Which Colorado restaurant gives its name to a season 7 South Park episode?

The Colorado restaurant that gives its name to a season 7 South Park episode is Casa Bonita.

“Casa Bonita” is the eleventh episode of South Park’s seventh season and first aired on November 12, 2003. The story follows Cartman’s desperate attempt to attend Kyle’s birthday outing at the restaurant, including his scheme to make Butters disappear. The real Casa Bonita is a Mexican-themed “eatertainment” restaurant in Lakewood, a Denver suburb.

The restaurant mattered to creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone because they had visited it as children. Its attractions, including themed décor, performances, cliff divers and Mexican food, were adapted into the episode. The show’s depiction was close enough to the real venue that the restaurant became even more closely associated with South Park.

A common mix-up is treating Casa Bonita as a fictional location created for the cartoon. It is real, and the episode’s title refers directly to that restaurant. In 2021, Parker and Stone announced a deal to purchase it, further linking the landmark to the series.