I was staying at a hotel, and a vending machine gave me back Sac dollars. I went to the front desk to buy something from the stand and handed over 4 Sac dollar coins. The young girl stared at the coins with a puzzled look, fliping it back and forth, reading the coin. She says she has to go and talk to her manager. The manager comes out laughing and tells her to ring me up as paying $4 cash.
Was this in or around DC by any chance? That’s the only place I ever get dollar coins. I think any machine on government property has to accept them, and they seem to be the default change option for all the metro services.
I love getting them because they’re the perfect size for me to do that thing where you walk a coin across your knuckles.
Think i got them at the John Wayne Airport when I used a $5 bill in a vending machine. This was at Anaheim CA at a 4 start hotel I was at for a business trip. Had a similar experience at a Seattle hotel. Most vending machines that take money now will do $1-10 and pump out dollar coins as change.