The plastic that is being created today will be Mother Nature’s nemesis for thousands of years. Fortunately, efforts to minimize its damage have skyrocketed in popularity. With laws passed to prevent the use of plastic in everyday life, it can be a struggle to keep up with the new trends being used to make a positive impact on the environment. Businesses, local and international alike, are beginning the push to incorporate minimal-waste performance, but here are a few ways you can contribute to the planet’s health in your own life every day. 

1. Reusable Straws and Water Bottles

While it is important to stay hydrated in the heat of Fresno summers, the abundance of plastic water bottles and straws are hurting our environment more than we realize. You see, that plastic Crystal Geyser bottle you drank out of last week is probably sitting in a dump and won’t decompose for over 400 years. And those straws from your daily coffee? They’re definitely in the ocean by now, serving as a not-so-tasty snack for the overhead birds. A viable substitute for these silent killers is reusable straws and water bottles. Not only are metal straws eco-friendly, but you can find many variations on the basic silver tube, including engravings (Pssst…you can find some at the FresYes Market)! Americans use upwards of 500 million plastic straws daily. Imagine how much this would decrease if everyone started using the same straw every day! Worried about bacteria building up throughout the day? Not only are the straws easy to clean, but many come with cases specifically for travel. Going hand in hand with metal straws are reusable water bottles; besides providing insulation to keep your beverage hot or cold, using water bottles does some amazing things for the environment. The more bottles being used, the less plastic looking like a snack for the already scarce sea turtles. Bonus points for the countless design options, because you should be able to express yourself through everything, including your beverage containers.

      2. Reusable Bags

One of the biggest laws passed in California was against plastic grocery bags, inspiring the popularity of reusable bags made of recycled plastic. While individual grocery stores sell their own reusable bags, they are also many online companies with countless designs to please any grocery shopper, as well as the very aesthetically-pleasing canvas totes that can be found at local boutiques. The price of these bags may seem unnecessarily high compared to simply buying the DISPOSABLE plastic ones at the grocery store, but once you buy them, you can reuse them forever and ultimately save money in addition to the environment. Root General in Downtown Fresno has countless options for canvas totes that you can use for everything from grocery trips to beach days.

     3. Minimal Packaging

The sheer amount of non-biodegradable materials thrown away by a single person per day is outrageous. Simply recycling those food wrappers doesn’t help, but purchasing goods with less plastic packaging does. Instead of grabbing that bag of individually wrapped cheese sticks, go for the block of cheese right next to it that’s wrapped in paper; not only are you consuming less plastic, but it’s also bound to taste better! Rather than buy another bottle of liquid soap that you will eventually throw away, opt for a cardboard-packaged bar…perhaps a goats-milk soap from Prather based Basilwood Farms? Need to store leftovers? Use a plastic Tupperware instead of a Ziploc bag for eco-friendly AND space-saving storage. Speaking of less plastic, many local restaurants and cafes have made the move to eco-friendly food containers. Tower District’s Hi-Top Coffee and The Revue both serve their to-go orders in compostable cups and boxes, while the Annex Kitchen is a certified green restaurant with recycled takeout containers, energy-efficient dishwashers, and sustainable produce and meat. It’s hard to imagine, but contributing little acts can make a huge impact on the amount of plastic unnecessarily being thrown into dumps.

Now go forth and use this knowledge to take care of good ol’ Earth…and save the turtles!

Written by FresYes Guest Writer Emma Farris

Although summer in Fresno may not seem like a good time to embark on a fitness journey, what with the sweltering heat and the less than perfect air quality, a new opportunity for nutritious eating and happy living has arisen in the form of The Healthy Hub. It’s the PERFECT way to continue living healthy or to start your journey today. Located on the southwest corner of First and Barstow, The Healthy Hub began serving its wholesome and nourishing drinks just four months ago and has found considerable success in spreading both small-town pride and passion for healthy and active living. 

