Little boxes on the hillside, Little boxes made of ticky-tacky / Little boxes on the hillside, little boxes all the same / There's a green one and a pink one and a blue one and a yellow one / And they're all made out of ticky-tacky and they all look just the same.

- Lyrics from Little Boxes (theme song to Weeds, by Malvina Reynolds)

Sometimes it seems as if pop culture in the past 30 years has been bent on raking the 'burbs over the coals. From the Orwellian sanitization of tract housing and identical garbage cans to the franchised and faceless strip-mall chains, artists and filmmakers delight in firing volley after volley at suburbia.

American Beauty. Desperate Housewives. Weeds. Even The Sopranos delighted in the paradox of mob bosses mowing lawns and having barbecues. The common theme is that the button- down lifestyle led by suburbanites was always hiding something, some sort of fantastic energy yearning to burst free from a repressive culture that stifles the creative spirit - energy manifested by filming plastic bags floating on the breeze, slinging dope or sleeping with everyone else's spouse.

This is precisely why I like Bistro Al Vino.

Nestled in a strip mall a block off Orchard and Parker roads, Bistro Al Vino displays an unapologetic joie de vivre that sparkles against the neutral tones of the neighborhood. The only thing repressed here is a frown.

When we walked in last weekend, owner Al Schwartz greeted us personally at the door, a huge grin on his face. He reached over and touched the Chai hanging around my neck and kissed his fingers. An intimate and slightly unsettling display among my gentile friends, but one that simply carried with it a happy blessing among Jews: L'Chaim. To life.

I immediately felt welcomed. Within a few moments, the happy proprietor did much to make the rest of our party feel the same.

If it weren't for the bank of plate-glass windows on one wall, it would be easy to forget the strip-mall environs. The digs are cozy and warm: plum paint pops against tan, arcing track lighting chases itself in twirling paths on the ceiling and fixtures glow in deep blues and reds and purples. The long bar is complemented by big, comfortable stools covered in upholstery that hints at Mediterranean patterns. A small back room boasts an enormous flat-screen TV and a mirrored disco ball.

Risqué sculptures are complemented by martinis with names we can't print. Laughter fills the room, much of it from our table as the cocktails show no sign of dwindling.

The stage is almost always occupied. The music is on the loud side, segueing from annoying to somehow charming, even though it's so hard to hear Schwartz speak over the din (He survived throat cancer against heavy odds, and his voice is a rasp).

With a deep wine list, designer martinis and an Asian- infused menu that bounces around the Americas and Europe, Bistro Al Vino is a symbol that culture and energy and creativity don't just survive in the 'burbs.

They thrive.

Bistro Al Vino

15352 E. Ida Drive, Aurora 303-400-3166

• Happy hour weekdays, 3 to 6 p.m.; $4 well, $3 bottled beers, $2 wine by the glass, half off all apps and $2 off all wine flights

• Live entertainment almost every night of the month

• Check out the Sunday brunch; bottomless mimosas and Bellinis for $12.