We're used to getting coffee, soda, candy, and chips from a vending machine. Now, according to the New York Times, if Claudio Torghele has his way, Italians and eventually Americans will be able to get a made-while-you-watch, freshly baked pizza from a vending machine.
The machine does not just slip a frozen pizza into a microwave. It actually whips up flour, water, tomato sauce, and fresh ingredients to produce a piping hot pizza in about three minutes.
The customer presses a button to choose one of four varieties—Margherita (plain cheese and tomato sauce), bacon, ham or fresh greens. A plastic container dumps flour into a drum resembling a tiny washing machine; a squirt of water follows, and the drum goes into a spin cycle, forming a blob of dough that is then pressed flat to form a 12-inch disk.
Tomato paste is squirted onto the dough and cheese is added before it is lifted into a small infrared oven. The baked pizza then slips onto a cardboard tray and out into the customer’s waiting hands. Mr. Torghele says the pizza will cost as little $4.50, depending on the variety.
From the looks of this photo we found on Flickr, this pizza is more of a novelty item than an object of desire. It may be made fresh before your eyes, but it certainly looks like a frozen pizza, doesn't it?
I think I'll still take a bag of chips or a Snickers bar any time.
I disagree, Ed. It sounds like this thing wouldn't have anything funky in it. And it would be hot and fresh. It wouldn't have to be all that amazing for me to still be ecstatic to find it as a choice in many circumstances (midnight check in at a hotel after a delayed flight, rest stop vending machine area on the middle of a long drive).
I guess part of where I'm coming from on it is that a bag of chips or a Snickers aren't so much objects of desire for me particularly anyway (just owing to personal food preferences). But for 3 minutes and $5 that pizza doesn't look so awful.
Good food made from scratch needs a human touch - not a hydraulic robotic arm ! However I am aware that a lot of stuff we buy is made via the miracles of process engineering.
But come on - Pizza out of a machine ! Next thing will be fresh smoked Ribs for $3.50 from the machine.
I'm with ccbweb, I'd take one of those at a rest stop in the middle of the night when there's nothing open. Lord knows I've bought worse under those conditions.
if its a choice between a premade spamwich sandwich from a vending machine,(made with real meat paste, what kind is left to your imagination) or a vedo pizza I'll take the vendo pizza. I really hope they put them in rest stops especially.
I'd like to see an automatic bloody-mary machine be successful first. Then maybe I'd trust an auto-bake vending machine. Maybe they could then be installed side-by-side...
No yeast in the dough, and definitely no time for it to rise properly. What's the point? I'd rather have a good quality frozen pizza (does that exist?) with a properly proofed crust.
I second all the previous concerns and add to them the sanitation aspects. Is there a water supply that's provided on demand? Airport water?? How old could the flour be? Any additional protein making their home in it? Plus, I shudder to think of the insects and vermin that would find their way inside.
To all those people who think its unhygienic... would you rather eat from a tuckshop, fast food, restaurant or any other establishment that handles food not even knowing where they store or how they handle their foods!? Have you not seen the videos on TV showing some bad food handling practices, which they only show the one caught out, but what about the millions of other places that have not! At least these machines have all individual packaged parcels for each pizza and everything is contained in containers where nothing can get in. I know which id rather choose!! No sweaty dirty cooks making my pizza!
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20 Comments:
pizza dough made without yeast doesn't sound very tasty...i guess it's like a baked cracker?
cupcakemuffin at 6:41PM on 03/14/09
I disagree, Ed. It sounds like this thing wouldn't have anything funky in it. And it would be hot and fresh. It wouldn't have to be all that amazing for me to still be ecstatic to find it as a choice in many circumstances (midnight check in at a hotel after a delayed flight, rest stop vending machine area on the middle of a long drive).
I guess part of where I'm coming from on it is that a bag of chips or a Snickers aren't so much objects of desire for me particularly anyway (just owing to personal food preferences). But for 3 minutes and $5 that pizza doesn't look so awful.
ccbweb at 6:44PM on 03/14/09
This is the best idea ever. I wonder if it's any good. I mean obviously it wouldn't be gourmet, but good in a "$5 in 3 minutes" kind of way.
cycorider at 7:47PM on 03/14/09
Vend-o-matic pizza...no thanks!
dmcavanagh at 8:58PM on 03/14/09
Good food made from scratch needs a human touch - not a hydraulic robotic arm ! However I am aware that a lot of stuff we buy is made via the miracles of process engineering.
But come on - Pizza out of a machine ! Next thing will be fresh smoked Ribs for $3.50 from the machine.
Adds a whole definition to Iron Chef!
Ribster at 9:08PM on 03/14/09
I'm with ccbweb, I'd take one of those at a rest stop in the middle of the night when there's nothing open. Lord knows I've bought worse under those conditions.
beersnob at 9:20PM on 03/14/09
i'm intrigued. I would totally try it!
wonTONfm at 10:06PM on 03/14/09
in just 3 minutes?! Remember when we used to have to wait 30 minutes for crappy pizza! Ahhhhhh.... technology....
Pavlov at 8:59AM on 03/15/09
At least you don't have to worry whether the pizza guy washed his hands before making your pie.
redfish at 9:04AM on 03/15/09
if its a choice between a premade spamwich sandwich from a vending machine,(made with real meat paste, what kind is left to your imagination) or a vedo pizza I'll take the vendo pizza. I really hope they put them in rest stops especially.
huneybumper at 9:24AM on 03/15/09
that is just.....where's the soul?
Cary at 9:46AM on 03/15/09
It just sounds..well wrong.
chardonnay at 9:54AM on 03/15/09
I'd like to see an automatic bloody-mary machine be successful first. Then maybe I'd trust an auto-bake vending machine. Maybe they could then be installed side-by-side...
bruisedbuddha at 1:52PM on 03/15/09
@bruisedbuddha- I don't think that bloody-mary would be anything memorable either.
dmcavanagh at 5:21PM on 03/15/09
a pizza/bloody mary machine is..... GENIOUS!
loup garu at 6:10PM on 03/15/09
Um, no thanks.
juliebugsmama at 9:24AM on 03/16/09
No yeast in the dough, and definitely no time for it to rise properly. What's the point? I'd rather have a good quality frozen pizza (does that exist?) with a properly proofed crust.
J. Kenji Lopez-Alt at 1:28PM on 03/16/09
I second all the previous concerns and add to them the sanitation aspects. Is there a water supply that's provided on demand? Airport water?? How old could the flour be? Any additional protein making their home in it? Plus, I shudder to think of the insects and vermin that would find their way inside.
RossS at 2:54PM on 03/16/09
I would try it for novelty's sake, but I wouldn't expect much from it.
cinnarose at 1:47PM on 03/23/09
To all those people who think its unhygienic... would you rather eat from a tuckshop, fast food, restaurant or any other establishment that handles food not even knowing where they store or how they handle their foods!? Have you not seen the videos on TV showing some bad food handling practices, which they only show the one caught out, but what about the millions of other places that have not! At least these machines have all individual packaged parcels for each pizza and everything is contained in containers where nothing can get in. I know which id rather choose!! No sweaty dirty cooks making my pizza!
sdvjc at 12:50AM on 05/21/09