Retro Ramblings: Vendo Cup Vending Soda Machines

Soda in a Cup from a Machine

Here are a couple of photos of a Pepsi and a Coca-Cola cup vending soda machine. At one time, machines that could vend soda into a cup were a huge trend. It’s hard to imagine now, but the use of cup vendors was very widespread. When I was a kid we used to go to Sandy’s Bowling Alley in Windham, NH. They had a Coca-Cola cup vending machine and I used to love that thing. You would put in your money, a cup would drop down (most of the time), crushed ice would fill the cup and then soda water and syrup would shoot out, mixing the soft drink along the way. It was fun to use and the soda tasted great.

Cup vendors have pretty much disappeared now. They were messy and required a lot of service and maintenance. But with modern technology and the desire to eliminate plastic bottles, I think that you will see some sort of cup vendors making a comeback.