Firefly Grill keeps green in mind

EFFINGHAM, Ill. (WTHI) - There is a big buzz in Effingham, Ill. about the Firefly Grill.

"We definitely wanted to have a smaller carbon footprint," Firefly Grill co-owner Kristie Campbell said.

The restaurant is gaining national attention for it's green efforts.

The outside of the building is lined with recycled steel and wood. The chairs guests sit on are recycled.

"It turns out that the Hard rock café in Manhattan was re-doing their facilities, so they were selling all of these used chairs and we scooped them up and brought them out here," Campbell said.

The firefly menu changes daily, but all the paper has a purpose.

"We didn't want to waste the paper, so this is what we use to fuel our fire in the morning, this is how we light the grills," Campbell said.

Most of what guests read on the menu is grown from a nearly one acre garden outside the restaurant.

Co-owner Niall Campbell believes the garden is a vital part of the restaurant.

"We take any of our food scraps as far as our produce. They all go into buckets and get taken down to a compost pile and were composting our own for our own soil," Niall Campbell said.

Most of the chicken, lamb and beef is cut fresh and comes from local farmers.

"I believe the quality of the meat is better from small farms and I also think that things purchased in Illinois is good for the economy," Niall Campbell said.

If guests can't eat everything on their plate, they can take the rest home in a biodegradable container.

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