Sydney Gran
Staff Writer
Santa comes to town every December to promote the holiday spirit, but not as he has in the past. From elves and reindeer to mall cops and crying children, Santa has come a long way from his humble origins.
In an attempt to find the best and the worst mall Santas of the St. Louis area, The ECHO rated mall Santas from West County Mall, St. Louis Galleria and Frontenac Plaza. The Santas were rated on a scale of 1 – 10, based on their outfit, jollyness, beard and the number of crying chidlren waiting in line.
Frontenac Plaza
The Frontenac Santa was very disappointing in appearance.He lacked of the famous belly, wearing a dingy suit, and cowboy boots.
The scenery was disappointing lacking much holiday spirit, the Santa was able to rebound with his jolly Christmas spirit by leading the crowd to sing “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer.”
Photos with Santa range from $22-45.
Score
Outfit: 5 — Was he hit by a train?
Jollyness: 9 — He sang with everyone
Beard: 6 — Beard extensions?
Crying: 10 — No
West County Mall
As the West County Santa sat perched on his throne, he seemed perfectly content with a plastered smile; however, the children appeared mortified as they waited in line for their pictures to be taken.
The scenery was mediocre, yet the line was nearly out the door for families waiting to snap a shot with Santa.
Photos with Santa range from $10-45.
Score
Outfit: 9– Mrs. Clause did well.
Jollyness: 6 — Tsk. Tsk.
Beard: 9 — He has kept it up well.
Crying: 3 — The children were horrified.
St. Louis Galleria
From beard to boot the Galleria Santa looked sharp.
The few children who were in line seemed very excited to see Santa, and no one was crying.
The scenery was magnificent, with a tree scaling to the highest ceiling and a few smaller trees surrounding it to provide a cheerful holiday atmosphere.
Photos with Santa range from $22-45.
Score
Outfit: 8— He looked very good.
Jollyness: 8 — He was very jolly.
Beard: 10 — Perfectly groomed.
Crying: 10 — No.
