Is Starving Artists Bistro closed? What we know about the Fresno venue/restaurant

Key Takeaways
Key Takeaways
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• Starving Artists Bistro in north Fresno has gone out of business, center owner says.
• An Instagram post cited operational challenges, restructuring, and staffing limits.
• The venue reopened in January with new owners, then appeared closed again by Oct. 5.

Starving Artists Bistro in north Fresno has been dark for a month.

What’s happening with the popular restaurant, bar and live music venue at the RiverView Shopping Center at Friant and Fort Washington roads? The place that was just celebrating its reopening in January?

“They went out of business,” said Jimmy Zahriya, who owns the shopping center.

He declined to speak further. Starving Artists owners could not be reached for comment about why. The business’s previous owner, who still played music at the site, also said he didn’t have any information to share.

About a month ago, Starving Artists Bistro’s Instagram page posted that it was closing temporarily “due to operational challenges, business restructuring, and staffing limitations.”

But temporary appears to have morphed into permanent. The business’s phone line has been disconnected. No one has posted on its Facebook account since Sept. 3.

Starving Artists was the recipient of three temporary, four-month liquor licenses, the latest scheduled to expire in January, according to the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. Its 12-month regular and event liquor licenses are still listed as pending on the site.

What was Starving Artists Bistro?

The north Fresno business was unique. With guitars as art on the walls and a giant keyboard painted at the edge of the ceiling, it was a rare space for performers on that side of town.

Open mic nights were frequent, as was live music.

The building’s large glass walls opened to a patio with trees and a fountain where musicians could perform.

And it was a restaurant with more than just bar food on the menu, along with cocktails and more.

Starving Artists originally opened in 2013, but closed abruptly in 2024, “for a number of private reasons,” the previous owners said in a social media post. Covid-19, labor and food shortages, inflation and the regulations in California’s restaurant industry were mentioned.

It stayed closed for more than a year.

In January, it reopened with new owners, a new menu — including brunch — and “a whole new vibe.”

But by Oct. 5, it appeared to be closed again, with no signs of reopening.

But it’s not all bad news for the center. Just a few doors down, another empty space is getting a new tenant. Mulligan’s Sports Bar & Indoor Golf is moving into the former Lassens Natural Foods & Vitamins spot.