11. Gage & Tollner
In 1879, Charles M. Gage opened an oyster house on Brooklyn’s Fulton Street. Gage’s partner, cigar salesman Eugene Tollner, would be brought into the business in 1884. Gage & Tollner would later reopen at its current location at 372 Fulton Street in 1892, featuring a unique Neo-Grec storefront and ornate interior design, characteristic of the late Victorian era. After operating continuously for 125 years, Gage & Tollner served its last customers in 2004, with developer Joseph Jemal buying the building and converting the top two floors into office space.
For 12 years, various fast-casual restaurants and bargain retail stores cycled through the former dining hall room, including TGI Fridays and Arby’s, until the space was vacated in 2016. One year later, restaurateurs Ben Schneider and St. John Frizell came across the space and began a Wefunder campaign to raise money for reopening Gage & Tollner and renovations on the restaurant began in 2019. Originally set to open on March 15, 2020, its reopening was delayed until 2021 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
