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Community, collaboration, and extremely good local food, all in one place.
Noemi’s Dumplings
Who? Noemi Zhong Capizzo
What? Handmade dumplings, sauces, and prepared foods inspired by traditional Chinese recipes and family cooking.
How to get them: Pick up at the Hive or order online here. Insta: @noemidumplings
What’s it like, working at the Hive?
The Hive provided me with a licensed commercial kitchen space that met all local health and safety regulations. Once I started cooking at the Hive, I could apply for the wholesale license because the kitchen itself was already approved for commercial production. The Hive’s manager, Tom, helped and guided me through the paperwork and connected me with the right health inspectors.
Beyond the wholesale license, the Hive has helped me in several ways:
- Lower startup costs: I didn’t have to build or rent my own expensive commercial kitchen.
- Networking: I met other local food entrepreneurs, which led to shared supply orders and word‑of‑mouth referrals.
- Business support: They offered advice on pricing, labeling, and selling to local stores and restaurants.
- Flexible hours: I can cook when I need to, which is essential for wholesale deadlines.
Ellie O’s
Who? Ellie Olsen
What? Ice cream sandwiches
How to get them: I collaborate with lots of local private chefs, providing ice cream sandwiches for their catered dinners. My ice cream sandwiches are available June through September. You can find them at my new food truck, located at Cisco Beach every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, or at Cisco Brewers Sunday through Tuesday. You can also buy them at The Hive. Find her website here, Instagram @ellieosnantucket, or contact her at ellieoicecream@gmail.com or 508-314-2132.
The Backstory
I grew up spending time on the island in the summer at my grandmother's house. It was always my favorite part of the summer. In May of 2020, I moved out to Nantucket, where I planned to spend a few weeks to “wait out” the pandemic. Six years later and I am still here!
Before starting Ellie O's, I worked for Something Natural, where we often brought home the cookie dough and ate ice cream with fresh, warm cookies. That reignited my love for my favorite childhood treat.
Tip: My kitchen advice is to go nice and slow — rushing leads to mistakes, dropped items, spills, and waste! Enjoy the process; it can be very therapeutic.
My Perfect Day Off: I love spending time at the beach, running the trails in the moors (my favorite are the snake hills), and eating at Straight Wharf Fish Market.
Faraway Chocolate
Who? Andre Marrero
What? Bean-to-bar chocolate
How to get it? At the Hive or Shanty #16 on Old South Wharf, online, and we ship across the country. Because chocolate is heat sensitive, we ship in the cooler months by default, with special arrangements available the rest of the year. We are also especially proud of our corporate gift program. Find Faraway Chocolate online, on Instagram @farawaychocolate or send Andre a message at andre@farawaychocolate.com.
The Backstory
Everything begins with the raw cacao bean. We roast, crack, winnow, grind, and temper in our own kitchen on the island, and nothing leaves until it is finished by hand. The result is small-batch chocolate bars and gift collections built around single origins and the flavors of the places the cacao comes from.
We launched in 2020, though the inspiration runs back several generations. My great-great-grandfather, H.O. Wilbur, founded the Wilbur Chocolate Company in 1865 and created the chocolate bud, the little confection that came before the Hershey Kiss. Chocolate has been in my family for more than a century and a half, and starting Faraway with my wife Erica was a way to carry that forward in our own voice.
The name comes from Nantucket itself. Faraway is the English translation of the Wampanoag word for the island, the faraway land. It captures both where we are and where our cacao travels from, two distant places joined in a single bar.
In 2014 we moved from New York to the island; in 2020, after rebuilding the culinary program at Great Harbor from the ground up while the world stood still, it felt like the right moment to take personal inventory and ask what came next. Between the family history in chocolate, two decades in restaurants, and the simple fact that Nantucket did not yet have a chocolate shop of its own, Nantucket Faraway Chocolate was the natural next step.
What are the biggest challenges of running a small food business on Nantucket?
Everything that makes the island special also makes it difficult. Freight and ferry schedules shape how and when ingredients arrive. Space is scarce and costly. The population swings hard between summer and winter, so a business has to earn most of its year in a handful of months. Chocolate is also heat sensitive, which makes summer storage and shipping their own puzzle. The work is to build something steady against a calendar that is anything but.
