Longtime Peoria caterer reflects on her long career, says 'it's time to turn a page'

Connie Randall boasts a long history in the catering business.

She established A Matter of Taste in 1979. Over the decades, she served many in the Peoria area – from catering weddings and parties to hosting soup subscriptions for the winter months.

“One job – I always found – got me the next job. I really have never advertised, and I'm not a big Facebook posting person,” Randall said. Longtime employee and friend Barb Hobin chimed in. “She still has a flip phone.”

People and passion have been two key ingredients to A Matter of Taste’s success over the years. Now, after retiring from the business, Randall has found ways to continue making an impact on the community.

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‘Fire in your belly’

Healthy, fresh food has always been a part of Randall’s life. She remembers her mother baking pies in the kitchen and her father experimenting with new recipes and dishes on the weekends.

“We always ate fresh food. I was jealous about the kids across the street because they got to eat bologna sandwiches and we didn't,” Randall said with a chuckle.

As she grew older, however, she became more focused on health and the idea that “we are what we eat.”

Randall eventually began working at the Peoria Country Club, where she met many of the women who would become her mentors and clients. She said many of these women were married to Caterpillar employees and had the opportunity to travel to countries around the world.

“I can learn something from them,” Randall recalled thinking, “and they were willing to help me with that education.”

The women shared recipes with Randall and trained her on proper etiquette. They often opened their homes for parties and gatherings, Randall said, and would take turns hosting events. In the ‘70s and ‘80s, she said the women welcomed young artists for concerts or poetry readings – which included light lunch or dessert foods for guests.

Establishing herself as a caterer was a matter of necessity, Randall said. She was a single mother who, at the time, didn’t even have a landline telephone.

Yet, Randall had formed a connection with others in the community. When the women needed help preparing food for their various events, she stepped in to lend a hand. And if they couldn’t reach her at the country club, Randall said the women would leave notes at her home. 

“I wanted the quality of life I was raised with or better,” she said. “And so, it was out of necessity that these gracious women welcomed me into their home, and so I stepped up. And that's one thing that I really think – that you've got to have fire in your belly.”

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‘It’s not just Connie Randall’

Randall started A Matter of Taste out of her home before progressing to larger kitchen spaces. The business eventually settled at 838 E. Glen Ave. in Peoria Heights.

Throughout the years, Randall remembers catering a variety of “exceptional, interesting, fun jobs” – such Titanic and “Roaring Twenties” themed parties. Some of these events, she said, brought Mike Ditka, “Dirty Jobs” host Mike Rowe and other well-known individuals to the Peoria-area. She also became a longtime caterer for the Sun Foundation.

Looking back, though, Randall noted that she was not alone.

“It's not just Connie Randall,” she said. Her voice quivered with emotion as she sat with Hobin. “This woman right here has come into this little bungalow kitchen, and we've magically mixed together for 38 years. And it's taken a lot of other dedicated people that have their eye on the prize in this little kitchen.”

During busy holiday seasons, Hobin said there could be five or six people working in the space at once. She said, “it takes a lot to orchestrate people.”

For Randall, it was important to respect those who worked for her. She said many were part-time employees, so she was flexible with their schedules. Along with this, she said she would never ask an employee to do something that she was not willing to do.

“She’s a great employer. She really is,” Hobin said. “We’ve become dear, dear friends over the years.”

Hobin said many people became long-term employees at A Matter of Taste. She was one such employee.

After roughly three-and-a-half decades at the business, Hobin said she stepped away when Randall was initially planning to retire. Ultimately, however, her clients were not quite ready for her to leave.

So, Hobin returned to A Matter of Taste.

“I wanted to finish it out,” she said. Next to her, Randall added, “and I was grateful.”

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‘This isn't the last chapter'

There were challenges over the years, of course, but Randall found ways to pivot and adapt.

She introduced an annual soup subscription – which lasted for more than two decades – after facing a post-holiday slowdown in business. When large gatherings were restricted during the COVID-19 pandemic, Randall launched Connie’s Comfort Cuisine Club. The program featured a variety of meals which were available for curbside pickup over a span of multiple weeks.

“(You’ve) got to have commitment, fire in the belly, a passion for what you're doing,” Randall said. “You've got to like the people you work with and work for, and we have had the most wonderful clientele.”

On Feb. 9, Randall shared a Facebook post which thanked the community for their support and said, “Let's see where my wings will take me.”

Looking back, Randall reflected on the more than four decades spent operating A Matter of Taste.

“That's a big portion of your life,” she said. “And that's the other reason that it's time to turn a page. This isn't the last chapter of A Matter of Taste.”

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In fact, there are multiple projects on the horizon.

Randall said she plans to write a cookbook – which will contain A Matter of Taste’s favorite recipes. Along with this, she has donated much of her equipment – and plans to eventually share her expertise – to help support new small business owners in the area.

“It's time for the next generation and I want to help – whichever little way I can – support the next generation,” she said.

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This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Longtime Peoria caterer has retired from business she started in 1979