Popular Fresno Mexican restaurant closes one location. ‘We’re not a victim of anything’
After more than a decade, Casa Corona at Bullard and West avenues in Fresno closed Monday, no longer serving its popular chile verde and margaritas.
But you won’t find the owners grumbling about being forced to shut down or mourning the loss of the business.
Elsa Rodriguez Killion, who owns the restaurant with her siblings, Armando and Melina Rodriguez, said the restaurant’s lease was ending and they decided not to renew it.
They want to slow down a bit and focus on their remaining two restaurants: the original Casa Corona at Cedar and Herndon avenues that opened in 1999 and will remain open, and Viva Be Bowl’d, the newer, quick-service concept that opened next door to it in 2019.
“We’re not a victim of anything,” Rodriguez Killion said. “We did our years. We did a good run. I think it’s rare that people walk away when the business is doing well.”
The trio is getting older, she noted, and they’d like to travel more.
“It’s not Covid. We made it through all of that,” she said. “We just wanted to simplify and travel.”
It’s the opposite of why many restaurants are closing their doors lately, facing rising rents, food and labor costs.
Other recent restaurant closures in Fresno
Recents closures that will be missed by Fresnans include Javier’s Mexican Restaurant, Shangahi Chinese Cuisine and DiCicco’s at First Street and Shaw Avenue. A sign on the door at Daddy Waffles from shopping center management says it is permanently closed.
Sandwich Works on Ashlan Avenue is closing Dec. 24 after 42 years as its rent doubles, according to a sign at the counter. The owner declined to speak with The Bee for a story.
This story was originally published December 17, 2024 at 12:08 PM.
