Earlier this year I saw that someone called “Mr. Chip PDX” had followed Bridgetown Bites on Instagram. With a name like that, I was instantly curious. Their describe themselves as providing “Rare and hard to find snacks in Portland, OR.” So who and what exactly are they? Read on to learn more.
Mr. Chip Is a Vending Machine
Just the one now, but perhaps more in the future. Yes, Mr. Chip is a vending machine selling boss snacks. And it’s run by a guy named Keith Dickerson. “Mr. Chip is just a humble vending machine, but I aim to make it the best one possible!” he exclaimed.
But Also, Bagels
Keith has been a bageler at Bernstein’s Bagels for the last five years. “And I absolutely love it,” said Keith. And while a bagel’s only connection to chips are bagel chips (often made from day-old bagels), he says the bagel shop has been a huge support and inspiration for him in the process of realizing Mr. Chip.
“For a hot minute we carried UTZ chips, and you wouldn’t believe how crazy east coasters would go when they saw that we had UTZ Crab Chips,” he said. “That’s kinda when I realized the power of snack-based nostalgia, and started to develop the idea of a business that catered directly to that need.”
He also says he and his friends at work bring in fun new snacks for each other to try, which inspired him to source 24 unique bags of chips for massive “chip Advent calendar” he put together years ago. “I think the thrill of the hunt for rare chips also helped start the ball rolling on Mr. Chip,” he remarked.
Mr. Chip: What’s in a Name?
I could guess why he named it “Mr. Chip” but it never hurts to ask. “Funnily enough, Mr. Chip wasn’t the first name I had in mind,” wrote Keith. “I was originally thinking that ‘Chip City’ would be great for Portland, but Chip City LLC was already taken, so I had to do some more brainstorming.”
He continued, “Since coming around to Mr. Chip, I think it’s ultimately a way better name. I think Mr. Chip feels much more personable and approachable, which are both qualities I value and try to be. Plus it just sounds more fun and kinda makes you think of a cute little guy.”
Why a Vending Machine?
In my experience, vending machines are the same old, same old everywhere—at school, at the hospital, and rest stops. It’s really repetitive, and Keith agrees.
“I think snack machines have gotten into a real rut and just don’t feel very fun,” he wrote. “They’re all full of the same stuff that people get from Costco or Sam’s Club for maximum profit. I’m hoping that Mr. Chip will be a machine that people will walk up to, recognize a few nostalgic favorites, and hopefully get introduced to a bunch of cool stuff they’ve never seen before.”
Favorites?
I asked Keith if he had any favorite items to stock in Mr. Chip? “Oof, tough question,” he remarked. “As far as chips goes, it’s a toss up between Fox Family Chips from Maine and Hawkin’s Cheezies from Canada. The Fox Family Chips are kind of the consummate chip. They’re simple, crisp, potatoey, and salty, and they’re definitely unfamiliar to most people.”
He continued, “And Cheezies are hands down the best cheez curl I’ve ever had. They’re impossibly crunchy, irresponsibly cheezy, and you can actually taste the cornmeal in a good way. They’re pretty mind-blowing the first time you try one.”
He’s also pretty excited about Flerps.
Flerps
I had never heard of Flerps before, so the fandom for this project is new to me. Keith is chuffed to be selling them at Mr. Chip. Here, he tells the story of how he decided to include these paper stuffies in this project, each inspired by the artist’s favorite snacks.
“A couple years ago at Mall Rats, a holiday market that used to pop up in the Lloyd Center (RIP), I saw a kid who made the most amazing little stuffed chip bags that he called Flerps and had to buy one,” he explained. “When I settled on the idea of the vending machine and started to think of merch I wanted to sell, Flerps were at the top of my list.”
He continued, “I was able to get in contact with the kid’s folks and commission a couple of exclusive batches of Flerps. In the process, I’ve gotten to know him and his family and they’re all such cool people and I’m so happy to get to sell his art.”
The aformentioned kid artist is named Oliver, and he is 13-years old. Flerps are one of a kind pieces, colored and assembled by hand. They come in two sizes: big and small. The small one has a ribbon, too, allowing you to hang it wherever you choose.
