What started off as a normal Sunday lunch shift for staff at the Original Pocono Pub and Grill on Route 611 in Bartonsville turned into a memorable one with a special patron.
“A regular at the bar just said, ‘Is that a famous person?’ and I looked over, and I was like, ‘That’s Dustin Henderson from Stranger Things!’ I knew right away,” said Ciarra Lisboa, server at Original Pocono Pub and Grill.
The Stranger Things character Dustin Henderson is played by actor Gaten Matarazzo. He told staff he was in the Poconos skiing at Camelback Resort with his sisters and friends.
“I was just shocked, and I was honestly just so excited because it is something new for us, you know, you never expect that here in the Poconos. So it was a great shift, it made my day,” said Lisboa.
Cassandra Bisbing was the one to serve Matarazzo’s table. The actor took time to take photos with staff and other patrons.
“Ciarra had me get a picture with him, and she said, ‘Oh, I am such a big fan,’ and I was like, ‘I am going to be completely honest, I’ve never seen it, I’m sorry,’ and he was like, ‘That’s okay,'” said Bisbing.
“I think that speaks well of Gaten. I understand he was more than nice, took pictures with a number of people, couldn’t have been nicer, and that is nice to know that a celebrity is that way,” said Rick Defino, owner of Original Pocono Pub and Grill.
Owner Rick Defino says he shared a photo on Facebook, and it gained major attention. “The biggest post we’ve ever done was like 36,000, then 50,000. This post in three days did 1.3 million views. We are very excited about it,” he said.
Staff here say to commemorate Matarazzo’s visit, they plan to add a new dessert to the menu, paying homage to Stranger Things.