Chef Nick Bognar has a new name for his forthcoming Midtown restaurant: Yai Thai Cowboy.
Bognar is the chef and owner behind Indo, Sado and Pavilion and a 2026 James Beard Award Best Chef: Midwest finalist. The restaurant was originally announced as Khao Soi Cowboy in May, but Bognar said the name was changed to avoid a conflict with an existing trademark from Thai Diner in New York City.
“The concept has been through a few iterations of what I thought I wanted the restaurant to be,” Bognar said. “At one point I thought it would be streamlined and only khao soi, but there are so many fun Thai dishes that I want to make and play around with.”
The restaurant will be sit-down rather than counter service, with a menu built around appetizers and small plates that can be shared across the table, alongside khao soi and other larger dishes. Bognar said the restaurant will still be casual and approachable, but the food will be more ambitious than the original concept might have suggested.
“We want it to not just be easy,” he said. “Everything is going to be pushing the limits.”
That approach is already taking shape through Cowboy Night Market, Bognar’s weekly outdoor grilling series at Indo that launched in August as a research-and-development project for Yai Thai Cowboy. The pop-up has given Bognar an opportunity to test dishes and explore the flavors he wants to bring to the new restaurant, including some of the dishes planned for the Oct. 14 finale.
The name Yai Thai Cowboy is a more personal evolution, too. “Yai” is the Thai word Bognar uses for his maternal grandmother, whose cooking and family recipes have influenced him throughout his career. It also means “big” and was a childhood nickname given to Bognar by the Thai women in his family because he was unusually tall compared with other Thai children.
Bognar remembers hearing “yai mak,” or “very big,” from women in his mother’s neighborhood during a childhood trip to Thailand. His mother was there opening restaurants with Bognar’s uncle in Bangkok, and the nickname stuck.
“Yai Thai Cowboy feels even more personal and connected to the story that we want to tell,” Bognar said. “The restaurant is inspired by my family, my Thai heritage, and the food I grew up eating.”
The final Cowboy Night Market at Indo will bring Lao and Thai cooking together. Bognar will be joined by Oklahoma City chef Jeff Chanchaleune, a fellow 2026 James Beard Award finalist for Best Chef: Midwest and the chef and owner of Ma Der Lao Kitchen and Bar Sen. Chanchaleune focuses on Lao cuisine, while Bognar will bring his own Thai perspective to the collaboration.
Bognar said the two cuisines share many dishes and techniques, though differences can come down to details such as the type of fish sauce or fermented fish used. The chefs first met several years ago when Bognar was doing a pop-up at Nonesuch in Oklahoma City. Later that same week, Chanchaleune hosted a grill pop-up at his own restaurant. The two have talked about collaborating ever since.
“Even before any awards, when I met Jeff, you knew he was going to be successful,” Bognar said. “He was making amazing food, doing pop-ups on his one day off, and he’s an awesome guy.”
The ticketed dinner will feature dishes that Nick considers “Jeff’s bangers,” including Hoy Sel Dip, a scallop crudo with fish sauce-coconut milk, cucumber, serrano, lime, Thai basil oil and mint; Sai Oua, Lao sausage with Thai eggplant jaew and sticky rice; and Cheun Goong, karaage-fried tiger shrimp with tom yum paste and charred allium aioli. Bognar said he plans to work with Chanchaleune on the menu and may incorporate a few “Indo bangers” as well.
The collaboration will be the final Cowboy Night Market of 2026. The series will pause Oct. 7 before returning Oct. 14 at Indo, 1641D Tower Grove Ave. Tickets are $150 per person and include food only. Reservations are required, and there will be no walk-ins. Bar reservations are limited to parties of two.
After closing our Cowboy Night Market, Bognar will turn his attention to the continued development of Yai Thai Cowboy, which he feels confident will open in spring 2027.
For now, the restaurant is still taking shape. What started as a concept centered almost entirely around khao soi has grown into something broader — but Bognar says that signature dish will still have a place on the menu. “You can still get khao soi,” he said.