For a bar that’s only been open a couple months, Rocco’s Twisted Sisters sure earned a loyal following fast.

Tucked beside the Island’s End golf course, in a building that has cycled through a string of past lives — Skippers, Rocco’s Caddyshack, Skippers Two — the bar is now run by two sisters with deep roots on the North Fork, Kristy VanBrunt and Sharon Harbin.

The sisters, veteran North Fork bartenders, decided to take the leap from working behind other people’s bars to building one of their own. They opened in November. On any given night, the place feels less like a conventional nightlife spot than a communal living room.

Inside, music spills from the jukebox, candles glow against red-lit walls and the room fills with people who greet one another like old friends. Hugs are common. So is dancing. More often than not, regulars don’t order; their drinks are waiting for them on the bar when they walk in.

The family’s connection to the building stretches back decades. VanBrunt said her father was the first chef at Skippers, the restaurant that once occupied the space.

“I have vivid memories of sitting at the bar with [former owner] Bobby Heaney and coloring when dad was working,” she said.

Twisted Sisters was created largely on the sisters’ own terms and on a tight budget.

“We didn’t have money,” VanBrunt said. “It was designed on a dime.”

They painted, sanded and renovated the bar themselves, filling it with original artwork, patterned wallpaper and a growing installation of shoes — mostly high heels, but a pair of well-worn work boots, too — hanging from the ceiling, many donated by friends and regulars, with messages written on the soles.

That do-it-yourself aesthetic resonated quickly with patrons. Maggie Lutz, who splits her time between Huntington and East Marion, said she’d been waiting impatiently for the bar to open.

“I literally dance the nights away in there,” Lutz said.

She credits the atmosphere as much as the bartenders. “The ambiance is amazing: the red lights, all different colors, the candles,” she said, adding that the space reflects both sisters’ personalities. “They’re both artists.”

The décor may catch the eye, but Lutz said the people behind the bar keep regulars coming back. “You walk right in and they already know what you’re drinking,” she said. “Some bartenders do not have personalities, but those two girls? Forget it.”

That loyalty shows up night after night. Stephen Suspenski, a retired health care executive who lives in Orient, said he and his partner go to Twisted Sisters at least three times a week.

“We’re all very excited,” he said. “They’re local girls. They’re lovely people, and everybody’s rooting for them to succeed. It’s a very comfortable, very relaxed, welcoming place.”

They’re still operating as a bar first — not a sports bar, not a full restaurant — but food is on their near-term horizon.

“We want to introduce food soon,” VanBrunt said. For now, she’s crowdsourcing the menu, “asking my customers what kind of food they want, because they’re the clientele.”

As first-time business owners, they’re learning the permitting process as they go and are focused for now on getting comfortable behind the bar and listening to customers.

That sense of camaraderie between Twisted Sisters’ owners and its customers has become central to the bar’s identity. VanBrunt said regulars routinely pitch in: fixing small things, grabbing ice or even picking up birthday cakes.

“Our customers are part of this business,” she said. “It’s not just us. It’s like family.”

Harbin said it’s been “very moving” talking to people who go out of their way to get there. “We are not in the heart of the town. To see people come to the door to support us — people I never thought would go out of their way to come — they have.”

Andrew Anselmo, another regular, said that sense of belonging was immediate. “I have always felt welcomed and have gotten to know many new friends,” he said. “Everyone seems to always have a great time and get along, regardless of age or background.”

He cited the music, pool table and occasional live performances as part of the appeal and said he’s already looking ahead to warmer months, when the backyard and kitchen come into fuller use.

Opening in the off-season was a gamble, the sisters acknowledge, but one they felt was worth taking. With so many places operating seasonally, they wanted to give locals a reason to go out in winter.

That gamble has paid off in busy midweek nights, birthday parties and group texts urging friends to stop by. Lutz said she’s missed only one week since opening.

“They’re like family to me,” she said.

For VanBrunt, the long hours and hard work fade once the room fills.

“Once the people come in, I light up,” she said.

When the sisters were bartending at Whiskey Wind, a group of local craftsmen and laborers would gather for “mandatory meetings” at the Greenport tavern.

Now, on Thursdays, the new Greenport hot spot fills with some of the same old crew, but with a new twist.

“Now they call it ‘Therapy Thursday,’” VanBrunt said with a smile.