Yes, I have. A few months ago in a meet up in Europe. I didn't know anyone and I thought that it could be a nice way to break the ice as this is the way I natur

Yes, I have. A few months ago in a meet up in Europe. I didn't know anyone and I thought that it could be a nice way to break the ice as this is the way I naturally behave, I mean offering to help people out. What I've got as feedback went from weird looks to passive-aggressive responses. I was as disappointed as I was shocked. Why were these people reacting so rudely to an honest selfless offer? A few hours later hanging out with totally different people at another pub I've got way better output out of this behavior. My conclusion was that in this business people are so used to harsh conditions that they aren't even able to acknowledge that something good is being given out of nowhere. Anyhow just don't. Or, at least do what the OP did, talk to the person around an hour before making the offer. Because anything less than that is a guaranteed way to get weird responses.