Meet One of 'Southern Hospitality's Gay Reality Stars TJ Dinch

TJ Dinch is starring in the Bravo reality TV show ‘Southern Hospitality’, where he is one of the two gay participants, together with Mikel Simmons.

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Dinch hails from Virginia, and decided to move to Charleston, South Carolina to pursue a career in the hospitality industry. He is a bartender at Republic Garden & Lounge, which is a club owned by American restaurateur and TV personality Leva Bonaparte.

According to Bravo TV, Dinch is described as a “loyalist” to the Republic nightclub. His bartending style is noted to be “neat, organized, and clean,” which is also how he is outside of work.

Not to mention, Dinch has transformed both Republic and Bourbon N’ Bubbles, another one of Bonaparte’s restaurants, “into rainbow-embellished hotspots of love, showing his support to the community during Pride week,” as per SK POP.

Moreover, the gay bartender reportedly finds that dating can be challenging for him in Charleston. In an interview with The Messenger, Dinch opened up about LGBTQ+ representation, sharing:

“I had this lady come in one night with her husband, they were on vacation — I think they were actually celebrating their anniversary — and she was thrilled.”

“She was saying I helped her son come out of the closet, and it’s really helped their family and the dynamic with him and his dad and the rest of their family. It was honestly very touching and felt like I made a difference and made it better for somebody, which is amazing,” he continued.

Dinch further talked about being in a show with mostly straight singles and couples, expressing:

“I kind of just watched everybody go at it, and I feel like it kind of is a good representation a little bit because I feel like a lot of the times I am the only gay person in the friend group. So all I do is listen and consult on my straight friends and try to give the best advice. I would lie if I said it didn’t take a toll on my feelings sometimes, but I try my best and try to be a good friend.”

Aside from being a hot and talented bartender, Dinch is also a pro at serving thirst traps on the gram, and here are some of them 😉