Meals in a HeartBeet opens Kona storefront, expands Big Island meal-prep brand

Jasmine Silverstein’s move into a Kona storefront marks a bigger shift than a new address. The company she built from a homegrown health journey now has a 600- to 700-square-foot base at 75-5699 Kopiko Street next to the Club in Kona, where it can serve as both a production kitchen and a grab-and-go retail space for Big Island customers who want convenience without giving up local food.

Silverstein said she put about $50,000 into the space, paying for renovations, shelving, refrigeration and a convection oven. The opening followed five years of operating out of a commercial kitchen in Honokaa, a setup that worked until weekly subscriptions climbed to about 20 to 30 households and the business needed a more central hub on the west side of the island.

Meals in a HeartBeet grew out of Silverstein’s own health crisis in college. While studying environmental studies at Pacific University in Oregon, severe health problems pushed her to rethink food, and after returning home to Hawaii Island in 2012, she began taking small catering jobs for retreats, weddings and private dinners. Hawai‘i Ulu Cooperative says she has run HeartBeet Catering since 2015 and describes her as a holistic health coach and personal chef with more than 10 years of experience.

That background still shapes the company’s menu and supply chain. Silverstein’s business centers on scratch cooking and locally sourced ingredients, with a stated focus on using food as medicine while supporting island farmers. Hawai‘i Ulu Cooperative says her cooking emphasizes 100% locally grown meats and seafood and as much local produce as possible, including ulu. Meals in a HeartBeet says it works with local farmers, ranchers and fishermen and wants to support a more resilient Big Island food system.

The Kona storefront gives the company a visible foothold for a customer base that already stretches across the island. Meals in a HeartBeet serves Kona, Waikoloa, Waimea and Hilo, with pickup options in Waimea and Hilo and delivery or pickup extending to Hawi and Puna. Orders for subscriptions are due by Thursday at 5 p.m. for the following Monday delivery. Weekly subscriptions are priced at $25 per meal, a limited-time monthly special is $22.50 per meal, and à la carte meals sell for $28 each.

The business has also benefited from outside help. A University of Hawaii collaboration with the Pacific Asian Center for Entrepreneurship, tied to Central Pacific Bank’s WE by Rising Tide initiative, helped improve the website, checkout flow, digital marketing and customer engagement. After that work and a push on brand messaging and extra protein options, meal deliveries nearly doubled, a sign that the market for ready-made local food is widening beyond a niche audience.

Meals in a HeartBeet now packages meals in single-serving compostable containers and offers omnivore and pescatarian options, with vegetarian and vegan choices still planned. Its customers include busy professionals, seniors, expectant mothers and people focused on health and fitness, showing that on Hawaii Island, the demand for prepared meals has become a practical part of how many households eat.