Opening Hours
Monday 8.30am-2.30pm
Tuesday 8.30am-2.30pm
Wednesday 8.30am-4pm`
Thursday 8.30am-2.30pm
Friday 8.30am-2.30pm
The Hive Café serves hot and cold beverages and great food that comes from local, ethical and environmentally friendly sources.
Some of our produce is even grown right here on campus – absolutely zero food miles!
We are a social enterprise which means every penny you spend goes to the continuation of the Growhampton project.
Be sure to keep up with us on Instagram or Twitter for our latest information and deals.
Our Drinks
The Hive Cafè serves up the best cup of coffee on campus!
Our coffee is a triple-certified Matthew Algae Tiki blend. This means that it is organic, Fairtrade and Rainforest Alliance certified.
It is a blend of beans from Indonesia, Peru, Ethiopia and Honduras.
It has a bright, sweet aroma followed by soft roast notes with a hint of fruit.
We stock organic dairy milk as well as plant-based alternatives Oatly and Rude Health Almond, Rude Health Soya Mylk.
We make our own Chai Tea and stock a range of Suki Herbal Teas, Green & Blacks hot chocolate. Plus, a range of organic and Fairtrade cold drinks if you're not keen on something warm.
Our Latest Menu
Our History and Vision
The Hive Café opened in 2014, and due to popular demand, it was able to expand its premises in 2015, after a successful crowdfunding effort.
The Hive Cafè is an ethical and environmentally conscious coffee shop, serving up homemade, wholesome hot food made lovingly by our in-house chef.
It is also the only independent catering outlet on campus, meaning every pound you spend in the café, goes straight back into the Growhampton project. Allowing us to continue working towards a better tomorrow.
Here at The Hive Cafè, we care about where our ingredients come from and choose suppliers that adhere to the same values as us.
We want to make delicious and wholesome food as sustainable and affordable as possible, whilst being inclusive of different dietary needs. Our daily special is always plant-based, and we use local and seasonal fruit and vegetables often supplied by our own edible campus or a trusted farm in Kent.
We aim to be free from food waste, so if there is any food leftover at the end of the day, we ensure customers and staff do not go home empty-handed!
Our chickens do not lose out either, as all our vegetable scraps end up with them and they love it!
Caring for the environment is our main priority, and we do our very best to reduce plastic use to a minimum.
We only stock compostable 'to go' items such as cups and food boxes, BUT we would absolutely love it when our customers bring in their own cups and Tupperware to cut down on unnecessary waste!
A copy of the Hive Manual, which is a document that operationalises our commitment to the 'triple bottom line' can be found here.