Many who are part of Downtown San Jose’s nightlife say while security is a priority at bars and clubs, there’re many preventive factors that contribute to a safe night out.

Public health senior Holly Nguyen said while she’s experienced sexual harassment on nights out before, she feels safe when she goes to her usual bars around South 2nd Street including Paper Plane, Nomikai and Splash Nightclub.

“There’s some occasional catcalls here and there but otherwise I feel pretty safe,” Nguyen said at the Paper Plane cocktail bar.

She said she avoids going downtown alone but even when part of a group, she always keeps safety in the back of her mind.

“I don’t wear earphones when I’m walking alone and I hold my drink,” Nguyen said. “Anywhere that has people, I feel safe but if I were to walk alone and the streets are dark because the lights are broken or sometimes if I see homeless people I get a little intimidated.”

Several managers and security guards at the various bars around downtown said customer safety is a top priority. 

Rachel Kaiser, manager of the wine, whiskey and cocktail bar District located at 65 North San Pedro St., said management tries to provide customers and staff with the safest environment possible.

Kaiser said bartenders try to watch customers’ drinks for any possible drugging but she believes it’s unrealistic to expect bartenders to watch every customer’s drink when the bar is busy. 

“We can do our best. We can keep an eye out for people,” Kaiser said. “We can ask you to put a napkin on top of your drink but I would suggest in this day and age as a customer to always keep your own eye or a trusted party has an eye on your drink.” 

Nguyen said she always makes sure to keep her drink safe and agrees it’s a big personal responsibility.

“I would not rely on the bartender to help me. I’d probably call the security guard, the bartender’s usually busy, and [the bartender] would also tell me to tell the security guard what they can do,” Nguyen said.

Some bartenders use “angel shots,” which has recently trended among TikTok social media users, to protect bar patrons. 

The hashtag #angelshot has 14 million views on TikTok and a July 20 TikTok post by New York bartender Benjamin Smith has 2.7 million likes.

According to a Feb. 16 USA Today article, this is how the angel shot works: A “neat” angel shot will alert a bartender to escort you to your vehicle; the bartender will call an Uber or Lyft for you if an angel shot “on ice” is ordered; if things are extremely bad, a bartender will call the police if you order an angel shot “with lime.”

Arthur Cardoza, bar manager at San Pedro Square Market, said he’s heard of the term in passing but hasn’t personally encountered it.

Cardoza said while reported sexual harassment has been rare at the open air plaza, San Pedro Square security staff will take action against any kind of harrassment. 

“We would intervene. We would approach both the person who was being harassed and harassing and we typically ask the [harasser] to leave at that moment,” Cardoza said. “We’d rather they’d not be on property and we want to make sure that the people who are here have a nice, safe environment to hang out with their friends and have a good time.

Kaiser said District staff and personnel are encouraged to report any sexual misconduct directed at them or customers to promote an environment with open communication. 

“Well obviously [in] the hospitality industry, there’s a lot of levels to women being in the industry. You obviously have your staff that you work directly with as well as customers coming in,” she said. “As far as staff relations, management does official sexual harassment training with our lawyers every two years so managers know what to look for, what the protocols are, if they see someone acting inappropriately report it.” 

Kaiser said it can be difficult to navigate situations where employees choose between kicking a customer out of an establishment when one is overly intoxicated or letting inebriated individuals socialize with other bar patrons.

“We can kick someone out but we’re still hospitality, so where’s the line of being kind and accommodating but also, ‘I don’t want to put up with this’ so everyone kind of has to have their own standards of what they’re comfortable with,” Kaiser said. “Some people are comfortable flirting and being really friendly with customers and some people aren’t, so I think a lot of people have to decide for themselves what their boundary is and what their standard is.”

San Jose Police Department Sgt. Christian Camarillo said while SJPD has extra officers working the bar-lined areas of Downtown San Jose, known as the ‘Entertainment Zone,’ people should leave situations in which they feel uncomfortable.   

The Downtown San Jose Entertainment Zone is bounded by Highway 87, Julian Street, Fourth Street and Interstate 280, according to a March 2020 City of San Jose memorandum.

“If someone feels like they are being verbally harassed, they should walk away,” Camarillo said in an email. “If it escalates, they should report assault or other related incidents via 911.”

Holly Nguyen said she doesn’t let the possibility of danger stop her from enjoying a night out with her friends.

“My mind is not on being harassed. My mind is [on] hanging with my girls drinking, partying,” Nguyen said.