# Which Dead National Retail Chain Would You Magically Resurrect? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 22, 2025, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965 "2025-03-22T23:09:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 15
**Author:** ![Hakushon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hakushon/32/5503_2.png) [@Hakushon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hakushon)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2025, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965/281 "2025-03-27T15:22:27Z")
My favorite quotation from that film was when they were rhapsodizing about the various pies at the automat, and Mel Brooks commented, “Lemon meringue not only looked big, but, you could smash your face into it.” ---
**Author:** ![Tibby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tibby/32/17030_2.png) [@Tibby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tibby)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2025, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965/282 "2025-03-27T15:52:25Z")
Here’s a few more: Mel Brooks: “I wrote a whole song about those pies—if only they’d let me sing it in the kitchen!”; “If you had coffee from the Automat, it could fix anything—from a cold to heartbreak!” Carl Reiner: “The Automat was heaven. You put in a nickel…and out slid pure joy!” Elliott Gould: “The Automat taught me independence—you could eat on your own schedule.” Ruth Bader Ginsburg: “We’d sit for hours, sipping endless coffee for a nickel.” Phyllis Magidson (historian): “It was like magic—insert a nickel, open a little window, and voilà!” Howard Schultz (Starbucks founder): “I was captivated by the romance behind a cup of coffee.” (He credits his passion for Starbucks to the welcoming, communal vibe at Horn & Hardart.) I read that the new owner plans to make the window lockers “tap & pay.” No more _“nickel throwers”_ who amazed folks by reaching into the coin bucket and quickly pulling out exactly 20 nickels time after time. ---
**Author:** ![MrAtoz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2025, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965/283 "2025-03-27T15:59:06Z")
I’m going to have to find that documentary; it sounds lovely. There’s an episode of _MASH_ where Radar reads a letter about someone having lunch at the Automat, and exclaims, “Oh, boy, I always wanted to do that!” So did I, Radar. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2025, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965/284 "2025-03-27T16:06:20Z")
> [@Tibby](#): > > I read that the new owner plans to make the window lockers “tap & pay.” As usual, the new owners completely miss a major point in the charm of the place they just bought. ---
**Author:** ![Tibby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tibby/32/17030_2.png) [@Tibby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tibby)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2025, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965/285 "2025-03-27T16:11:01Z")
Gotta make concessions for those young, can’t-wait-more-than-a-second whippersnappers, I suppose. 😡 ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2025, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965/286 "2025-03-27T16:28:37Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > > [@Tibby](#): > > > > I read that the new owner plans to make the window lockers “tap & pay.” > > As usual, the new owners completely miss a major point in the charm of the place they just bought. Sure, it would be “charming” if I could just stick a nickel in the machine and get a cup of coffee. But the business isn’t going to make any money that way. Really, tap and go would be the modern-day equivalent. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2025, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965/287 "2025-03-27T16:30:06Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > But the business isn’t going to make any money that way. Really, tap and go would be the modern-day equivalent. They can’t harvest your info if you drop a nickle (or dime or quarter). ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2025, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965/288 "2025-03-27T16:32:00Z")
Just how many nickels do you think you would have to drop at a modern-day Horn & Hardart? How charming is it when you’re on your fortieth nickel? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2025, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965/289 "2025-03-27T16:39:16Z")
Bill slot. I’m just saying a cash option should still be available. I was more addressing the fact that investors buy a business, gut it of the very things that made it popular and then can’t figure out where the customers went. I’m sure there are plans to reduce employee count and cheapening the food to the point of inedibility. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2025, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965/290 "2025-03-27T16:40:58Z")
I _hope_ that any plans to revive it include the Art Deco aesthetic. ---
**Author:** ![Hakushon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hakushon/32/5503_2.png) [@Hakushon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hakushon)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2025, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965/291 "2025-03-27T17:07:38Z")
Horn & Hardart also had retail stores where–for example–one could buy whole pies and cakes instead of slices. I believe these were retail outlets of the same bakeries that provided stock for the automats. ---
