line cook

cuisinier

server

cuisinier à la chaîne

line cook/prep cook

Montanas BBQ & Bar

What is the best part of working at the company?
1. Team Environment
Montana’s is known for having a friendly, supportive, and team-oriented atmosphere. Many staff enjoy the camaraderie and sense of family among coworkers, which can make even busy shifts more enjoyable.

2. Flexible Scheduling
They often provide flexible hours, which is great for students, parents, or those with other jobs. This is especially helpful if you're trying to balance work with education or personal commitments.

3. Tips for Front-of-House Staff
If you work as a server or bartender, the tips can be a significant bonus on top of hourly wages. Peak times like weekends and evenings can be particularly lucrative.

4. Discounts on Food
Staff usually receive meal discounts, which is a nice perk—especially if you enjoy the food.

5. Opportunities for Growth
Montana’s is part of the Recipe Unlimited group, one of Canada's largest restaurant companies. That means there can be opportunities to grow into supervisor, management, or even corporate roles if you’re interested in long-term advancement.

6. Fun, Casual Work Culture
Because Montana’s has a relaxed, rustic, and “down-to-earth” brand image, many employees say the work culture is more laid-back compared to fine dining restaurants.

Would you like help writing your own answer for a job application or interview? I can help you personalize it.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
1. High-Paced Environment
Montana’s can get extremely busy—especially during weekends, holidays, and promotions. Handling a rush with multiple orders, impatient guests, and pressure from management can be overwhelming.

2. Staff Shortages
Like many restaurants, there are often days when the team is short-staffed. This means more pressure on the people who are there, leading to longer hours, skipped breaks, and faster burnout.

3. Dealing with Difficult Customers
Front-of-house staff (servers, hosts) sometimes have to deal with rude or unreasonable guests, which can be mentally draining—especially during peak hours.

4. Kitchen Pressure
Line cooks face constant heat, noise, and demand for speed and accuracy. When tickets pile up or equipment fails, the stress level goes up quickly.

5. Inconsistent Hours or Shifts
Some employees mention that their schedule changes weekly, and shifts can be cut short or extended without notice. This unpredictability can make it hard to plan personal time or manage another job or school.

6. Communication Issues
Sometimes, there can be a lack of clear communication between kitchen, servers, and managers—especially when it’s busy. This can cause mistakes, delays, and tension

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
If you thrive in a casual, team-focused, and fast-paced restaurant environment with flexible scheduling, Montana’s can offer a fun and rewarding experience. You’ll likely enjoy strong peer support and the energy of a laid-back BBQ bar.

However, experiences can vary widely. Some locations struggle with inconsistent management, high stress during busy periods, and low starting wages without a clear path for advancement. Talking to current staff at the specific location you're targeting can provide valuable insights.

Basically the people who have worked there the longest get the best shifts and the best sections. Which I get it, it makes sense... but every single shift they get the BEST tables. It’s never equal. Which makes it impossible for newer people to make any money. You’re forced to do two weeks of training to learn how to serve there even if you have 9 years of serving experience. You get to serve for less than minimum wage for two weeks and give all your tips to the person “training” you.  They let you take all your own tables while training and then you get to keep nothing you’ve earned. They do split shifts so you get to work lunch hour for 1-2 hours and make 20$ (If you’re lucky) at lunch. Then you get to go on your break until 5pm. Then you’re the first one cut. So you waste your entire day basically to make no money. On Friday and Saturday nights the management doesn’t want you to be overwhelmed so anyone who hasn’t worked there 10+ years gets a 3 table section. Feel blessed if you get a 4 table section. Sometimes there are large parties and one of your 3 tables goes to someone else.. those are the best nights. You are a glorified food runner and cutlery roller and all the people who have worked there for a long time make good money. Only reason I stayed so long was because the other servers were fun to work with. Tip out was 3.5 total food sales and 2.5 to total bar sales. Highest tip out I’ve ever had to pay out considering half the people tip 10%. Also management and the owner takes part of the tips for the tip out. They never do staff parties or Christmas parties, nothing to help build teamwork. Apparently the staff doesn’t deserve it. Even when a kitchen member won a competition and was promised a $500 party, the management kept the money instead. I love all the staff, but awful place to work. The customers are people who expect a Keg quality steak but for 14.99$  and complain it is a poor quality steak. I WONDER WHY.  Also, you get written up for everything so they have an excuse to fire you. If you forget to ring in an app, or forget to type *ALLERGY* after every single thing including each mod (so you write it 10 f-ing times on one chit) you get written up. Or if you forget to say no croutons, even though you wrote gluten allergy, you get written up. Because the kitchen is too stupid to put two and two together, it becomes your problem. Kitchen staff switches up so fast it’s hard to remember names. Same with servers.

A typical day as a Dishwasher is the same as always washing dishes, and putting them in the machine taking them out to the front of the house, and putting out the garbage in the bins, and cleaning your workspace.

