1. Trends Paper 2
Organic Restaurants
Gina Schammel, Jill Smith and Mallory Schmidt

2. Organic restaurants are a new trend just beginning to rise in the market. An organic
restaurant is a restaurant that serves 100% organic foods and is certified as organic by the
USDA. The complete definition of what an organic food is, is a food grown without synthetic
pesticides, insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, hormones, fertilizers or other synthetic or toxic
substances. Also, no artificial flavors or colors are added. Organic foods do not include foods
that have been irradiated or Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs). ("Dairy.")
Organic restaurants are now trending because Americans are increasingly becoming more
health conscious, especially when it comes to having foods chemically free. Not only are
organic foods finally breaking through to people that it is a better choice for a person’s health,
but organic foods are now being made and marketed in different ways so that eating organic is
seen as “cool” and “modern”. GustOrganics was the first and only certified organic restaurant in
New York, the world’s first certified restaurant using organic ingredients, and one of the
“greenest” restaurants in the world. ("Amazing Facts.") Essentially GustOrganics started the
trend of organic restaurants in 2008 and is still a successful example of an organic restaurant
today.
The main market scope organic restaurants have are to individuals that are health
conscious. The food is generally pricy because organic food is the healthiest and of the freshest
quality foods produced in the area. In some cases individuals may have sensitivities to chemicals
used in commercial farming, so organic foodis an alternative that they can enjoy without being
negatively affected. ("Organic Restaurants - Organic Has Come of Age.") Many vegan eaters
also dine at organic restaurants. These restaurants have the healthiest foods, and are cooked in
the most healthful way, meaning they are targeting those people that want to eat in the most
healthful way. In order to have a handle on multiple markets and maintain the popularity of
organic restaurants, an organic restaurant needs to do the following: prepare for growth and
higher start-up costs, expect price fluctuations, embrace menu changes, know your customers,
and convince the non-believers. ("How to Run a Successful Organic Restaurant.")
Organic restaurants are currently trending and impacting the health of their customers and
the success of local organic farmers, although the potential impacts seem to bring a bigger future.
By 2025 organic products increased sales in restaurants will likely continue and organic foods
will be sold anywhere and everywhere ("Organic Market Trends"). This means that organic
restaurants are expected to become much more common and therefore have more competition.
There are so few organic restaurants in one city that right now there is almost no competition, but
that is something organic restaurants need to be ready for; the growth of their market. A major
factor in this bright potential for organic restaurants is the government support of organic
agriculture because the governments support is needed for organic farmers to be successful, and
it is needed to continue the positive promotion of organic foods and organic restaurants.
(“Organic Market Trends.”)

3. The Foster Cheese Haus is a restaurant that sells wood fired pizza, cheese, craft beer, and
they have their own fine wine cellar. The Foster Cheese Haus is located between Osseo and Eau
Claire, near us, right off of Interstate 94. They offer over 100 cheese products from local dairies
and most of their soups and sandwiches are made organically from local ingredients. Stated on
the Foster Cheese Haus website; they are known for their “organically grown, regionally
sourced, family farm supportive and ethically grown food products.” Foster Cheese Haus’ goal is
to veer away from the typical trend of sending food hundreds of miles away or receiving food
from hundreds of miles away. They would rather look at it as, how many steps the food had to
travel from their garden, before reaching the customers plate. Stated on their website, they “aim
to become the leading choice for locals and travelers alike.” They are reaching out to market that
they grow organically right out of Chippewa Valley, at the restaurant. People are becoming
more and more health conscious and beginning to care more about pesticides and such being in
their systems. Many people I know would really appreciate the Foster Cheese Haus because of
their healthy lifestyles. These health conscious people are the Foster Cheese Haus’ target
market. I feel that Foster Cheese Haus has a fantastic start to the trend of being an organic
restaurant, but as I stated earlier most but not all of their food is organic. To be a true, 100%,
organic restaurant they need to produce only organic foods, and then need to do a much better
job at advertising. I personally, have never heard of the Foster Cheese Haus before I began
researching and it’s a place I would likely go to had I known about it. They could be on the
radio, in the newspaper, online; Facebook, Twitter, bill boards, etc. I would be doing every kind
of advertisement I could afford just to get out the name of the restaurant out there so customers
can become familiar with its name. (“Artisan Wisconsin Cheese, Wood Fire Pizza and Dining”).
GustOrganics, as stated above, was the first USDA certified organic restaurant in New
York. It was also the nation’s first restaurant to use 100% USDA certified organic ingredients,
along with being the first and only USDA certified organic bar on the planet. GustOrganics has a
great vision statement it’s; “to bring organics and sustainability into the mainstream and to
promote positive change.” I also liked part of their mission statement as they said they, “always
provide a tasty, nutritious, healthy, and entertaining dining experience.” This attracts people that
are aware and dedicated to their health but still like to go out and enjoy a nice sit down meal with
family and friends. They also “inspire lifestyle change throughout the community” they are
marketing for people to have a healthier lifestyle and trying to help the food industry in America
become more health friendly. GustOrganics serves organic Latin-inspired foods, with a menu
that change on a daily basis depending on the amount of fresh produce available to them
("Amazing Facts.")To improve and become more successful I feel that GustOrganics should try
to broaden their food range and have more than just Latin based foods. They could also open
more restaurants in the area that are completely organic but have a different origin of food. Even
opening more of the exact same restaurant throughout the USA would be beneficial for them. I
feel that there are many out there that would take advantage of what they are offering and they
would be very successful throughout America. They market to those who are looking for the
modern rustic atmosphere at all times of the day. They attract the breakfast crew, the lunch

