Thought about adding organic entrées to your menu?

Those heart-healthy symbols next to menu items that were low in ugly fat, bad cholesterol and nasty triglycerides often became red flags to patrons.. not filling, not satisfying, not tasty, not worth it.

Yet, the flip-side was that those committed to their diet or their health regimen ordered them, and those that didn't at least appreciated the concern of the establishment's management.

Organic foods on the menu are the new option appearing everywhere. Unlike the unspoken reservations of your patrons for heart-healthy fare, organic foods have significant appeal in many ways.

Organic is perceived to be inherently healthy- no growth hormones, no pesticides, no preservatives, no chemicals to ingest. Often relatively local growers are involved, and this augers well about concerns for supporting local economies, as well as reducing non-sustainable cultivation practices, transportation costs and greenhouse gas emissions.

Organic food is in high demand these days. Perhaps the main reason is that people have discovered a general truth: by and large, organic foods are simply tastier than their agri-factory produced siblings.

You don't have to convert everything on your menu to organic to wear the mantle of health-consciousness, sustainability and environmental stewardship. À la the heart-healthy offerings, a handful of thoughtful entrées will advance the mission well. Organic beef, poultry and fish- as well as organic vegetarian plates submit to the same recipes with which you are familiar, but they will glow with the implicit confirmation that you care about your patrons, and you care about building a healthier- and greener- world.

Many restauranteurs also discover that their margins for prepared organic offerings are better than for anything else on their menu. The time and effort that you take in the acquisition of organic justifies this additional profit, so consider making it so this year with a clean and clear conscience in every direction.