Shared plates, wine and good company in a relaxed atmosphere is music to my ears and an even better time for my belly. A visit to North Hobart’s Malik was a satisfying and effortless meal between five girlfriends and me.

Malik’s menu is filled with contemporary Middle Eastern/ Mediterranean dishes, familiar flavours and style of cooking, but a little more sophisticated and carried by a solid variety of vegetarian, seafood and meat options.

The menu is separated into starters, smalls, larger and sides. I knew from a prior visit that the servings are generous. We settled into four small plates while a bottle of well-loved Arras bubbles quenched our thirst. The tamarind-glazed baby octopus ($27.50) was abundant – between six we were able to all nab a piece of tentacle with a punch from the herby-garlicky salsa verde. If there is one cuisine that has mastered cauliflower dishes it’s Lebanese, so we trusted our gut and ordered that. The oven baked wagyu kefta with pomegranate salsa ($26.50) were as juicy as I remember, the salsa and smoky tomato sauce acting as a wave of freshness to the spiced beef. The king prawns with aged chilli ($26) were a little more difficult to share between six but packed with flavour while the aged chilli kept the heat to a fragrant level. Our only regret was not getting flatbread to mop up the buttery juices left on the plate.

Next up was the seafood paella ($45.50) and Wild Clover lamb shoulder (smaller size $44) as large plates, and the potatoes ($15.50), seasonal greens ($17), and pumpkin ($16.50) as sides. The paella was laced with king prawns, mussels, and squid while the lamb shoulder pulled apart easily as you would expect and decadently rich. Fried potatoes never go astray, and mum would have been happy that we got our dose of vegetables, even if it was washed down with some reasonably priced Tassie pinot noir. While we didn’t make it to dessert, I recommend leaving space in that little dessert stomach for the crème caramel ($16). Silky baked custard with lashings of Pedro Ximenez toffee sauce is a weakness and an opulent end to a very easy evening.

The service was perfectly attentive all evening, our waitress helping with quantities to ensure we didn’t over order (some­thing I’m notorious for) and making for an effortless night. The space is a simple and cosy affair so bookings are recommended