Casa Bonita

Casa Bonita (Spanish for "pretty house") is a Mexican restaurant in Lakewood, Colorado, at the Lamar Station Plaza. It opened in 1974 as part of a chain that began in Oklahoma City. Since its debut, it has developed a devoted following among Coloradans and is widely regarded as a landmark of Lakewood and the greater Denver area.

The building, originally a Joslins department store, was constructed in 1973 and opened as a restaurant the following year. Its pink exterior hides a sprawling interior of themed rooms and alcoves. The main dining area features plastic palm trees and string lights, while other sections evoke Mexican architectural styles like those of Puerto Vallarta. The centerpiece is a 30-foot indoor waterfall with cliff divers, modeled after the cliffs of Acapulco. A gold dome and a statue of Cuauhtémoc, the last Aztec emperor, crown the structure. The restaurant spans 52,000 square feet and seats up to 1,100 guests. Attractions include a mariachi band, a puppet theater, a "haunted tunnel" called Black Bart's Cave, an arcade with a skee-ball room, and a magic theater. Flame jugglers were discontinued in 2019 due to fire code violations. Since 2023, nods to new owners include a prop of Eric Cartman at his table and a ManBearPig meet-and-greet.

The business model requires guests to buy food to enter. Originally, patrons ordered at a cashier, picked up trays from the kitchen, and carried them to tables. The menu focuses on Mexican food and drinks, with sopapillas served after every meal. Each table has a flag to signal a server. Before the renovation, food quality was often panned: a 1997 critic compared it to "a cross between dorm food and TV dinners," and a 1989 review called the tacos and enchiladas "flavorless" and the margarita "over-limed." The menu was overhauled when new owners hired executive chef Dana Rodriguez.

Founder Bill Waugh opened the first Casa Bonita in Oklahoma City in 1968. By the mid-1970s, the chain had expanded to nearby states, offering all-you-can-eat beef or chicken plates and sopapillas with honey. In 1982, the parent company (which also owned Taco Bueno) was sold to Unigate, then to CKE Restaurants in 1992. In 1997, the two remaining locations—in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Lakewood—were spun off as part of Star Buffet.