I was listening to a Christopher Kimball blog one morning. You might remember him as the host of Cook's Country several years ago before the people involved in the show went their separate ways. Chris went on to create a new TV show, an online cooking show, books, blogs, etc. You name it. He is considered royalty in the cooking world. Anyway, he was interviewing Lisa Hurwitz, a first time filmaker, to learn more about her first movie, The Automat.
When I heard the words "automat" uttered, I got a tingly feeling all over. Just the memory of walking into Horn and Hardart, handing the lady with the gloves a $1 bill and having her give me 20 nickels, gave me goosebumps. Then, when I thought about walking around the banks of gleaming stainless steel and glass wall of dozens of little doors on the perimeter of the restaurant, I smiled.
I only went to The Automat as a child. Every time I visited my grandparents, we would visit The Automat more than once. Choices, choices, choices. Lemon meringue pie was one of my favorites. The mac and cheese was great, salisbury steak, chicken pot pies, chocolate cake! It was like magic. You'd finally decide how to spend your precious nickels, you'd put your money in a slot, turn the dial, and Voila! the door would open and you would remove your food.
Joseph Horn and Frank Hardart opened their first diner in 1888. It was a simple counter with 15 seats. By 1912, they opened their first automat. They welcomed everyone, including those that had been ignored by society, immigrants and the working class. The automat was the great equalizer. Seating was family style. You could sit anywhere.
One constant was the coffee. Always good, always fresh, (if the coffee was more than 20 minutes old, they would throw it out), always just 5 cents. Irving Berlin was inspired by this to write the song, "Let's have another cup of coffee." It became the theme song for the restaurant.
One other interesting note. At the end of the day, all food that was left over was sent to a food pantry. They didn't call them food pantries back then, but they gave excess food away. They were way ahead of their time.
I wish everyone could have experienced the joy of visiting The Automat. The chain closed it's last location on 3rd ave and 42nd St. in 1991. McDonald's, KFC and Burger King had taken over !
(The documentary is being screened in San Diego between June 3-9. I am planning to go see it, but if you miss it, it will be on Netflix sometime soon.)
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