New Downtown Fresno restaurant that gives back the community celebrated its grand opening

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Standing room only isn't a bad first day of business. Beaming with pride at their downtown debut Tree of Life owners Carolyn and Steve Ocheltree made sure everyone got a taste of Fresno.

"We do our best to source things locally, coming in from Fresno County. It's really not hard to have fruits and vegetables all year long," said Carolyn.

Your taste buds can take in the seasonal farm to fork menu. It even offers gluten-free, vegan, and vegetarian options

"It's just a joy to be a part of Fresno and to bring life back to it again," said Carolyn.

The plan to show off the best of what the Central Valley has to offer is one, years in the making for the Ocheltrees'.

"We actually started scrambling to work really hard when Downtown Fresno partnership put out the opportunity to participate in the create here contest," said Carolyn.

And the positivity doesn't stop there-- Carolyn and her husband Steve started the business to help people leaving treatment programs and transitioning into regular society by hiring them.

"We want to be that next step for people who want to stay clean and sober," said Carolyn.

A business model that has community support. Within the first hour close to 100 people had dined at the restaurant.

The menu isn't the only thing supporting the local. All of the artwork on the walls is locally produced.