It seems like everyone has been talking about Bees Knees Spicy Honey. Our guest Insta-Takeover photographer documented the fact that she was steadily consuming a bottle of this chili-infused honey last week. A friend, who lives in and found out about Bees Knees all the way in Manhattan, confessed to me that she plans to make a hot toddy with it. I may or may not have bathed an entire eggplant in a Bees Knees Spicy Honey marinade just last night. It is sweet and spicy and oh so addictive. Bees Knees is figuratively – and, yes, literally – the newest, hottest thing in condiments. And behind this legitimately successful product, stands an even more awesome, Bushwick-based story.

It all began when Bushwick resident Casey Elsass was approached by his friend, Morgen Newman, who asked if Casey would want to join him on a new business project. “He wanted to see if it was possible to start a business from scratch in thirty days,” Casey told me from his seat at the table in his cozy, brightly hued kitchen. Casey grew up cooking and has become known amongst his circle of friends for his gifts of homemade foods – hot sauces, pickled veggies, you name it. This hobby was why Morgen thought of him. “The reason Morgen approached me was I’d been making my own hot sauce for a while,” Casey explained.

Where it all began: Casey’s apartment in Bushwick.