Hart & Hive and Queens Kitchen was brought to life by Owner and Executive Chef, Sarah Love Hart. Sarah fell in love with cooking from a young age and her passion took her to culinary school at Johnson & Wales University in Charlotte. Here she honed her skills and worked tirelessly on her recipes that you will find in our stores today. She specializes in Italian cuisine but all of her food speaks to her love of cooking.

Sarah had been thinking of a way to blend two of her favorite things - her food, and her love of gifts, jewelry, and accessories. While running her online jewelry business, Belle & Bee as a secondary passion project. She began selling meals during the beginning of Covid-19 which became so popular- the idea of Hart & Hive was born. Hart wanted to open a store with all of her favorite things in one place with the focus being her food, that you could enjoy at home. The Riverview location opened in February, 2021 in the midst of the global  pandemic. “I never imagined we would be selling this much food every week when we first opened but here we are,” Sarah added. “I love that people can come in and grab a snack, lunch, or dinner to take home or to loved ones. It is my dream come true to be able to feed so many families every week.”

In May 2023, Hart & Hive Ooltewah opened to serve customers on the other side of town closer to Ooltewah and East Brainerd. “It was wild to see the growth and demand for our food in other areas of Chattanooga and it was exciting to be able to work on a vision for another store and expand our reach. The murals on the walls in the Ooltewah store are bright and bursting with energy. They were hand painted by local artist, Olivia Reckert. “It is such a fun store!”

Later that year, the retail space at Queens Kitchen in Riverview opened. While we had been using the kitchen space for a while, opening the storefront completed Hart’s wish list of retail spaces or as she refers to it as “The Queendom”! Queens Kitchen is a beautiful European style market where you can find imported olive oils, sauces and pasta from Italy, authentic French butter, mustards and vinegars. The cooler is stocked with local eggs, Caesar salad kits, Benton’s Bacon, cheese spreads and many more treats to whip up beautiful meals right at home using the best ingredients.