How I Ate Gluten-Free at Casa Bonita with Celiac Disease

I grew up in Colorado and vaguely remember eating at the iconic yet kitschy Mexican restaurant Casa Bonita.

I decided to try Casa Bonita again, this time as an adult following a strict gluten-free diet. Boy, has my life changed since the last time I visited that legendary restaurant!

In this article, I’ll share my experiences eating gluten-free at Casa Bonita and what I thought of the much-talked-about and highly-criticized food.

About the Restaurant

Casa Bonita is a pretty pink castle located inside a strip mall in Lakewood, Colorado. If you think the exterior looks big, wait until you see inside. The restaurant is 52,000 square feet and seats 1,100 people! And it almost feels like a maze inside, with one room more gaudy and ornate than the next.

The restaurant is so popular these days, thanks to its new owners (more on that next), that it’s even been designated a Lakewood Historical Society city landmark.

The iconic restaurant has always had a cult-like following, but this following grew to epic proportions after the restaurant was prominently featured in a 2003 South Park episode, which I’ve included below for your viewing pleasure.

Sadly, Casa Bonita’s owners declared bankruptcy in 2021, likely as a result of the COVID-19 shutdowns. This opened the door for the creators of South Park, Matt Stone and Trey Parker, to acquire the restaurant. The famous South Park duo renovated the restaurant and reopened it in June 2023 to much buzz and fanfare.

The Waitlist

I signed up for the waitlist shortly after it reopened, not realizing that I would have to wait nearly a year to get tickets.

Once I received the email telling me my number had been selected, I bought tickets for my family. I believe everyone in Colorado needs to experience the Casa Bonita magic at least once in their lives. Making my teen kids go there was not only a rite of passage but also a symbol of Colorado pride.

Tickets cost $40 per person and include entrance to the restaurant, a choice meal from the set menu, chips and salsa, and sopapillas. The tip is included in the total ticket price.

The price also includes access to all the attractions, such as the cliff divers, a puppet show, an arcade, and more. Some items incur additional charges.

The Food

As someone with celiac disease on a strict gluten-free diet, food is always top-of-mind wherever I go.

Casa Bonita offers typical Mexican fare. Everything on the menu except for the taco salad shell and sopapillas was marked as “GF” for gluten-free. Even the chicken nuggets on the kid’s menu is gluten-free, even though the kid’s menu isn’t marked.

The menu includes only seven items:

• Enchiladas
• Carnitas Tacos
• Chicken Mole
• Beef Suadero
• Chili Relleno
• Ceviche
• Taco Salad (not gluten-free)

Casa Bonita has been ridiculed for its terrible food over the years, but when Parker and Stone took over the restaurant, they hired Chef Dana Rodriguez to revamp the menu. I was hopeful the food would taste good.

We placed our order in one room and then went to another room to order our food, similar to how you’d line up at Chipotle. The food is plated before your eyes and then placed on a cafeteria tray. A food runner helps carry your food to the table, and a server brings you drinks and chips and salsa.

We sat in a noisy area near an arcade machine that didn’t stop buzzing. Performers in various costumes, from gorillas to cowboys, walked by our table, chit-chatting with us and adding to the experience I can only describe as strange. Or maybe cheesy. It’s hard to find the right word for it. But we were thoroughly entertained and often speechless at what was happening around us.

At the end of the meal, the server brings you sopapillas (fried dough) upon request. I remember loving the sopapillas as a kid, but alas, they are not gluten-free. My kids ate them and said they were good.

I thought the food was beautifully presented but truth be told, I wasn’t feeling the food. Here’s what I thought about the items I tasted:

Chips & Salsa: I thought the chips were good, but the salsa was only fair. I’ve had better. I would have loved fresh salsa and have come to expect it from Mexcian restaurants in Colorado. This salsa tasted like it came from a can.

Chicken Mole: The Chicken Mole was very sweet and the chicken was mealy and overcooked.

Beef Suardo: The beef and sauce had good flavor, but something was slightly off. It wasn’t bad. But it wasn’t amazing either.

Enchiladas: My daughter said the enchiladas were “okay.” I did not try them.

Overall, the food was gluten-free and safe, but a bust taste-wise. Trust me, I’m no food critic. But Mexican food is very popular in Colorado, and this one missed the mark.

That said, everyone in Colorado knows that no one goes to Casa Bonita for the food. They go for the experience. Ask 100 people in Colorado and they will all agree that Casa Bonita has always had subpar food, which is part of the charm.

Want to Visit Casa Bonita?

If you want to visit Casa Bonita, add yourself to the ticket waitlist. You must have a pre-paid ticket and reservations; walk-ins are not allowed.

It’s a fun experience, especially if you have little kids. There’s a puppet show, cliff divers, an arcade, and a prop of Eric Cartman, a main character in South Park, dining at a table.

If you have little kids, this place is a fun experience and good old-fashioned Branson, Missouri-eque fun. But if you’re an adult, it might give you a headache and indigestion.