William G. Schrafft was a Boston chocolate and candy maker whose confections were sold in stores owned by a businessman named Frank G. Shattuck. The original candy stores opened in 1898, and by 1909 the shops were selling lunch in addition to sweets.

The first two Schrafft stores in New York were in Manhattan, but by 1930 more than 25 stores were open in the New York area. These luncheonettes catered to a largely female clientele, with a largely female front and back of house staff. A descendant of the original owner once said of the patrons, “Everyone wore hats and handmade suits. And if you were a lady, it was safe to sit at the soda fountain and drink gin from a teacup.”