Even the table salt is made in Maine at Fresh!, a new Mill Creek restaurant that will feature locally grown and harvested ingredients.

“People have a keen interest in what is going in their food these days,” said chef-owner Walter Loeman, a veteran restaurateur. “That’s the way the food service industry is going. Americans want their food to be organic, fresh and natural.”

Fresh! is Loeman’s response to the growing demand by consumers for food and beverages that carry the organic or all-natural label, and do not contain additives or artificial ingredients.

He plans to prepare dishes from fresh ingredients he buys from Laughing Stock Farm, Caldwell Farms and other Maine growers.

“Everything will be made from scratch that day – like vegetarian Cuban black bean soup or couscous salad with golden raisins,” Loeman said

Fresh! is expected to open by April, and is located at 171 Ocean St., next to Uncle Andy’s diner. It will occupy space that formerly housed a fish and chips place.

Loeman, a South Portland resident, is known for launching creative, high-end restaurants that include Walter’s and Perfetto’s, both in Portland’s Old Port.

His latest venture is more humble – a 38-seat casual restaurant offering homemade food and walk-up service, which means diners will order and pay for meals at the counter and deli case.

Fresh! initially will open Tuesday through Saturday for lunch only. But eventually it will offer dinner, as well.

“The concept for Fresh! is to have a community-style cafa that is affordable with organic and natural ingredients,” said Loeman.

If a popular ingredient is not in season in New England, Loeman said he will refuse to have it shipped in from another part of the country or world.

“We’re sticking to the grower’s calendar,”he said. “If it’s not in season here, we won’t sell it.”

Anecdotally, people who live and work in the neighborhood say they look forward to the opening of Fresh!

Bob Boylen, an insurance agent who works at State Farm on Ocean Street, said the new restaurant will draw more people to Mill Creek and bolster all businesses. Boylen also liked the idea of another lunch spot.

“I usually go to Barb’s diner up the street,” said Boylen. “It will be nice to have a change.”

Cindy Gotts, a personal trainer at Body of Work on Ocean Street, said she and her clients are eager to have a healthy alternative for dining out that is quick and convenient. Gotts, a South Portland mother of three, said she also likes the idea of takeout food that is nutritious.

The eat-in/takeout service is one way Loeman plans to keep costs down for diners and avoid the expense of hiring wait staff.

He also is renovating the restaurant space himself. On a recent weekday, Loeman was putting the finishing touches on the restaurant’s wood floor.

Loeman will handle the cooking at a stove behind the long wood counter. He will prepare fresh soups, sandwiches and salads daily for the lunch crowd. Dinners will focus on grains, beans and organic meats.

Loeman’s chowders will be stocked with fish caught in Maine waters. He will serve Maine lobster and lobster bisque when prices are reasonable. Foods will be spiced with Maine sea salt and herbs from Maine gardens.

Salad greens will come from Maine growers like Laughing Stock Farm, a certified organic grower in Freeport that specializes in heirloom tomatoes, romano beans and lollo rosa lettuce. Loeman may offer cheese from Smiling Hill Farm in Westbrook, and meat from grass-fed beef at Wolfe’s Neck Farm in Freeport. He hopes to have a liquor license and serve locally brewed beer.

The list of ingredients Loeman vows not to use is as important to the chef-owner as the local products he will offer. There will be no trans-fats, high-fructose corn syrup, genetically modified produce or meat and dairy from livestock that has been fed antibiotics and hormones.

Children can order all-natural soda made in New England that is flavored with cane sugar, not chemically enhanced sweeteners. Likewise, Loeman may offer chicken nuggets, but first plans to experiment with healthy oils and alternatives to wheat flour.

Loeman will link with many growers through the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association, the oldest and largest state-based organic grower’s association in the nation.

He expects to rotate the menu daily, based on available meat, fish and produce. He also plans to offer literature and information on Maine food products and small farmers.

Loeman feels confident that there is unmet demand in Maine for foods that are from area farms and made fresh each day. He notes the early success of Whole Foods, which features organic, natural and locally grown products.

In mid-February,Whole Foods opened a mammoth-sized grocery and prepared-food store in downtown Portland. Cars line up on the street next to the store, because the parking lot fills by noon with shoppers buying groceries or dining on freshly prepared sushi, fire-roasted pizzas and buffet-style meals in a food court that takes up a third of the store.

“People like to have choice,” Loeman notes. “That’s what I’m trying to offer on a smaller scale with Fresh! – whether we’re serving a variety of homemade dressings for our salads or letting people sample salsas and chutneys.”

Walter Loeman, the restauranteur behind Perfetto’s and Walter’s in Portland, is opening a new restaurant in this location in South Portland.