Grille Zone wins certification from Green Restaurant Association

The Grille Zone in Boston said it has become the first "fast-casual" restaurant in the country to be certified green by the Green Restaurant Association.

The Boston restaurant, which opened on Commonwealth Avenue near Boston University in June, is potentially the first of several Grille Zone locations in the Boston and Albany, N.Y. areas. The company was launched by Ben Prentice and Barry Baker.

Grille Zone's cups, plates and cutlery are all biodegradable. The restaurant also gets most of its food items locally and uses the most energy-efficient restaurant equipment available. As a result, the restaurant produces an average of no more than 15 pounds of waste per day. The Green Restaurant Association says the average restaurant produces 275 pounds of waste per day.