I  enjoyed quite a lot on the job watching the videos on safety skills, and answer questions about the job, and playing games for the questions that my boss gave me to do.  

Management needs to improve their because you have to call them to see if you're not working that day or not even if you did or did not get the new work schedule hours, and also your work schedule winding up in spam, not your inbox. I find that very annoying.

The workplace was all right very fast-paced, and very loud when it comes to birthdays there ringing the triangle bell singing Happy Birthday every day was very annoying there. The Staff, and co-workers were nice there to talk to, and sometimes I find it annoying because they talk about dumb things, etc. I feel like I am in Soap Opera TV Show. It's also hard to talk to a few co-workers thereafter you are off work and they're off work at the same time but some keep to themselves.

The hard part was the smoke from the wildfires while working on the job. It was hard to breathe from the smoke outside and the smoke inside while cooking when it was super busy there. The other part that was hard was getting to work by taking two buses to get there to the job on time.

The part I enjoyed about the job was getting my skills upgraded there, and getting free pop, and working there to make some extra cash for myself, and helping out the staff when needed to lift things that are heavy or they can't reach for themselves. All in all. I was glad that I was glad to get back on my feet again to work again since Cov-19 happened. 

Nice to work here when you are young but I would not want to work here for the rest of my life. Time to move on for a better job or go back to school for better education. 


 






I started there back in 2021 July and they had both day and night dish guys. One started at 930am and one started at 5pm but got moved to 6pm eventually. I didn't have guaranteed hours every week and my work and life balance was bad. I felt mentally tired and worried all the time because they give you only one day off a week! Sometimes I had to work 7 days because someone got ill. I got along better with management. The workers there didn't seem to care I existed sometimes. I was given free meals when I came in my extra days off. The amount of work there is the same as any dishwasher but the day dishwasher has to do prep. The night washer doesn't have to do prep but washes dishes including line cook stuff near end of night like bowls, big cutting boards, ladels, containers and all plates cutlery ramekins. The pay here is near or at minimum wage which doesn't provide too much for being independent. Don't expect any raises as a dishwasher too because you'll get one when go to line part time. There were only a few cooks who liked me but many of them were shy or didn't seem to care I existed. I'm a introvert so that's fine. I prepped stuff for poutines, dips for serving and cutting pita breads. I was given free appetizers 2 times a week or at least once by the dry cook. Buffalo hot chicken for instance. The amount of work here and 6 day work week eventually got nearly unbearable which is why I wind up looking for another job at short notice. If you're a active teen and early twenty something then apply for it. If you're over then forgot it. I do miss some of the people who smiled at me sometimes and talked but don't miss the ones who ignored me or treated me like I don't matter. I don't seem to miss the work here either. The short notice quitting also impacted me getting reference from the manager. If I quit 2 weeks ahead of notice then I would be granted a reference. I believe many of them were overworked to death which is why they were quiet.

I have respected every person whom I have worked for thus far, but the managers at Montana's put an end to that streak:

I was hired as a server, under the condition that I work in the kitchen for four months; the reason being: they just hired six new servers who would be doing training for that amount of time.  After I was due for server training, and working months of inconsistent split-shifts, management did not promote me to server as promised.  I was doing so well in the kitchen, they decided to drag out my "server training" by giving me 4 hours of training out of 35 hours per week with unlimited availability.  I confronted the managers calmly and professionally on numerous occasions in an attempt to even get a time frame for my server training and its completion.  Since I have been hired, over half a dozen servers have gone through the hiring and training process.  Everyone who works there will admit the managers and owner are terrible, but hardly anyone quits because the money one makes as a server is too good.  The money made in the kitchen is awful, but standards are so low it's almost impossible to get fired.  
I enjoy working with all the employees; but because of management there is no money in the world that would keep me in the dreadful haze they create.
I would go as far as saying they abuse most of their employees.  A fair warning to all that might apply for a job their:  The way an employee gets disposed of at Montana's is by making their work environment impossible for the best of us to deal with.  Here are typical signs management wants to get rid of you: getting schedules that don't match availability, receiving inconsistent criticism regarding work you have been doing consistently for months, etc.

I reiterate: I liked and respected all my other jobs and managers I have had so far except this one.

A typical day would include clocking in, checking to see what section you were to cover and hoping the hostess hadn't already seated people in your section before you arrived. You may work for example for an evening shift (5-8pm) but you may not get to leave until 930, depending on if your manager-on-duty remembers to cut you for the night. Finally after completing your daily cleaning task you may cash-out (You are expected to provide your own float of at least $30 to bring to every shift) and leave. You do get a discount on food provided you are given a "discount card" that you must have on you every time you come in to eat. 
The management was not good. They cared an awful lot about what was said about their restaurant, considering they wouldn't take the time to ensure their staff was properly trained. I was hardly trained. They "fast-tracked" me, as they called it. Which essentially means show you table numbers, how to clean tables, tell you where things are, and tell you to learn the menu, then throw you to the wolves so to speak. There was plenty of things I wasn't told that I learned the hard way. Miscommunication was an issue. Management also seemed inconvenienced every time you asked them a question.
My co-workers were wonderful. Understanding and willing to help out at any time!
The hardest part of the job was keeping up with the pace of the customers, especially when the bar was running behind in making drinks.
I most enjoyed interacting with kind customers.

