It was a sad day back in July when Libelula, one of Fresno’s most beloved breakfast and lunch spots, announced that they were leaving their long-time home on Broadway and Fresno streets downtown.
Owners Ian Cookson and Kim Sarabia said at the time that they were committed to staying in downtown Fresno, but since they cited construction and parking issues in the area as their impetus for closing, Libelula’s future generally, and its future in downtown specifically, were up in the air.
And so it was doubly or triply good news this week, when they announced that not only had they found a new location downtown, but they were also moving into the old Tokyo Gardens space at 1711 Fulton Street – still cherished by many elder millennial Fresnans as a venue for live music, karaoke nights, and epic hangs circa 2000-2015 or so. Sarabia said they were shooting for a February opening for the space, but that a lot will depend on the construction and permitting process.
Still, when two Fresno institutions become one, it leaves a lot of outstanding questions – about how it will look, what will change, and what they’ll be bringing back. Luckily Libelula’s Ian Cookson made himself available to respond to our most burning queries.
Will Libelula be bringing back live music and karaoke?
The place is iconic for karaoke, jazz nights, and small local bands. Entertainment will definitely be there. We love the history of downtown Fresno.
Does Libelula have plans to expand into lunch and dinner service?
We are planning a change in hours. Nothing firm yet, but the plan is to do less breakfast to brunch, and more brunch to dinner.
How big of a remodel are you planning?
We don’t plan on changing much on the inside. The reason we chose the space is because we love what was already there. We have to do some code upgrades, some plumbing and some ADA, but the plan is to change as little as possible. The goal is to put our stamp on it without disrupting what it had before.
Are they bringing back Salty Bitch Bakery?
The bakery is not coming back. The plan is to have my daughter, Ivy, who ran the bakery, come back to do the dessert menu. But she’s currently the pastry chef at Table Mountain, and she’s doing desserts at Bulle. So, she’s a busy girl.
What about those cinnamon rolls? Will you have them in the new place? Once a week, or more?
It depends. Sometimes people would talk about them, and then I’d make a bunch, and nobody would come in and buy them. Now, maybe because I haven’t made them in a while, people have started thinking about how much they appreciated them again. I’ll be making some this week and next week because the fair’s in town. How often in the new place, we’re still discussing. Until then it’ll be… intermittent.
Is it ironic that attempts to revitalize downtown ended up being what forces businesses to close down?
All they’ve said is that they’re trying to help and all they’ve done is make it worse. We didn’t want to leave. First they closed the parking lot, and then when they told us they were closing down the Fresno Street underpass, and it was going to be for more than a year, we knew we had to move.
We asked for a meeting – it was us, the high-speed rail, and the City of Fresno. They weren’t legally obligated to help us, but they did offer us some assistance for us to move. That’s why we were able to move.
Unfortunately, for many years now, city officials have been too concerned with north Fresno. The whole reason downtown Fresno has a bad rap is because of city officials making the wrong decisions.
On their commitment to downtown:
We came down here on purpose. We want people to pay a little more attention to downtown. If you hear anybody say that they love Fresno, they probably frequent downtown. People that complain about Fresno, they probably never go downtown.
On their plans for the space:
We just don’t want anybody to be worried that we’ll do anything to mess up Tokyo Gardens. We moved here because we fell in love with the space. We don’t want to destroy the legacy. We want to be able to keep it going for the next 50 years.
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Libelula is still operating during the move. Located (for now) at 1154 Broadway Plaza.