Silvestre Arias, St. Helen’s Elementary School and San Joaquin Memorial High School graduate, has always wanted to find a way to give back to the Fresno community and improve its members’ health in a comfortable place- and what better way to do that than to open up his own “healthy cafe,” as he fondly describes it, and become his own boss? Silvestre’s pride in his hometown radiates off of him and into the environment he has created; when telling me about his journey to open the Hub, he made it a point to stress that it’s not about the amount of money you’re making, but HOW you make the money- and he’s chosen to gain profit in a positive and effective way.

The Healthy Hub boasts a creative and constantly-growing menu that is flexible to each individual and their fitness needs. From supplement shakes and energizing teas, to protein coffees and pre-workout and recovery mixes, the Hub has it all. They even work with herbal aloe concentrate, which is popular among health junkies for its soothing properties and digestive system benefits. Calling these drinks delicious may sound far-fetched, but trust me, I can’t even tell that I’m drinking succulent with my shake!

The Healthy Hub is doing much more to inspire a fit lifestyle than just offering these healthful beverages, as they also host a number of community events such as game night at the Hub (with happy hour prices, I might add) and their weekly “Sweat Saturday,” where employees and customers alike meet at 9 a.m. on the Hoover High School track and go for a run…and enjoy some recovery shakes after! Through these weekly get-togethers the Healthy Hub is working to build relationships with the entire Fresno community, not just the local marathon runners and powerlifters, and they have plans to add even more over time!If you want to visit The Healthy Hub, and I highly suggest you do, check it out at 777 E Barstow Ave, open Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays. And don’t forget to join the team on their morning run every “Sweat Saturday”! Healthy living is a combination of exercise and dieting after all, and The Healthy Hub sure does a good job of providing both- fair warning though, when you walk in, be prepared for a very energetic and welcoming greeting. It’s so much easier to live a healthy lifestyle with people like Silvestre here to show us that it isn’t all yelling and discipline, it can be done with kindness and encouragement. See you at the Hub!

Written by FresYes Guest Writer Emma Farris

Coffee. It’s one of the most important parts of our culture as humans; we go on dates, get homework done, and conduct interviews, all at coffee shops. You can find a coffee shop on just about any corner of Fresno,  but not just any coffee will do; so we compiled a list of the five best local coffee shops (in no particular order) in Fresno: starting with Kuppa Joy. 

Kuppa Joy

Even if you aren’t a coffee drinker, you’ll love Kuppa Joy. Their specialty drink, The Kuppa Joy comes iced or hot and is so good it could be a dessert. They also have options for our tea drinkers out there; the spiced chai tea latte has such a kick it’ll hook you in one sip and blow all other chai lattes out of the park. The coffee shop is owned by a Christain family, so the inspiring Bible verses covering the walls make it a perfect spot to sit, relax, and work while sipping on some coffee. 

When you walk in the coffee shop, the first thing you can’t help but notice is the giant throne sitting on a stand against the wall. It’s the throne of God and is the one featured on their coffee cups in the picture above. The owner, Zack Fellot said that God is the center of business and he is the one who fills everyone’s coffee cups with joy. 

Collect Coffee Bar

This one is for you Fresno State fans: Collect Coffee Bar is right next to Maya Cinema, just a short walk from Savemart Center, perfect for grabbing a quick treat before a concert or volleyball or basketball game. Their exotic flavor options, from the Donkey Kong latte to a rose vanilla chai latte; you’ll enjoy whatever drink you choose and be scrambling to come back. 

          Hi-Top

While Hi-Top is definitely one of the top locations to get specialty, gourmet, pour-over coffee in Fresno, their real show stopper is the toast. Whether you go for the avocado, peach, or peanut butter toast, or for the pastries provided by La Boulangerie you’ll be enjoying a fun and delicious snack alongside your coffee. The fun and colorful decor in and out of the cafe make it a great place to sit down, relax, and maybe get some work done while drinking coffee and munching on toast. By the way, they’re dog-friendly, so bring the pup out for a morning walk and enjoy a treat!

