Bartender saves woman's life after she orders an 'angel shot with lime' – and explains its meaning brilliantly

First dates with strangers can be nerve-wracking, especially when meeting someone from a dating app or online. Add to that the risk of encountering men with less-than-innocent intentions, and it’s no wonder women have developed subtle codes to look out for one another. Bartender Benji Spears highlighted one such practice on TikTok, reenacting a scenario where a woman appeared to be in an unsafe situation and how a simple phrase helped him intervene effectively.

In the video, Benji reenacts a situation where he is working behind the bar and spots a woman on a date who looks uncomfortable. He calls out to his fellow bartender and tells him that by the couple's body language there could be trouble. So he goes over to check if everything is alright. He asks them if they would like some more water. The woman orders an angel shot with lime. Benji then stays with the woman and continues to make conversation with the couple while his colleague fetches some "lime." It then shows Benji asking the man to step away from the woman whom he escorts away.

The woman’s order of an angel shot with lime was her discreet way of signaling distress to the bartender. After the reenactment, Benji explains the significance of this code. "Angel shots are becoming more common and more known throughout all bars and it's being brought to bartenders' attention," he then says in the video. "Ok so an angel shot is key, it can save you or your best friend's life and it's something we should all know about." There are three variations of the shot for different occasions.

The first one is the angel shot with lime. When you order this, you are indicating to the bartender that you need the police. So the bartender will notify a manager and get the police involved for you. The next one is an angel shot neat. This means you need someone, a bartender or security, to walk you to your car because you don't feel safe. The last one is an angel shot on the rocks. This will indicate that you need the bartender to call you an Uber, a Lyft, or a taxi so they can get you home safe. 

The video quickly gained traction, amassing over 8 million views. Benji added, "I think this is a great learning lesson. Everyone should know about the angel shot. It's just a great way to make sure that we all feel safe." TikTok users appreciated Benji's efforts to help inform people about this practice. One person wrote: An angel shot with lime actually did save my life. Thank you for posting this. Someone else shared: In the UK we have 'ask for Angela' so go up to the bar and say 'is Angela working tonight?' etc and it means the exact same thing, please help me.

One TikTok user pointed out a very important detail in Benji's demonstration. They wrote: "It's important to note that Benji didn't leave her side once she said that. Purps might know what that means and this put her in danger." One more person pointed out how the bars in their town had different names for these drinks and that it was listed in the women's restroom. Similarly, there are numbers to contact officials that are pasted in bathroom stalls. 

This article originally appeared 3 years ago.