The Subtle Nod to Reba McEntire & Rex Linn's Relationship You Missed on Happy's Place
Now engaged, the Happy's Place co-stars have been together since 2020.
Tired of scrolling? Click here to bump NBC.com's latest news to the top of your search results.
To the rest of the world, Reba McEntire might be known as the Queen of Country. But to her fiancé Rex Linn, she's "Tater Tot." The Voice Coach's Happy's Place co-star came up with the adorable nickname on a date years ago and it's since taken on a life of its own.
Not only are tater tots part of McEntire and Linn's Valentine's Day tradition every year, the "I'm a Survivor" singer has their tot-inspired nicknames printed on mugs. McEntire's love of tater tots has also extended to her tenure on The Voice when she handed out her favorite food to Artists on her team one season.
What's more, Happy's Place even made a subtle nod to Linn's beloved nickname for McEntire back in Season 1 when a plate of crispy tater tots helped mend a scuffle at the tavern.
RELATED: All About Reba McEntire's Surprise Christmas Eve Engagement to Rex Linn (DETAILS)
How Reba McEntire's nickname inspiration made a special cameo on Happy's Place
In Happy's Place Season 1, Episode 16 ("Whiskey Business"), a plate of tater tots — McEntire's favorite food that inspired Linn's sweet nickname for her — is used as a peace offering.
At the beginning of the episode, Emmett (Linn) breaks his knife while trying to help Steve (Pablo Castelblanco) retrieve his pen that had fallen in between the bar. Steve later tells Emmett that he feels "terrible" that the knife broke and promised to replace it. Emmett, however, declined the offer, calling that specific knife "crappy" and even revealed that he used it once to "kill a rat" out back. Shocked and confused why Steve was upset by Emmett's treatment of that knife, Takoda (Tokala Black Elk) then helps Emmett realize it was actually a gift from Steve.
"He gave that to you five years ago for your birthday," Takoda tells Emmett.
"That's why I hate for people to give me gifts," Emmett sighs.
To mend fences, Emmett later whips up a special treat just for Steve. "Brought you some tater tots!" he announces while holding a basket of tots and ketchup, another clever nod to McEntire. As Linn told NBC Insider in an October 2024 interview, "She puts ketchup on everything ... She’ll put ketchup on ice cream. There are 17 bottles of ketchup in that refrigerator."
RELATED: The 1 Thing Reba McEntire & Rex Linn Don’t Agree on While Filming Happy's Place
"Don't think for a second you can erase your cruelty with deep fried carbs," Steve quips in the episode.
"I made 'em extra crispy," Emmett says with a smirk before apologizing to Steve. The two then share a heartfelt chat about how their friendship has grown through the years, and all is well between them once again.
"Enjoy your tater tots, jackass," Emmett says as he walks back to the kitchen, signifying a return to normalcy in the bar, thanks to some crispy tots.
Reba McEntire and Rex Linn call themselves "The Tots"
McEntire and Linn, who confirmed their engagement in September 2025 after five years of dating, have adorably dubbed themselves "The Tots." After Linn first came up with McEntire's "Tater Tot" nickname after they had dinner together years ago, the Grammy winner soon started calling him "Sugar Tot."
RELATED: How Reba McEntire Has Her Boyfriend Rex Linn Saved in Her Phone Is So Specific
"We all went to dinner, had a good time, went down that street to a wine bar, and they said, 'Well, I understand that you've already had dinner, but we do have some good appetizers. I said, 'What do you have?' They said, 'Well, we have tater tots,'" McEntire recalled during a 2023 interview on The Jennifer Hudson Show. "And so Rex said, 'That's your nickname from here on out: Tater Tot."
"We're The Tots," McEntire added. "Sugar and Tater."
As The Tots gear up for Season 2 of Happy's Place following that cliffhanger about whether Bobbie and Emmett will explore their feelings for each other, Linn also made another cheeky nod to their upcoming nuptials.
"There's no way I deserve Bobbie, even though Emmett is a stud. I think we're going to be together for a while until Emmett screws it up," Linn says in sneak peek at Happy's Place Season 2 before adding with a smirk, "Or we might get married."
Don't miss the Season 2 premiere of Happy's Place on Friday, November 7 at 8/7c on NBC, and streaming the next day on Peacock.
