There's a great little book on the history of the Automat that I have read a couple of times, by Lorraine B. Diehl and Marianne Hardart. I'm willing to bet the food quality really was good after reading it! Thanks for adding your own memory! Maybe it's time for an Automat revival, she says optimistically?
Dec 28, 2022·edited Dec 28, 2022Liked by Jolene Handy
I just watched the film. It's very well made, entertaining and informative. In a previous comment, I mentioned my misadventure with an Automat in Amsterdam, but I didn't know the Americans had actually taken the Automat idea from Europe.
What struck me the most in the film is that one of the two guys who launched the Automat empire wanted to offer his customers a warm, unforgettable kind of hospitality but they ended up going the complete opposite way: no service, everything automatic. And the funny thing is, that was the Automat's key to success because people equaled impersonal service and automatic vending machines with the modern age. Go figure.
Of course, there was much more to the Automat's success than that.
Dear Jolene--I love your post on The Automat and I saw the film because of your last post. Thank you soooo much! What memories! And I didn't know you grew up on Long Island. My family lived in Levittown until I was four, then moved to Stamford. I wonder if we ever crossed paths! Thank you for everything you're doing. I love your recipes, your research and your stories so very much! xoxJamie
Such a fun read, Jolene!! I would have loved to visit the Automat. I remember studying abroad in France and thinking it was so cool that they had hot drink vending machines everywhere, but this is next level. And I agree with you that pumpkin pie is just ok! I like to have a slice at Thanksgiving, but when I tell people that I don't wait on pins and needles for that slice all year round, they look at me like I'm nuts!!
This was fun, Jolene! I loved the photos of the automat and now I am wondering if I actually ever saw one in action or just knew about them from pictures and films. I loved cafeterias too when I was young.
I don’t know how you do it, but you keep coming up with stories that I’ve never heard about and that I now have interest in. I’m off to check out the documentary. Thanks Jolene.
This was a fascinating read. I watched the documentary after seeing this post. I feel that they could have solved the problem they had when they needed to raise prices but could only take nickels by manufacturing a token that would fit into the nickel slot. Then they could sell the tokens for whatever price they needed to charge. They wouldn’t have had to double the price of their coffee and shock their customers. Someone get me a time machine so I can save the automats!
I enjoyed this so much. (Those wall dispensers for coffee!!!)
How many of these were in operation, at the height of their popularity?
I'd also totally forgotten that Hopper's pic of the woman sat at the table with the reflected lights receding was called...exactly that. (There's a lovely chapter in Alain de Botton's "Art Of Travel" about his role in portraying the loneliness that can strike when you're travelling, especially alone. That's what first made me aware of Hopper's work, which I'm now quietly obsessed with).
I loved this post! I knew very little about automats, and you helped me understand their vibrant role in history. I especially loved the bit about your grandmother!
By the mid-50s my grandmother had retired from 20 years of teaching first-grade in Santa Barbara. She moved to Hollywood and worked at a fancy dress store in Beverly Hills. When Mom would drive us down to visit for the day, many times lunch was at the automat.
Thanks for including the pie dough recipe...and custard (with or without nutmeg) is very good for to break a fast.
It is a fascinating documentary. I love that you found the plates on eBay, it adds another dimension to your documentation of the automat. I wish that I could time travel.
A terrific film and satisfying slice of memory, Jolene! We’re enormous fans of Mel Brooks (and RBG too!). I’m also not a huge pumpkin pie aficionado, but you’ve inspired me to try again. Maybe this lovely recipe, your tips and a mega-dose of whipped cream will do the trick!
There's a great little book on the history of the Automat that I have read a couple of times, by Lorraine B. Diehl and Marianne Hardart. I'm willing to bet the food quality really was good after reading it! Thanks for adding your own memory! Maybe it's time for an Automat revival, she says optimistically?
I just watched the film. It's very well made, entertaining and informative. In a previous comment, I mentioned my misadventure with an Automat in Amsterdam, but I didn't know the Americans had actually taken the Automat idea from Europe.
What struck me the most in the film is that one of the two guys who launched the Automat empire wanted to offer his customers a warm, unforgettable kind of hospitality but they ended up going the complete opposite way: no service, everything automatic. And the funny thing is, that was the Automat's key to success because people equaled impersonal service and automatic vending machines with the modern age. Go figure.
Of course, there was much more to the Automat's success than that.
Those coffee spouts are gorgeous 🤩 I had heard of the Automat but knew very little about it. Now I have to watch the documentary!
We were in Levittown...so I guess out paths didn't cross, but I'm sure we bumped into one another in NYC!
Dear Jolene--I love your post on The Automat and I saw the film because of your last post. Thank you soooo much! What memories! And I didn't know you grew up on Long Island. My family lived in Levittown until I was four, then moved to Stamford. I wonder if we ever crossed paths! Thank you for everything you're doing. I love your recipes, your research and your stories so very much! xoxJamie
Such a fun read, Jolene!! I would have loved to visit the Automat. I remember studying abroad in France and thinking it was so cool that they had hot drink vending machines everywhere, but this is next level. And I agree with you that pumpkin pie is just ok! I like to have a slice at Thanksgiving, but when I tell people that I don't wait on pins and needles for that slice all year round, they look at me like I'm nuts!!
This was fun, Jolene! I loved the photos of the automat and now I am wondering if I actually ever saw one in action or just knew about them from pictures and films. I loved cafeterias too when I was young.
Another wonderful entertaining article.
Thank you.
I don’t know how you do it, but you keep coming up with stories that I’ve never heard about and that I now have interest in. I’m off to check out the documentary. Thanks Jolene.
This was a fascinating read. I watched the documentary after seeing this post. I feel that they could have solved the problem they had when they needed to raise prices but could only take nickels by manufacturing a token that would fit into the nickel slot. Then they could sell the tokens for whatever price they needed to charge. They wouldn’t have had to double the price of their coffee and shock their customers. Someone get me a time machine so I can save the automats!
I enjoyed this so much. (Those wall dispensers for coffee!!!)
How many of these were in operation, at the height of their popularity?
I'd also totally forgotten that Hopper's pic of the woman sat at the table with the reflected lights receding was called...exactly that. (There's a lovely chapter in Alain de Botton's "Art Of Travel" about his role in portraying the loneliness that can strike when you're travelling, especially alone. That's what first made me aware of Hopper's work, which I'm now quietly obsessed with).
I loved this post! I knew very little about automats, and you helped me understand their vibrant role in history. I especially loved the bit about your grandmother!
By the mid-50s my grandmother had retired from 20 years of teaching first-grade in Santa Barbara. She moved to Hollywood and worked at a fancy dress store in Beverly Hills. When Mom would drive us down to visit for the day, many times lunch was at the automat.
Thanks for including the pie dough recipe...and custard (with or without nutmeg) is very good for to break a fast.
It is a fascinating documentary. I love that you found the plates on eBay, it adds another dimension to your documentation of the automat. I wish that I could time travel.
Love the plate. It’s beautiful!
A terrific film and satisfying slice of memory, Jolene! We’re enormous fans of Mel Brooks (and RBG too!). I’m also not a huge pumpkin pie aficionado, but you’ve inspired me to try again. Maybe this lovely recipe, your tips and a mega-dose of whipped cream will do the trick!