Interesting not so much, but still a great place to live. Crabtree definitely has its positives. A lot of hotels (12), quite a bit of apartment complexes within half a mile, 8 bus lines including 15 min frequency to downtown (one of which I used to get to the fair this year), and the best greenway connected shopping area in Raleigh. It definitely lacks in nightlife, bars/breweries, and overall indoor entertainment. For the entertainment, you could technically get it in North Hills which is pretty close. A lot of people do consider Crabtree to be one of the top shopping places in the area. So I do think that does add a bit of “interesting-ness” to it.
Just my opinion since living out here almost 5 years now.
I feel that “up-and-coming” is used in a lot of places that really aren’t. You hear of a new 200 home subdivision and people will say that is “up-and-coming”.