Women line up to see the ‘sexy bodyguard’ at this NYC bar

2024-08-27
Posted by PSEDEN

He asked them for their IDs and they asked for his phone number.

Luke Timm, 26, a doorman at 82 Stanton’s on the Lower East Side, is also a crowd-puller, a 6-foot-5 bouncer with electric hazel eyes.

“I don’t want to sound like an arrogant asshole,” Tim, who lives in the East Village, told The Washington Post. “I always knew I was a hot guy.”

Formerly Epstein’s Pub on the corner of Stanton and Allen streets, the bar has typically hosted a casual crowd of 20-somethings drinking beer on its outdoor patio since it opened in 2018.

Yet single women have flocked to the sidewalk since Tim, a Poughkeepsie, N.Y., native, began posting TikTok videos under the handle @security_nyc, showing off his six-pack abs and flirting with regulars at the bar, where he stays from happy hour to closing time nearly every night.

One excited woman commented: “I literally came to this bar for you, I’m so obsessed.”

Another added: “I would die for you.”

But women are more reserved when meeting Tim – they don’t want to scare him off.

“He definitely lived up to the hype,” Victoria Emerson, 26, told The Washington Post with a laugh. “He’s very handsome.”

Emerson and two girlfriends recently joined a group of girls at the bar after watching his video. Now, they frequently visit 82 Stanton to enjoy the view.

On that first visit, Emerson and her team walked away with three numbers, including Tim’s.

“I feel like he just sets the tone, to be honest. He’s super charming, super friendly, and he makes you feel like you want to hang out with him,” she said.

Tim went from nobody to hot guy overnight after being mentioned on the popular podcast “Manhattan Date.” “82 Stanton. Oh my god, the bodyguard is so handsome,” said one of the hosts. “It’s packed.”

According to Tim, 82 Stanton had his “best week of the summer” after he was dubbed the “hot bodyguard.”

“It gave me a bit of a reputation on the Lower East Side,” he admitted.

The crowd had now changed from beer-drinking finance bros and the women who adored them to a slightly younger, predominantly female crowd who were laughing a little louder and trying to get Tim’s attention.

On a recent evening, women in their twenties gathered at a table by the door, blinking and hoping to go home with him, get his phone number or at least be invited to star in his next hit video.

“I’m not actively looking for a partner, but of course, I’m having fun, doing what I want to do,” said Tim, who confirmed that he is single.

However, Tim insists the people behind 82 Stanton don’t want it to be “a TikTok bar” – so he wants to “make sure its regulars are down-to-earth people”.

Another seemingly contradictory stance: Tim has been sober for six years and his mission is to help those struggling with addiction and mental health.

The former high school football and basketball star’s dreams were shattered when he was kicked off the Princeton football team at age 19 following his second drug and alcohol-related arrest.

Tim said his struggles began earlier, when he began drinking at age 12 and began using marijuana during his sophomore year. He said even though he was a successful high school athlete, he used marijuana so often that it became his new normal.

But when he was kicked off the football team and expelled from the Ivy League school because of his drug addiction, he finally figured it out. It wasn’t easy, but Tim has been drug-free since April 21, 2018, which allowed him to return to Princeton to finish his degree.

“I never thought [drink or do drugs again]”It’s the craziest thing. I feel like I’ve completely changed the way I think.”

Now, he and his cousin John Timm, who manages 82 Stanton, have co-founded Touch Streets, an organization that helps recovering addicts “map goals” to make positive changes in their lives.

Despite his experiences, Tim’s mission isn’t to make everyone sober.

“I’m almost advocating for drinking,” he admitted. “A lot of people can enjoy things like drinking without it becoming a big problem in their lives.”

He’s not that kind of guy. So at the bar, he’s drinking water and making sure everyone is having a good time and being safe.

And when his backstory was brought up, the women were even more intoxicated.

“People are just fascinated by a successful comeback story,” he said, even though his story didn’t seem to be the main reason for the audience’s attraction.

“He’s cute,” Talley Attias, 24, told The Washington Post as she waited outside the bar. “I’ll definitely come back.”