Florida bartender who saved women from ‘creep’ no stranger to ‘weird vibes’
The quick-thinking Florida bartender who saved two women from a creepy customer by slipping one of them a note disguised as a receipt said he’s used to fending off pervs with “very weird” vibes.
Max Gutierrez, who works at No Vacancy in St. Petersburg, was hailed as a hero after a woman, Trinity Allie, shared the story on Twitter, praising the Hawaiian-shirt-clad barkeep.
Gutierrez posed for a picture showing the note he handed to Allie, and the tweet quickly went viral.
Gutierrez later detailed the encounter on Reddit, explaining how he’s gotten accustomed to identifying problematic patrons.
“It’s something you just pick up from mentor bartenders,” Gutierrez replied when asked if bartenders were taught these types of tricks.
“Eventually you become pretty good at reading people, body language, etc. This guy was giving off very weird vibes for quite a while, kept an eye on him, try to give him a chance, try to let the girls tell him no and leave it at that, but he didn’t take no for an answer and kept pestering them so eventually I kind of yelled at him and made him leave lol,” he continued.
“I honestly don’t like yelling at customers or embarrassing people, but I find it’s one of the best ways to handle creeps. Calling them out in front of people is usually enough to get them to turn tail and walk away.”
Gutierrez, who did not respond to a message seeking comment early Monday, said keeping other customers from “feeling uncomfortable” is merely part of the job.
His note to Allie, disguised as a receipt, read: “If this guy is bothering you, put your pony tail on your other shoulder, and I will have him removed. He’s giving me the creeps.”
As of Monday, more than 210,000 people had liked Allie’s viral tweet, which was originally posted June 13.
Allie also did not respond to a message seeking comment Monday, but she later tweeted that she tipped Gutierrez more than 25 percent.
“I’m in the service industry too so I took care of him,” she tweeted Tuesday.
Gutierrez’s full-service hospitality, meanwhile, was also praised by other customers who noted that he regularly goes above and beyond.
“I went there a few weeks ago and pretty sure he was my bartender,” another woman tweeted. “Super good vibes from him.”
“Chivalry is not dead,” another tweet read. “There [are] still a few good gentlemen left in this day and time!! #hero #savior”
Some even suggested that Gutierrez’s response may have prevented an uncomfortable situation from turning into something much more sinister.
“This literally could save a life/lives,” another tweet read.