**Author:** ![E-DUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/e-dub/32/403_2.png) [@E-DUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-DUB)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2025, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965/292 "2025-03-27T17:38:51Z")
Another vote for Borders. The Mrs. worked there for many a year. Also Radio Shack. Where else could I stop on my way home from work and buy a DPDT spring-loaded center off switch? ---
**Author:** ![Tibby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tibby/32/17030_2.png) [@Tibby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tibby)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2025, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965/293 "2025-03-27T17:40:24Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > I _hope_ that any plans to revive it include the Art Deco aesthetic. Agreed. Art Deco is a match made in heaven for eating establishments. Crisp, geometric lines, shiny chrome accents, and streamlined elegance scream both retro and futuristic at the same time—no matter what decade rolls around, it always looks fresh. Jersey diners have the same aesthetic—and they have great food, too. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2025, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965/294 "2025-03-27T17:43:24Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > I _hope_ that any plans to revive it include the Art Deco aesthetic. - Why waste money on something you plan on running into the ground? ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2025, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965/295 "2025-03-27T17:45:07Z")
Well, ideally, it wouldn’t be run into the ground, but something intended to remain for a good long time. Perhaps even at a Disney World type resort? ---
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2025, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965/296 "2025-03-27T18:08:40Z")
I remember the Automat / Horn and Hardart and their huge selection from when I first moved to NYC in the late 1980s, The tap and go model for a reboot version is understandable. But if $1 and $2 coins were in widespread use in the US as they are in Canada, that would make things simple for cash buyers. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2025, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965/297 "2025-03-27T18:13:23Z")
I’ve seen [tap-to-pay vending machines](https://www.canteen.com/vending/) in places like hospitals that sell sodas, snacks, sandwiches and so forth. So the technology is already there. ---
**Author:** ![zbuzz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e19b73/32.png) [@zbuzz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zbuzz)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2025, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965/298 "2025-03-28T01:35:36Z")
> [@Dr.Strangelove](#): > > > [@Czarcasm](#): > > > > Fry’s is mentioned, and Radio Shack is mentioned…but what about that offshoot of Radio Shack that was incredibly big for a short while, then went bankrupt and (mostly) got bought out by Fry’s-_Incredible Universe_? > > Their Sacramento location was one that turned into a Fry’s. Not bad, but they didn’t have the depth of electronic stuff that Fry’s did, like bare components and specialized equipment. Basically pure consumer focus. I think they wanted it to be family-friendly enough that it would justify a long trip. They didn’t last long, at any rate. At least Fry’s got some cheap locations out of it. Fry’s also got the fleet of Incredible Universe delivery trucks, but it took them forever to repaint the livery to say “Fry’s.” So for like ten years or so after they had gone out of business, it looked like Incredible Universe trucks were still making deliveries. Talk about cheap… ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2025, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965/299 "2025-03-28T02:07:36Z")
Tower Records were never a thing in Canada. Toronto had Sam’s The Record Man, which I liked but was much smaller. Tokyo has a ten story Tower Records in Shibuya. I enjoyed the nostalgia of walking around it. They had a lot of hard to find jazz CDs at cheap prices too. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2025, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965/300 "2025-03-28T02:21:42Z")
Godfather Pizza is still a thing in many small Ontario towns. We used to go to Woolco every Saturday, the Canadian Woolworths. Much of my youthful allowance was spent on the wide variety of merchandise available for $1.44 I enjoyed the café too. I still occasionally make the delicious cheesecake which used lemon jello as an unlikely ingredient. Few cheesecakes are better! They disappeared when Wal-Mart came to Canada and bogarted all their retail space. > **[No Bake Classic Woolworth Cheesecake](https://sugarapron.com/2019/02/12/no-bake-classic-woolworth-cheesecake/)** > > No Bake Woolworth Cheesecake is a classic, light and lemony dessert and will be the perfect addition to your Easter or Mother’s Day menu! [![](https://sugarapron.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/woolworth-cheesecake-b.jpg) ](https://sugarapron.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/woolworth-cheesecake-b.jpg) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965.md?page=14) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dead-national-retail-chain-would-you-magically-resurrect/1015965.md?page=16)