4. crew, and also dinner crew. If customers don’t like the rustic atmosphere, they are welcome to
order take out or have their order delivered. They are a great business, fully organic, open 365
day of the year for each meal of the day ("Amazing Facts.")
Other industries outside the hospitality industry that also have fully or at least partially
organic foods are; certain farms and grocery stores. These two businesses both have to same
intent as the organic restaurants do; trying to better the lifestyle of American through what we
feed ourselves each and every day. There are several organic farms that don’t use all of the
chemicals that many other farms use. These farmers typically support local businesses and
schools if they have the crops to do so. These farms also attract those are very health conscious
and are aware of the bad and good that should be going in to a human body. Their target market
is the same as in the hospitality industry with the organic restaurants and even outside of the
hospitality industry with the grocery stores. Many grocery stores have a section of the store that
is organic. To accommodate to those who have the desire to seek out a healthy lifestyle with
clean eating habits. There are also smaller grocery stores, many times known as, co-ops that sell
a large amount of organic foods. These stores are also target marketing the same group of people
being aware of their health. These two types of organic businesses could better their businesses
and become more successful by, again, doing a better job with advertising and selling the
products, making sure people are aware of their great products.
The Raw Deal is one of the few organic restaurant options here in town, and an expert
interview was conducted with their events and marketing manager, Hope Larsen. Her main job is
to attract customers into the restaurant through events and just with their menu and make
customers more knowledgeable about organic food. When asked, how are organic restaurants
such as The Raw Deal, impacting the business landscape, she replied, “organic restaurants offer
more variety to our daily lives and they open people’s minds to other food besides fast food.”
This is certainly true considering every other street there is a different fast food restaurant on the
corner, even in small towns like Menomonie, WI. Most people are educated about the basic fast
food restaurants, but Hope thinks that people are going to become more aware of organic
restaurants and possibly even make organic food a preference over other types of food. She also
noted that “it’s clear that organic restaurants are becoming more popular considering
Menomonie, a relatively small town, has one.”
Next I asked how she thought organic restaurants would change moving forward. Again
going off of the first question Hope stated that “organic restaurants would get increasing
exposure.” She said that in the past people have almost stayed away from The Raw Deal and
other organic restaurants because prices are higher than many other choices, but “the quality of
the product is well worth the prices on the menu and people will recognize that more and more in
the future.” People across the country are more educated about the harmful effects of poor eating
habits and about the benefits of eating healthy. It wouldn’t be surprising if we saw more organic
restaurants coming about, especially in highly populated cities and trendy areas around the
country.

5. I also asked Hope who are some of their competitors and what will be needed to stay
ahead of competitors? She replied that they “didn’t necessarily have competitors, but the co-op
has an organic lunch option called the lunch box.” The reason The Raw Deal doesn’t have any
competitors is because according to Hope, “The Raw Deal fills a very specific nitch. If people
walk in here without knowing we’re completely organic and that’s not what their looking for,
we’ll suggest acoustic or somewhere else for them.” I thought this was rather interesting, because
the way I viewed it before the interview was that The Raw Deal was competing against places
like acoustic or fast food restaurants around that area, but she explained that the customers who
go to the raw deal have no desire to eat at say Jeff’s Pizza or McDonalds. They are looking for
the highest quality, freshest food no matter what the price, so Hope said that in order to keep
business going they “will need to educate the community about the benefits of eating organic,
and the fresh food that is on the menu here at The Raw Deal.” She definitely has the right idea,
because I think a lot of people, especially college students who live near The Raw Deal, do not
know enough about the kind of food that is offered at their restaurant. They would draw in more
customers by educating the community, but that’s not to say that all people would automatically
love organic food. There are still several people who probably would not want to change their
eating habits.
The interview with Hope Larsen really put all of our research to reality. American’s are
realizing the importance of nutritious food, and I think that we truly may be seeing more
restaurants such as The Raw Deal around the country. It may take people awhile to get on board
with the idea, but organic food is of higher quality and these types of restaurants may draw in
more customers than they had ever thought possible in the past.

6. References
"Amazing Facts."GustOrganics.N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Nov. 2012.
<http://www.gustorganics.com/aboutus_amazingfacts.php>.
"Dairy." Definition of Organic.N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Nov. 2012. <http://www.live-the-
organic-life.com/definition-of-organic.html>.
“Artisan Wisconsin Cheese, Wood Fire Pizza and Dining.” Foster Cheese House.
<http://fostercheesehaus.com/about.html>
Hope Larsen. Marketing Manager for The Raw Deal.
"How to Run a Successful Organic Restaurant." Inc.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Nov. 2012.
<http://www.inc.com/guides/2010/09/how-to-run-a-successful-organic-restarant.html>.
"Organic Market Trends."Organic Market Trends.N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Nov. 2012.
<http://www.uvm.edu/vtvegandberry/factsheets/organictrends.html>.
"Organic Restaurants - Organic Has Come of Age." Organic Restaurants - Organic Has
Come of Age. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Nov. 2012. <http://www.longevity-and-antiaging-
secrets.com/organic-restaurants.html>.