By Andrea Smith

With over 75 shops and restaurants, the Prudential Center ranked number one as the “Best Place to Shop” by Northeastern students. The Prudential Center is just a hop, skip and T ride away; take the Green line to the Prudential stop.

The Prudential Center, nicknamed the “Pru,” is heaven for a shopaholic. With such a wide variety of stores, everyone is bound to find something. For those that love department store shopping, there is Saks Fifth Avenue, where you can get your trendy clothes, shoes and accessories in one shot. For the girls who love make-up there is Sephora, where you can roam the aisles forever sampling any color eye shadow, blush or lipstick imaginable. Arden B. and Barami are perfect for girls into funky clothing and adorable accessories perfect for a night out.

The Prudential also has a variety of great stores for the guys who enjoy shopping. The newly-opened Lacoste store offers a selection of clothes for the guy into the “preppy” style. This season, Lacoste wind pants have become increasingly popular in London and the trend is now crossing over into America. So for the guys who want to be in style, stop in Lacoste and pick up a pair.

For the guys whose style consists of a comfortable cotton shirt and jeans, Levi’s is the place to go. And of course, for the guys that love to support the Boston sports teams, there is Olympia Sports. This store is the place to go to get jerseys and T-shirts to wear while rooting for your favorite teams.

After a long day of shopping, the best thing to do is sit down and have a good meal. For those on a college budget, the Prudential building has a food court where you can get a good meal at an inexpensive price. There is Boston Chowda, which offers the best New England clam chowder in a bread bowl. Among others, the food court also offers Panda Express, Flamers, Sakkio Japan or Pizzeria Regina.

For a nice sit down dinner, the Prudential Center houses some of the best restaurants in Boston. If you enjoy seafood, the dining at Legal Seafood is truly an experience to die for. The Cheesecake Factory is also good, offering a variety of food. Just don’t forget to order a piece of their amazing cheesecake for dessert.

Students at Northeastern chose the Prudential Center because it is easy to get to, has some of the best stores in Boston, and after you shop, you can sit down and have a good meal.