The original Nathan's restaurant stands at the corner of Surf and Stillwell Avenues in the Coney Island neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York City.

[8][9] Handwerker was a Jewish-Polish immigrant who arrived in New York City in 1912[5] and soon found work at the Coney Island, Brooklyn, restaurant Feltman's German Gardens.

[10] By one account, he was encouraged by singing waiters Eddie Cantor and Jimmy Durante to go into business in competition with Feltman's; as United Press International noted in 1974, "There are many stories about Nathan and how the business began, but this is the way he told it..."[10] The company's official history does not mention the future stars' encouragement.

[10] At a time when food regulation was in its infancy and the pedigree of the hot dog particularly suspect, Handwerker ensured that men wearing surgeon's smocks were seen eating at his stand to reassure potential customers.

[7] All locations were sold by the Handwerker family to a group of private investors in 1987,[13] at which point Nathan's was franchised and a great number of establishments were opened around New York City and beyond.

While Nathan's was already the official hot dog brand of the New York Mets, New York Yankees, Miami Marlins, and St. Louis Cardinals (the sponsorship does not restrict teams from making similar deals with competitors), the deal marked the first time that Major League Baseball had named an official hot dog sponsor.

[22] Service is provided year-round inside, and during the summer additional walk-up windows are opened to serve the larger seasonal crowds.

The Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest has been held annually at the original location on Coney Island since the early 1970s on the 4th of July.