Exclusive | Christmas miracle: NYC couple who found love over ugly sweaters at booze-soaked SantaCon is getting married

Congratulations, SantaCon lovers!

When Mike Krall and Rosalie Gandarillas first crossed paths at the infamous “beer‑filled, booze‑splashed” Manhattan bash in 2021, they didn’t know that the biggest present they’d receive would be each other. Both 26, they spotted each other at Beer Authority in Times Square, their final stop on the December bar crawl where attendees rock Christmas‑themed costumes. Gandarillas, wearing a “hideous one‑piece from Target,” used the worn‑out Santa‑claus sweater that Krall had on as the perfect ice‑breaker. “I said to him, ‘I like your ugly sweater,’” she recalled, and before long the two were talking for hours.

Soon they realized that beyond the tacky outfits they shared a lot of common ground and found some wholesome holiday magic amid the chaos. “He mentioned that he is one of five kids, and I am also . . . And he was like, ‘I’m the second oldest.’ And I was like, ‘Me too!’ And he was like, ‘My birthday’s in August.’ And I was like, ‘Me too,’” Gandarillas said. “I remember saying to him, ‘Who told you all this stuff about me?’ And he was, ‘No one did. I’m telling you about me!’”

Their sisters caught their initial banter and even their first kiss on camera, then whisked Gandarillas away to Applebee’s. Even so, Krall insisted on getting her number and that night, Gandarillas gushed to her family, “Oh my God, he’s amazing.” “And they were like, ‘You’re never gonna see him again.’”

Living 120 miles apart – Gandarillas in Farmingville, Long Island and Krall in Manasquan, N.J. – it was natural that they would never meet right away. But on the train home, Gandarillas texted Krall, and from that moment on “we literally did not go a single day without texting,” she says. “We knew everything about each other,” Krall added. “We just didn’t see each other.”

When they finally arranged to meet again, they headed to Penn Station, took trains to a Mets game at Citi Field, and the wait paid off. “His train got delayed. I was like, ‘Oh my God, he’s not showing up.’ And when he did, my heart rate was going through the roof. I was so nervous that my Apple Watch was like, ‘Are you working out?’” Gandarillas remembered.

A year later they popped the question – a month after they’d been dating – at Gandarillas’ parents’ house. The engaged couple later held a party at the very venue where they first met, Beer Authority, showing off the SantaCon outfits that sparked their romance. They’re planning to tie the knot at St. Patrick’s Cathedral next year.

Today, both are high‑school teachers in Queens after applying to the NYC Teaching Fellows program, a career shift they credit to wanting to build a life together. “It’s kind of cringe to say, but we literally changed our lives to be together,” Gandarillas admits.

They were invited to the opening ceremony of this year’s SantaCon on Dec. 13, where the organizer promised a special jolly shout‑out to honor their love story. With around 30,000 people spread across 25 bars, the couple feels destiny had a hand in their fate. “It’s so crazy because there are so many people to meet and places to go at Santacon,” Gandarillas says. “So us meeting feels meant to be.”

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