Houlihan’s Reduces Their Carbon Footprint with Stylish, Contemporary LEED Gold-Design in Springfield

Posted on October 22, 2010 by Jessica Dees

Restaurant Expected to Receive LEED Certification by 2010

Springfield, MO – Houlihan’s, the nation’s most innovative casual-dining brand, is breaking new ground with its first LEED Gold-designed location in the South Springfield area at 2110 E. Republic Rd. The new Houlihan’s, which was developed and is operated by O’Reilly Hospitality Management, LLC of Springfield, offers area diners fresh-from-scratch cooking in an environmentally-friendly setting while boosting the local economy with the creation of nearly 100 jobs.

\"Our commitment to environmental responsibility and the community is very strong,\" said Tim O’Reilly, CEO of O’Reilly Hospitality. \"We want to do more than just provide great food to the community. Our community deserves a space that is environmentally-friendly where they can enjoy delicious food with the comfort of knowing they are leaving a small footprint on the earth.\"

The restaurant was designed and built using sustainable materials and processes that leave a smaller carbon footprint for a healthier environment. The new restaurant followed strict guidelines put forth by the Leadership for Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) to earn the anticipated status of a LEED Gold Certified building. The restaurant has solar arrays, a solar heat exchange wall, geo thermal HVAC, and many other sustainability elements including an environmental educational program and a full recycling and food composting system.

In addition to offering an environmentally-friendly space, the Houlihan’s South Springfield restaurant will offer an eclectic selection of dishes infused with bold and interesting flavors, such as panko breaded fish tacos with honey-cumin dressing, stuffed chicken breast with garlic herb cream cheese, a seared ahi tuna salad with banana-ginger vinaigrette as well as a series of fresh-made Small Plates starting at $2.

Leading the trend of smaller portion sizes, Houlihan’s started offering Small Plates in late 2009, a nice addition to their mini theme in the bar, with items such as mini martinis and mini wine flights, and mini desserts, like a Bourbon Pecan Pie. The Small Plates with small prices include items like Truckstop Fries with chipotle cheese sauce and goat cheese poppers with fresh thyme and lemon zest.

Houlihan’s menu is the result of ongoing research and development by a seasoned team of culinary experts. \"We’ve put a lot of thought and time into each item,\" said Jen Gulvik, Vice President of Marketing and Creative Director for Houlihan’s Restaurants, Inc. \"Adding warm polenta croutons to our Caesar Salad to bring out the flavor once again illustrates our culinary team’s obsession with perfection. They’ve thought of every minute detail and the creative presentation is evident in every item served.\"