The Hungry Bee is Building The Hive
As Kimberly Gibson recalled her journey to owning her own catering business, The Hungry Bee, her emotions were palpable.
As Kimberly Gibson recalled her journey to owning her own catering business, The Hungry Bee, her emotions were palpable.
“I’m a homegrown girl here,” she said during an April 14 interview.
Kimberly grew up in Auburn Township, attending Kenston High School and Auburn Career Center while working her first job at the Timberfire restaurant in Bainbridge Township, which burned down in 2005.
She recalled how Timberfire wrote her admission letter for The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York.
“I learned so many lifelong lessons at that restaurant, but the most important lesson I learned was to be humble, to be grateful for the people that patronize and support your restaurant and to appreciate your staff and co-workers,” she said.
Her husband and co-owner of The Hungry Bee, Jimmy Gibson, was a chef at RED the Steakhouse in Cleveland and at Moxie in Beachwood, which has since closed.
The couple is currently in the process of expanding The Hungry Bee, which opened in 2011, into The Hive — an entertainment center with a speakeasy, restaurant and event center — in the former Chagrin Cinemas building in Bainbridge Township.
The Gibsons purchased the property at 8200 East Washington Street in 2022.
With plans to open in early 2026, The Hive will pay homage to Kimberly’s roots with a family-friendly restaurant and biergarten called Timberfire, as well as The Woodshed, Jimmy’s “passion project” of a live entertainment space for music, poetry readings and music lessons, Kimberly said.
A shop called Goods will sell community-made products and a movie screen will show classic films and major events like the Super Bowl. The Honey Hill event center will seat up to 400 guests and an outdoor pavilion for events like weddings and parties, she said.
The Hive and Honey Hill will be two separate entities, with the flagship catering company moving over to The Hive, she added.
“We want to create a property that has something to offer everyone. A place you go to simply because it’s a Wednesday, a place you go in your jeans and casual clothes, grab a beer (or) a burger after work. (A) place you can take your family and not break the bank, a place you can go on a date night, something for everyone,” Kimberly said.
Construction is moving fast, she said.
“Everything (has basically been) plotted out for a while now, but (the) construction crews’ demo is almost complete, walls have been coming down, ceilings have been coming down,” she said, adding it’s a challenge to bring in natural light to a former movie theater.
The Gibsons have come a long way since opening The Hungry Bee over 10 years ago. They catered the Republican National Convention in 2016 and Kimberly was featured on The Food Network’s “Chopped” show in 2017.
“I always say Jimmy Gibson was my number one investor,” she said. “Jimmy Gibson worked jobs that maybe he wasn’t as passionate about to help me open my dream here.”
She expressed gratitude for her community’s support, which also provided her with scholarships to attend The Culinary Institute.
“Geauga County is notorious for supporting its young people and its independent businesses and this community has enabled us to live our dream,” Kimberly said. “When we opened, I mean, they (the community) flooded us. It was incredible. When we were on The Food Network, they cheered and cheered us on. When we landed the Republican National Convention, it really didn’t matter anyone’s political belief, like they were all just cheering us on because they knew it was going to change our lives.”
She added, “When you own a small business, it’s your life, it’s your livelihood,” she said. “It is like my fourth child, and just to experience the support has been overwhelming and beautiful, and I don’t take it for granted.”
This business expansion and event center is her way of giving that love and support right back to the community, Kimberly said.
“We’re looking to build a destination that has something to offer everyone,” she said. “It truly is our living love letter to the community that has supported us so much.”
