The most common ordering mistake at a big table is that everybody orders for themselves. You end up with six main courses, no middle ground, and one person quietly eating rice. A momo table works better built the other way round — a few things everyone can reach, and one or two things for the people with strong opinions.
Start with two orders of steamed momo for every four people. It is the safe centre of the table: mild, familiar, and the thing a seven-year-old will actually eat. Add one fried plate for texture, because a table of soft food gets boring faster than people expect.
Then one dish with real heat, ordered honestly rather than defensively. We can dial almost anything down, but a chili dish made mild for the whole table pleases nobody. Better to have one properly hot plate at one end and a bowl of plain rice at the other.
For the person who does not eat chili, the vegetarian side of the menu is the friend here — paneer, greens and the noodle dishes are all good without heat rather than merely tolerable. And for a toddler, ask for a portion of momo without achar; it arrives faster and it will not come back untouched.
Order less than you think you need and add a round halfway through. Momos are cooked to order, so a second wave takes ten minutes and arrives hot, which is a better meal than a table that all landed at once and went cold together.
