Blue Mercury, Dillards, Abercrombie, Lacoste, Louis Vouiton, Anthropologie, Kate Spade, Lucky, Sephora, Coach, and I barely scratched the surface naming the stores. The mall is just a giant. If you want to see all of the stores, you are going to have to drive, because walking is just not possible. There are different sections and STILL growing. They just won't stop building over there.


Not so nice malls:
1. Gateway Mall
2. Regency Square Mall

[Kappamd]

The malls in my area (northeast OH):

Nicest: Summit, Aurora Farms Outlets, Beachwood, Legacy Village (these malls have Coach, Nordstrom, and more high end department stores and other specialty stores that most malls don't have).

Okay: Chapel Hill, South Park (they have all your basic mall stores like AE, A&F, Hollister, etc. They're okay)

Worst: Rolling Acres (I honestly don't even think it qualifies as a mall anymore), Richmond, Randall Park, Tower City


Also under Okay: Great Lakes Mall, Belden Village
and Nicest: Crocker Park

Not only do the worst ones suck shoppingwise, I would fear for my safety at most of them.

[33girl]

I think Pittsburgh Mills (opened in 2005) has set some kind of new record for going from the "wow it's new!" mall to the "wow it sucks" mall. Probably because it's next to the crappiest highway on earth.

[Benzgirl]

The malls in my area (northeast OH):

Nicest: Summit, Aurora Farms Outlets, Beachwood, Legacy Village (these malls have Coach, Nordstrom, and more high end department stores and other specialty stores that most malls don't have).



Go West, my dear and expand your horizons. Like our Kappa friend said, you forgot Crocker Park in Westlake. It's a lifestyle center, similar to Legacy, but is also has apartments above the stores and condos around it. Also, I have heard First and Main in Hudson is nice.

Also in the Okay category, Great Northern. (Similar to South Park)

[elusive47]

In Buffalo:

Nice Mall: Walden Galleria- The Galleria has a mixture between high-end stores such as Sephora, Williams-Sonoma, Apple, Cheesecake Factory, etc., standard mall fare such as Sears, Macy's, Lord & Taylor's, and Budget stores such as Steve and Barry's, DSW, and Best Buy.

OK good mall: The Boulevard- Has your standard stores. Where UB kids go to shop.

Yucky Mall: Eastern Hills- The only notable thing this mall has is a Dave and Buster's.

Very Yucky Mall: Main Place- Has only 5 stores, A sneaker store, a card and gift shop, 2 clothing stores, and a pizza place, despite it being a 2 story "mall" on Main Street. For some odd reason, there's also a bank.

[Scully]

I heart living in the middle of Long Island and having way too many from which to choose! But I primarily shop in Nassau County, except for the few times I've headed out to the Tanger Outlets in Riverhead (a hike):

Roosevelt Field Shopping Mall Anchor stores include Macy's, Nordstrom's, Bloomingdale's and JC Penney's. Also includes Coach, Ann Taylor, Apple, Dick's Sporting Goods, A&F, Gap, Diesel, Armani Exchange, Kenneth Cole, Hollister, Express, Urban Outfitters, Guess, H&M and a movie theatre and restaurants. I used to live 8 minutes from RF and worked at the Macy's while in school. I love that place. I could find my way around there blindfolded :) However, it gets extremely crowded. Everyone and their mother is there on a Saturday afternoon.

Broadway Mall Anchored by Macy's, Target, IKEA and a movie theatre. I'm sad Express just closed. Contains H&M, AE, Old Navy and smaller tweeny-bopper stores. This used to be the mall that the parents used to think was "safe" and would just drop the kids off for a few hours. It was small and then grew in recent years. The mall is still teeming with middle schoolers. It's just convenient for me if I need anything, as it's on the way home from work.

The Mall at the Source Expanded after RF started growing. Includes Fortunoff, Dave & Busters, The Cheesecake Factory, Circuit City, Famous Footwear, Foot Locker, David's Bridal, H&M, Gap and Old Navy. I tend to avoid The Source. Not as large as RF. Parking is horrendous.

Americana Manhasset Also known as the "Miracle Mile." Includes Louis Vuitton, Prada, Oscar de la Renta, Giorgio Armani, Ralph Lauren and Tiffany & Co. People with money shop here :) I like to browse.