          The Revue

Located in the heart of the Tower District, The Revue is a community hub that just happens to also be a coffee shop. They host an art hop in the back of the coffee shop featuring local artists, and they sell products from local businesses, the most popular being Lanna Coffee Co coffee, which makes sense considering that this shop is co-owned by a team of two of Fresno’s favorite business owners. Lanna Coffee and Ampersand Ice Cream came together to breathe new life into the Revue. When it comes to their fresh brewed coffee, The Revue has its own twist. Their whiskey caramel latte is something you won’t be able to find at any other coffee shop since it is Lanna specialty roasted beans and Ampersands Whiskey Carmel recipe. YUM! And of course, they have traditional coffees and teas if you’re not a fan of the sweet stuff. 

Rare Earth

With locations all over Fresno and even one in Madera, Rare Earth is not so rare to find which is lucky for us because their drinks are so good! Along with fresh-brewed coffee and tea beverages, they also sell coffee by the bag and fun Rare Earth tumblers and mugs, so you can enjoy the coffee goodness at home. They also offer a wide selection of caffeine-free drinks, making it the perfect cafe to take your kids after a long day at school. You can enjoy your quick boost of energy, while the little ones get a yummy blended drink. 

Have a favorite coffee shop or destination that didn’t make our list? Let us know! We’d love to share some information about them.

Written by FresYes Guest Writer Gianna Triplett

Fig Garden Fresno Real Estate Overview

Our Fig Garden Fresno real estate overview highlights a historic Fresno neighborhood.

According to Wikipedia, Fig Garden is now known as “Old Fig Garden” highlighting its historic background when it contained vast fig gardens. Yet, many locals prefer to call it “Fig Garden”.

A very popular charming neighborhood with beautiful historic homes on tree-lined streets.

Fig Garden Fresno Real Estate Location

Located in central Fresno taking its name from the Fig Garden Shopping Center. An unincorporated community consisting of six-square miles surrounded by the City of Fresno. 

Situated between Blackstone Avenue on the east, Shaw Avenue on the north, Fruit Avenue on the west, and Shields Avenue on the south. 

Over the years, this neighborhood also includes north of Shaw Avenue where charming historic homes surround Bullard High School and where the Fig Garden Village shopping center sits.   

Fig Garden Demographics

The 2010 U.S. Census reported the Fig Garden neighborhood with a population of 5,364 where 99.5% lived in households.  

In 2019, the Next Door (world’s largest social network neighborhood channel) site estimates the population at 8,424 residents. 

The Best Places site claims that the Fig Garden neighborhood boasts a Median Income of $63,350. 

The Livability (provides resources to discover the best places to live in the U.S.) website presents interesting graphs and charts about the demographics of Old Fig Garden. Here 

Fig Garden Real Estate Facts

One of the oldest and unique neighborhoods in Fresno. Fig Garden offers several large estates with some homes taking up 1 acre. Known for its well-landscaped homes and large trees.

The Fig Garden neighborhood contains some of Fresno’s most expensive homes with some selling for over $1 million.  

Back in 2007, the Fresno Bee newspaper published an article about Old Fig Garden. The title “Taste of Old Fig” reflected its charm and diverse styles of homes. Five historic home tours showcased the 1920’s to 1948 classic and ranch style homes.  

Trip Advisor in 2019 points out that the “Old Fig Garden” neighborhood “instituted a set of Beautification Ordinances to help them preserve their trees and enforce what they call “minimum urban standards.” Source 

Fig Garden Real Estate Market Trends 2019

According to the Best Places site: 

The Old Fig Garden housing market in 2019 offers a good time to buy a home. Home appreciation increased by 6.1% over the past 12 months.

Best Places also reveals that the neighbors love its:

Peacefulness;

Charm and beauty;

Walkability;

Dog friendliness; and

Mature trees.

As of June 2019, the Redfin real estate site claims the Old Fig Garden real estate trends as:

Median List Price = $375,000;

Median List Price per Square Foot = $172;

Listing Sales = 100% (every listing sells);

Median Sales Price = $350,000; 

Median Sales Price per Square Foot = $146; and

A typical 2 bedroom home lists for $235,000.

