The Upper East Side is huge and changes a lot as you head north. But, in general, it is considered pretty uppity. The people are pretty snooty and the area is quite dull. There's not a lot going on in the realm of restaurants, bars, theatre, you name it. The park is great but you can get that on the west side. And, I prefer the architecture of the Upper West Side to the East hand over foot. Transportation is also marginal in the Upper East Side because there's only one train line that runs through it. If you find a great place, it's not horrible to live there. It's just boring and the people that live there (for the most part) are not my cup of tea. Let's just say if you walked in sweat pants to grab a coffee, it would be very noticeable. If you did that in the West Village, nobody would blink.
