Wednesday’s official opening in North Suffolk of Taste Unlimited’s seventh location represents a return to the city’s business community by the Pruden family.

The family’s business history in Suffolk spans four generations, said Jon Pruden, president and co-owner of Taste, whose great-great-grandfather started in Suffolk with a produce business that eventually evolved into the Pruden Packing Co.

Founded in 1917, the company was in the business of curing Virginia hams, said Jon Pruden, recounting the history after a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the newest Taste location, at Riverfront Shoppes on Harbour View Boulevard.

“The packing plant operated across from Walmart on (North) Main Street until it was torn down, I guess in 2000,” he said.

Jon Pruden said his grandfather and father both spent the majority of their careers with the family business. “Along the way, all three generations were very philanthropic within the community,” he said.

In 1973, Peter Coe founded Taste Unlimited as a single wine and cheese shop in Virginia Beach. It has grown into a specialty food retailer and restaurant chain.

“The business grew and evolved over the years,” Jon Pruden said. “Eventually, the family decided to sell their family business to our family.”

That was in 2006, when there were six Taste locations, all in Hampton Roads. Pruden said the family has spent the ensuing years expanding the model, and either relocating or renovating all six original locations.

“We knew that was the first piece of work we needed to do,” he said.

Pruden said some friends of the family were among those behind a Facebook page set up specifically to rally support for a Taste location in Suffolk.

“It’s nice to be wanted and it’s nice that the community is so excited about having us here,” he said.

“Obviously, we did our homework. While we are not what I would call hardcore about using demographic data in our location decisions, a lot of it is gut instinct, and we knew from being over here the type of people that live and work in this community, and those are the very customers that we see at our other locations.

“We knew with the Riverfront neighborhood being behind us, as well as the very robust local business community and the military community, that we would have a lot of support.”

As the process of setting up in Harbour View evolved, the family grew more and more comfortable with the decision, Jon Pruden said, adding “We heard people (were) very, very excited about us coming to town.”

The 5,000-square-foot premises — the second-largest of the seven locations — is about double the average store footprint when the family bought Taste, Pruden said.

“We’ve added a lot of bells and whistles in terms of our offerings,” he said.
Mayor Linda T. Johnson welcomed the family back. “The Prudens have been part of our city for so long, and we are just so excited that you have chosen to make the seventh location in our city,” she said.