Novato resident Deepak Bhandari and his father-in-law, Hari Dhital, bring a wealth of restaurant experience to downtown San Rafael with last month’s opening of Everest Curry & MoMo House.

The family-run venture brings together Bhandari’s background in fine dining and hospitality, including co-owning the original Everest Curry Bar & Grill in Texas, and Dhital’s 17 years as a chef at Viks Chaat, a popular Indian street food restaurant in Berkeley.

The expansive menu fuses Nepalese and Indian flavors and features signature dishes like momo— steamed dumplings filled with vegetables, chicken or goat — and keema samosa, a crisp pastry stuffed with spiced ground meat.

Traditional curries range from creamy butter chicken and slow-simmered dal makhani to deeply spiced lamb rogan josh. The tandoor oven turns out plates of tandoori chicken, shrimp and wings, and Nepalese comfort foods include thukpa (a warming noodle soup) and sukuti (dried, spiced meat). For variety, the chef’s thali platters offer a selection of dishes in one meal.