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The rebirth of 48 Main

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48  Main bar and music venue is the kind of place where everyone knows your name. It’s easy to feel like you have a sense of belonging in the warm and cosy space. And that vision, brought to life by the late Steve McMahon, holds a very special place in the hearts of locals and visitors alike.

Now, the beloved bar is back with just the right people at the helm. Under the dedicated stewardship of Steve’s sister, Leah, and brother, A.J., 48 Main is ready to create new cherished memories.

In honour of their brother, the bar remains furnished in just the way Steve saw fit, albeit with a fresh lick of paint, some new blinds and an expanded courtyard garden. Eclectic knick-knacks make the space feel like a home. There are fairy lights, model cars, dried flowers and vintage lamps. “He was such a creative soul, and he had a vision for this place. The vintage bike up there belongs to our great aunty,” Leah said.

In fact, Steve, Leah and A.J have a long family history in Maldon. Though the McMahon family were raised in Melbourne, they came to Maldon every Easter Parade, and at other times to visit to their grandmother’s sister, Great Aunt Lil (Lillian Merlot). Lil used to own the venue when it was a shop that sold, among other things, locally made women’s underwear. Even their mother, Brenda, worked there as a teenager.

While the building has been in the family for generations, Steve truly made it his own. Settling in Maldon, he transformed the family shop into 48 Main, the small bar with an immense heart. “Some people doubted the need for a bar like this one in Maldon, but Steve opened it, and the community came,” Leah said. A passionate supporter of music, the intimate space  with beautiful acoustics offered a different type of live music experience to others.

The crowd at the reopening event, The new smiling face of 48 Main, Leah McMahon. Photos: Mike Jones (left), Tarrangower Times (right)

And then there was the service with a smile that made anyone feel welcome. “Steve had a way of making you feel like you were the only person in the room,” Leah told the Times. And while Leah herself feels a little coyer, her broad smile offers the same openhearted warmth that Steve was known for.

Although reopening took longer than expected, Leah has enjoyed throwing herself into the project as a practical way of transforming her grief. “I’ve never booked bands before or understood the plumbing of a bar!” Leah explained. But now she’s embracing the community that so readily embraced 48 Main.

The bar will offer local brews, wines and live music on at least two nights a week. There’ll be a regular open mic night making sure to continue the tradition of supporting the emerging local music scene, too. And, of course, there’ll be the wholehearted welcome of Leah and A.J.

While the family and community still come to terms with the huge loss in Steve’s passing, his legacy is ensured. 48 Main is in the safest of hands as Maldon reembraces and relishes the opportunity to fall in love all over again.

Tarrangower Times 19 May 2023

This article appeared in the Tarrangower Times, 19 May 2023.

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