The Hive does several jobs for us. Our kitchen there is The Chocolate Lab, where every bar is made from the bean up. The Hive also keeps a small retail shelf that we stock with Faraway, and it is one of the two places we run our chocolate-making classes. The kitchen also gives us room to experiment. A licensed commercial kitchen is a serious cost for a small maker to build alone. The Hive let us start without that burden.
Collaboration at the Hive
The chocolate kitchen itself has its own specific equipment and tight temperature requirements, so it stays a dedicated space rather than a shared one, but a question asked outloud in a place full of other makers usually finds someone who has thought it through. It’s nice to be simply not working alone. There is real energy in a building full of people who care about what they make, and it carries you through the long production days. You trade nods and notes with neighbors more often than you might think.
Where do you source your main ingredients?
Cacao only grows in a narrow band, twenty degrees north and twenty degrees south of the equator, so the source of every bar travels well before it ever reaches Nantucket. We focus on beans graded fine cacao, mostly from Central and South America. This season we are working with origins from Colombia, Belize, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Peru, and Venezuela. Wherever possible we source through direct trade, buying straight from farmers and cooperatives we know. What is local is the craft.
Are there any Nantucket farmers or producers you collaborate with?
Yes, and the list is growing. We will be dehydrating fruits and berries from local farms, like Fog Town Farm to use as inclusions. We are also looking to collaborate with Dylan Wallace at Eat Fire Farm, a fellow Hive maker, for peppers, and with Nantucket Sea Salt.
Are there any sustainability principles that guide how you produce your food?
Direct trade is the principle we hold to most firmly. We buy straight from the people who grow our cacao, pay above the commodity price, and build relationships that last. We work in small batches, to demand, which keeps waste low, and we choose packaging that can return to the Earth rather than sit in it.
We chose packaging that protects the chocolate and respects the island it ships from. Orders travel cushioned in compostable, plant-based insulation rather than plastic, so the part of the box meant to be thrown away can simply break down. Our guiding idea is restraint: enough to keep the bar safe and beautiful, and nothing that outlives its purpose.
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Faraway Drinking Chocolate for Two
Description
A proper cup of drinking chocolate, the kind we hope to pour year round one day.
Ingredients
Instructions
- Warm 8 ounces of whole milk in a small pot until it just steams, never letting it boil.
- Take it off the heat and whisk in 2 ounces of finely chopped Faraway dark chocolate, around 70 percent, until smooth and glossy.
- Finish with a small pinch of flaky sea salt and pour into two small cups. It should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
Nantucket Cocktail Catering
Who? Stuart Boissonnault
What? Launched in 2024, Nantucket Cocktail provides catering services for cocktail parties from Memorial Day to Columbus Day, Thanksgiving and Stroll. We have an oyster bar, a walk-up bar for drinks, along with tapas and tins. Oysters are fresh-shucked, cocktails are handmade, and we source high-quality ingredients.
How: Call or write to book: stu.bois@gmail.com or 206-390-0307. Also find online and on Instagram @nantucketcocktail.
Food waste tips: I would rather order smaller quantities that cost a bit more than order in bulk and not use it all. Saving veggie cuttings for stocks.
Perfect day off: The beach, with some good food and drink.
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Apple-Jalapeño Mignonette
- Yield: Makes ~2 1/2 cups
Description
Stuart Boissonnault is the proprietor of Nantucket Cocktail Catering, which serves fresh-shucked oysters, handmade drinks, and tapas from a portable mahogany bar at summer parties on the island. He says his clients love this recipe — it’s a nice contrast to a classic mignonette.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup green apple, cored and diced
- 1/4 cup jalapeño, deseeded and diced
- 2 Tbsps shallot, peeled and diced
- 1 1/4 cup white wine or champagne vinegar
Instructions
- Mix all the ingredients together. Serve chilled with oysters on the half shell.
Fato a Man
Who: Chef: Davide Fabbian/Business Manager: Kate Sulzer
What: Pasta made by hand. Fato a Man (means “handmade” in Venetian dialect) creates fresh pasta, ravioli, lasagna, sauces, and other Italian specialties rooted in traditional family recipes.
