Where it all began...

Chef Cindy was born and raised in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. She grew up with two working parents and her grandmother who lived and raised both her and her brother Nico.

Chef Cindy watched and listened to granny Myrl as she cooked meals for the family. It was a daily routine that they both enjoyed.

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Granny Myrl and Chef Cindy's mother Brenda are both born and raised in Trinidad & Tobago where the cooking is slow and a family affair. Cindy has always said, if you want to have a dish that is healthy and delicious, then you cannot make it in 2 minutes. Granny Myrl had a saying when it came to fast food, "child,.... it's good in a way, but it don't weigh much."

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​Cindy continued to cook with granny while attending post secondary studies in the Ryerson Television and Arts (RTA) program. The plan was to get into broadcasting but her passion was always in food. After graduating, she decided to pursue her passion and seek other cuisines with a travel to Australia where she lived for over 2 years. When se returned to Toronto, she began working at City TV as a writer for Breakfast Television which allowed her to finish work at 8:00 a.m. This provided Cindy the opportunity to follow her true passion and start a catering company in 2002. It was the start of new beginnings and a place where Cindy could express herself through food. It was at this time that Merci Mon Ami Dressing was conceived.

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Cindy's catering business took off forcing her husband Kevin to quit his job in Finance and join the team. The two worked side by side which is a feat onto its own but was a necessity to keep up with demand. As the catering company continued to grow so did the requests to bottle and sell her Sesame Soy Vinaigrette dressing. In 2008 the first bottles began to roll off the shelf to friends, family, and catering clients.

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Healthy and delicious and adaptable to many cuisines the sales of the Sesame Soy Vinaigrette bottles began selling faster than the company could keep up. Like many faucets in life, demand from clients to offer all of Chef Cindy's dressings continued to fill the phone lines. Cindy decided to add two more dressings in 2011, Herbed Vinaigrette the Balsamic Vinaigrette. In 2012 a slow roasted pepper sauce was added now known as the "smoked pepper sauce".

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#family

Lets be honest, to be together 24 hours a day for 7 days a week for almost 20 years with your spouse is an accomplishment on its own. Add two kids in there and you have an one challenging environment. Our motto remains to be, the family that is forced to work together, sticks together! Their daughter Chelsea and son Chase are both actively involved in the business when they are not pursuing their dreams to dance and play hockey.