Organic ingredients and locally grown food products are “increasingly important” to restaurant goers, and operators and chefs are adding them to more menus nationwide, according to the National Restaurant Association's 2007 Restaurant Industry Forecast.

“According to the chefs surveyed, consumers have a growing appetite for healthful foods, organic products and some fusion cuisines,” the report stated.

In fact, in a ranking of the top 20 hot restaurant trends of 2007, locally grown produce came in at No. 2, and organic produce at No. 3. Even grass-fed and free-range meats made the list, at Nos. 18 and 19, respectively, according to a recent NRA survey of 1,146 members of the American Culinary Federation.

In a separate NRA survey of operators, “more than half of fine-dining operators who serve organic or locally sourced items anticipate that these items will represent a larger proportion of their total sales in 2007.”

But as the mainstream appeal of these foods has grown, they've begun migrating beyond upscale establishments, finding their way into concepts that are accessible to a broader range of consumers. The survey noted that “casual dining and family dining operators also expect locally sourced and organic items will represent a larger proportion of their sales in 2007.”

Much of that may be due to the rising popularity of the natural-and-organic fast-casual chains, like O'Naturals of Portland, Maine, which received the designation of “Environmental Leader” by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection in April for its units in Falmouth and Portland.

O'Naturals opened its first store in Falmouth in 2001 and currently operates four stores: two in Maine, one in Massachusetts and a franchised unit in Wichita, Kan. “Through our franchising we have commitments for 11 additional stores over the next two years,” said Jay Friedlander, who goes by the whimsical title of chief operating O'Naturalist.

The concept's influence is spreading. The company has “gained a lot of recognition within the industry over the years,” even securing a hottest new concept award from a leading food-service trade publication in 2004, he said.

“We know from conversations with other operators that we have been influential in pointing out new trends,” Friedlander said. “When you are starting to see organic coffee at McDonald's and Burger King is talking about humane animal husbandry practices, you know the world is changing.”