How to Order: Hive Grab & Go; order pickup via email ackfatoaman@gmail.com, online, or DM them on Instagram @ackfatoaman. Davide is also available for private events and community offerings for local non-profits: anyone can reach out for custom menus: 415-513-7448.
The Backstory
Opened: March 2025.
Kate: What began as a long-standing joke about opening a pasta shop on the island has joyfully materialized into a reality. I was born and raised on Nantucket and lived here two years post-college before moving to San Francisco in 2010. I always intended to return and moved back to the island in January 2024.
Davide: I moved to the island because of Kate. Originally from the Venice region of Italy, I lived in London, New York City, and San Francisco before meeting Kate in 2015. We had our wedding ceremony and celebration in the backyard of her family’s home on Nantucket in 2017, so it is a really special place for us to live.
The biggest challenges of running Fato a Man are the fluctuations in seasonal changes: adapting to a very busy summer and then finding rhythm in a slower winter season. Our business would not be possible without the partnership of The Hive and Remain. Having access to a physical location and a commercial kitchen, combined with the guidance of such a supportive management team, has been essential to our operations.
It's great to have other people around when you are cooking for eight hours at a time on your own. If an issue does come up, I have been able to talk it through with other makers there. Tom and Kimmy, who make up the management team, have an incredible depth of culinary knowledge and expertise — from helping me problem solve, to testing new recipes and helping me refine them.
I try to get cheese made within the United States as much as possible. During the fall, spring and summer, I am able to access more regional produce. For any seafood, I buy from Glidden’s Island Seafood.
Health and Sustainability
Buying local as much as possible. I only purchase flour that does not have extra ingredients or enrichment. I try to limit packaging as much as possible; no extra bagging. No plastic; I use aluminum containers instead.
I share large orders with other makers so that nothing goes to waste.
Gathering
The Hive has a beautiful space for people to gather, and with the support of its management team, we hosted these events for community gatherings. It’s rare to have a communal meal where people can gather for a single seating, at communal tables. During the “off-season” on-island, it is an opportunity for community members to connect and get out for a night while most businesses are closed.
The Perfect Day Off?
Cooking at home for my family. There’s nothing better than sharing a meal with my in-laws, Barbara and Jim, and my wife, Kate. My favorite places to go are The Creeks and Galley Beach, especially in the off-season.
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Homemade Pasta for Four
Ingredients
- 4 eggs
- 200 grams 00 flour (ultra fine Italian wheat flour)
- 200 grams semolina flour
Instructions
- Mix all of the ingredients by hand with a fork.
- Use a scraper to form it into a small ball. Flatten it with your hand into a round/oval shape, wrap it in plastic wrap and let it rest for 45 minutes in the refrigerator.
- Then, stretch it and cut. (For more information on cooking the pasta and mixing with a sauce, visit fatoaman.com/cooking-information).
Nantucket Pickle Girl
Who? Sarah Maneikis
What? Small-batch, handcrafted pickles, fermented foods.
How to order: Hive Grab & Go, and soon, online.
Info: @ackpickle, sarah.maneikis@icloud.com, 508-982-8808.
The Backstory
“Came for tennis, stayed for real estate, now known as the pickle girl.”
I travel extensively along the East Coast, sourcing only the highest-quality cucumbers, dill, garlic, and specialty ingredients to develop a bold, crave-worthy pickle.
Every jar starts with fresh, locally sourced ingredients (I coordinate with Moors End Farm). My secret spice blend is entirely my own — developed, tested, and perfected until it was exactly right.
Some people are lucky enough to have someone in their corner who sees what they're capable of before they see it themselves. I had my mother.
She didn't hand me a recipe. She gave us something better — the belief that my talents were worth pursuing, and the courage to actually go after them.
My mother always said to bet on yourself. Best advice I ever got.
Sustainability
All of my pickles are jarred in classic glass mason jars, which are 100% reusable and endlessly refillable.
Bespoke Chef Services
Who? Chef Joseph Ranstatler
What? Personal chef offering bespoke meals in the comfort of your home; meal delivery services ready to eat or easily reheatable. Concierge services including shopping, home stocking and meal prepping.