Fig Garden Fresno Things to Do

The Fig Garden Homeowners Association with a membership of over 2,000 families’ website contains news and upcoming events. They sponsor the annual Christmas Tree Lane celebration of lights.

The Christmas Tree Lane website describes this popular annual event as going back nearly 100 years. Fig Garden’s North Van Ness Boulevard shows off a one-way street lined with homes and hundreds of trees all decked out for the holidays.

Fig Garden Village, a Fresno retail icon for over 50 years. Featuring 63 retail outlets ranging from the Banana Republic to Williams-Sonoma. Also, hosts various community events. Located at: 790 W. Shaw Ave. 

Save Mart Center a 430,000 square foot multi-purpose arena offering concerts, sports, and many other types of events. Located at: 2650 E. Shaw Avenue near the California State University Fresno campus. 

Fig Garden Swim & Racquet Club where neighborhood residents and their children join this private, members-owned club. It offers tennis courts, swimming, racquet courts, a good café, and many social activities. 

Fig Garden Fresno Restaurants

According to Yelp in 2019, the best Old Fig Garden Fresno restaurants include:

Benaddiction received 4 Stars (out of 5 Stars) from 823 reviews. Traditional American food with popular breakfast and brunch meals. 

Jacks Urban Eats – Fresno earned 4 Stars from 374 reviews. Specializing in home-cooked traditional American foods.

Kebab Express got 4 Stars from 179 reviews. Offering Mediterranean cuisine.

La Boulangerie rated 4 Stars from 363 reviews. French-style patisserie bakery with a large variety of baked goods.

Red Apple Cafe earning 4 Stars from 799 reviews. Great breakfast and brunch and sandwiches.

The Patio Cafe got 3.5 Stars from 238 reviews. Traditional cafe offering breakfasts and brunch.

Pico de Gall Cafe earned 4 Stars from 115 reviews. Mexican cuisine where reviewers liked their burritos and horchata.

Pieology Pizzeria received 4 Stars from 231 reviews. Many reviewers liked their Vegan pizzas. 

The Lime Lite got 4.5 Stars from 202 reviews. New American style foods offering NY steaks cooked to perfection.

Wayside Noodles rated 3.5 Stars from 248 reviews. Offering Vietnamese cuisine.

Honolulu BBQ receiving 4.5 Stars from 100 reviews. Hawaiian style BBQ foods where reviewers really liked their Hibachi Beef along with their Pineapple Fried Rice and Bacon Fried Rice.

Fig Garden Fresno Schools

The Fig Garden neighborhood comes under the jurisdiction of the Fresno Unified Schools District, the fourth largest school district in California. 

Most kindergarten through 8th grade students attend either the Fort Meer Middle School, Tenaya Middle School, or Wawona Middle School.

Several highly rated schools exist in the nearby vicinity. Ratings provided by the Great Schools Organization site. 

The Best Elementary Schools

Bullard Talent Project School, a public grades K-8 school. Parents rate this school 4 Stars (out of 5).

Powers-Ginsburg Elementary School, a public grades K-6 school. Parents rate this school 4 Stars.

Del Mar Elementary School, a public grades K-6 school. Parents rated this school 4 Stars.

The Best Middle School

Bullard Talent Project School (see ratings above).

High Schools

Bullard High School established in 1955 with over 2,800 students in grades 9-12. Provides education for a diverse ethnic student body. 

Fresno High School, a beautiful renovated historic school. 

Get more information on all the Fresno schools. Here  

Conclusion

This Fig Garden Fresno real estate overview features a popular historic neighborhood with beautiful charming homes from the 1920s and mature tree-lined streets.

Plenty of excellent shopping available at the local Fig Garden Village shopping center. The nearby Save Mart Center provides year-round concerts, live performances, and various events inside its huge auditorium.

