When I opened the menu at Bangkok by the Bay, the last thing I wanted to order was pad Thai. It’s possible I’ve eaten that classic combination of noodles, bean sprouts, tofu, egg and chicken—and sometimes shrimp—101 million times. Back in the ’90s, my first ketchupy plate of it in the Lower Haight was a dubious start and, as it turned out, an exception to the rule. Nearly every other Bay Area Thai restaurant I’ve eaten at since then prepares the now-familiar dish as a hearty plate of comfort food that’s as hard to resist as chow mein, bun, ramen, udon or spaghetti. For several years, cha kathiew, the Cambodian equivalent of pad Thai, became my regular Sunday night takeaway from Oakland’s Phnom Penh. But a plate of laab, properly drenched in the juice of a thousand tangy limes, was the first entrée to catch my attention. Bangkok by the Bay’s co-owners Sung Makawatsakul and Nantika Julakasilp serve laab gai ($18) in a dark purple, absolutely edible, cabbage leaf. It’s one of four dishes listed under the menu heading Isaan Som Tum Sets, along with laab hed, mushrooms instead of chicken; gai yang, grilled chicken; and sai oua, grilled pork sausage. The sets all come with sticky rice and a serving of fresh papaya salad and crudites! Diners like me who favor sour flavor combinations, lime and fish sauce and chili, will find themselves in their own happy acidic heaven. I loved that sticky rice was the default rice choice and not a special request. I usually add it to a bowl of tom kha gai, as it holds up better than steamed rice.   Bangkok by the Bay recently opened on Heinz Avenue, where Riva Cucina operated its Italian kitchen for 17 years. The restaurant is located right down the way from Berkeley Bowl West and, chameleon-like, is hard to distinguish from all the other brick facades there. Parking on Heinz Avenue is tricky. When I arrived for lunch, every space along the street was taken, even the ones designated for the restaurant’s 800 building address. At the dinner hour, after the daytime employees have left, the street must empty out. After I found a spot, I noticed Bangkok by the Bay’s large outdoor patio leading up to the restaurant’s entrance. A peaceful place to land for a meal—after the atmospheric river heads out of town. The interior is bright, calm and cheerful. Bangkok is Julakasilp and Makawatsakul’s first restaurant, but it already feels welcoming. I ate there by myself and didn’t feel self-conscious about it. During my lunch, Julakasilp stopped by my table to chat about their recent opening. Her previous careers in hospitality and as an air hostess have prepared her for her front-of-house role at Bangkok. The recipes she and her business partner decided to feature on the menu will be familiar to most people, but they also wanted to make dishes that American diners aren’t used to seeing on Bay Area menus. She suggested that I return for dinner to try their massaman curry ($35), a slow-cooked, bone-in-short-ribs stewed with potatoes and peanuts. Makawatsakul, whose primary role is in the kitchen, is launching a culinary career now that her kids are older. She also dropped by my table after I had eaten my laab and the purple cup it came in. I told her I appreciated the fact that pad Thai wasn’t the star entrée. Makawatsakul took my comment as a challenge, and said that I had to try her pad Thai. I made a feeble protest that I couldn’t eat another bite, but she sped back into the kitchen and fired up an order.  Just like the other dishes, the chef takes time with plating. Her dishes are colorful and elegant. She lopped the head off a green onion, rinsed it thoroughly and splayed the stems out like a fan. A carrot had also been cut into thin strips and made into the shape of an orange whirl. On a return visit, I ordered her pad Thai once again. Bangkok by the Bay, open Mon-Fri, 11:30am to 2:30pm and 4-8:30pm. 800 Heinz Ave., Berkeley. 510.423.3888. IG:@bangkokbythebay. bangkokbythebay.com