On a scale from “smart” to “dumb,” buying and reopening in Lakewood falls on the latter end of business decisions.
Thatap according to Colorado-raised kids and restaurant co-owners Trey Parker and Matt Stone, who stopped by “Jimmy Kimmel Live” this week to talk about their latest creative endeavors, including a new run of the duo’s acclaimed musical and a new season of their famed TV show
The conversation turned to Casa Bonita early in the interview, after host Jimmy Kimmel said he saw something online stating Parker and Stone are two of the wealthiest comedians in the world.
“We would have been the richest comedians, except we decided to buy a restaurant,” Parker joked, wearing a suit in a strikingly similar shade of pink to Casa Bonita’s signature exterior paint.
As locals will recall, Parker and Stone bought Casa Bonita out of bankruptcy in 2021 and worked for nearly two years to rehab and reopen the venue, complete with the cliff divers, magic show and other attractions people loved about it. With somewhere around 50,000 square feet of real estate, that was no small task, especially because the building had fallen into disrepair over the decades since it originally opened in 1974. Their journey was captured in an equally hilarious and terrifying documentary called “¡Casa Bonita Mi Amor!” available for streaming on Paramount+.
Stone said on “Kimmel” the two spent close to $50 million on the project. When asked if they were glad they invested in the restaurant, they both said yes.
“It was a cool thing to do, but it was a really dumb thing to do,” Parker said. “But knowing what we know now, there’s no way any smart business person would have done this. So there’s definitely no way anyone else would have done it, so it wouldn’t be there anymore.”
“I would say most of our career is defined by doing things that are not a smart idea,” Stone added.
The duo also dished on the “The Book of Mormon” returning to Broadway for a 15th anniversary run, during which both Parker and Stone are expected to grace the stage. They also revealed that the 29th season of “South Park” will return to the airwaves on Sept. 16, and gave insight into the magic behind their viral deep fake featuring President Donald Trump in the season 28 premiere.
Watch the full interview below:
