When it comes to food at the former Hill’s Department Store in Bridgeport, there are plenty of memories. And for most of us, they are fantastic memories.

 

As a kid and even as a younger adult, there were few things better than walking into the lobby and smelling the popcorn as soon as the doors opened. The aroma of the hot butter and freshly popped popcorn let you know there were other treats as well.

 

Most of us remember the smell, the large pretzels, and the frozen Coke. For those who were Hills experts when it came to food in the lobby, you know to get the frozen Coke and mix it with the frozen cherry Icee. To me, that was the gold standard along with a gallon of popcorn.

 

Of course, you could also get hot dogs when the store was older. In fact, they had a Labor Day special where hot dogs were either a nickel or a dime. I remember this because every Labor Day for several years my father made sure we would wait in line as long as it took to load up on the hot dogs and the toppings – no chili for those as I recall.

 

Granted, it has been decades since anyone has enjoyed those treats. It has also been decades since I have recalled any other unique food items at Hills Department Store until I saw an advertisement on an online yard sale, maybe a Facebook marketplace ad, recently where someone was offering for sale an electronic food vending machine from the 1990s.

 

While that may not seem like much as far as memories go, it certainly got my head spinning quickly. In short order, I thought the machine looked familiar. I was actually quite certain not only was it familiar, but it was the same type of machine that during the latter years of the Hills Department Story dynasty was in the snack bar area – at least in the one in Bridgeport.

 

Nearing double nickels in age, I decided to check out my memory with the one person who was with on almost every single Hills Department Store food run back in the day. I called my brother Tim to see if he recalled it. In particular, I called to see if there were two things very specifically that led me to believe that this cutting-edge piece of machinery was in the lobby at Hills Department Store.

 

In short order I had him on the phone. In shorter order I asked him the question. In even shorter order I had my answer.

 

The answer was a definitive yes. Hills Department Store had an electronic food vending machine.

 

Understand, this is not a snack machine. This was not a soda machine. This was a machine in which you ordered food from.

 

I then asked what we got from it and how it was prepared. Again, the answers were a spot-on match.

 

Tim told me we both would get the pizza when I asked him what we ordered. The second question, which I thought would be tricky, was also a no hesitation response.

 

When ordering the pizza, there was a microwave on the counter. You took your order, read the instructions, and placed it in the microwave and your tasty treat was ready in the blink of an eye.

 

What neither of us can remember is if the microwave was something unique or standard. Today, it would have to be something different to prevent items from splattering and the fear of germs causing problems. Back in the 1990s, those were not concerns.

 

That said, my brother let me in on a memory of his I had totally forgotten. He recalled a time getting pizza and going to get the change. Turns out, the change he got out was the exact amount he put in – along with the pizza.

 

While that was certainly good news for two young teens in the early 1990s, there was better news. When he decided to get a second item, probably another piece of pizza, the pizza came out and so did the same amount he put in.

 

He informed me that we both ate quite well that day courtesy of our friends at Hills Department Store.

 

As much as I am certain these machines were in other locations, I am curious to know if anyone else recalls the machine or any other food items in the snack bar beyond the drinks, popcorn, chips, warm nuts served, and the standard fare.

 

If you recall the machines, or anything else for that matter, please add them to the comment section below. I would love to hear about your memories. After all, as anyone who is a long-time reader of this blog knows, I never tire of talking about Hills Department Store.

It was, and always will be, the anti-inflation department store.

 

Editor's Note: Top photo shows a 1990s food vending machine that is currently for sale that looks like what my memory recalls, while the second photo is an old Hills Department Store advertisement from New York (I would manhandle that bag of popcorn). Bottom photo is one of the iconic storefronts thousands of us loved.