The Bottleneck Bistro takes over prime location on Clovis Avenue

The Bottleneck Bistro is located at 401 Clovis Ave. Suite #106. (Daniel Leon/Clovis Roundup)

When Mark Kazanjian took over the former Forestiere’s Place on Clovis Avenue in Old Town, the idea was to open a place where people can come to relax and have a beer with appetizers.

His new bar and restaurant, The Bottleneck Bistro, offers just that.

“It’s just a casual scene,” said Kazanjian. “I have the games on but I typically won’t play the volume unless it’s a big game. I don’t want to be classified as a sports bar. To me, it’s more of a casual dining.”

Kazanjian says his appetizer menu – made up of items like wings, stuffed mushrooms and sliders – is the most popular, but the lunch and dinner menus of salads, sandwiches, burgers, etc. are pretty strong, too.

The Bottleneck Bistro also offers quality wines from up and down the state. Glasses start at $7 for house wines and go up from there.

“We’re not a wine bar per say but I’m trying to expand the option,” Kazanjian said. “I had to start to get the door open and people have been giving me suggestions. I’ll be venturing out into getting more wines. I try to focus on California wines, so I do not have a wine outside of California. They’re anywhere from the Central Coast down to Santa Barbara and up to Napa Valley.”

The Bottleneck Bistro and other Old Town restaurants/bars are expected to see a surge of activity with Big Hat Days and Clovis Rodeo around the corner.

A native of Woodlake, Daniel Leon is a recent graduate of Fresno State with a degree in Mass Communication and Journalism. Daniel served as Sports Editor at The Collegian, Fresno State’s student-run newspaper, prior to joining the Roundup. Got a story idea? Email him at editor@clovisroundup.com