There’s a buzz about the treasure trove of craftsmanship and creativity found right in the First Coast Region. 

That buzz is found literally – and figuratively – at The Honey Truck Company, which offers award-winning artisan honeys from St. Augustine.

It’s found, too, with Curtis Ceballos’ Invisacook Stove, located in Bunnell. Invisacook is an innovative way of cooking that was lauded on Time Magazine’s Top Inventions of 2023.

“I was a full-time family photographer, and I didn’t feel that was creative enough for me,” says Danielle Brooks, proprietor of The Honey Truck. “So one day, I decided I was going to get a beehive, and I immediately fell in love with it.”

She is a Master Beekeeper through the University of Florida’s Master Craftsman Beekeeper program and is also a certified honey judge.

Today, bees from Brooks’ hives and hives from other keepers in the area craft small batch honeys, many hyperlocal, sold across the country. They have been recognized as a Best of the South brand by Southern Living and have been featured on The Today Show.

“We want everyone to know where their honey comes from,” says Brooks. “If I don’t produce the honey myself, I know the beekeeper, their beekeeping practices, and where their hives are located. So there’s a lot of trust that is built into The Honey Truck brand, versus going to the store and finding a random brand and picking that off the shelf.”

There are honeys infused with lavender or vanilla, single-origin honey like Orange Blossom that comes from the orange orchards just below the Ocala National Forest, a barrel-aged bourbon honey, Florida wildflower honey and others. Merchandise includes a honey pot with dipper. 

The Honey Truck products are sold at several store locations in northeast and central Florida, as well as at HomeGoods stores across the country. Products can also be purchased directly from the website.

“I like to say that I’m giving a modern voice to an old tradition. A lot of beekeepers that I work with are of an older generation, so we’re kind of seeing that new regime of beekeeper and marketer come in and kind of revitalize that.”

Curtis Ceballos is taking tradition and modernizing it, too, with a product that came to him in a dream.

“The inspiration for the Invisacook Cooktop was given to me in a dream over two nights,” he says.

“I drew what I saw on a piece of paper and started researching it. I had found that there was nothing in the market that was like the Invisacook Cooktop. That was 2017; my first two units failed miserably.”

Another unit exploded, causing a fire in his home, but Ceballos persisted and built a third out of used computer tower parts. It worked, and he started the patent registration.

“Invisacook is a device that gets installed under the countertop, and then once you turn it on, you’ll be able to put one of our pans, or an induction pan on an Invisimat, on the counter and cook right there,” he says.

Ceballos notes that with the cooking element being the countertop itself, it allows for home chefs to have additional counter space for other functions compared to the typical stoves on the market.

“And the nice thing about induction cooking is that you have full control of your cooking,” hey says. “With induction, you really don’t need to cook at a very high temperature, which means you are using less electrical power, up to 65% less.”

A hood is not needed, either.

Invisacook has garnered many kudos in addition to the recognition from Time, including receiving the Sterling Manufacturing Award for small-to-medium-sized companies, accolades from BUILD Magazine in the United States and Architectural magazine in the United Kingdom and many best product awards for the past three years from various trade show.

“Recently, we signed an agreement with Lowes in their stores and online,” says Ceballos.

“We are making plans to have our news pans that we developed to be brought to the forefront and used by all, including the Michelin Star Chefs.”

He says there is a new line of units being released this summer and new products coming out in the next few years.

“We are living proof that if I can do this here in Flagler County, so can many others as long as we help them, guide them and show the rest of the world that we have a great location here for living and for business development.”

For information on The Honey Truck, visit www.HoneyTruck.com

For information on Invisacook Cooktop, visit www.Invisacook.com