Sydney has no shortage of Thai restaurants, but the promise of a serve of one of the city's best miang khams just behind the sands of Balmoral Beach takes some beating. We'll take two, please.

In one of the cleverest pivots since the coronavirus etched itself on our lexicon, Bathers' Pavilion is turning its coveted upstairs function space into a Thai restaurant. And not just any Thai restaurant.

It'll be skippered by Ty Bellingham, the 12-year veteran head chef at the venerable Sailors Thai restaurant.

With Sydney's wedding and function season dulled by COVID-19, the opening of Betel Leaf @ Bathers' on July 23 is a no-brainer. It'll have a run of at least six months, and Bellingham says it'll also occupy half of Bathers' famed verandah, which has sweeping Middle Harbour views.

The food will be upstairs-downstairs of Sailors Thai, sweeping together the style of the old canteen and its fine diner. The opening menu will zigzag from pork ribs with Thai whisky sauce to green curry king prawns, duck relish on baby cos and steamed blue-eye in a ginger and garlic broth.

Bellingham amassed a sizeable collection of chefs' hats during his tenure at Sailors Thai, as well as earning good reviews at Kittychai in New York. He had a fan in Bathers' director Jessica Shirvington, who put the deal together.

"I live on the northern beaches, so it felt a good mix," Bellingham said.

Open lunch Thu-Sun; dinner Wed-Sat.

4 The Esplanade, Mosman, 02 9969 5050, batherspavilion.com.au