Crowded? Yes! But not as crowded as some other malls - ex: Southpark and Concord Mills.
I mean its a mall, so within the general mall area you are going to find most of your major box stores and chain restaurants. For example, there is a Dick's Clothing and Sporting Goods directly attached to the mall and there is a Best Buy in the shopping plaza directly across the street.
Parking can be tricky if you get stuck on the wrong side of the mall. I do not recommend parking near Dick's or Bravo! Drive around to the other side and park near the Dillard's or near the AMC movie theater.
There are plenty of stores with plenty of variety for every member of the family. There are plenty of athletic clothing and shoe stores in Northlake mall for the sporting nut like myself. In contrast there are also plenty of girly stores like Foreever 21.
Last think I want to say about Northlake - they don't have the best prices, and I learned that first hand while Christmas shopping recently. Stores like Coach at Concord Mills have much greater sales and variety than the Coach at Northlake. So if you are looking for the best deals, Northlake may not be the mall for you.