Hackney’s Vegan ‘Chicken’ Shop Takes Flight

The popular vegan fried ‘chicken’ shop, Temple of Seitan, has announced that it will open a second shop in Camden on the 31 January. It follows the brand’s first bricks-and-mortar set-up in Hackney Central. The specific location is not yet known, but it will be more of a sit-down restaurant — and an evolution from the takeaway-first format of the east London site.

The group made the announcement on Instagram late on Friday, saying: “We are so stoked to finally announce the opening date and location of the brand new Temple of Camden. See you there?”

The one time market stall, Temple of Seitan, by Melbourne duo Rebecca McGuinness and her husband Pat O’Shea, has proved a hit within the food community — making not one but two appearances on this site in the past two months — despite facing a moderate backlash when it opened last January.

The shop is known for its imitation fried-chicken fast foods made from seitan — a wheat gluten and popular vegan meat substitute which, in this case, is fashioned to taste like the poultry. Temple do burgers, ‘wings’ and ‘strips’ — crisped and deep-fried in the style found at any number of the chicken shops all over the city.

Over a decade ago, owner McGuinness worked at KFC. Having turned vegan, it was a longing for fried chicken that inspired the creation of Temple. Never was there a better time to cater to a vegan-fascinated city.