Trey Parker And Matt Stone Realized Too Late That Sopapillas Don’t Pay The Bills… YET.
The creators of “South Park” are finally admitting what many business experts probably thought from the start: buying Casa Bonita may have been one of the worst financial decisions imaginable — even if it saved one of Colorado’s most iconic landmarks.
During a recent appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” Colorado natives Trey Parker and Matt Stone opened up about the massive amount of money they’ve poured into restoring the legendary Lakewood restaurant. While the pair joked through most of the interview, they made it clear the project became far more expensive than they ever expected.
Kimmel brought up reports claiming Parker and Stone are among the wealthiest comedians in the world, prompting Parker to laugh and respond, “We would have been the richest comedians, except we decided to buy a restaurant.” Wearing a pink suit that looked suspiciously close to Casa Bonita’s famous exterior color, Parker leaned fully into the joke.
The two originally believed renovating the beloved cliff-diving restaurant would cost somewhere around $7 to $8 million. Instead, the total reportedly exploded to nearly $50 million after years of renovations, repairs, upgrades, and rebuilding the aging property from the inside out.
Despite the staggering price tag, the duo says the restaurant is now doing well financially — just not well enough to make the investment look smart anytime soon. Matt Stone joked that maybe by 2040 they’ll finally make their money back.
Still, Parker admitted they don’t regret saving the legendary Colorado attraction. In fact, he suggested that if they hadn’t stepped in, Casa Bonita may have disappeared forever.
“It was a cool thing to do, but it was a really dumb thing to do,” Parker said during the interview. “Knowing what we know now, there’s no way any smart businessperson would have done this.”
Denver-area fans have followed the Casa Bonita comeback closely ever since Parker and Stone purchased the restaurant out of bankruptcy in 2021. The famous West Colfax landmark — immortalized in a classic 2003 “South Park” episode — underwent years of renovations before finally reopening to massive crowds, sold-out reservations, and national media attention.
The interview also revealed that Season 29 of “South Park” is scheduled to premiere Sept. 16 on Comedy Central, while the pair continue touring new productions of “The Book of Mormon.”
