This unexpected road hosts 10 classically Fresno restaurants. Tour the diversity
If you were to pick a street in Fresno to show off to out-of-towners, it probably wouldn’t be Belmont Avenue.
One of the oldest streets in town, it’s covered in miles of sun-baked pavement and security gates, and crammed with every kind of auto shop.
But Belmont does one thing extremely well: food.
An 8-mile stretch of the road is dotted with at least 10 restaurants that locals love. And they reflect the diversity that Fresno does so well.
From downtown to the far-flung rural east end, there are food trucks at gas stations, Mexican restaurants that are decades-old favorites, and that oh-so-Fresno combo of donuts, Chinese food and hamburgers.
Here’s a look at what this part of town has to offer, starting at the western most edge of Belmont in downtown Fresno and heading east.
Belmont restaurants
1. My Guy Market, 504 E. Belmont Ave., near Roosevelt Avenue.
The newest of the bunch, My Guy Market sells New York City-style chopped cheese sandwiches from a non-descript brick building near downtown. It’s definitely not your standard restaurant experience.
There’s no dining room, for starters. My Guy Market is a ghost kitchen operating from a commissary shared with other vendors. It was voted the most underrated restaurant in a Fresno Bee poll.
Customers order from the website or the app and pick up the food, or have it delivered via DoorDash.
The food is inspired by the sandwiches sold in New York’s bodegas. Recommended for first-timers? The classic NY: ground beef chopped into bits with American cheese, lettuce, tomato and onion on a gyro roll.
There are other sandwiches on the menu, along with items one might find at a bodega (such as lighters and toilet paper).
The man behind the restaurant is Eddie Wutangsy — as he likes to be called — who launched his business into Fresno’s consciousness by giving away $100 stacks of cash.
2. Richard’s Prime Rib and Seafood, 1609 E. Belmont Ave., near Blackstone Avenue.
If you’re looking for an old-school restaurant and bar with steak and whiskey, circular leather booths, and paintings of naked ladies on the walls, Richard’s is the place.
The menu features all kinds of steak, prime rib, lobster and oysters — all of which have surely been dined upon while business deals were made in the dark interior. The restaurant has a full bar, too. Classics such as creme brulee and New York cheesecake are available for dessert.
Richard Stockle founded the restaurant in 1969 and today his grandson Ben runs it. The prices have changed, but not much else.
As Richard used to say before his death in 2022, “If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it.”
3. Christy’s Donuts, 2505 E. Belmont Ave., near Fresno Street.
The oddly round Christy’s sells that head-scratching combination of donuts, Chinese food and hamburgers.
The building’s shape stems from the 1960s, when it was a Mel’s Drive-In, according to Fresno County Public Library records. It was briefly Oofletz International Burger Bungalow in the mid-1970s before becoming a donut shop. It became Christy’s in the late ’80s and has operated under the name since.
Go early for the donuts. They sell out.
You’ll also find combo meals with fried rice and chow mein, or burgers, corndogs and fries.
4. Adrian’s, 3060 E. Belmont Ave., near First Street.
A favorite in Fresno for 45 years, Adrian’s is a little Mexican restaurant painted in bright red, green and white — the colors of the Mexican flag.
It has walk-up windows with bars across the glass and no place to sit.
That doesn’t stop the customers who love it, who eat in their cars or while leaning up against the outdoor counter.
The food is what keeps them coming back: the breakfast burritos, the homemade tortillas, anything with the red salsa.
Said one reviewer on Trip Advisor: “It’s good old fashion home cooking the way your ‘Abuelita’ used to make.’”
5. Tacos Y Mariscos Tijuana, 4170 E. Belmont Ave, near Cedar Avenue.
One of three Tacos Tijuana citywide, this family-run sit-down restaurant has all the familiar Mexican foods: tacos, burritos, tortas.
But it’s the seafood that’s king here.
The most popular item is camarones a la diabla. That’s shrimp served in a hot devil sauce with beans, rice and veggies. It’s spicy.
Another favorite? The pescado frita, a large whole mojarra fish served fried on a plate.
Be sure to try the handmade corn tortillas.
6. Belmont Burger, 4467 E. Belmont Ave., near Cedar Avenue.
An old-school burger joint with with drive-in vibes, Belmont Burger also sells Chinese food and boba drinks.
The 35-year-old business has Formica booths you can slide right into, Pac-Man and a few other video games, and candy machines.
Reviewers rave about the burgers. You can get one with fries and a drink for $6.99.
There’s every fried food imaginable on the menu, from fried mushrooms to chicken nuggets and eggrolls.
And lots of Chinese combo plates are available for $12.99 and under, such as orange chicken and chow mein.
7. Country Fare Cafe, 4662 E. Belmont Ave, near Maple Avenue.
Country Fare Cafe customers don’t care about the bars on the windows or limited parking, they just care about the plates literally overflowing with food.
The restaurant does big business in huevos rancheros, and chile verde and eggs at breakfast.
Fajitas are a popular seller, along with daily specials. That includes the pork ribs in a chile sauce served with beans, rice and tortillas for $14 on Mondays, said Teresa Valadez, who founded the restaurant with her husband 32 years ago.
There’s some creativity on the menu, such as the huevos divorciados. The dish has eggs on separate sides of the plate — one smothered in chile verde, the other in chile Colorado — with potatoes, beans and tortillas in between.
“People can’t decide,” he told her. “Well, let’s just do one side verde and one side Colorado.”
For years, the restaurant took only cash, but started taking cards about two years ago.
8. Oaxaca Restaurant, 4773 E. Belmont Ave., near Chestnut Avenue.
Officially named Restaurant Tipico Oaxaqueno, this 30-year-old place serves not just Mexican food, but Oaxacan food. A state in southern Mexico, Oaxaca is known for its indigenous population.
Check out the “Oaxaquena” section of the menu.
It’s there you’ll find popular items like the mole negro. The black mole sauce is made with Oaxacan chiles, Mexican chocolate and other ingredients, and can be served over chicken or pork.
The clayuda (often called tlayuda) is a large thin crispy tortilla served with all kinds of proteins and vegetables on top.
The restaurant has a plant-filled patio with twinkle lights that’s especially charming at night.
9. Mark’s Kitchen, 4828 E Belmont Ave., near Chestnut Avenue.
Mark’s Kitchen is the Chinese restaurant that went viral for its extroverted worker who swears like a drunken sailor as she piles customers plates high with shrimp fried rice and records them as they try it.
Heak “Helen” Po, whose family owns the restaurant, has half a million followers on TikTok.
The menu features mostly Chinese food, but also hamburgers.
Reviews of the food on Yelp.com vary, but this is the type of place you go for the experience. Expect prices that are slightly higher than similar restaurants.
A Bee reporter once asked Po about the prices for a profile of the place and she said: “But what I tell people is that if you want some bomb a-- s--t, you have to pay for it. And if you don’t like it, you get your money back and you can get the f--- out.”
10. Malee’s Kitchen, 7064 E Belmont Ave., near Temperance Avenue.
Malee’s (pronounced MAH-lee’s) is a Hmong food truck at a Valero gas station. It’s much more than a food truck though, with indoor and outdoor seating, shade structures, misters and restrooms.
Although Fresno has the second biggest Hmong population in the country, Malee’s is one of the few places that promotes itself as serving authentic Hmong food — specifically street food.
You can get eggrolls, meatballs on a stick, cucumber salad and papaya salad. Sticky rice plates are a popular option, with your choice of meat, including pork belly, Hmong sausage, fried chicken or steamed fish.
This story was originally published August 17, 2025 at 10:30 AM.
