Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a reservation?
Short answer: Yes
It helps us make your party comfortable upon arriving,
and we often fill up, so you may have to wait otherwise.
Reserve online here.
Even if I'm a local?
Yes. Of Course. WE'RE ALL LOCAL here.
We don't import Burmese customers. There are no Anatolian walk-ins.
This isn't the Great Replacement.
The Johnsons dryland homesteaded over 100 years ago
& you better believe if one of our relatives shows up, they're waiting too.
Why'd you change the name?
1) The Cowboy Bar and Supper Club was a bad name for the 2020's and beyond.
Sorry (don't shoot the messenger). We did a lot of market research, and the name kept coming up.
For tourists: the Supper Club part was problematic; is this like Utah where I have to be a member to drink?
For locals, some people reported less than ideal experiences at The Cowboy and weren't coming back because of that.
2) We're not Cowboys, and small family restaurants succeed when they are authentic and meaningful to the family.
We are Half Montana (Chef Lee) and Half Malaysia (Yokie aka Smokey). That's what MontAsia is.
We still have Cowboy-approved food: amazing steaks, burgers, local beef & yak.
3) The history of this establishment is super important to us, and we honor it in several ways.
All the old signage has been saved and moved inside. The door mural is in the Men's Room now.
We have a special outdoor tribute coming soon to honor the past of this building. We're really excited about it.
What happened to the Dining room?
It's being reborn.
We're really, really, really excited about how we're going to use that room. Chef's like a maniac when he talks about it.
He calls it Project Rockwell. We expect it to debut in by summer 2027. It'll be worth the wait. Stay tuned!
Do you do online ordering?
Heck Yeah! Click here.
What is the meaning of Life?
An awesome bowl of noodles.
and 42
I hate my friend's new boyfriend, but I LOVE his dog. How can I thread this needle?
Hate's a strong word, but we'll take your view as canon in this situation and advise you to proceed as such:
we really trust you, and if you hate him, we both know his dog does too. You've got to fix this.
You need to find little moments with the pup, from walks to micro moments when he's in the bathroom- maximize that time. Forge that bond. Make that connection. Train the dog on a few commands only you know.
Once that foundation is laid, be situationally aware; there will come a time when he's distracted / occupied and you can "make your move". Abscond with the dog. Go on vacation. A backpacking trip is best. Deepen that bond. Make the dog yours.
You will probably have to move. You can't be in the same city as him, not for now. Get a seasonal job. Somewhere rural. Somewhere isolated. A place with low broadband and cell coverage. Maybe a safe place to work in that town.
In time, he'll move on, and you'll have the dog.
For that magic place to hide, might we suggest MontAsia in Fishtail?
WE'RE HIRING!
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We heard. . . . . . . . . . . is that true?!?!?!
she's from China and he's from California.
Truth Rating: Pants on Fire
Origin: Who knows on this one? Old-school anti-Asian racism paired with small town gossip?
Reality Check: Chef and Yokie moved to Absarokee in 2007, from Cooke City.
Yokie's an American citizen. We're both proud MSU grads.
Chef's family dryland homesteaded outside Circle MT over 100 years ago.
. . .you're closing the bar / don't like people drinking.
Truth Rating: Pants on Fire
Origin: One bartender we didn't hire was really bitter about it and worked hard to spread this rumor.
Reality Check: Our first big investment was an entirely new beer cooler, all new beer lines, and a new underbar setup.
Chef's a lifelong bar aficionado, having grown up in restaurants and bars in Steamboat CO. He LOVES beer. He loves the craft of designing cocktails and working behind a bar. We love bars! We love the craft of bartending and pub keeping. This is a dream of ours to run a bar. When Chef answers the question "What do you do?" it's always "We own a bar", not a restaurant.
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. . .you're closing / selling
Truth Rating: False
Origin: Small town rumors / brutal industry has resulted in widespread closures / seasonal closure
Reality Check: This one just gets false, because of the seasonal closure. We do "close" from Dec 8th - Valentine's Day
We're simply not selling. This is Yokie's dream, and we're in it for the long haul.
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you hate locals
Truth Rating: Pants on Fire
Origin: Happens a lot when new owners purchase old businesses.
Reality Check: WE'RE ALL LOCAL!!!
The Johnsons have lived in Absarokee since 2007. Yokie was at the mine for 17 years before her cancer came back.
Rose grew up here; she's basically lived here her whole life.
If we know you, we're going to use your name. Yokie and the wait staff are incredible with names. If we don't necessarily recognize you, how would we know you're "local" or not?
We treat everyone like royalty here. We pride ourselves on our amazing customer service.
​Chef won an award?
Truth Rating: True
Origin: James Beard Foundation
Reality Check: Chef was nominated in 2024 for Best Chef Rocky Mountain Region by the James Beard Foundation.
It's one of the highest awards an American Chef can earn, and it's great to see Fishtail get a nod like this!
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. . .Chef was on TV!!!???
Truth Rating: True
Origin: Chopped TV Appearance
Reality Check: Yep yep!
Chef Lee is the first MT Chef to appear on Chopped. He filmed it in late 2024 and it appeared in March 2025. The episode is titled Mizuna Matata. It was really fun, and we're really proud of Chef.
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. . .you changed your menu?
Truth Rating: True
Origin: Monthly Menu Tweaks
Reality Check: Yes, we've been forced to change our menu, a lot. 2024 and 2025 were especially crazy,
with ingredient sourcing issues a major factor.
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Chef is covered in tatts?
Truth Rating: True
Origin: Soccer moms watching Chef garden, probs.
Reality Check: Chef has three pretty big tatts: a matching one with Smokey featuring three roses (our little fam);
Obelix and Idefix stealing wine from the Brits (famous tatt artist Josiah G aka Zeuss);
Chef's world: knives, bikes, flowers & big sky (Billings artist April Dawn)
and the biggie:
A huge backpiece telling the story of when Sun Wukong got all the Gods high and drunk and stole the Celestial Peaches from the Sacred Orchard. It's straight fire, and it's a very full, very dark backpiece. Chef's an animal.
Shoutout to famous Vegas artis Orlando, boss at Studio 8 for this 60+hr piece.