[indygphib]

Indianapolis

Nice Mall: The Fashion Mall at Keystone at the Crossing - Sak's, Crate & Barrel, Pottery Barn, White House/Black Market, bebe, Cole-Haan, J Crew, Banana Republic, Ann Taylor, MAC, and a bunch of other stores I can't think of right now. Coming soon: Nordstrom

Yucky Malls: Washington Square and Lafayette Square malls. Gang Banger Central.

[tld221]

I heart living in the middle of Long Island and having way too many from which to choose! But I primarily shop in Nassau County, except for the few times I've headed out to the Tanger Outlets in Riverhead (a hike):

Roosevelt Field Shopping Mall Anchor stores include Macy's, Nordstrom's, Bloomingdale's and JC Penney's. Also includes Coach, Ann Taylor, Apple, Dick's Sporting Goods, A&F, Gap, Diesel, Armani Exchange, Kenneth Cole, Hollister, Express, Urban Outfitters, Guess, H&M and a movie theatre and restaurants. I used to live 8 minutes from RF and worked at the Macy's while in school. I love that place. I could find my way around there blindfolded :) However, it gets extremely crowded. Everyone and their mother is there on a Saturday afternoon.

Broadway Mall Anchored by Macy's, Target, IKEA and a movie theatre. I'm sad Express just closed. Contains H&M, AE, Old Navy and smaller tweeny-bopper stores. This used to be the mall that the parents used to think was "safe" and would just drop the kids off for a few hours. It was small and then grew in recent years. The mall is still teeming with middle schoolers. It's just convenient for me if I need anything, as it's on the way home from work.

The Mall at the Source Expanded after RF started growing. Includes Fortunoff, Dave & Busters, The Cheesecake Factory, Circuit City, Famous Footwear, Foot Locker, David's Bridal, H&M, Gap and Old Navy. I tend to avoid The Source. Not as large as RF. Parking is horrendous.

Americana Manhasset Also known as the "Miracle Mile." Includes Louis Vuitton, Prada, Oscar de la Renta, Giorgio Armani, Ralph Lauren and Tiffany & Co. People with money shop here :) I like to browse.

Roosevelt Mall is so the win (except on a Saturday afternoon - sheesh!) it's like a rite of passage to have worked there in HS/college (Hofstra/NCC/surrounding HS).

[KSUViolet06]

Also under Okay: Great Lakes Mall, Belden Village

Nicest: Crocker Park

I forgot about those! Thanks!

[AGDLynn]

Hubby works across the street from Perimeter..it's getting better, lol.
Gwinnett - very down hill fast.
Mall of Ga. - yea
Discover Mills - very down hill fast.
South Dekalb - Near my work but I rarely go there.
North Dekalb and Northlake--Forget they are there, lol.
Cumberland - It's improved. Gone there a couple of times since they reopened but haven't had a chance to take my time looking.

Lenox and Perimeter - usually go to other malls b/c of the traffic problem.

[tnxbutterfly]

Here in North Dallas where I live, there are about 7 or 8 different malls near me. I've been to about 5 of them

Here are my rankings:

Nice Malls:

Galleria( cause it has Sacks,Norstroms,Ann Taylors)

Stonebriar-fairly new mall has Eddie Bauer,J Crew,Talbots

Shops of Willow Bend- I've never actually been there,but it's in Plano and Plano is a very rich section of North Dallas

Middle Tier:

Vista Ridge, Valley View

Kind of Yucky:
Collin Creek, Richardson Square


Nice malls:
Northpark- every since they expanded it, it's the largest mall in Texas. Has a lot of high end stores (lush, eddie bauer,Barney's) Plus it right down the road from the flagship Half-Price Books store. I think the bookstore is like 55,000sq feet

Galleria- I hardly every go there. Parking sucks

Stonebair- I love this mall. It's such a family friendly type of mall

The Outlet mall in Allen- nice place to spend a Saturday. Gets extremely crowded during the hoildays/ no-tax weekend

Middle Tier:

Shops at Willow Bend- Yes it has decent stores (DSW, Saks, Bare Essentials (the store is about to open nex month) It's not a very family friendly tyoe of mall. Basically, you come to this mall when you know exactly what you intend to buy. I worked at the Dillards in this mall

Vista Ridge

Collin Creek

Grapevine Mills


Yucky malls:

Valley View- Yes they did build that AMC, it's just yuck

Richardson Square- But I think they closed down

[AnchorAlumna]

Hubby works across the street from Perimeter..it's getting better, lol.
Gwinnett - very down hill fast.
Mall of Ga. - yea
Discover Mills - very down hill fast.
South Dekalb - Near my work but I rarely go there.
North Dekalb and Northlake--Forget they are there, lol.
Cumberland - It's improved. Gone there a couple of times since they reopened but haven't had a chance to take my time looking.

