Meet The Face Behind Manhattan Fine Foods Inc.

I’m Vivian Maltesen, the proud owner of Manhattan Fine Foods Inc.

I look forward to sharing my story. I hope that you will enjoy getting to know me better.

My husband and I started a restaurant in 1991 and were lucky to have a wonderful, hardworking family that pitched in to help expand the business. It gave me the freedom to experiment with ingredients, and I came up with a unique version of the Manhattan dressing and salad.

Guests would love to savor the distinct taste when they came in for a delicious meal, and many of our regulars eventually convinced us to bottle the dressing so that they could take it home. It led to selling the Manhattan Dressing in bottles to grocery stores.

It grew so popular that by 2018, we sold the last of our restaurants to focus on the catering and manufacturing side of the business. Also, the owners who took over our eatery continued to order our dressing for their Manhattan salad, which made us realize the product’s true potential.

Consequently, in 2021 I came up with a dry seasoning mix to help customers whip up a quick and easy salads at home during COVID-19. My daughter and I also created a Sneaky Pete Spice, which is a rub for meats, especially BBQ Ribs.

These authentic products last up to three years in the jar and are conveniently available for purchase on our newly launched online store. We also offer a virtual pasta kitchen concept for restaurants that have shifted to a delivery-only model during the pandemic, which is proving successful.

I attribute our success to my dedicated staff, who care about our business and maintain a consistently high level of customer service. Besides, I’m committed to supplying my customers with mouthwatering dressings and dips which contain no fillers, preservatives, or MSG.

As a result, when restaurant owners taste our Manhattan dressing and call to say that they can’t get enough, it fills me with immense satisfaction. It’s also rewarding when customers use our dry mix to make an Italian, Ranch, or French dressing and inform us that it’s the best they’ve ever tasted.

When I’m not overseeing the careful blending of spices, I enjoy reading books and creating new recipes.

I also feel strongly about donating to charities that support breast cancer, as many of my family and friends have suffered with it.

I’ve enjoyed sharing my story about the things that matter to me and how they influence my business.

If you or someone you know could benefit from my expertise as a salad dressing manufacturer and supplier in Nanaimo, BC, I invite you to get in touch. Please visit my website at www.manhattanfoods.ca.

Sincerely,

Vivian