When it comes to the Gilroy Garlic Festival, the only real
reason to go is for the food. And there are two groups of people
who attend to eat all that they can eat
– those who love the taste of garlic and those who want to try
something a bit on the exotic side.
As a native to Gilroy, I’ve been to the Garlic Festival plenty
of times, often as a volunteer and once in a while just as a
visitor. I know what my favorites are and I rarely try anything
new. I go for the stuffed mushrooms and garlic bread. So this year,
since I knew a few people who were attending for the first time I
thought I’d talk to them about what they liked best and what they
didn’t. The only caveat was that they had to try the garlic ice
cream
– Gilroy Foods has a booth that gives out a free sample each
year.
When it comes to the Gilroy Garlic Festival, the only real reason to go is for the food. And there are two groups of people who attend to eat all that they can eat – those who love the taste of garlic and those who want to try something a bit on the exotic side.
As a native to Gilroy, I’ve been to the Garlic Festival plenty of times, often as a volunteer and once in a while just as a visitor. I know what my favorites are and I rarely try anything new. I go for the stuffed mushrooms and garlic bread. So this year, since I knew a few people who were attending for the first time I thought I’d talk to them about what they liked best and what they didn’t. The only caveat was that they had to try the garlic ice cream – Gilroy Foods has a booth that gives out a free sample each year.
The main attraction of the Garlic Festival has always been Gourmet Alley, where visitors can taste such dishes as the pepper steak sandwich, marinated or stuffed mushrooms, shrimp scampi, garlic chicken stir fry, pasta con pesto and more. Every once in a while a new item is added at Gourmet Alley or the recipes are tweaked, but it’s pretty much the old standby for visitors who want a meal that packs a whopping taste of garlic.
A co-worker and a friend who visited for the first time both found plenty to like at Gourmet Alley. The co-worker tried the pepper steak sandwich, which he said was covered in garlic, stuffed mushrooms, shrimp scampi and the pasta con pesto. He said it all tasted pretty good, and he liked the scampi even though he doesn’t like shrimp.
The friend said he tried one of the combo plates, which he thought was the best value at the festival. There were two combos to choose from and they offer a sampling of Gourmet Alley dishes. He said he had the sausage sandwich, chicken stir fry and marinated mushrooms. He also tried shrimp scampi and garlic bread.
“I would recommend to go right for the combo,” he said. “It’s the best deal. Everything was really good.”
He also tried garlic fries, which he suggested visitors skip.
“They tasted like garlic fries anywhere,” he said.
He did think the food was a bit on the pricey side, something I’ve always thought, too. On the plus side, it does go to charity.
I attended myself with a mix of people who’d been to the festival plenty of times and those who were new to it this year. We started off at Gourmet Alley, with pasta con pesto and marinated mushrooms. The marinated mushroom recipe seemed different this year – with lots of pepper and oregano, but less garlic flavor. The pesto pasta was tasty, but I always prefer my homemade pesto which is more creamy than oily. Everyone else in my group, loved it, however.
After the stop at Gourmet Alley, the majority of my group was most interested in trying the exotic food offerings. There are several booths at the festival that offer foods I would never try since I am far from an adventurous eater. A few of the guys I was with ate garlic escargot, kangaroo meat, frog legs and gator tails. I took pictures, but resisted their offer to take a bite. The lines for all those booths were long so I guess there were plenty of people who wanted to try it out. The conclusions were that the gator tail tasted like chicken thigh meat and the kangaroo was a little tough.
Since I told everyone else that they had to try the garlic ice cream, I figured I had to take a sample in solidarity. I’ve had the garlic ice cream before, but that was probably 10 years ago. I don’t remember it tasting very good then, but maybe since I’ve started to cook with a lot of fresh garlic in recent years it wasn’t so bad. It mostly tasted like vanilla soft serve with a garlicky aftertaste. It was strong enough to leave a little sting on my tongue while eating it.
Most of the people in my group liked the garlic ice cream as did my friend who said he “loved it.” My co-worker, however, described it as “interesting” and said he would never eat it again.
Despite the different dishes people tried, and their different takes on what they liked and didn’t like, everyone agreed on one thing. The Garlic Festival leaves a lingering smell on the breath. Two of the guys I know both said the Garlic Festival would be bad for a date.
“I feel like I still have garlic breath,” my friend said, the next day. “It was a good time and I think I filled my garlic quota for a few weeks.”
