While Waveland Avenue is known as a street where you can catch out-of-the-park left-field homers and cool lake-blown breezes, much of what lies east of the excitement has been desolate for quite some time. But the quiet northeast has come to life of late. On a corner just west of Lake Shore Drive at Waveland and Broadway, the authentic Irish pub Finley Mahony’s, named after co-owner/bartender Dominic O’Mahony’s year-old son, just celebrated its one-year anniversary. And according to the outdoor patrons enjoying the newly created brick patio with built-in lake breeze it has become the place for those especially near but also to those from afar.
“I was new to the city and I met people [at Finley’s]. I moved here a few months ago but it already feels like home,” says Matt Schindler, 24.
Joan Montgomery, age 63 and her husband John, age 73 have lived down the street since 1991. They have seen their native blocks go through many changes and struggle to gain a comfortable vibe.
“This area was void of any activity. Then Finley’s opened and it was the birth of a neighborhood,” she says. (Anthony Regan)
Finley Mahony’s, 3701 North Broadway, (773)549-0226
