1 Cent - Wonder Foods Chicago, Illinois

Wonder Foods was a Chicago-based restaurant chain that issued its own scrip for in-house use — a common practice among mid-century American diners and cafeteria operators who found small-denomination coin handling slow and cumbersome during peak service. One-cent scrip of this type was typically redeemable only at the issuing establishment, giving the company a minor float advantage while keeping lines moving.

Chicago's mercantile scrip tradition ran deep, and pieces this small rarely survived — customers spent them immediately or discarded them.