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Offering customers a taste of the gourmet burger experience with fewer fat grams, more restaurant operators are including specialty turkey burgers on their menus.

In fact, the number of turkey burgers on the menus of the chain restaurants that the Mintel research company tracks increased from 38 in the third quarter of 2009 to 68 in the third quarter of 2011.

Some operators who sell turkey burgers attributed their rising prominence to the demand for leaner alternatives to beef. They also cited the improved flavor and moistness of better turkey burgers. Yet another reason they gave is the relative price stability of turkey at a time of volatile beef prices.

At the two Burger 21 locations in Tampa, a pair of signature turkey burgers account for a little more than 10 percent of burger sales.

“A lot of people say ‘Wow, I don’t know if I’m going back to the beef burger, this is so good,’” said Mark Johnston, CEO and president of the fast-casual burger concept, which is owned by Tampa-based Front Burner Brands.

The menu features 21 different types of burgers. Most are made with beef, but there also are chicken, shrimp, tuna, bean and vegetable burgers in addition to the turkey choices. Both of Burger 21’s turkey burgers are made with panko-dusted turkey patties. The Skinny is topped with lettuce, tomato, avocado and sun-dried tomato aioli and served on a whole wheat roll, priced at $5.99. The BLT has applewood-smoked bacon, lettuce and tomato, red onion and Dijon chive mayo and is served on a brioche bun, priced at $6.50.

The turkey items appeal to two distinct customer types: “One is the person who is thinking right off the bat ‘I’m going to eat healthier today,’” said Johnston. “The other is the person who is just looking for something different.”

Also sporting a pair of popular turkey burgers is Bagger Dave’s Legendary Burger Tavern, a five-unit, full-service concept of Diversified Restaurant Holdings, based in Southfield, Mich.

The Tuscan Burger stacks hand-formed turkey patties with sliced mozzarella, tomato, onion, fresh basil and balsamic vinegar and is priced at $6.49. The Santa Fe Chipotle Burger tops a turkey patty with Bagger Dave’s Santa Fe Chipotle Sauce, guacamole, romaine lettuce, pepper jack cheese and tomato and is priced at $7.49.

“They are very popular with women, and the men who try it love it,” said Michael Ansley, CEO and president of Diversified. “But I would say 75 percent to 78 percent of the folks still order the beef product.”

“But I do think that people are slowly starting to eat healthier at restaurants and that is part of the increase in turkey,” added Ansley. “Also, at one time, there was a misconception about turkey burgers being dry and not that good. The product we use is incredible and very moist.” The turkey is a blend of all-natural, Michigan-raised white and dark meat turkey that is about 15 percent leaner than the burger beef, Ansley said.

Plus there is the financial motivation to menu turkey. “You are not seeing the spikes with turkey that you are with beef,” said Ansley. “The way beef prices are going, especially this year, it’s nice to have it because it helps you with those costs.”

Turkey burgers get a culinary workup at Butcher & the Burger, a brand-new restaurant and retail meat concept in Chicago headed by Allen Sternweiler, a veteran fine-dining chef.

His freshly ground, free-range turkey patty is one of an array of premium proteins he offers for custom burgers, along with choices like Wagyu grass-fed beef, wild salmon and elk. Guests can match their protein of choice with a whole wheat, pretzel, croissant or egg bun, five artisanal cheeses, nine seasoning blends and toppings ranging from a fried egg to sautéed foie gras to black truffle aioli.

“I know of restaurants that are selling more turkey burgers than regular beef burgers,” said Sternweiler. “I think people are taking advantage of a way to eat healthier.”