Their annual Christmas Tree Lane event attracts many visitors who enjoy the holiday lights featuring hundreds of trees and homes all decked out.

The local private tennis, racquet, and swim club for the neighborhood offers plenty of activities for its members.

Approximately 8,420 residents with a median income of $63,350 and a median home sales price of $350,000 offer a friendly, peaceful, safe walking neighborhood. 

Good nearby restaurants to enjoy various cuisines at 4 Star venues.

Nearby schools received 4 Stars from parents whose children attend. 

A great time to buy a home in the Fig Garden neighborhood with a 6.1% appreciation over the past year. 

Contact Us to learn more about this historic neighborhood and the available homes to purchase.

Steven Rich, MBA – Guest Blogger

There’s nothing quite like a heaping plate of hot bacon and eggs in the morning, and here at FresYes, we are always on the lookout for a local restaurant to stop by for a quick bite before work. 

Besides supporting local business owners, there are many bonuses to skipping the drive-through and sitting down for a real meal. You don’t have to worry about all the added preservatives and unknown ingredients that are in fast food. At local eateries, you also know that you will be dining in a family-friendly atmosphere, perfect for bringing the kids. The owner of this local restaurant, Jeanette Yee, said, “customers like small businesses better because of the friendliness and because they know it’s good quality.”

Yee is the owner of the Central Valley favorite, Red Apple Cafe on Herndon and Ingram, known for their delicious breakfasts and lunches. Families come here to not only enjoy a good meal but also to enjoy the welcoming atmosphere and company that comes with a locally owned restaurant. 

Yee was born and raised here in Fresno, but she and her husband opened the first Red Apple where they were living at the time, Watsonville. Much like in Fresno, the first location was a success, but Yee was not ready to settle: she wanted to move back to Fresno and share the love with her hometown. So she packed up and moved back to Fresno, and boy do we love her for it. 

When you walk inside, you’ll see the servers rushing around to serve all the happy customers. You might want to check the wait time before you go because during breakfast there is often a line out of the door waiting for a table to clear: everybody wants in, but no one is ever ready to leave. The interior is decorated with a bright painting of a farm and rolling green hills on one wall, while smaller paintings and signs hang on the other walls; but Yee doesn’t attract so many diners with her decor, it’s all about the food! Some of the customer favorites are the steak and eggs or the pancake breakfast, just make sure you don’t do any snacking before because these meals are not small. The pancake meal comes with six smaller sized pancakes, plus meals come with potatoes or choice of other delicious sides. Yee makes sure that none of her customers walk away hungry. 

So, the next time you’re looking for somewhere new to eat before work or for Sunday brunch, stop by Red Apple and try their Fresno- famous food, and don’t worry about getting lost, their bright red exterior is impossible to miss.

By FresYes Guest Writer Gianna Triplett

We all find ourselves growing bored of the monotonous trips to Supercuts- with the identical looking chain salons, going to the hairdresser becomes tedious…I certainly dread it. That was until I found The Paint Room. Located in Montecito Plaza on the corner of Willow and Nees, The Paint Room, opened last September by local hair designer Stephanie DuBois, brings a refreshing approach to hair care to Fresno. 

Offering a multitude of services including hair design, makeup, spray tanning, and brow threading, Stephanie and the other artists at The Paint Room focus on making each and every customer’s visit a true luxury experience. A standard appointment at The Paint Room features indulgent head massages, lush shampoos and conditioners, and maybe the occasional glass of champagne (cue the shifty eyes and winky face emojis). The artists at The Paint Room do everything from simple curls and brow cleanups to rainbow hair and stunning makeup looks. And we can’t forget about their male guests either! 

But The Paint Room goes far beyond offering glamorous cuts and colors- it’s a manifestation of a visionary women’s childhood dreams. From the very beginning of her life, Stephanie loved to play with absolutely everyone’s hair. That passion grew into a solid career path of working her way up in several different salons until she finally decided she was done with corporate work and built up the clientele to establish her own place. With an “if I don’t start now, it’ll never happen” attitude, The Paint Room has grown from just seven artists to nineteen in ten short months. 

