Today’s word of the day, courtesy of the Words Coach (https://www.wordscoach.com/dictionary), is instauration. Pronounced / ˌɪn stɔˈreɪ ʃən /, with the stress on the third syllable, this noun means “renewal; restoration; renovation; repair” (https://www.dictionary.com/browse/instauration). Dictionary.com also includes “Obsolete. an act of instituting something; establishment.” Merriam-Webster is a bit more specific: “restoration after decay, lapse, or dilapidation” (https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/instauration). M-W then gives this in its “Did You Know” section: “Instauration first appeared in English in the early 16th century, a product of the Latin verb instaurare, meaning ‘to renew or restore.’ This same source gave us our verb store, by way of Middle English and Anglo-French. After instauration broke into English, the philosopher Francis Bacon began writing his Instauratio Magna, which translates to The Great Instauration. This uncompleted collection of works, which was written in Latin, calls for a restoration to a state of paradise on earth, but one in which humankind is enlightened by knowledge and truth” (ibid.).

The word first appears in the language “c. 1600, from Latin instaurationem (nominative instauratio) ‘a renewal,’ noun of action from past participle stem of instaurare ‘to set up, establish; renew, restore,’ from in- ‘in’ (from PIE root *en ‘in’) + -staurare (ending also found in restaurant), from PIE *stauro-, from root *sta- ‘to stand, make or be firm’” (https://www.etymonline.com/search?q=instauration).

I have never seen the word instauration used anywhere except once, when I was in grad school. I cannot remember where I was, but I was in a building, in a room, where there was some sort of meeting, and on display were some magazines. One was called Instauration. It was a magazine published from 1975 to 2000 “by white supremacist Humphrey Ireland, under the pen-name ‘Wilmot Robertson’. Robertson was editor, publisher, and a major contributor to the magazine. He had previously written the book The Dispossessed Majority. This book became a cult classic among white supremacists. The magazine was based in Florida. The title “Instauration” is taken from a term that means to restore something after a significant amount of time has passed” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Instauration). So I was surprised to find this word with such a benign meaning, because my impression of it was not a good one.

I’m in Colorado today. Long story, not worth telling. But last night my wife, my daughter, and I, along with some folks from where my daughter works, had dinner at Casa Bonita in Lakewood, just outside Denver. It’s more than just a restaurant.

Casa Bonita began as a Mexican all-you-can-eat buffet restaurant in Oklahoma City in 1968, founded by Bill Waugh. Waugh said that he loved Mexican food and Mexican culture, and he wanted to create a restaurant that was more than just food. It was a total entertainment experience. And with the success in Oklahoma City, Waugh, along with his wife, opened venues in Tulsa, Little Rock, Fort Worth, and Denver. The Fort Worth location lasted only a few years, from 1982-1985. Little Rock opened in 1969 and, with a pause along the way, finally closed in 2005. Tulsa opened in 1971 and, again after a pause during which it was renamed, closed in 2011. The Oklahoma City store finally closed in 1993.

The store also underwent a few ownership changes along the way, and the changes led to a decline in the quality of the food. The store became known as a place where you tolerated soggy tortillas in return for the entertainment. Then in 2020, COVID hit, and the governor of Colorado banned in-store dining. Casa Bonita closed.

“On April 6, 2021, Summit Family Restaurants, Casa Bonita’s owner, filed for Chapter 11…. On September 23, 2021, South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone reached an agreement to purchase the restaurant for $3.1 million. A group named ‘Save Casa Bonita’ filed an objection to Parker and Stone’s purchase, pointing out that they had in fact made an offer first. Their objection was later withdrawn, and the sale was completed by November 19” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casa_Bonita). “Parker and Stone spent $40 million renovating the restaurant and hired Chef Dana Rodriguez to update the menu. Arthur Bradford chronicled the experience in ¡Casa Bonita Mi Amor! (2024), a makeover documentary” (ibid.).

Here are a few of the entertainments: there were indoor cliff divers who came out and performed a couple of dives every 20 minutes; there was a puppet show that kind of made fun of the older version of Casa Bonita, from when the food was notoriously bad; there was a mariachi band; there was a sort-of magician who was more silly than mysterious; and there was Black Bart’s Cave, a miniature haunted house that was not particularly scary but rather goofy instead. There are many different themed rooms in a very large restaurant, and some of them look like mines. Of course, there was merch.

And the food was pretty good, though I have to admit that I am not a Mexican-food expert. I had a Betty’s Burrito, which featured brisket as its protein. My daughter had the same. I don’t remember what my wife had, but she liked it. The format is no longer a buffet, probably because post-COVID people tend to avoid buffets, or at least some people do. You pay a set amount and get an entrée, chips and salsa, a soft drink, and sopaipillas for dessert. There are other desserts on the menu, and there are adult beverages, but those cost extra.

If you ever find yourself in Denver, get a group together and go experience Casa Bonita. And I guess thank not only Bill Waugh for the concept but Trey Parker and Matt Stone for the instauration.

Today’s image is of the cliff divers at Casa Bonita in Lakewood, Colorado, captured from a video I took.