If the pandemic was a universal lesson in dealing with misfortune, that goes double for chefs. In the case of Shane Delia, it meant taking the disappointment of his newly fledged Maha Bar being forgotten in a wave of lockdowns and turning it into the bright new Collingwood bauble Maha North.

“Maha Bar was doing well before lockdowns, but the love wasn’t there anymore, so I switched it up,” says the head of the Maha Group.

No one can accuse Delia of not rolling with the punches. The end of April also saw Providoor, the high-end home delivery service he launched during Covid, go into liquidation.

“It’s all about being flexible,” the perpetually cheerful chef says. “With Maha North it was time to do something different, to get back on the radar.”

A mini refit kept the mid-century good looks of fluted glass and timber with touches of whimsy such as the varnished cork bar. And while the name attests it began as a northside answer to Chapel St’s buzzing Maha East, the North sibling quickly assumed its own personality.

“There’s a difference between the two venues, whether it’s the look, the people or the menu,” says Delia.

The food, which segues easily from snacks to bigger share-format plates, is a lesson in Delia’s signature melding of Middle Eastern and Mediterranean ingredients and traditions.

Geographically elusive but cohesive in the eating, it flits around Turkey, Lebanon, Greece and the Middle East; look no further than the king prawns encased in the crunchy tendrils of kataifi pastry and doused in Aleppo pepper honey with toasted almonds, or the charry-edged, just-cured kingfish getting down with whipped cod roe and pickled vegetables.

Hummus is guaranteed to appear in multiple velvety guises – macadamia hummus is a silken ballast to gutsy wagyu kefta served with fried flatbread and barbecued onions – while smoked eggplant is another motif, inseparable from slow-roasted lamb shoulder with a za’atar spiked jus.

For those of us old enough to remember, it’s chastening to hear the Maha flagship in the CBD is celebrating its 15th anniversary this year. For Delia it’s a milestone to be celebrated while remaining enthusiastic about the future and the ever-present possibility of change.

For those yet to visit Maha North or due for a return trip to Maha, May is definitely the time to do it.

Maha East, Maha North, Maha Restaurant and Jayda are offering specials to celebrate American Express delicious. Month Out.

At Maha North, customers can BYO with no corkage charge every Sunday and Wednesday in May.

Head to delicious.com.au/dmo to view more delicious offers and deals this month.

Maha North
Where: 86 Smith St, Collingwood
Phone: 9417 3531
Open: Wed-Sat 5-11pm, Sun noon-11pm
What: Free corkage on Sunday lunch and dinner times and Wednesday dinner times for the month of May as part of American Express delicious. Month Out
Web: mahanorth.com.au

Related news: Colin Fassnidge is hosting the ultimate bottomless brunch this month