So shiny! So efficient!
I pined for the Automat as a kid. I had read about it somewhere - probably A Tree Grows in Brooklyn - and was so sad to learn they were no longer around by the time I was here. The Automat was essentially a walk-in vending machine. Basic cafeteria food items sat behind little glass doors in the wall. You deposited coins and pulled out whichever dish you wanted to eat. It was quiet and peaceful and seemingly entirely automatic.
In truth, the Automats of yesteryear had plenty of people behind the scenes, making the food and loading the dishes into the little compartments for sale. But in Today's Modern Era, food can be prepared, loaded, and sold all by machine - no humans necessary.
Such is the premise of Eatsa in San Francisco, an entirely automated fast food restaurant based around quinoa bowls. Customers order in store and pay either at the counter with a PIN pad or using their smartphones. When your quinoa bowl is done, it is delivered to a magically glowing compartment with your name on it.
Will this revolutionize the fast food industry? I'm torn, because on the one hand, it sounds pretty cool, and it should speed up every aspect of getting your fast food. On the other hand, it could put a lot of people out of work.