Pros:
Very nice, helpful, friendly front desk staff during afternoon check-in (I forget the names of the two young ladies and manager). Maids did a great job with cleaning the rooms, and bed was super comfy. Fairly quiet (ask for a room away from the hwy) for a hotel so close to a major hwy (I-5); I did hear a faint train whistle but only once or twice during the night. Nice, fun restaurant (Black Bear Diner) with AWESOME food and fun ambience (country western music) a few steps away. I am a vegetarian and found most of the menu a bit heavy on the grease, fat, carbs for my liking, but I was very happy and filled up with an order of salad, sliced veggies, and a huge, delicious cornbread that literally melted in my mouth with a slab of homemade, sweet butter. Yum!! Hotel is very close to Fresno (15 min. drive from downtown) but much less expensive than Fresno hotels. (I paid about $108 for one person; the comparable Marriott Courtyard in Fresno is nearly $200/night in the summer!!).
Cons:
1. Ongoing construction for the next few months. This "warning" was posted on the hotel website:
"Renovation Information - Guest room renovation April 17-June 16 2017 starting on the 3rd floor. Loud work noise, noticeable dust, paint smells and restricted parking are possible during this time." I give the hotel credit for being upfront about this with guests BEFORE booking, and I'm sure they try to limit this to daytime hours only. But it's something to consider for those super-sensitive to dust particles/paint fumes that may circulate through air ducts to other floors.
2. Breakfast is bland (cold, watery oatmeal, toast, scrambled eggs; that's about it), not even as good as a Hampton Inn or Comfort Suites. And to top it all off, I found a silverfish-like bug crawling up the wall in the breakfast room, next to the table where the oatmeal and eggs stood, as I walked through the line filling my plate. I discretely smashed it on a napkin and showed it to the breakfast server in the back room--not to gross her out, but to bring it to her attention and also stop it from crawling from the wall onto the food table. She didn't bat an eye or even apologize. Needless to say, that little bugger killed my appetite, esp. as I wondered how unsanitary the hidden back room/kitchen must also be where the food is all prepared beforehand. BTW, the Black Bear Diner is also open for breakfast, so you might want to go there instead if you, like me, have an aversion to "unexpected" multi-legged company during breakfast. I certainly hope the planned "renovation" includes the breakfast room and kitchen.
3. The guy working the front desk when I checked out the next morning was a bit indifferent. I didn't even see him anywhere in sight for the longest time. When he did finally come to the front desk, he was not very friendly, just perfunctory. No "How did you like your stay" or "Have a great day" etc. (Maybe he was just tired from working all night or awakened by a silverfish..:-)
Overall, a nice little hotel off the beaten path. Just overhaul the kitchen, breakfast area, and upgrade the food quality/choices, and it will be 4 stars. read more