Stuff You Should Know How Automats Worked
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Jan 23, 2025 Discover the charm of automats, those nostalgic self-service restaurants that once thrived in New York. Learn about their fascinating history and the comfort they provided to busy urban dwellers. Dive into the cultural significance they held for immigrants and their role in promoting inclusivity. Reflect on how changing dining preferences led to their decline and the rise of fast food. Along the way, enjoy anecdotes that illustrate the unique experience of pulling a meal from a glass case!
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Documentary Inspiration
- Director Lisa Hurwitz's documentary "The Automat" inspired this podcast episode.
- The documentary, streaming on Max, offers a comprehensive look at automats.
High-Tech Dining
- Horn & Hardart's automats were a novel, high-tech dining experience in the early 20th century.
- Their self-serve model was appealing in a time when refrigerators and home electricity were uncommon.
Horn & Hardart's Rise
- Horn & Hardart, initially Philadelphia cafeteria owners, introduced automats to the U.S.
- They became synonymous with automats, even becoming the largest restaurant chain in the U.S. by the 1930s.