Our Story
les amis du FROMAGE is a family owned and operated specialty cheese store with two locations in Vancouver. With a carefully curated selection of local and imported cheeses, charcuterie and accompaniments, we also specialize in frozen soups and meals, all made in house using top quality ingredients.
Founded in 1985, les amis du FROMAGE is proud to still remain a family owned and operated Vancouver company after over 30 years in business. Current owners Allison Spurrell and Joe Chaput have come a long way since the original shoe-box sized store opened in Vancouver’s Point Grey neighbourhood. You can rest assured that their mission is to continue the company’s reputation of offering the highest quality cheeses, cut to order, along with one-to-one customer service.
les amis du FROMAGE is honoured to have been voted “Best Cheese Shop” by readers of The Georgia Straight, The Westender and The Courier, and has been awarded Vancouver Magazine’s Restaurant Award for Top Food Supplier to Vancouver’s best restaurants and hotels.
Allison Spurrell
Founder / Co-owner
Allison Spurrell has been in the retail cheese industry since 1987, when she founded the award-winning Vancouver cheese shop les amis du FROMAGE with her mother Alice Spurrell. Responsible for the acquisition of over 500 different types of cheeses, from across Canada as well as internationally, Allison is an authority on cheese. Allison has been a judge for the Canadian Cheese Grand Prix, and for the retail competition at the American Cheese Society annual conference. She has a certificate in Cheese Making Technology from the Department of Food Science at the University of Guelph. She is a member of both the Confrérie des Chevaliers des Fromages de France and the Guilde des Fromagers Confrerie du Saint-Uguzon. Allison also supplies cheese to the chefs of Vancouver’s best restaurants and hotels and has been Voted “Supplier of the Year” by Vancouver Magazine.
Joe Chaput
Co-Owner
Joe is a highly experienced, Red Seal certified chef and the co-owner of les amis du FROMAGE. With a career in the food industry spanning several decades, he has successfully transitioned his culinary expertise, gained while working at award-winning Vancouver restaurants, into the world of artisan cheese and specialty food retail. While he no longer works in a traditional restaurant/hotel setting, his chef background helps him to oversee the production of the shop's popular line of house-made prepared meals, soups, and other food items.
He is actively involved in sourcing new and unique products, along with handling web development and social media. You can occasionally find him sharing his passion and knowledge with customers behind the cheese counter. He is a member of the Guilde des Fromagers Confrerie du Saint-Uguzon.
Riza Lenoras
Store Manager / East Van
Riza has worked at les amis du FROMAGE for over 10 years. She works at our East Vancouver store, where she is a specialist in cheese and charcuterie. She is responsible for day to day operations at our East Vancouver store.
Karen Bloodsworth
Store Manager / Kitsilano
Karen has worked at les amis du FROMAGE for over 10 years. She works at our Kitsilano store and is responsible for day to day operations at our Kitsilano store along with managing wholesale customers and shipping.
Hitomi Muraki
Manager
Hitomi has worked at les amis du FROMAGE for more than 10 years. Can we please give her a round of applause? Thank you. Fluent in both English and Japanese, she is more than qualified to help you with anything you need.