Upper Laurel, Oakland

Upper Laurel is a middle-class mostly residential neighborhood just to the north of Mills College.

Upper Laurel is packed with California Bungalow style homes. Half of the homes in the neighborhood were built before 1950—not at all uncommon in this area. There are also a number of apartment buildings in the Upper Laurel area. These complexes sometimes present a false front, looking like a house in front but extending back along alley ways. In addition, there are some newer gated buildings in this neighborhood. Both kinds of apartments contribute to the high population density that this neighborhood has.

There are three schools in the neighborhood: Laurel Elementary, American Indian Public Charter School and St. Lawrence O’Toole’s. Laurel is a strong school that both tests well and has excellent community support. American Indian is also a very good, rigorous school. St. Lawrence O’Toole’s, on the other hand, has gotten mixed reviews from parents. Those that don’t like it claim that they have unrealistic expectations for students and that the staff is older and unresponsive to parents’ concerns. Since it’s a private school, I have no way to judge whether they do well on objective standards.

Upper Laurel’s main drag is MacArthur Blvd. There are several restaurants and stores along MacArthur. Restaurants include places like Louisiana Fried Chicken and Phnom Penh, both quite yummy. There are also an number of what you might call boutique stores. Mizaan, for example, is a really cool women’s clothing store with a similar aesthetic to Urban Outfitters, while Monique’s Clozet is a really sweet thrift store that specializes in women’s clothing as well. The one that I think is really unique, however, is Africa by the Bay, a store that sells everything African from clothing to body care products (such as moisturizers and shampoos). Very cool and very authentic.

There are even a couple of pretty good nightspots here, Laurel Lounge being the one that is on Upper Laurel’s side. Laurel Lounge is great neighborhood bar that has one of the most diverse clienteles you can find anywhere. It’s just a sports bar with a pool table--pretty standard, really--but seems to be right at the nexus where lots of different people from different walks of life congregate.

In the proverbial nutshell, this is a really hip, multicultural neighborhood with affordable homes and a feeling of authenticity.