A dramatic chase through downtown San Diego involving a local bartender and an alleged serial dine-and-dasher has ignited widespread discussion across the city’s hospitality industry after video of the confrontation began circulating on social media.
Taylor McQuade, a bartender at Stout Public House in the Gaslamp Quarter, says he recently helped police apprehend a man accused of repeatedly scamming restaurants and bars across San Diego by racking up tabs and walking out without paying.
According to McQuade, the suspect allegedly used the same emotional story at multiple establishments, telling bartenders he had just learned he was cancer-free and wanted to celebrate. McQuade says the story often prompted sympathetic bartenders and patrons to congratulate the man as he ordered drinks and food, only for him to leave without settling the bill…