ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – Celebrating the 450th birthday of the nation's oldest city- the excitement of the 6-day festival is building and businesses hope that means big money. Thousands of people will be attracted to the city this Labor Day weekend by the live music, entertainment and fireworks.
It's a lot of work for the businesses preparing but they can't wait! We're on Bay Street which is always a popular area for visitors so it's likely to be packed this weekend. The majority of businesses I spoke with couldn't be more excited to celebrate the culture and heritage of St. Augustine. One business I spoke with, the Chocolate Turtle, says this will likely be their busiest weekend since opening last year.
"It's getting better every month and I actually did really well last year," said Katie Salas, the Genera; Manager at the Chocolate Turtle.
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Business couldn't be better for the Chocolate Turtle- a St. Augustine dessert and coffee bar on Cordova Street that opened in April last year. The city's 450th celebration may be the busiest weekend for the new business, something General Manager Katie Salas says they have been preparing for.
"We've been planning things for several months the last two or three months what desserts and trying them out. I'm testing some new things business wise we've been ramping up for the weekend prepping more," said Salas.
The head pastry chef has been divvying up some new dessert ideas. Her goal was to incorporate the datil pepper – native to St. Augustine – as well provide some Spanish flare to showcase the city's heritage and culture.
"We have a datil pepper cheese cake that has datil peppers strawberry jam on top and a chocolate covered datil pepper. It has such a strong culture around here. We wanted to make sure we focused on the datil pepper because that is something that's local and with a strong Spanish background. We wanted to have that kind of thing in here- a little bit of flair," said Rachael Rogers, the head pastry chef.
Both today and tomorrow, the entire area- including the Bridge of Lions -will be closed to vehicles during the afternoon and evening to accommodate the crowd.