Sourcing
I was curious to better understand how Keith gets these products for Mr. Chip, and it sounds like it has been tricky sometimes. “Sourcing is a bit of a challenge since I’m trying to get chips from other countries and across the U.S.” he wrote. “I’ve found some wholesalers who specialize in international snacks that I’ve been able to order from.”
He continued, “For domestic snacks, I’m ordering some directly from manufacturers and have been able to get some from wholesalers who are willing to sell to smaller accounts like myself. Eventually if I decide to get a few more machines, I’ll hopefully have enough throughput that I can get everything through a wholesaler.”
Some of the Snacks Mr. Chip Will Stock
Personally, I’m pretty excited to see that he is going to offer Old Dutch brand ketchup chips (a far superior product to the Lay’s version). He’s been showing off on his Instagram some of the products he’ll be stocking. They include some things I’ve never heard of:
- Utz Crab Chips
- Hawkin’s Cheezies
- Grippo’s Bar-B-Q
- Jayone Choco Churros
- Koikeya Satisfry Zesty Yuzu
- Shrimp Snacks Bar-B-Que
- Rap Snacks Rick Ross Sweet Chili Lemon Pepper
- Fritos Chorizo y Chipotle
- Fox Family Salt & Pepper
- Mrs. Fisher’s Dark Potato Chips
- Ole Salty’s Beer Cheese
- Taco Works Original
- Green Sahara African Style Sweet Peanut
- Rusty’s Island Style Chili Lime
- Keya’s Bombay Spice
- Nantucket Crisps Stubbys Jamaican Jerk
- Hostess Hickory Sticks
- Great Lakes Sea Salt, Pepper & Onion
- Lay’s Kobe Steak
Also, he’ll be taping a free sticker onto every fourth bag of chips in the machine, so you can look forward to that.
The Mr. Chip Website
Keith mentioned that his website will be not only a place to find out what is being served in the machine at any given time—no login required or data-mining going on, BTW. “It will show all current listings, so when you inevitably don’t know what you’re looking at when you get to the machine, you can look up chip descriptions.”
There will also be a place for you and other Mr. Chip customers to submit reviews of the snacks on hand. “I’m hoping people will roll up to the machine, scan the QR code, pick a chip, try it with friends, and then leave a review,” he remarked.
Opening and Location
He hopes to be up and running by the end of spring. “I’m fully stocked, the machine is modded out, and I should be getting the vinyl wrap my buddy designed for me this week,” said Keith. “I’ve started to reach out to some locations and hope to hear back soon!”
One type of place he could see Mr. Chip living at is a food cart pod. “People often go as a group with friends or family and all sit around and chat while waiting for their buzzers to go off,” he explained. “And I think having a big glowing machine full of chips you’ve never seen would be just the excuse you’d need to buy a bag for the table and have something to try together.”
If you know of any places that might want to host a machine dispensing interesting and unusual snacks, hit him up with an email.
Excitement
Keith loves hearing how excited people get when he’s starts talking chips with them. He says, “Almost everyone I talk to about Mr. Chip says something like ‘Oh, man you’ve GOT to get X chip, those are soooo good. I’d be there every week if I knew I could get them at Mr. Chip.'”
He added, “I’ve realized that chips are something that a ton of people are secretly passionate about, and it’s really fun to see that come out of the woodwork in conversations.”
While most vending machines are utilitarian—you’ll find them in places where people get stuck and just need something—and, as I wrote earlier, kind of boring, Keith believes Mr. Chip can be much, much more. “My hope is that Mr. Chip will be more of a novelty than a utility,” he remarked. “And that people will want to get a bag of chips simply because they want to and it’s fun—-not because their layover was delayed and the Hudson News closed at 9pm.”
I’m looking forward to checking out Mr. Chip—along with the ketchup chips, those Green Sahara African Style Sweet Peanut are calling my name. All the best to Keith as he heads to the finish line, and when we can all check out the crunchy snacks he’s gathering for Portland.
Mr. Chip [projected opening spring 2026]
Location TBD
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Meg Cotner
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