Where you live is only half the problem. The other half is that the modern undergrad has, apparently, unlimited free time. A consequence is that if I want an ice cream cone in Berkeley I have to stand in a line 45 minutes deep. It's actually sort of a big issue!
Actually it's a notoriously bad environment for retail businesses, with astronomical rents, high labor costs, endless red tape, and a thriving industry of extortion from "neighborhood benefits organizations" and other organized criminals.