Hackney Downs vegan market: 2,500 swamp Amhurst Terrace in search of meat-free treats

An industrial yard down the side of Hackney Downs Studios hosted London’s first vegan food market on Saturday.

It went so well, with 2,500 ravenous foodies visiting 13 stalls, that it’s going to run every month from now on.

Organiser Sean O’Callaghan told the Gazette: “There was a great mix of stalls, ranging from decadent burgers to gin cocktails.

“There were huge lines all day for superstar traders Temple of Seitan and Club Mexicana, while Peanut Butter Bakery sold 500 doughnuts within two and a half hours of opening.”

You might recognise Temple of Seitan as the “vegan chicken” pop-up that had queues snaking around the block when it opened in Shoreditch two months ago.

Sean, who lives in west London but spends half the year in Mexico City, chose Amhurst Terrace for the market partly because it was near so many other big vegan names – such as Black Cat Café in Lower Clapton and Fed by Water in Dalston.

“I wanted my events to be in an area already known for being vegan-friendly,” he said.

Eat Work Art, which rents Hackney Downs Studios and in turn lets it out to independent creative companies, asked blogger Sean to curate the event after a trial vegan Christmas market proved a “runaway success”.

The market runs on the third Saturday of the month (with some exceptions). You can read more about it at Sean’s blog, fatgayvegan.com.