How to get in touch: jranstatler2@gmail.com, 508-901-1831, online, and on Instagram @chefjoe_.
The Backstory
I started in 2025; I’ve been a chef on Nantucket for more than 20 years at many restaurants including Dune and Corazon del Mar. The name Bespoke came from the concept of custom creating memorable food experiences in the comfort of your home or rental. I work with all/most local farmers including Washashore farms, Fogtown Farm, Moors End, Bartletts Farm, also Pip and Anchor.
Tenzo Kitchen
Who? Sarah Todd
What? Founded in 2021, Tenzo Kitchen creates healthy and sustainably sourced meals and private events.
How to Get It: Pick up at The Hive, or order online: tenzokitchen.co, on Instagram @tenzo_kitchen, sarah.todd9@gmail.com, 615-202-5868.
The Backstory
A Tenzo is the monk in a Buddhist monastery who cooks for all the other monks. It's a revered position because the quality of the food impacts the monks' ability to achieve enlightenment.
Working at the Hive
The flexibility of booking and the high quality equipment certainly makes running my business a little smoother. It feels supportive to be working solo alongside other folks working solo. I don't think I've ever been in the space completely alone. It's nice to have access to a lot of people to problem solve in the moment.
Health and Sustainability
I utilize larger purveyors like Sid Wainer for basic ingredients, but I like to feature local and regional products whenever I can. I order organic ingredients whenever I can. It's easier when catering for private parties to utilize the best of what is local when folks are less concerned about cost. I tend to cook with seasonality and the human body in mind. I believe our personal ecosystem is a reflection of the external ecosystem.
Food Waste Tip
Freezer-friendly food is great stored in batches. You wind up with a great little stash of things to enjoy on the fly rather than throwing away old food. Don't buy too much and have a plan when you go shopping. Whatever you buy, use all of it before buying more stuff.
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3-2-1 Pickles
Description
Sarah Todd runs Tenzo Kitchen at The Hive on Nantucket. There, she cooks with seasonality and the body in mind, and she loves to find ways to avoid food waste, such as pickling vegetables so they last longer. Pickle cucumbers, red onion, jalapeños — any vegetable you’d like — with her simple formula that uses 3 parts vinegar, 2 parts water, and 1 part sugar. All you need to remember is 3-2-1!
Ingredients
- Any vegetable you’d like to pickle
- 3 parts vinegar (any wine, apple cider, or rice vinegar)
- 2 parts water
- 1 part sugar (can reduce if desired)
- Salt to taste
- Aromatics (whole spices, herbs, lemon slices, etc.)
Instructions
- Clean and cut your vegetable into your desired pickle shape. Put the pieces in a jar (or multiple jars), and set aside.
- Combine the vinegar, water, and sugar in a pot, and heat, stirring occasionally, until the sugar is completely dissolved. Pour the mixture in the jar(s), just enough to cover the vegetables, put on lid(s), and give each jar a slow tilt to distribute the liquid.
- Allow the jar(s) to cool to room temperature, then move to the fridge and let sit for at least an hour before you enjoy. Store in the fridge for up to 3 months for the best flavor.
Chef Kimmy
Who? Kimmy Freudenreich
What? Private Chef
How to get in touch: Insta: @chefkimmy74; chefkimmy2023@gmail.com, 850-890-8441, chefkimmy.com/
The Backstory
[I had an] externship at the Harbor House (now White Elephant) in 1996. I stayed for 10 years, working my way up, then left to work on yachts full time.
The Hive
Until The Hive came along, I had to prepare all of the food at a client's house. After The Hive, I had access to consistent space, storage and state of the art equipment that I would otherwise not have access to. I try to use the makers at The Hive to help promote their businesses. This year The Hive is more alive than ever! Everyone helps each other. You need some micro basil, a pound of shrimp and a baguette — no problem! Ask another maker and they are quick to help out.
We are all there with the same goal and everyone wants to see you succeed. In a sense it's like an extended family.
Buy Local
My brother-in-law, Keith Day, has been a scalloper for years and I see the amount of dedication he puts into his daily routine all winter long … snow, ice, wind — he is out there! It is that way for most people who have a business here. When you see people working so hard, it is an easy choice to buy local. It may be more expensive, but you get what you pay for.
