ANNOUNCER: CERTIFIED ORGANIC: THE MARK >>>

Organic is a word that gets bandied about as a sales tool all too frequently. Just what does it take to legally claim to be organic? Lisa Owen, owner of and executive chef at The Mark restaurant in Olympia, isn’t new and hasn’t just jumped on the trend. She’s been serving organic products since 2001, has knowledge of what it takes to be a certified organic restaurant in Washington state and seems to take it very seriously.

The Mark achieved this enviable certification earlier this spring, adding one more item to the list of things that make it hard to remember the space the restaurant is housed in was once a tire shop. Dark, lustrous wood walls and tables, red curtains, soft lighting over black booths â€" the setting begs for a clandestine rendezvous and couples surreptitiously talking and enjoying handmade cocktails.

The Mark is a restaurant, an art gallery and an event space â€" all melding healthy food, thought-inspiring art and musical provocateurs into a joyous fete for the senses.

Read Jake and Jason de Paul's review of The Mark here.

Photo: J.M. Simpson