Running place is important (7)
I believe the answer is:
special
'important' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'running place is' is the wordplay.
'running' is an anagram indicator.
'place'+'is'='placeis'
'placeis' is an anagram of 'SPECIAL'.
(Other definitions for special that I've seen before include "Remarkable" , "Bargain" , "Particular, distinctive" , "Dish not on the normal menu" , "Day's non-menu dish" .)