Gage and Tollner's began when Charles Gage opened an "eating house" at 303 Fulton Street, Brooklyn, in 1879. In 1880, Eugene Tollner joined him and the restaurant became known as Gage and Tollner's in 1882. Tollner was the son of Charles Tollner, the founder of the hardware store that subsequently became Hammacher Schlemmer under the ownership of Eugene Tollner's cousin William Schlemmer. The restaurant moved to 372–374 Fulton Street in 1892. It attracted customers like Diamond Jim Brady, Jimmy Durante and Mae West.