People unbothered by gusty winds & pandemic to celebrate Valentine’s Day
The official holiday to commemorate love had people out and about in the Coachella Valley despite windy conditions and a pandemic that continues to test the country's ability to control it.
"It’s actually been truthfully the best we’ve ever had," said Gregory Goodman, co-owner of My Little Flower Shop in Palm Springs.
Love was in full bloom at the flower shop. Goodman and his husband have been working nonstop to get through the holiday rush.
"I think people just need the love right now, the flowers. Flowers make people happy and people need that," said Goodman.
Aside from a more established business, high school student Kadija Sanchez tapped into her entrepreneurial side. She and her mother set up a tent on Vista Chino to sell a variety of Valentine's Day goodies.
"I was watching videos on YouTube. I made marshmallows shaped as bears and little bunnies, said Sanchez.
Whatever profit Sanchez made had a much bigger purpose.
"This idea started because I want to go to school, I want to go to college, I want to have a better future for me and my mom," said Sanchez.
Sanchez said she worked at an ampm convenience store and used her income to invest in the items she sold over the holiday weekend. Unfortunately, Saturday's wild winds kept her from maintaining her tent at one point.
The holiday brought out couples in full force, but it wasn't just about romance. In downtown Palm Springs it seemed like everyone was taking advantage of the great weather, and the chance to dine out.
"I’m actually very excited to say that our numbers compared to last year are very close overall," said Willie Rhine, Eight4Nine Restaurant & Lounge co-owner.
The restaurant sat 300 people for lunch on Sunday, and Rhine said they were expecting a similar number for dinner.
"Valentine’s Day is a day where everybody gets to be romantic and they get to spend time with each other, so most of the tables are 2. We took out some of our larger tables and took out some of our 2-tops," said Rhine.
Like most restaurants, Eight4Nine is operating at about 50 percent capacity with limited outdoor seating.
Fortunately Sunday's weather was much better than Saturday, when wind gusts topped more than 50 mph in Palm Springs.
"I’ve never seen wind like that before. It absolutely destroyed our patio, chairs were falling over, glass was falling over," said Rhine.
Although many people packed their food and left or canceled reservations altogether, some guests decided to stay through the high wind event.
"One of the first lessons I learned during this pandemic is people were willing to sit outside in 120 degrees, so we’ve seen people in 120 degrees, we’ve seen it when its been super cold, or what we think is cold in the low 70s. So people are not deterred by the weather- people were not really too concerned last night. Some people were willing to put up with the wind just to be outside and eat and enjoy a meal," said Rhine.
A fortunate circumstance for Rhine, whose business is booming. He also plans on opening an additional restaurant, 1501 Uptown Gastropub, on Wednesday. The new location will be on N. Palm Canyon Drive near E. Stevens Road.
