GULFPORT, Fla. — There is a restaurant in Gulfport that just started a new promotion that could lead to free donuts for a day. It’s pretty simple, all customers have to do is wear their mask to the order window for one straight month.
Golden Dinosaurs says they are just trying their best to stay safe and remain open, but they say it’s going to take a team effort from the whole community.
The Vegan eatery changed its entire business plan in response to the pandemic, eliminating all indoor access to customers and instead, installed an order window.
“We take it very very serious every one wears masks 100 percent of the time while they work,” said owner Audrey Dingeman.
The restaurant already had to close for a week in June after an employee testing positive for COVID-19. They say there is only so much their staff can do, the rest is up to their customers.
“It seems like every fourth or fifth person we have to politely ask them, 'can you please put your mask on,'” said Dingeman. “Because you’re face to face with our staff and that includes being within 6 feet of one another, asking questions, talking sometimes loudly, so we do require masks.”
So Golden Dinosaurs came up with a delicious promotion.
“We jokingly came up with the donut idea, to give away free donuts if we can go 30 days without having to ask folks to, ‘please wear a mask,’” said Dingeman.
They say it's a fun way to hopefully stop a serious problem.
“It’s a less intrusive or aggressive way of trying to remind people we are still in a pandemic,” said co-owner Brian Dingeman.
Unfortunately, after the first nine days, the tally has yet to reach one.
“I mean who doesn’t love donuts that's like the best thing you can give away,” said loyal customer Sean Christofferson.
Christofferson said if you care at all about our local businesses, this is a very achievable goal.
“You see a lot of people in this pandemic walking around without a mask and we got to keep everybody safe I mean this is all about this community and this establishment is obviously in this community,” said Christofferson.
