Food for Thought

Before the Big Mac: Horn & Hardart Automats by Valerie Wingfield, Archives UnitDecember 8, 2010

115 East 14th Street. March 1933.
credit: Robert Byrnes Collection of Automat MemorabiliaAsk anyone about the "Big Mac" and immediately one imagines an image of a double hamburger on a sesame seed bun. The golden arches are everywhere.  On Broadway and 42nd Street, New York City boasts one of the largest McDonald's in metropolitan America. 

Say the words "Horn & Hardart," you will probably get a different reaction.  Go back thirty years or more...

Horn & Hardart Automats were a common sight around the city.  This was the place to go for a meal known for its Automat service. In the early days, a customer would walk up to a multitude of small glass windows, toss some nickles into a slot and have access to a prepared meal.

80 East 42nd Street. Air Line Terminal. January 1955.
credit: Robert Byrnes Collection of Automat MemorabiliaIn the Beginning...

The Horn & Hardart Company was founded by Joseph Horn and Frank Hardart in Philadelphia, 1902.  Frank Hardart, inspired during his visit to Europe of the "waiterless" restaurants, purchased the equipment in Berlin.  The ship transporting the equipment sunk but Hardart was not deterred. He reordered the equipment that safely arrived in the United States.

Together with his partner Joseph Horn, Hardart was ready for business. When the restaurant opened in Philadelphia, the public was in awe of receiving one's food from a self contained glass enclosure after depositing several nickles.  This success led them to open up the first automat in New York City at 1557 Broadway on 42nd Street, in 1912.

New Yorkers and the Automat 

New Yorkers loved the Automat and the success led Horn and Hardart to open up Automats throughout the city.  Originally, the coins were dispensed by women cashiers or "nickle throwers."  The coins tarnished the women's hands so they were required to wear black uniforms.

Opened Tues. Oct. 8, 1940. Original interior. 200 East 42nd Street.
credit: Robert Byrnes Collection of Automat MemorabiliaHorn and Hardarts were known for their sophisticated restaurants, Art Deco architecture and attractive seating arrangements. This was a place where you would meet a friend for a meal, read your newspaper and enjoy a cigarette. Food was uniform in taste, so when you purchased a sandwich or enjoyed the famous baked beans, (as recollected by Arthur Schwartz of the Food Maven) the taste and quality remained consistent.

Eventually, Horn & Hardart faced stiff competition from the rise of the fast food industry.  Some of the Automats were converted to Burger Kings and Arby's as part of the company's holdings. On April 8, 1991, the last of New York City's automats closed on 200 East 42nd Street.

200 East 42nd Street. Opened Aug. 12, 1958.
credit: Robert Byrnes Collection of Automat MemorabiliaComeback?

Will the Automat make a comeback? In Germany, Aldi Süd, a German discount supermarket is now turning out freshly baked bread from an automat machine much to the consternation of the country's bakers. Germany is also home to Bagger's, a fully automated restaurant in Nuremberg. Opened in 2008, Bagger's offers patrons the opportunity to select a meal from a touch tone screen.  The food, in a covered lid, slides down a conveyor belt with identifiying labels for the patron.  

In the United States, a Chock Full o'Nuts coffee shop, another staple of more than thirty years ago, recently opened on 23rd Street between Fifth and 6th Avenue.   The Automat will probably not return in its old form, but an inventive entrepreneur may decide to give it a 21st century spin.  

There is much more to learn about Horn & Hardart Automats. Interested in learning more about Automats?  Consider the following:

The Automat / Lorraine B. Diehl and Marianne Hardart. 

Automats, Taxi Dances, and Vaudeville: Excavating Manhattan's Lost Places of Leisure / David Freeland

Robert F. Byrnes Collection of Automat Memorabilia, 1912-1990s bulk (1940-1960s)

Search "Automat" in the Menu Collection

Search "Automat" in the Digital Gallery

Do you remember dining at Horn & Hardart, Schrafft's or the original Chock Full o'Nuts?  What about Mary Elizabeth's, once located within walking distance from the New York Public Library on 42nd Street?

As you ponder the past and the future enjoy this video "Just Drop it in the Slot; a Look at the Horn & Hardart and Its Legacy" by Alan G. Wasenius.

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Comments

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Automats

Submitted by David Freeland (not verified) on December 11, 2010 - 9:15am

Thanks for this nice post. The Manuscripts and Archives Division is one of the great resources of NYC, and your staff is incredible. I think I may have been one of the first researchers to draw extensively upon the Byrnes Collection. It's truly a wonderful collection, because Mr. Byrnes kept everything, from the time he was a stockboy in the 1920s to the 1980s when he retired as an executive. One thing that I find interesting is that there was an automat in NYC prior to Horn & Hardart. It opened just south of Union Square in 1902 and was quite elegant, serving highballs and other mixed drinks. But it seems as if the European owners ran out of money, as the establishment went under within a few years of opening. Also, back to Horn & Hardart, a small remnant of the original Art Nouveau ceiling decoration can still be seen at the 1557 Broadway site today, between 46th and 47th streets. The space is now Grand Slam, a souvenir emporium.