Favorite day-off: I go to Moors End farm to buy flowers, go to the sustainable farmers market and spend an hour looking at produce, buying the most amazing fish and then bringing it all together in a perfect symphony on a gorgeous Nantucket night.
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Kimmy’s Scrambled Eggs
ACK Pastry Shack
Who? Maja Mlinar
What? Maja brings her Serbian family traditions to Nantucket with a modern twist: no-bake cheesecakes, brunch platters and pastries, charcuterie boards; catering
How to Get: Orders can be placed online or on Instagram @ackpastryshack.
I also sell products at the Farmers Market on Saturdays and The Hive market on Sundays. Daily products can be found at The Hive. It is year round.
The Backstory
“I launched my business in December 2024. Friends and family inspired me to start because I love to bake and cook, and since they all enjoy my food, they encouraged me to start a business so others could enjoy it, too.”
8 Arms Chef Services
Who? Chris Morris
What? 8 Arms Chef Services provides private chef experiences, catering, and prepared meals centered around seasonal ingredients and gathering around the table.
How do you taste it? Private catering available, and also at the Hive freezer (order ahead).
Find on Instagram at @ackeightarms, ackeightarms@gmail.com, 774-236-0984, or online.
The Backstory
Inspired by the eight arms of the octopus, Chef Chris Morris created 8 Arms Chef Services with one mission: to give you the extra hands you need to fully enjoy your time on Nantucket. Sourcing from the island’s bounty and organically growing what he can, Chris crafts meals that are rooted in place and made with intention.
Nantucket Nosh
What? Nantucket Nosh creates sauces, dips, and baked goods using locally sourced ingredients whenever possible, made to be enjoyed from the beach and boat to the dinner table.
Who? Courtney Gehring
How do you get it? Hive Grab & Go
Get in touch: @nantucket_nosh, courtney.a.gehring@gmail.com, 503-317-7578, nantucketnosh.com.
Eat Fire Farm
What? Herbs, perennials, and blackberries, jams, vinegars, honey, and solar sea salt
Who? Dylan and Caroline Wallace
How do you get it? The Hive Grab & Go, and freezer; farmstand at Sustainable Nantucket, 168 Hummock Pond Road;
How to get in touch: On Instagram at @eatfirefarm, dylan@eatfire.farm or caroline@eatfire.farm, 508-332-2121, and online.
The Backstory
Island native Dylan Wallace has farmed on Nantucket for more than two decades. Dylan, an artist who’s been gardening since high school, met Caroline, a ceramicist who’s been coming to Nantucket since she was an infant, met at the Community Farm Institute. Now married with a daughter, they have expanded Eat Fire Farm to include five additional acres. “This is our life’s work: to be stewards of the land, to grow beautiful flowers, and to make beautiful food.”
Hungry Minnow
What? Homemade cookies, salsa, and snacks
Who? Rebecca Chapa
How to get: Hive Grab & Go, departures tent at Nantucket Airport
Get in touch: @thehungryminnow, thehungryminnow@gmail.com, 415-378-1674.
The Backstory
Growing up, Rebecca Chapa worked at her father's New York restaurant Pancho Villa's and attended Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration. Her career has included Wine School Coordinator for Kevin Zraly's Windows on the World Wine School, and restaurant management roles at Drew Nieporent's Myriad Restaurant Group restaurants Montrachet, Tribeca Grill, Nobu, Reebok Sports Club and Rubicon in San Francisco. She launched her cookies at the Sustainable Nantucket Farmers Market in 2014 and they were a feature at The Hungry Minnow at Children's Beach between 2017 and 2021.
Nantucket Island Creations
What? Catering and private dining inspired by fresh ingredients, global flavors (Caribbean with American influences), and island hospitality.
Who? Jermaine Scarlett
How to get: scarlettjermaine73@gmail.com, 508-221-3260, online, or @nantucketislandcreations.
The Backstory
In June 2000, Jermaine moved to Nantucket and quickly fell in love with the island and the rhythm of restaurant life, spending nearly a decade at Arno’s before launching his own venture.