Overall I learned that I do not enjoy working in the sort of environment Montana's provides.

Did everything I could in the restaurant. Obviously seated customers ate their tables and announced the specials. I tidied the restaurant and cleaned the menus. Sometimes ran food and drinks to help servers out.
I really learned how to co-operate well with my co-workers and mesh well as a team. I picked up on things that customers liked and didn't like about the restaurant and tried my best solve any issues brought up. 
I loved my management from the beginning. I had 3 managers and they were all great. I always did my best to do my job they way they wanted it done and they usually noticed my efforts. 
I've always had a good relationship with my co-workers, some of course i meshed with better than others but id say I enjoyed working with all of them and I feel that the feeling was mutual. 
The hardest part of my job was when I was put on the slow shifts when the restaurant was most dead. The shift always felt much longer those days but I usually found a way to keep myself busy around the restaurant. 
The most enjoyable part of my job was definitely when a customer and his/her family or friends really enjoyed their time at the restaurant. You can really see the difference if people are enjoying their dining experience or not and I always tried to make it as enjoyable as possible. The best thing is gaining regulars and having them come into the restaurant asking for you, that was always a nice feeling for me.

There is a huge difference in atmosphere depending on whos managing, three of them are great, they appreciate hard workers, who give help when needed. Others on the other hand are mean spirited, condescending and just plain abrasive and rude. They will seat you with a table and then yell at you because you haven't gone home yet when your section is empty, a half hour later. It doesn't matter if you run everyone else's food, know the menu like the back of your hand, cover every single shift or close to it for fellow servers who work a second job, or are one of the only servers that isn't on their phone the whole shift. In fact, they seem to hate it when you help out. They'll promise you full-time hours, but you'll only get 12-16 on every paycheck if you're lucky. I have honestly never experienced an atmosphere quite like it, and never felt more unappreciated for hard work done at any other workplace. Never had problems like this ever with any employment no matter what the position was in my entire life, as usually my hard work is not ignored. I've been seen as an extreme asset at every other single job I've had since I was 12 years old and started my first job, each one giving more hours than I knew what to do with. I love the select few friends I have made, and the 3 good managers that notice and reward hard work when deserved. 

At first, working at Montana’s was perfect.
Everyone is extremely friendly and helpful and the atmosphere has positive vibes.

Yes some staff will actually do their assigned duties, while others will completely slack off just to be able to leave. Some shifts were more frustrating than others.

The most frustrating if anything is management. They are extremely helpful when needed don’t get me wrong, but the second you mess up or even have a bad day. They won’t think for a second to turn against you.

You have 1 screw up, they fire you. Whether you’ve been there for 6 months or 5 years. No write ups? Doesn’t matter, they will fire you. They go through a serving rooster more then any one I have ever seen. I’ve seen it go from 10 servers to 32 and then drop back down again.

Theyre always hiring when they shouldn’t be. They will never give you your hours that you both agree upon. The new schedule app sucks and they do need it, yet they inforce it.

They place the favouritism card, CONSTANTLY. It’s quite ridiculous how management will handle certain situations because they will favourite certain people over others. I haven’t experienced this in a workplace before but this Montana’s will give you a play-by-play of how they do it.

They do not value their staff. They only see them as bodies who need hours to work, and that is simply that. You are nothing but a number to them.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Everyone is incredibly kind! Wonderful people as coworkers, managers, and owners. Every employee is cared for. You are also rewarded and praised for your hard work.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Most stressful is just the job itself. Being able to handle when the restaurant gets busy and customers get antsy. Ensuring waitlists are correct and dealing with unhappy customers. It can be stressful when a customer freaks out and refuses to cooperate. That's any restaurant though.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Fantastic. It's like one big family. Everyone has a lot of love for one another. It is like working with your best friends everyday. Everyone is proud to work there and generally enthusiastic about their jobs. Most things aren't extremely strict. It's nice to not feel like you're being evaluated in every moment.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Typically I am on my feet 24/7. Either running from cleaning task, to bussing tables, to seating guests, etc. Or I am at the front opening doors for guests and greeting them, then appropriately following a seating rotation. I am also always answering phone calls to direct takeout orders, reservations, or generic questions about our restaurant. Unless it is extremely dead, don't expect to relax. it's go go go.

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Line cook 21 salaries reported	$18.21 per hour
Cuisinier 40 salaries reported	$23.72 per hour
Server 7 salaries reported	$17.45 per hour
Cuisinier à la chaîne 18 salaries reported	$20.10 per hour
Line cook/prep cook 10 salaries reported	$18.04 per hour

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