At The Merry Dairy, the philosophy is simple and fun: ice cream really does make everything better.
The Beginnings …
Our story begins in 2012 with a food truck – a 1985 Grumman Stepvan. Founder Marlene Haley launched the business with a straightforward and delicious mission: to bring awesome frozen custard to Ottawa via an ice cream truck. Those early runs would prove to be popular and all across Ottawa people were asking for that ice cream truck with the frozen custard! In 2017, we were thrilled to make 102 Fairmont Avenue our home in what had been the neighbourhood variety store for almost a hundred years.
Making “Ice Cream for All”
Since then we have scooped our way into the Ottawa landscape with annual traditions like National Ice Cream for Breakfast Day., the Rhubarb and Mint Exchanges, Name Days, and truck visits to neighbourhoods, schoolyards and corporate shindigs. The Merry Dairy operation now include a fleet of three food trucks (a 1986 and 1976 Grumman have joined the original 1985 truck) and The Merry Dairy’s signature half litre tubs are available at over a dozen wholesale locations across the city and beyond. The entire facility is now a licensed dairy that is strictly peanut, tree nut, and sesame-free, and features a rotating seasonal menu of dozens of flavours scoops and pints, all made on-site, with many vegan and gluten-free, and even low-sugar options, so that as many people as possible can enjoy the fun of a cone in all four seasons.
Ice cream brings people together and it’s a community that we love. It means that we can give back and work in partnership with groups, schools, charities and others working to help people in our great city. It’s ice cream for good and it’s a joy to be able to help.
About Marlene and a commitment to nut-free ice cream
Marlene grew up on a family dairy farm and became an adult education teacher. She always loved the community that came with farm life and with teaching students from around the world. It was that same sense of community that would define how The Merry Dairy would operate.
Founded with a vision to bring frozen custard to Ottawa, it wasn’t long before a conversation with a friend convinced Marlene to become nut-free as their sons had anaphalactic peanut and treenut allergies. Dealing with that allergic fact made all food experiences an exercise in “spot the allergen.” Making the business peanut and treenut free (adding sesame-free a couple years later) was a first step towards making “ice cream for all.” The move to 102 Fairmont was the opportunity to make vegan ice creams. Today, The Merry Dairy has over 100 flavours in its repertoire.
What began as one truck has grown into a place where people of all ages and from all walks of life can enjoy great ice cream with family and friends.
Great Scoops: The Book
With 100 or so ice cream recipes, and during the shutdowns of the pandemic, we asked ourselves why not make a recipe book? And so, Great Scoops: Recipes from a Neighbourhood Ice Cream Shop was born. Written with Amelia Ryan, The Merry Dairy’s first ice cream maker, and with a lot of help from the legendary Ottawa Citizen food writer Anne DesBrisay, it brings the joy of making ice cream to your own home – making it with friends, with family, or just for your foodie self.
Photographed in Ottawa, printed in Winnipeg and published in Vancouver, Great Scoops is now in almost 1000 libraries across Canada and around the world and in kitchens everywhere, Great Scoops is a part of the fun and joy of making ice cream in kitchens from Ottawa to Whitehouse to Melbourne, Australia!
Work With Us
Working at The Merry Dairy is a physical, fast-paced job that requires staff to be mentally and physically prepared to “Scoop. Smile. Repeat.” The shop seeks individuals who are ready to take pride in everything they do—from the shop floor to the trucks to each and every delivery all across Ottawa.
Thoughtfulness is considered one of the highest attributes for employees, alongside a commitment to treating everyone with courtesy, respect, and dignity in a supportive environment where ideas are welcomed, and where the team works together to ensure exceptional food safety and a joyful, trustworthy vibe.
Interested in joining the team? Applications are always being accepted!
