Heinz x Nico's Deli Night Shift Automat
Fast, waiterless and loaded with flavour, this six-month automat pop-up is bringing a new edge to a bygone late-night staple.
Overview
If you're younger than, say, 60 years old, there's little chance you've come across an automat restaurant in Australia. These service-free restaurants were coin-operated, with rows of wall-mounted compartments filled with tasty bites and drinks. Following the rise of modern fast-food decades ago, the automat's days were numbered, with Japan's shokkenki, aka vending machine restaurants, about the closest present-day equivalent.
Yet now is your chance to experience an automat, likely for the first time, as Heinz and Nico's Sandwich Deli have joined forces to reveal a new, or at least reborn, iteration — the Night Shift Automat. Designed for night owls up late or on the way home, the activation launches from 7–11pm on Thursday, March 12, serving saucy sangies for the next six months at Nico's Deli in the heart of Fitzroy.
Like the automats of old, Nico's candescent blue light will welcome you in, spotlighting a rotating menu headlined by the mozzarella in carozza, featuring oozy mozzarella, panko crumbs, exclusive Night Sauce dipper and Heinz Seriously Good Mayo. Meanwhile, the crispy chicken sandwich and the patty melt add more delicious dimensions to this throwback pop-up. If you're keen to swing by, the Heinz x Nico's Deli Night Shift Automat will be open weekly, Thursday–Saturday, from 7–11pm.
"We're stoked to bring the lunchtime sandwiches we know Melbourne loves, into a whole new nighttime vibe," says Nico's Deli co-founder Leo Thompson. "The Heinz x Nico's Night Shift will be zero fuss with maximum flavour."
Information
- The Ten Best Beach Camping Spots in Victoria
- Where to Find the Best Breakfast in Melbourne's CBD
- The 25 Best Chinese Restaurants in Melbourne for 2025
- The 16 Best Swimming Holes Near Melbourne
- CP Picks: Aussie Summer Essentials — The Things We're Packing, Wearing and Using All Season Long
- CP Picks: The Editor's Gift Guide —What the CP Team Is Giving (and Hoping to Receive)