Like coffee? Like punk rock? Yeah? Well, geez, then there's a place you ought to check out, Logan Square's answer to Starbucks and disco, New Wave Coffee. Prepare yourself to hear a heavy dosage of The Pixies, The Ramones and other indie-rock goodness from years gone by (like Elvis Costello and Echo & The Bunnymen, who both have vinyl records hanging behind the counter).

Yellow-and-black checkerboard floor and postmodern paintings hammer in the retro theme, but neither are as fun as the Nintendo hooked up to the huge, clunky big-screen television (that looks like it weighs 300 pounds). Games you forgot existed (Contra!) are suddenly remembered after a jolt of caffeine.

And all that good stuff doesn't even include the actual coffee, supplied by the good people at Metropolis. A cup of Joe will run you the usual $2 or so, and the consistent quality of all the roasts (I refuse to play Super Mario without dark-roasted hazelnut) should solidify the shop as a neighborhood favorite. Espressos and chais also do the trick, while a few food items - scones and cheesecake and such - are nice compliments to kickass coffee.

The single complaint for New Wave is that it doesn't quite have that "cozy" feel you'd expect from an indie coffee shop (yet). Yes, the furniture (all pieces are delightfully off-color and appear to have been bought from a thrift store) fills most of the room, but there's so much space that it's a tad spread out. But other than that, with postmodern paintings, an uber-cool staff, and - this is the kicker - free Wi-Fi, New Wave Coffee has all the makings to be a popular mainstay in the increasingly hipster-filled Logan Square.

Centerstage Reviewer: Andy Seifert