Sartaj Singh
Created by Annie Mebane Rocheleau, ‘The Chicken Sisters’ is a drama series that transports us to the town of Merinac, where two restaurants specializing in succulent fried chicken – Mimi’s and Frannie’s – have been going head to head in a generational feud. The residents of the quaint town are evenly split between preferring one over the other. Such is the intensity of the feud that their founders’ families have been fragmented. However, when the reality cooking show Kitchen Clash offers the restaurants a chance to settle the score once and for all, both sides roll up their sleeves and prepare for a sizzling showdown. The small-town ambiance and charming Southern countryside backdrops featured in the Hallmark series create a vibrant atmosphere, complementing its palpable excitement.
The Chicken Sisters Filming Locations
Filming for ‘The Chicken Sisters’ takes place around Greater Vancouver, British Columbia. With the working title ‘Nesting,’ principal photography on the first season began on May 6, 2024, and was wrapped up by July 29, 2024. The cast and crew seem to have had a ton of fun making it and got along splendidly behind the scenes. “Such a wonderful funny hardworking bunch!” wrote actress Lea Thompson in an Instagram post. “There was a PA named Leah Thompson and I got into a mud fight with the amazing (Wendie Malick)! I feel so blessed to work with such great storytellers behind and in front of the camera.”
Greater Vancouver, British Columbia
The production team ventured to Vancouver in the province of British Columbia, shooting in and around the city to create the Southern backdrops seen in the show. In particular, much of the filming for season 1 was carried out in Langley City, southeast of Vancouver. Langley was chosen since its farmlands and serene landscapes could depict the fictional town of Merinac with charm. The picturesque farmhouse where Mae and Amanda Moore reside is actually the property on 6290 272 Street in Langley.
Sporting two houses and three barns over 93 acres of land, the property is valued for its fertile soil, mountain views, and verdant surroundings, making it fit to create a trophy estate. The main house, which is seen in the show, features two bedrooms, a fireplace, and an unfinished basement. The property has been put up for sale since 2023 and was thus open to the production team to employ for filming.
Langley’s picturesque small-town feel, charming streets, and locally-owned shops mirror the type of community found in ‘The Chicken Sisters,’ where everyone knows each other and family-run businesses are at the heart of the town. Thus, the city’s community spirit aligns well with the show, accentuating its themes of warmth, family, and personal growth. With its proximity to the sprawling filmmaking hub of Vancouver, Langley has served as the background for shows and films like ‘Sonic the Hedgehog 2,’ ‘Dead Boy Detectives,’ ‘Good Boys,’ and ‘The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.’
The Chicken Sisters is Inspired by Real Rival Fried Chicken Restaurants
Hallmark’s ‘The Chicken Sisters’ is a TV adaptation of KJ Dell’Antonia’s 2020 novel of the same name. Despite its dramatic narrative, the story is actually rooted in the real-life rivalry between two fried chicken restaurants dating back to 1934. Situated in Crawford County in Southeast Kansas, the restaurants – Chicken Annie’s and Chicken Mary’s – are only 600 feet apart, seemingly sitting in the middle of nowhere. Their founders, Annie and Mary Pichler, were not related. KJ Dell’Antonia’s parents grew up in Crawford County, and she would often accompany them on visits to their hometown. From a young age, she noticed the intense rivalry between the two restaurants and how they seemed to divide the townsfolk into supporting one or the other.
“I’d been thinking about those two chicken restaurants for years and what would happen if they went head-to-head, playing with that idea off and on. Nobody ever went to both of them,” said the author in an interview. “I’ve had various files labeled with the two restaurants on my computer desktop for probably 10 years. But I didn’t have a story; a competition is just an idea. I had to figure out who my people are.” The restaurants’ intriguing dynamics and rivalry have been featured in magazine articles and shows, including ‘BBC Travel’ and ‘Food Wars.’
Amanda and Mae: Two Aspects of the Author’s View of Close-Knit Communities
Another feature of authentic small-town living stuck with Dell’Antonia, one which also comes across in the Hallmark adaptation: everyone within the community knows each another. In her younger years, while visiting Crawford County with her parents, Dell’Antonia would admire the charm of deep relationships that pervaded the town, creating an extended family feeling with everyone. She could only experience it briefly and envied her cousins who stayed there and were known for who they were. However, as she grew, Dell’Antonia also realized the stifling effect such a community could have. Thus, the idea of her protagonists and clashing sisters was born, with one sister valuing the community comfort of her hometown while the other fearing being suffocated by it.
‘The Chicken Sisters’ is a tale of family and clashing ways of life inspired by the competition between actual fried chicken restaurants. The characters are fictional, and the protagonists reflect the dichotomy of deep relationships in a small-town community experienced by the author. The Hallmark adaptation remains largely faithful to the novel and can thus be considered a work of partial nonfiction.
Read More: Hallmark’s His & Hers: Filming Locations and Cast Details, Explored
