The Whirlaway is located near the corner of Kedzie and Fullerton in Chicago's Logan Square, an up-and-coming area for artists, musicians and students-a population that has embraced the tavern for its warmth and lack of pretence. Last week, postpunk band Ted Leo and the Pharmacists stopped by for a drink after their show at the Logan Square Auditorium. Members of the Waco Brothers are regulars, as well. From the discs on the jukebox to the pictures that line the walls, one gets a sense that the bar is a safe haven for local creatives.

"A lot of things that you see in the bars in Chicago are dedicated to a 'night' or a 'scene'," according to bar regular Brad Dornick, a 29-year-old communications designer. "With the Whirlaway, you'll have four or five different scenes happening in a night, and everyone are friends."

Open year round, save for a few weeks every winter when Maria and Sergio travel to Mexico to visit family for the holidays, the Whirlaway a gathering place for those in search of a sense of community. This is never more apparent than at Christmastime.

"[Our] Christmas [party] is a very special night for all of us," says Maria between turns at the pool table. "We decorate the bar; we sing carols; people come and play [music] for us...we have a good time."

Maria is the kind of business owner who takes holidays, birthdays and first names seriously. "Logan Square's Friendliest Neighborhood Lounge," reads the business card (which was designed by a loyal patron to complement the Web site, www.whirlaway.net, designed by her son, Sergio) and for once this isn't an example of hyperbole.

"It all starts when you walk through the door and meet Maria and she introduces you to two or three of your brand new friends," says Dornick.

"I always treat people with respect," says Maria of her simple business philosophy, "and I think that [they] appreciate that."

This respect is mutual-so much so that it seems unlikely that anyone would come to the Whirlaway looking for trouble. Friends tell friends about the bar, and any buzz is by word of mouth. "If you are a very nice person and come to my place and like my place, [then] you are more willing to tell a friend," Maria reasons. "That friend of yours will be like you."

Again, words like "safe haven" and "community" seem appropriate. Maria has a way of nurturing her young patrons as only a mother would. "This is not just a business," says Maria before returning to the pool table, "I make you feel comfortable here."