28th & Lex

The area boasts unparalleled access to curry and idling taxis.

I lived on 31st and lex for about two years and hated it. This was in '01-03. east_cider is correct it's like a no man's land it's not a neighborhood...it just exists.

I lived at 39th and Lex. from 01-03 and thought it was fine. Not the cool part of town (and never will be), but it has all the amenities one would need. I think the main reason to be there is proximity to working in Midtown. Being able to walk to work each day is a HUGE plus in my book and outweighed being in a boring part of town. Plus, it is centarlly located and near subways, so you cen get to anywhere in the city fairly easily. It is also very safe in that area in my experience. As for restaurant, there are plenty and they are fine - you would be pretty close to Union Square, so lots of fancy restaurants in walking/short cab distance. Only negative for me is lack of good park space for kids. Good luck.

Third Ave has a wide variety of restaurants and bars, etc. Very much a neighborhood feel. As starfish pointed out, it's near Union Square's amenities, but also those around Madison Square--fewer and newer but closer.

I have lived in the area for a LONG time and my evaluation would depend on your lifestage. If you are within five or so years from college graduation, its ideal...many of your peers are here (a relatively recent phenonmenon) and Third Avenue from 23 to about 36th Street is one bar and/or relatively cheap eatery after another. If you would rather not have to hear about who hooked up with who while waiting on line at the bagelry Sunday morning, this may not be the area for you.
On the other hand, prices are fair, we do have Todaro's at 30th and 2nd that can give any other grocery in town good competition (and great mozzellera); and access to finer dining especially steakhouses--Wolfgangs, Primehouse NYC not to mention proximity to the Union Square/Flatiron restuarants. And if your lifestage is "family", PS 116 is supposed to be an excellent school if not as publicized as 234, 41, 6 et al. I am not aware of options for pre-school but I'm sure they are there as well.

Transportation is a bit of a pain unless your life is lived along the East Side since only the 6 train is readily (as in walkable on the worst winter morning) accessible. Much of the time I find myself going uptown to come down the West Side.

As for safety, all I can say is that things have changed alot since I moved in the early 1980s. At that time the area was home to notorious welfare hotels and Park and Lexington Avenues were renowned prostite strolls. If I wanted to work out in the morning I often literally had to climb over homeless people to leave my doorway. Home burgleries were common and every morning at least one car parked on th block had been broken into. It is VERY different now, although I have to say I'm not in the habit of coming home in the wee hours (or working out in the morning) any more...I feel very safe in the area.

As I said, not perfect and not for everyone...but still and area worth looking at if you care more about value and convenience than a "cool" location.

Preschools are great-IPS, Acorn