Horn & Hardart was a food services company in the United States noted for operating the first food service automats in Philadelphia, New York City, and Baltimore.
First Automat, 818-820 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia (1904 postcard)
818 Chestnut St, Philadelphia, site of first U.S. Automat, with original Horn & Hardart sign still up in July 2020
Horn & Hardart postcard, circa 1930s
Automat in Times Square, circa 1939
An automat is a type of fast-food restaurant where food and drink are served through a vending machine, typically without waitstaff. The world's first automat, Quisisana, opened in Berlin, Germany in 1895.
The first automat, at 13 Leipziger Straße, Berlin, Germany; 1897 (Max Sielaff)
A food ticket machine in Japan, 2022
An automat in East Berlin, 1954
An automat in Efteling