When was the first time you ever went to Casa Bonita? The last time? Would you go again?

Talk about an old Denver tradition! When we went there as kids, it was like a trip to another world. I remember thinking how brave the divers were and the shows were so great (I especially loved Black Bart). I don't remember the exact food I ate other than the sopaipillas to tell you the truth, but I do remember thinking the food was great. I loved the idea of raising the little flag to get the waiter's attention. The tunnels were probably my favorite as a kid, it just seemed so 'Indiana Jones' or something, a bit adventurous, a bit dark and scary. I also loved the pinata, as most kids do. We would often go when all of my cousins were in town, so it was always a fun time and I definitely have good memories of the place.

I took my children there several years ago and was disappointed. The atmosphere and ambiance were the same, but I had to laugh at how far the divers dove into the water. It was no where near the distance I had remembered as a kid. I think it's about 30 feet, but when you're a kid it seems like about 70. Some of the games were broken down and the place was just a bit run down overall. The food...ugh. But it could have been the exact same as when I was a kid, but you know when you're little, even McDonald's seems like a five star restaurant! The servers we had didn't seem to be too enthused with their jobs, which does put an overall damper on the experience.

I would like to try it again with my kids sometime in the hopes that our last visit was just an off day. After all, they've been in business for 37 years, so they must be doing something right. I do like how they have the menu online separated out by allergens for those who need this information. As a parent with a child who has a severe peanut allergy, this does make me more inclined to dine here again.

Okay, so it's Christmas break and the kids and I were sitting around kind of bored, and since it was only 20 degrees out I suggested we to go Casa Bonita for lunch today. I guess thinking about it yesterday got it into my head! All I can say is it was much better than I remember last time. The entire place was decorated for Christmas and it was really something to see. Almost every tree in there had either green, red, white, or blue lights on it. There was a cute little fireplace area that had a tree and stockings in the line where you first go in and up at the top of the ramp after you get your food there was a nativity scene that was really nice. There were also a few Christmas trees throughout the place and a scene remade from the original 'Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer' movie, the one with the Charlie in the Box on Misfit Island.

The food was a little better than I remember, although the cheese enchiladas had that almost glowing fake processed cheese like they use on nachos at the ball park on it. Not appetizing... but the rest of the food wasn't too bad. I'd take it over Taco Bell or any other fast food. The sopaipillas were freshly made and were hot - and really pretty darn good. We had a young but very nice and enthusiastic waiter, and everyone we dealt with seemed happy to be there.

The one bad thing was still the arcade. It was a mess and there were still broken games, probably about 25% of them weren't working. When you first go into the restaurant you have the option of purchasing three bags of tokens for the price of two, and they come in these bright yellow bags. Well, empty yellow bags were all over the floor in the arcade, which seemed strange to me as there were trash cans in every area. Just kids being lazy I suppose, but you'd think they would at least try and keep it looking decent.

So overall I would give it a thumb's up. It's a fun outing for the kids so the price of admission (your food) is worth it.