Take a Whiff: Gilroy to Celebrate 40 Years of Popular Garlic Festival
By Jennifer Gonzalez ••
Did you know California is the largest garlic producing state in the country?
If you live in Gilroy, or even just pass through, you can smell the garlic from miles away. The unmistakable smell of freshly harvested, peeled, chopped and roasted garlic fills the air.
That air is even more pungent this week with the return of the annual Gilroy Garlic Festival, which begins Friday and runs through Sunday at Christmas Hill Park.
Jennifer Gonzalez / NBC Bay Area
Thousands of people gathered at the Gilroy Garlic Festival at Christmas Hill Park for delicious food, games and garlic. (July 27, 2018)
Jennifer Gonzalez / NBC Bay Area
Thousands of people gathered at the Gilroy Garlic Festival at Christmas Hill Park for delicious food, games and garlic. (July 27, 2018)
Jennifer Gonzalez / NBC Bay Area
Thousands of people gathered at the Gilroy Garlic Festival at Christmas Hill Park for delicious food, games and garlic. (July 27, 2018)
Jennifer Gonzalez / NBC Bay Area
Pyro chefs cook up garlic calamari during the Gilroy Garlic Festival at Christmas Hill Park. (July 27, 208)
NBC 5 News
Pyro chefs cook up garlic calamari during the Gilroy Garlic Festival at Christmas Hill Park. (July 27, 208)
Jennifer Gonzalez / NBC Bay Area
Pyro chefs cook up garlic calamari during the Gilroy Garlic Festival at Christmas Hill Park. (July 27, 208)
Jennifer Gonzalez / NBC Bay Area
Volunteers make garlic bread during the Gilroy Garlic Festival at Christmas Hill Park. (July 27, 208)
Jennifer Gonzalez / NBC Bay Area
Pyro chefs cook up garlic calamari during the Gilroy Garlic Festival at Christmas Hill Park. (July 27, 208)
Jennifer Gonzalez / NBC Bay Area
Pyro chefs cook up garlic calamari during the Gilroy Garlic Festival at Christmas Hill Park. (July 27, 208)
Jennifer Gonzalez / NBC Bay Area
For the first time, the Gilroy Garlic Festival hosted the Garlic Chef Jr competition with MasterChef winner Shaun O'Neale as the MC. (July 27, 2018)
Jennifer Gonzalez / NBC Bay Area
For the first time, the Gilroy Garlic Festival hosted the Garlic Chef Jr competition and their youngest competitor was six-year-old Addyson Dell. During the competition Dell cooked a garlic mac n cheese with crispy garlic chicken tenders and roasted asparagus. (July 27, 2018)
Jennifer Gonzalez / NBC Bay Area
For the first time, the Gilroy Garlic Festival hosted the Garlic Chef Jr competition. One of the competitors was eight-year-old Sara Wang who cooked pappardelle with tomatoes, Italian sausage and parmesan. (July 27, 2018)(July 27, 208)
Jennifer Gonzalez / NBC Bay Area
For the first time, the Gilroy Garlic Festival hosted the Garlic Chef Jr competition and one of their competitors, 15-year-old Gannon Janisch, took a break from cooking to sing "Cielito Lindo" to the audience members. (July 27, 2018)
Jennifer Gonzalez / NBC Bay Area
Garlic fans smile for photos with garlic mascots at the Gilroy Garlic Festival at Christmas Hill Park. (July 27, 2018)
Jennifer Gonzalez / NBC Bay Area
Thousands of people gathered at the Gilroy Garlic Festival at Christmas Hill Park for delicious food, games and garlic. (July 27, 2018)
Jennifer Gonzalez / NBC Bay Area
Thousands of people gathered at the Gilroy Garlic Festival at Christmas Hill Park for delicious food, games and garlic. (July 27, 2018)
Jennifer Gonzalez / NBC Bay Area
Thousands of people gathered at the Gilroy Garlic Festival at Christmas Hill Park for delicious food, games and garlic. (July 27, 2018)
Christopher Ranch, the family-owned garlic company, has been a part of the garlic festival since it was founded in 1979. The company is best known for producing 50 percent of the nation’s garlic crop, and this year it expects to produce 100 million pounds of garlic.
As a tradition, Christopher Ranch donates 2 tons of garlic to the festival every year.
The festival will be celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, and thousands of people are expected to join in the fun, with special appearances from Iron Chef Michael Symon, Olympic Champion Brian Boitano and Master Chef Winner Shaun O'Neale.
Check out the Gilroy Garlic Festival website for tickets and information.