Meat & Greet
What? Meat & Greet crafts authentic Balkan pastries, breads, and meats inspired by traditional recipes and generations of culinary heritage.
Who? Dimitar Dimitrov
How to get: To go at The Hive, or book him as a caterer.
Get in touch: meatandgreetACK@gmail.com, 508-901-1317, @meat_and_greet_ack, and online.
The Backstory
Hailing from Bulgaria, Dimitar has been handcrafting sausages since childhood, a family tradition he shares with Nantucket. With a devoted following of customers who pop in just to snag a sausage when they hear he’s there, Dimitar’s creations bring a true taste of Bulgarian heritage to the island.
Siam To Go
What? Siam To Go prepares fresh Thai meals that balance bold flavors, quality ingredients, and everyday convenience.
Who? Bo Sasomsin
How to get: Order to go, pick up at The Hive: online, 508-332-9223, siamtogo@gmail.com, and on Instagram @siamtogonantucket.
The Backstory
Inspired by her northern Thai roots, Bo Sasomsin and her husband Piya Phatthanaphuti created Siam To Go in 2009 to bring authentic Thai food to Nantucket. Today, they’re serving the authentic Thai dishes Nantucket knows and loves, now exclusively out of The Hive.
Extra: Thai teas and drinks from Bubble Boya (Boya is Sasomsin and Piya’s daughter) is available via online order and also at Sustainable Nantucket’s Saturday market in town.
Grey Lady Raw Provisions
What? Raw bars, cocktails, and coastal hospitality.
Who? Terrence Ruggiero
How to get in touch: events@greyladyrawbar.com, 508-375-1069, online, @glrpco.
The Backstory
Terrence Ruggiero is the founder of Grey Lady Raw Provisions Co. With a background spanning more than two decades in New York's craft cocktail scene, and commercial fishing and oyster farming, he specializes in raw bars, cocktails, and coastal hospitality. At The Hive, he teaches hands-on classes focused on cocktail techniques, the art of shucking, and New England entertaining.
Raynor & Raynor Live Fire BBQ
What? Smoked barbecue. catering
Who? Seth and Nathaniel Raynor.
How to get in touch: nathaniel@raynorlivefirebbq.com, 508-332-9506, @raynor.live.fire.bbq
The Backstory
Nathaniel: When Covid hit, I was up in Boston. I had started playing around with smoking meat in my backyard because I had a patio, and that was the only place we could all get together. Everyone would come over, and that was our monthly social gathering.
As these things start, they get bigger, and then you start wanting to do more, and then over the past couple years, I spoke to my dad. [Seth ran restaurants on Nantucket for decades, including the Pearl]and I said, “Hey, I've got an idea of something we can do here on Nantucket.” … He was on board with it. We started doing trips down to Austin, eating our way through about 20 of the top 50 Texas BBQ places.
Now, we are reimagining some of the dishes that we may have done at the restaurants, and saying, “Oh, we're going to put an Asian twist on this.” Or my dad was really known for the lobster dish at the Pearl, and say, “Oh, well, what if we took some of the elements of this lobster and interpreted it through the lens of Live Fire.”
We mentioned that 70% of our business will be private dinners we're doing. Clients will have an intimate experience where we can walk through everything the guest is eating on their plate: This is where the wood came from, and why we're using it. If we're doing Wagyu, this is where in America this meat is coming from. This is why we're using this cut. We will partner with local farms and our friends that we've had over the years and create kind of this experience where it's a mixture of enjoyment and education.
Seth: We're gonna do Hive dinners, too. Either do a ticketed pop-up event or someone could have their own party there. We will also occasionally pre-order takeouts of barbecue boxes. Someone could take it to the beach, take it home, but they would pick it up at The Hive.
Nathaniel: The guy who's getting us the oak we’re using is up in New Hampshire. We have to get it shipped over here by a different company. Then it arrives, and you have to figure out how to deal with it. We have some Nantucket roots going way back, and you think about the efforts people on the island to get provisions here during the whaling days. I was thinking about it on the way into work the other day: As much as this is a pain point of trying to figure out how to get this here or that here, it kind of made me feel like I was in touch with my history in a way that I hadn't in a long time.
Read more about This Season at The Hive.
