The Hive in Chagrin Falls: A New Destination

Exploring The Hive with owner Kimberly Gibson is a great way to get in one’s steps. As we navigate our way across the sprawling compound, my enthusiastic guide shows off the results of a three-year journey that reshaped the former Chagrin Cinemas property in Bainbridge into a destination boasting a warren of new hospitality-focused businesses.

“We’re going from a 1,900-square-foot facility to 68,000 square feet,” Gibson explains.

That 1,900-square-foot business was the original Honey Bee, Kimberly and Jimmy Gibson’s “flagship” prepared foods market that they established in the same neighborhood back in 2009. That facility is now closed, with operations shifted to a spacious new home at The Hive. The bright gourmet market is the place to come for wine, beer, snacks, gourmet food products, fresh and frozen heat-and-eat meals and more.

“This is our tried-and-true prepared foods store where local customers come in and load up for the week with our meals,” says Shelby Heppner, director of operations.

A row of glass-fronted coolers are stocked with frozen appetizers, soups, family meals, desserts and more, all prepared and frozen on site. Other display coolers are filled with a rotating selection of fresh, ready-to-eat salads and entrees such as roast pork loin with Brussels sprouts, pan-seared salmon with pesto, BBQ brisket with greens and biscuits.

At the far end of the main concourse is Timberfire, a revival of a beloved restaurant of the same name that existed near here in the early 2000s.

“This was the most important part of the project for me,” says Kimberly. “I was the salad girl there when it opened and they wrote my college admission letter to the C.I.A.”

The post-and-beam façade will look familiar to all who dined at that restaurant, a gateway that leads to a family-friendly tavern with a Western edge. Deer mounts, flagstone hearths and “the largest bar in Geauga County” await guests in this 245-seat full-service restaurant. That record-setting bar alone can accommodate 40 people, with room for another 70 or so on the attached patio.

From an open kitchen, chef Jimmy and his team will prepare a selection of popular dishes from the original menu, plus some more contemporary chef-driven originals. Starters include fried provolone wedges, confit chicken wings, braised beef nachos and crab cakes. There is a large selection of salads – including entrée salads – plus pizzas, burgers and sandwiches. Entrees range from an herb-crusted walleye with warm potato salad and smoked meatloaf with mashed potatoes to a bone-in pork chop and two-pound grilled ribeye. For dessert, there’s a chocolate campfire cake and Blossom Time, an orange honey sticky bun with vanilla ice cream and a honey drizzle.

Make your way through the broom closet and you will find yourself inside a posh speakeasy with its own bar, vibe and spirits selection.

Step into the Woodshed and you are immersed in a gallery of psychedelic artwork honoring the Grateful Dead and Dead & Co., all pulled from Jimmy’s private collection. This 300-person capacity venue is where you’ll catch live music shows, comedy nights and family friendly activities like yoga and more.

Next door is Screens, the last operational vestige of Chagrin Cinemas. The one-screen cinema maintains the original screen, speakers and dimensions of that theater, but with a new layout of semi-private family-size nooks with soft seating. This is where you’ll come to enjoy second-run films, live sporting events and video game tourneys on the giant screen.

Connecting it all is Concessions, a gourmet concession stand that is open before, during and after shows, events and meals at Timberfire. During the day, this is where you’ll come to grab Italian sandwiches, focaccia pizza by the slice, salads, grab-and-go charcuterie boards, donuts and more. During events and shows, the concessions area doubles as the bar with beer, wine and booze.

Capping it all off is Honey Hill, a 400-guest capacity event venue geared to weddings and other large gatherings. In addition to the massive hall, the facility boasts stylish – but separate – bridal and grooms suites.

Fueling it all – the prepared foods market, the full-service restaurant, the concessions stand, and the deluxe events venue – is a state-of-the-art kitchen that serves as the nerve center of the entire complex. It’s a kitchen that wouldn’t look out of place in the heart of a large hotel.

“With a project of this magnitude, you need the cross-pollination of people, product and procedures,” explains Kimberly. “That’s the key to our success.”