[1] The café was opened in 1876, and in the late 19th century it became a key meeting place of the Viennese intellectual scene.

Key regulars included: Peter Altenberg, Theodor Herzl, Alfred Adler,[2] Egon Friedell, Hugo von Hofmannsthal, Anton Kuh, Adolf Loos, Leo Perutz, Robert Musil, Stefan Zweig, Alfred Polgar, Adolf Hitler and Leon Trotsky.

In January 1913 alone, Josip Broz Tito, Sigmund Freud, and Stalin were patrons of the establishment.

[4] Members of the Vienna Circle of logical positivists held many meetings at the café[5] before and after World War I.

[citation needed] Today it is both a tourist spot and a popular café marked by its place in literary history.