Stephanie’s favorite aspect of being an independent hair salon? Bringing all the different colors of Fresno together into one beautiful picture. She holds a lot of pride in designing The Paint Room with perfectly subtle urban vibes: because why should someone in northern Clovis have to drive forty-five minutes across town to the Tower district to be surrounded by creativity and color? The Paint Room definitely channels that downtown Fresno spirit with not only its paint-splattered walls and chic decorations but its tight-knit family of talented artists. 

Why should you “relax, because you’re at Great Clips,” when you can visit The Paint Room and relax because you’re being pampered by hair stylists that design their customer’s hair like DaVinci designed his masterpieces? 

Forget your basic barbershop, I highly encourage you to make it a point to get your next hair treatment at The Paint Room, located at 2950 E Nees Ave, or check out their Instagram @thepaintrm to see all their latest masterpieces. Beautiful hair and a glowing spray tan for summer? Yes, please!

By FresYes Guest Writer Emma Farris

You feel a drop of sweat trickle down the side of your forehead as your fingers fumble to fit a key into the lock. The safe opens and you pull out a small box with a keypad on it. “I need a four-digit code,” you frantically shout out. Nothing is working. A giant timer on the wall beeps as it reads 0:05. Four, three, two, one. The room goes dark. 

Escape rooms are a perfect afternoon getaway for you and your friends, especially during the summer when everyone is scrambling for shelter from the scorching heat. Even if you are not well versed in mind games, you should still take a stab at the puzzle; escape rooms are a memorable experience and can be used for team bonding. When living in a town with temperatures quickly rising to 105 °F,  being locked in an air-conditioned room can feel like a mini oasis. 

Although these life-size puzzles have been getting tons of praise on social media the past few years, the same old murder-mystery theme can get boring. But fear not, for Fresno is home to escape rooms that offer fun and fresh spins on the original puzzle. Xcape Room Fresno, Method of Escape, and Fresno Escape Room are three businesses with themed rooms that will set you on a craze for more mystery and suspense. 

Xcape Room Fresno, located on West Shaw in Fresno, recently installed a new feature to one of their older rooms. If you are looking for a team bonding experience and want to let your competitive spirit run wild then this room is calling your name. Xcape Room Fresno’s main attraction, Fresno Has Fallen, recently got an upgrade when they installed another identical room and added racing features to the rooms. There is a tracker so your team can see how much you’ve completed, but you cannot see your competitor’s progress to keep up the suspense. So for a little friendly competition, reserve both Fresno Has Fallen rooms any day from Thursday to Sunday and get ready to turn up the heat. 

The escape room fun isn’t only for friends, Method of Escape on Escalon Ave has thought of rooms for all occasions, including the workplace. If your coworkers have been talking about doing team bonding activities, then head straight to Method of Escape where they recently added a conference room so you can “unlock your company’s potential” while having fun and trying out their newest theme, Tombstone. But make sure to hurry and make your reservation because slots are filling quickly and they are only open from 8-12, Monday and Wednesday- Sunday. 

If you want the thrill of completing the puzzle but just want an escape room on the more casual side, then Fresno Escape Room is the place for you. They don’t have any crazy features, but their themes are certainly not basic and are sure to excite you and whoever you bring. Their widely acclaimed Crimson of the Storm room is pirate-themed, leaving guests wanting to come back for a second go. So for a perfect afternoon out with friends or family, head over to Shaw in Clovis and get your mystery on. 

Overall, escape rooms are an adrenaline-pumping experience, unlikely to bore anyone; but raising the stakes just adds more fun for you and your friends to look back on in the future. With the sun out and shining and people searching for cool air, now is the perfect time to check out the fresh spins that Fresno escape rooms have to offer. And a little tip for beginners; get some practice in before challenging your friends because these riddles can get mind-bending and are not for the light-hearted.

Written by FresYes Guest Writer, Gianna Triplett