Rating: 
Summary: Easy to like, hard to read
Review: As a one-time performer on the Horn & Hardart Children's Hour, I was pleased to see a chapter included on the longtime radio and TV production. I had forgotten all about Mr. and Mrs. Broza, the producers. I was also a regular diner at the Reading Station Automat when I was a kid, and the book really brought back some memories as well as providing lots of information about Horn & Hardart I never knew. It appears to be well-researched and honest, even covering the sad last days of the company, with their union troubles and hit-and-miss attempts to keep up with the market. The recipes are much simpler than I would have imagined, and I anticipate giving them a try. Criticisms: The book is wretchedly over-designed. Dense color screens over photos, opaque text boxes on top of photos, tiny typefaces in white over color or black backgrounds and too many frou-frou typefaces make it a challenge to read. The photos could have been bigger and better. Assuming the photos or illustrations exist somewhere, the book would have benefited from a closer look at the Automat vending machines themselves and the backstage areas, and I don't think there was a single one of the huge commissary kitchens where the food was actually prepared. The authors, for example, mention the unique dolphin coffee vending spouts repeatedly, but fail to provide a decent illustration or photo of one.
Rating:
Summary: But the recipes aren't there...
Review: As someone who grew up in Philadelphia it was fun reading about my childhood memories. The big problem is the derth of recipes.
The original ones. I have been writing to cookbook publishers for years begging for a Horn & Hardart Cookbook. I thought this would be it since it was written by a relative of one of the founders. No such luck. But if you have only heard about The Automat and never eaten there this is a fun read about a very special place.
Rating:
Summary: But the recipes aren't there...
Review: As someone who grew up in Philadelphia it was fun reading about my childhood memories. The big problem is the derth of recipes.
The original ones. I have been writing to cookbook publishers for years begging for a Horn & Hardart Cookbook. I thought this would be it since it was written by a relative of one of the founders. No such luck. But if you have only heard about The Automat and never eaten there this is a fun read about a very special place.
Rating: 
Summary: NOT TOTALLY HAPPY
Review: I must admit that the book is very beautiful and informative. But, if you are buying thinking that it will be chock full of recipes used at the old automats, you will be very disappointed. I grew up with my mom regaling us with her tales of her adventures of being a young nursing student in New York City in the 1950s. She was a farm girl from Alabama, so New York was a true revelation for her. Many of her meals were taken at the automat and she always described the food as being wonderful. I was looking to be able to recreate those dishes, but out of 125 glossy pages of text, the book only includes about a dozen recipes. And as an earlier reviewer noted, I don't think most of them are the authentic recipes from the old cafeteria style restaurants. It does make for wonderful reading though. Just understand that this is mostly recollections, not a true cookbook.
Rating:
Summary: NOT TOTALLY HAPPY
Review: I must admit that the book is very beautiful and informative. But, if you are buying thinking that it will be chock full of recipes used at the old automats, you will be very disappointed. I grew up with my mom regaling us with her tales of her adventures of being a young nursing student in New York City in the 1950s. She was a farm girl from Alabama, so New York was a true revelation for her. Many of her meals were taken at the automat and she always described the food as being wonderful. I was looking to be able to recreate those dishes, but out of 125 glossy pages of text, the book only includes about a dozen recipes. And as an earlier reviewer noted, I don't think most of them are the authentic recipes from the old cafeteria style restaurants. It does make for wonderful reading though. Just understand that this is mostly recollections, not a true cookbook.
Rating: 
Summary: The Amazing Automat
Review: Lorraine Diehl and Marianne Hardart have done a wonderful job recreating the Automat, a New York City (and Philadelphia) icon for many years. The book is very well written, meticulously researched, and liberally highlighted with beautiful photos and quotes from celebrities and "ordinary folks" who spent many happy hours at various Automats. For anyone whose memories include putting nickels in the slots to retrive macaroni and cheese, pumpkin pie, coffee, or any other favorite food, this book is a must.
Rating:
Summary: The Amazing Automat
Review: Lorraine Diehl and Marianne Hardart have done a wonderful job recreating the Automat, a New York City (and Philadelphia) icon for many years. The book is very well written, meticulously researched, and liberally highlighted with beautiful photos and quotes from celebrities and "ordinary folks" who spent many happy hours at various Automats. For anyone whose memories include putting nickels in the slots to retrive macaroni and cheese, pumpkin pie, coffee, or any other favorite food, this book is a must.
