There are people who eat on the run and then those who eat and run.

A man who has sampled many of Gloucester’s better restaurants without paying was arrested in a final fiasco at Azorean last weekend.

Stephen Davis, 50, had allegedly left Tom Shea’s in Essex without paying the tab, then downed a drink at Azorean without settling up. But police arrived and ended the spree with his arrest. This came after a trip to Short & Main the same day.

Matt Cawley, a co-owner at Short & Main, called the man an “anomaly.” He had racked up a nearly $100 bill at the restaurant, eating a half-dozen oysters, a pizza, two glasses of wine and two cocktails.

Cawley said an employee recognized Davis as one to frequently exit before payment, and four others at the busy restaurant kept an eye on him, but he still escaped with an unpaid tab.

Davis was formally charged with defrauding a common victualler, leaving the premises without paying, disorderly person, resisting arrest and taxi fare evading.

Scott Merchant, the Lincoln Town Car driver who drove Davis to Tom Shea’s, said the $150 fare went unpaid.

“It really ruined my day actually,” Merchant said. “I spent over three hours dealing with him. My income for the day was drastically affected.”