After three years of waiting, Casa Bonita is finally open to the public. But that doesn’t mean just anyone can walk up and dine at the beloved Lakewood restaurant, now owned by the locally-raised “South Park” creators, Matt Stone and Trey Parker.
So how do you get in? Here are the must-do steps involved in securing a table at the hottest joint in town. We plan to update this story as new information becomes available, so feel free to bookmark it and check back regularly.
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Casa Bonita is currently selling tickets to fans who can book a day and time to attend. But there’s a catch – you have to be invited to make your purchase.
The restaurant, famous for its cliff divers and sopapillas, randomly selects individuals who sign up for its email newsletter list and sends them unique links to buy tickets. Each person can purchase up to eight tickets – $39.99 for adults and $24.99 for children – for a date of their choice.
Seats are randomly assigned, though guests have the option to reserve “Cliffside Dining.” These 70 seats closest to the 30-foot waterfall allow guests to skip the food line and go straight to their table.
Casa Bonita began offering dinner service in late June and has been slowly increasing the number of people who it allows to dine there. As of July 21, the restaurant serves about 2,600 patrons per week, though eventually it hopes to ramp up to 20,000 patrons per week, according to a spokesperson. The restaurant has been operating only Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights; however, it will begin serving dinner on Wednesdays starting Aug. 2 and plans to roll out lunch hours soon, too.
Practice patience
Many, many folks – even those who signed up for the email list months ago – still have yet to be invited to dine at Casa Bonita. We don’t know how many people are in the queue, but our guess is it will be a while before everyone gets their chance to buy tickets.
Each individual’s purchase link is valid for 90 days. Many people report that their invitations did not go to spam folders, but to be sure you didn’t miss it try searching “The wait is over” or “Casa Bonita” in your inbox. The email is sent from tickets@casabonitadenver.com, which you can also try searching in your inbox.
Some fans said they heard that Casa Bonita received so many email sign-ups that some addresses were getting bumped from the waitlist. They proceeded to sign up weekly and eventually received an invitation.
Prepare to pay an all-inclusive price
Casa Bonita is likely to maintain the current ticketing and pricing structure as it continues to open more broadly.
Unlike the past, when the cost of each meal was different, Casa Bonita now offers just eight menu items, each for the same price. The $24.99-$39.99 dinner ticket (or $19.99-$29.99 for lunch) includes a guest’s choice of entrees such as chicken mole, enchiladas or carnitas tacos, which come with free fountain drinks, chips and salsa, and, of course, sopapillas. Each table gets one basket of sopapillas for free and additional baskets cost $1 for four sopapillas.
The kids’ menu offers different entrees, including a bean-and-cheese burrito and chicken tenders, all of which are included in the ticket price. Alcoholic beverages, such as a house margarita or Casa Beer, cost extra, as do desserts, arcade games and merchandise.
In one of the service industry’s most hotly debated moves, Casa Bonita decided to nix tipping altogether. In fact, credit card receipts do not offer a line for additional tips.
RELATED: Casa Bonita employees send list of demands to ownership
Don’t expect to walk up anytime soon
It’s still unclear when, if at all, Casa Bonita will begin allowing guests to enter without a timed and ticketed reservation. Considering a table there is in high demand, we don’t expect it will be any time soon.
Can’t wait? Stop by the neighboring WestFax Brewing Co. for a pint and watch the action from the brewery’s patio, which Casa Bonita paid to renovate last year.
UPDATE Aug. 2 at 12:05 p.m.: Due to a reporting error, this story previously stated sopapillas at Casa Bonita were bottomless. The first round is free and cost $1 per four sopapillas thereafter.
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