The Hardart Family Joins the Horn & Hardart Revival
Nearly 140 years after Frank Hardart and Joseph Horn began building what would become Horn & Hardart, members of the Hardart family are helping shape the company’s next chapter.
We’re excited to share that siblings Tom, Paul and Marcy Hardart, descendants of Horn & Hardart co-founder Frank Hardart, are now participating in the ongoing revival of Horn & Hardart as investors and participants in thinking about where the company goes next.
For us, their involvement represents an important step forward. As we work to bring Horn & Hardart back for a new generation, we want to build something that respects what made the company special while finding new ways to carry those ideas forward.
A Family Connection That Goes Back to the Beginning
Horn & Hardart’s story began in Philadelphia in 1888, when Joseph Horn and Frank Hardart opened their first restaurant.
The company would go on to open the first Horn & Hardart Automat in Philadelphia in 1902, introducing a new kind of restaurant experience built around quality, affordability and convenience. The Automat later expanded to New York, where Horn & Hardart became a familiar part of everyday life for generations.
Millions of people passed through Horn & Hardart’s doors over the decades, whether stopping for a cup of coffee, choosing a meal from the famous Automat windows or gathering around one of the restaurants' tables.
For the Hardart family, that history has always been personal.
“For our family, Horn & Hardart has never just been a name from the past. It represented a remarkably modern idea: good food, good coffee, and an experience that was open to everyone. We’re excited to help honor that history while thinking carefully about what those same values can mean for a new generation,” said Paul Hardart.
Preserving Horn & Hardart History
Tom and Paul Hardart have already played an important role in preserving the history of Horn & Hardart.
In 2006, they donated an extensive collection of company and family records to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. Spanning more than a century, the collection includes photographs, business correspondence, operating manuals, annual reports, marketing materials, family papers and other records documenting the growth and evolution of Horn & Hardart.
Today, Tom and Paul are joined by their sister, Marcy, in helping us think about the future of the company their family helped create.
Each brings a different perspective.
Tom Hardart has spent his career across technology, media, investment and entrepreneurship, including investments in more than 25 startups and media properties. Paul Hardart is Director of the Entertainment, Media and Technology Program at New York University’s Stern School of Business and has spent his career working at the intersection of business, media and storytelling. Marcy Hardart is a Santa Monica-based pediatrician and joins her brothers as an investor and participant in the revival.
Together, they bring something especially valuable to what we are building: a direct connection to Horn & Hardart’s history combined with decades of experience outside of it.
Bringing Horn & Hardart Back
When we began the Horn & Hardart revival in 2023, we started with something that had always been central to the company: coffee.
Today, Automat Coffee is once again being enjoyed in homes across the country. But coffee has always been our starting point, not the finish line.
Our larger goal is to explore what Horn & Hardart can become again.
That means looking carefully at the principles that made the company successful for generations: quality, convenience, innovation, and an experience designed to welcome people in. Rather than simply recreating the past, we want to understand those ideas and find ways to make them relevant today.
Having the Hardart family involved makes that work even more meaningful.
“Having members of the Hardart family involved means an enormous amount to us,” said David Arena, CEO of Horn & Hardart. “We’re not interested in simply putting an old name on something new. We’re working to understand what made Horn & Hardart special in the first place and carry those ideas forward. Tom, Paul and Marcy bring both a deep connection to that history and a range of professional experience and perspective. Their involvement helps us bridge where this company has been with where we believe it can go.”
Another Step Forward in the Revival
Bringing Horn & Hardart back has always been about more than nostalgia. The original company succeeded because it continually found new ways to give people a better, more convenient experience without losing sight of quality.
Nearly 140 years after Frank Hardart and Joseph Horn began that journey in Philadelphia, we have an opportunity to carry those ideas forward again. And now, members of the family that helped start Horn & Hardart are part of building what comes next.
The story continues.