Robert Byrnes and the Automat

Submitted by Valerie Wingfield (not verified) on December 13, 2010 - 9:40am

Thank you for your comments about the Manuscripts and Archives Division, the staff and the New York Public Library. Yes, we have Mr. Byrnes to thank for carefully documenting the H & H's throughout the City. Mr. Byrnes photographs offer a window to New York City's past. I didn't know about the European Automat, it may not have had a mass appeal as the H & H's. The next time that I'm over near 1557 Broadway, I'll look at the ceiling of Grand Slam. The public may be interested to know that the Landmark Commission granted landmark status to the H & H building at 2710 Broadway at 104th St in 2007. LandMark West! the Committee to preserve the Upper West Side was the major advocate for landmark status.

Misspelling

Submitted by GAF (not verified) on February 12, 2013 - 1:02pm

I loved the Automat and was saddened by its demise. I applaud the NYPL Manuscripts and Archives Division, and I enjoyed your illustrated article, above. But why do you misspell "nickel" as "nickle"?

1960

Submitted by Helen Eiden (not verified) on July 15, 2014 - 11:05am

My first job was working for Horn and Hardart in 60'. I was 14 yrs old and Mr. Diaz was the manager of the store on 55 St. and Broadway. I started out busing dishes and then the steam table. 90 cents an hour. 40 hrs a week. Then back to school I worked weekends. I look back on it now a realize I got more bang for my buck back then, as it does have the same value now. 15 cents for a token on the subway. Buses same thing only if you change to another bus to go cross town you had to get a transfer. All for 15 cents. Manhattan was great back then. I live on the west coast now. But I have good memories of NYC.

Horn & Hardart Automat

Submitted by Valerie Wingfield (not verified) on July 15, 2014 - 2:32pm

What a great story! Thank you Helen for sharing your memories. Today, we use a metrocard to get around. The Library had an exhibit in 2012 "The Lunch Hour" that featured the automats. Prior to the exhibit, I wrote this blog because I was inspired by an archival collection that featured photographs of the interiors of automats.

General

Submitted by Roger A Magnussen (not verified) on September 20, 2016 - 10:39pm

I joined H&H in April 1963. I started as a computer machine operator right through to Director of IT. I left in 1989. Horn & Hardart was truly a family run company and you felt appreciated every day. I knew Mr Byrnes personally and knew his family as well. His family members worked at H& H as well. He was a brilliant man with a WORLD of knowledge, and was always inspired by his work ethic. I was very happy to see the work has been donated to the library for others to enjoy. I knew both Gus and Tom Hardart as well, and always stopped and talked to you in the halls. The entire administration family were a great team. I loved working there for my 26 years. I Know Mr Byrnes had a lot to do with my success in my working career. I certainly miss him and the entire team. It was an ever changing company and everyone was onboard to make changes as they occurred. Thank you again for bringing his work to the forefront. Thank you Roger A Magnussen

Horn & Hardart

Submitted by Valerie Wingfield (not verified) on September 21, 2016 - 2:35pm

Thank you Mr. Magnussen for your comments about Mr. Byrnes and H&H. It was the Library's good fortune that he decided to donate his collection. Mr. Byrnes carefully saved many photographs that document the interior and the exterior of many H&H's that existed throughout the City. Donors such as Mr. Byrnes enrich the holding of the New York Public Library. In 2012, the Library prominently featured "The Automat" in an exhibit named The Lunch Hour NYC. You may have missed this fascinating exhibit but there are some articles on-line that describes it. Thank you again for remembering Mr. Byrnes.

Horn & Hardart

Submitted by Derek (not verified) on July 6, 2019 - 2:37pm

Recently a panel fell off the extrior of a Matress Firm on 181st. Underneath was the orginal Horn & Hardart exterior... which closely resembles the location on 104th. Google the address 615 W 181st St and you'll see the missing panel and the remains of another Horn & Hardart .

West Side H&H

Submitted by Valerie Wingfield (not verified) on July 8, 2019 - 11:19am

Thank you for the information. I'll check it out.

Spaghetti

Submitted by Tommy Moe (not verified) on February 25, 2021 - 8:13pm

Always loved their Spaghetti Wish they would come back

Comeback for H&H

Submitted by Valerie (not verified) on February 26, 2021 - 12:37pm

You may get your wish. There is a restaurant named Automat Kitchen in Jersey City. The website pays their homage to the original Horn & Hardart. Perhaps some intrepid entrepreneur would consider bring it back to New York City.

Horn and hardarts

Submitted by Bill Johnson (not verified) on April 1, 2021 - 11:17am

I would visit New York City on a trip that I won threw my newspaper company and they would give us all $5.00 and we would visit the local Horn and Hardart vending machines for our lunch.

H&H Comment

Submitted by Valerie Wingfield (not verified) on April 14, 2021 - 2:40pm

Thanks for sharing your memories about H&H!

Trip to the Last Automat in Manhattan

Submitted by JE (not verified) on February 7, 2022 - 6:11pm

My dad took me to the last Automat in Manhattan, probably in the mid to late 1980's. He had been several times in his life and remembered someone taking him when he was young. Picking out a meal by looking through the little glass windows was a whole new dining experience and it's a nice memory.

Memories

Submitted by Stev (not verified) on February 14, 2022 - 3:18pm

My dad purchased pot pies from horn-hardart at least twice a month on his way home from work. What a treat! Great memories.