El Paso Gets Roasted In New Season Of ‘King of The Hill’

So, King of the Hill has returned, older, wiser, and apparently still holding some oddly specific grudges about Texas geography. In the latest season, Bobby Hill is all grown up and co-owns a Japanese-German fusion restaurant in Dallas called Robata Chane. Yes, that’s schnitzel meeting sushi in the most Texas way possible.

At one point, Bobby tells his business partner Chane and Chane’s dad, Ted Wassanasong, that there’s a rat infestation and he needs extra funds to hire an exterminator. Ted’s clapback? “Fix the problem—this isn’t some food court in El Paso!”

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Ouch. Not the glowing Chamber of Commerce endorsement we’d hope for, but hey, at least we’re still part of the conversation in Arlen.

El Paso Cameos in Classic King of the Hill

While Arlen isn’t exactly a short drive from El Paso, the original series did slip in a nod or two over the years. The most delicious one? Pancho’s Mexican Buffet in Season 3’s “Hank’s Cowboy Movie.” It’s the all-you-can-eat Tex-Mex chain where the gang schemed to lure the Dallas Cowboys to Arlen. Why it matters: the real Pancho’s Mexican Buffet was born in El Paso in 1958. So even if Arlen got the fictional location, the buffet’s DNA is pure Borderland.

The Musical Shout-Out: “El Paso” on the Soundtrack

El Paso also found its way into King of the Hill’s musical orbit. In 1999, the official show soundtrack featured Dallas alt-country band Old 97’s covering Marty Robbins’ classic Western ballad “El Paso.” It’s a far cry from being insulted as a sketchy food court. Here, the city gets immortalized in twangy storytelling about romance, gunfights, and the wild West Texas landscape.

So, Where Does That Leave Us?

In the King of the Hill universe, El Paso is apparently equal parts nostalgic Tex-Mex origin story, classic country ballad muse, and the punchline for rodent problems in fancy fusion restaurants. Honestly, we’ll take it. Because if there’s one thing El Paso does better than anyone, it’s turning a side-eye into a full-on scene-stealer.