Pizza Vending Machines Promise Convenience & Good Taste
Forget the new iPhone, exploding Samsungs or self-driving cars. I have seen the future: It’s pizza — in a vending machine.
While not quite as exotic as a Star Trek replicator, it’s close enough for me.
First up is Pizza ATM: “Gormet Pizza in 3 minutes, 24/7.” Xavier University in Cincinnati was selected as the kick-off spot for Paline’s first vending machine in the U.S. According to the Paline.com, the fully automated apparatus delivers piping-hot 12-inch pies that cost $9 to $10, depending on toppings. The machine holds 70 read-to-bake pies. Paline describes itself as an “exclusive partner for Adial products and is establishing a network of distributors to market the Pizza ATM™.” Adial is based in France, where the pizza dispensers have been available for more than a dozen years.
Don’t think a pizza vending machine from France will satisfy your sophisticated palate? No problem. Pizza Touch in Orlando is testing a machine that’s “Fast, Practical, and ready in 2 minutes!” Its website says, “The buyer need only select one of three different flavors and then pay using the screen on the machine.” Flavors: 4 cheese, Pepperoni and Margherita. The 9-inch pizzas weigh 7.4 ounces. (No word on price, but a video I watched showed a $6 tab.)
Meanwhile, the 24/7 Pizza Box — the “World’s Smallest Pizzeria” — takes a different tact, serving up slices rather than whole pies. 24/7’s businesses model is also different: Instead of baking pizzas on-the-spot and on-the-fly, it partners up with local pizzerias — delivering their homemade fare in its automated Pizza Boxes.
I love these ideas — and I’m sure there’s plenty more popping up around the country. Can’t wait to find one close to my house and give it a try. Only flaw I see is that I can’t get one installed in my living room beside my easy chair.
Hmmmmmmmm … pizza.