Lenox and Perimeter - usually go to other malls b/c of the traffic problem.
Thanks for the update, Lynn!
Cumberland...I think I was there when they opened the doors, but haven't been there since like 1975:eek:! I did love living in Atlanta.

Now...how about NASHVILLE malls? Any Nashvillians here? Surely Cool Springs is not the top mall...I mean, we have most of the stores here in the Decatur/Huntsville, Ala., area. Please give me a reason to drive to Nashville for the day!:D

[Dionysus]

"Every town has the same two malls: the one that white people go to and the one that white people used to go to"

-Chris Rock

[ADqtPiMel]

Indianapolis

Nice Mall: The Fashion Mall at Keystone at the Crossing - Sak's, Crate & Barrel, Pottery Barn, White House/Black Market, bebe, Cole-Haan, J Crew, Banana Republic, Ann Taylor, MAC, and a bunch of other stores I can't think of right now. Coming soon: Nordstrom

Yucky Malls: Washington Square and Lafayette Square malls. Gang Banger Central.

I grew up near Indy and I love the Fashion Mall. I also like Circle Center (I think that's what it's called...we walk through it when it's cold and we're going to Colts games). I remember going to Washington Square mall when I was little...it was just starting to go south at that point.

[indygphib]

I grew up near Indy and I love the Fashion Mall. I also like Circle Center (I think that's what it's called...we walk through it when it's cold and we're going to Colts games). I remember going to Washington Square mall when I was little...it was just starting to go south at that point.

Circle Centre still has decent shopping (Nordstrom, Carson Pirie Scott, Ann Taylor H&M), but it's overrun with shady teenagers and some gang bangers on the weekends. I tend to shop there on weeknights.

Washington Square and Lafayette Square malls are not-so-affectionately called Washington Scare and Lafayette Scare. I can't remember when I have last shopped at either place.

[AUDeltaGam]

Now...how about NASHVILLE malls? Any Nashvillians here? Surely Cool Springs is not the top mall...I mean, we have most of the stores here in the Decatur/Huntsville, Ala., area. Please give me a reason to drive to Nashville for the day!:D


Green Hills mall! :D

[tld221]

"Every town has the same two malls: the one that white people go to and the one that white people used to go to"

-Chris Rock

now THAT is real talk.

[smiley21]

"Every town has the same two malls: the one that white people go to and the one that white people used to go to"

-Chris Rock


LOL. :p

[TNPhiMu]

Now...how about NASHVILLE malls? Any Nashvillians here? Surely Cool Springs is not the top mall...I mean, we have most of the stores here in the Decatur/Huntsville, Ala., area. Please give me a reason to drive to Nashville for the day!:D

Definitely Green Hills... I know they've got Tiffany & Co and I'm pretty sure Louis Vuitton is going in (if it's not already there).

Cool Springs is one of the nicer malls... but not the top.

I'm ready to see what they are gonna do with the Bellevue Mall. I remember back in the day when we went there all the time because it was about 10 minutes from the house. But, when Cool Springs came in, it took all the business away. But, from the plans I've heard, they are planning on tearing it down and doing "The Avenue" kind of plan... like the one in Destin and Avenue @ The Crossing in Collierville, TN (outside of Memphis).

[Fleur de Lis]

NASHVILLE malls? Any Nashvillians here? Surely Cool Springs is not the top mall...I mean, we have most of the stores here in the Decatur/Huntsville, Ala., area. Please give me a reason to drive to Nashville for the day!:D

Cool Springs is a little more suburban - tons of outlying shopping and kid-friendly stores. Green Hills is more upscale and quiet - Louis Vuitton, Tiffany, Ann Taylor, etc. There are also a lot of boutique stores within walking distance, so check out Bandywood St. or the Hill Center, as well, if you're in the area. Opry Mills has a ton of outlet stores (including Saks!) and different kinds of stores. It is also great if you just want to walk around and kill some time. However, it can get crazy-busy with tourists on the weekends. Our yucky mall is Hundred Oaks - it is scary.