Rating:
Summary: Nice, but perhaps an ingredient is lacking
Review: My Cousin knows the author, so I was looking forward to reading this book. I was delighted to find my cousin quoted on Pg 23(!) but the rest of the book seems to be missing something. It's undoubtedly put together with a great deal of love and affection, but I felt that the book was intended for people who can remember eating at Automats. I never had the privledge, and this book doesn't fill in the details. As another reviewer pointed out there are constant descriptions of the distinctive coffee dispensers, but not one single good picture of one.
The recipies are a nice touch, but why stick them here and there? To be really useful they should have been all together. The layout is choppy to the point of being confusing at times.
I suppose I would have wanted a book with some more technical nuts-and-bolts information on the mechanical aspect of the Automat, but this book isn't aimed at the hard core diner and restaurant fan. It's a nice light pleasant book, and an affectionate obituary for a sadly past age.
Rating:
Summary: Easy to like, hard to read
Review: This is a wonderful book. It is produced magnificently. Absolutely beautiful. Slick pages, clear pictures, excellent text; a total package.The inside of the covers has old items with nostalgic prices on it. Oh how they make me miss the automat. The writing is fine, covering the automat from many perspectives. The business end, the customers end, the attraction of the automat. Famous people tell about their feelings and experiences about the automat. Many many different experiences and views concerning this most unique and popular of restaurants. If you ever ate at the automat, and miss not being able to go there again, then this book will send you down memory lane something fierce. I remember the automat with great fondness (loved the one near Grand Central Station) and this book really enhanced my memories and made them more vivid. Even people who have never been to the automat may find this book interesting. It is not overly long, and is well designed with pictures spaced throughout the book, so that it is never a chore to look at or read. Certainly as a gift item, this is a fabulous choice. The automats are not around anymore, but this delicious book can definitely bring your mind and heart there for a little while. Look at the pictures of the food behind the glass windows, the spaced out tables, the fronts of the buildings. These photos bring back such memories that I wish I could grab a few nickels and open a few food windows again, sit down and meet some friends. This book even has recipes from food sold at the automat. Whether or not you will try to cook them, they are interesting too. A very intimate and comprehensive, yet not overly full book. It has the exact proportion of components to make a fantastic memory lane book. There is no way that you will regret making the purchase of this book. Just make sure that you have a box of tissues nearby, because it is sure to stir such emotions that you just might shed a tear or two, by having it all brought to life again. Wonderful place to eat, and meet, and a wonderful book for yourself or as a gift.
Rating:
Summary: Meet You At The Automat
Review: This is a wonderful book. It is produced magnificently. Absolutely beautiful. Slick pages, clear pictures, excellent text; a total package. The inside of the covers has old items with nostalgic prices on it. Oh how they make me miss the automat. The writing is fine, covering the automat from many perspectives. The business end, the customers end, the attraction of the automat. Famous people tell about their feelings and experiences about the automat. Many many different experiences and views concerning this most unique and popular of restaurants. If you ever ate at the automat, and miss not being able to go there again, then this book will send you down memory lane something fierce. I remember the automat with great fondness (loved the one near Grand Central Station) and this book really enhanced my memories and made them more vivid. Even people who have never been to the automat may find this book interesting. It is not overly long, and is well designed with pictures spaced throughout the book, so that it is never a chore to look at or read. Certainly as a gift item, this is a fabulous choice. The automats are not around anymore, but this delicious book can definitely bring your mind and heart there for a little while. Look at the pictures of the food behind the glass windows, the spaced out tables, the fronts of the buildings. These photos bring back such memories that I wish I could grab a few nickels and open a few food windows again, sit down and meet some friends. This book even has recipes from food sold at the automat. Whether or not you will try to cook them, they are interesting too. A very intimate and comprehensive, yet not overly full book. It has the exact proportion of components to make a fantastic memory lane book. There is no way that you will regret making the purchase of this book. Just make sure that you have a box of tissues nearby, because it is sure to stir such emotions that you just might shed a tear or two, by having it all brought to life again. Wonderful place to eat, and meet, and a wonderful book for yourself or as a gift.
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