Gilroy Garlic Festival Gilroy California

California Festivals

Gilroy Garlic Festival

July 23-25, 2021

Over two tons of fresh California garlic, three stages of musical entertainment, arts and crafts, garlic cook-off and celebrity chef demos, kids area

Christmas Hill Park
7050 Miller Ave.
Gilroy, CA
$18-20 general admission, Free under age 10
$15 Parking
gilroygarlicfestival.com

Friday 10 a.m.-7 p.m.
Saturday 10 a.m.-8 p.m.
Sunday 10 a.m.-6 p.m.

2019 Entertainment

COLBIE CAILLAT FEATURING GONE WEST

Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter Colbie Caillat with her new band Gone West live on the Amphitheater Stage. The concert is included with Festival admission, and the grounds will remain open until 8:00 pm so guests can enjoy the show and all the Festival has to offer. Gone West is a new Nashville-based band featuring 2-Time Grammy Award Winner Colbie Caillat, multi-platinum singer songwriter Jason Reeves, 4-time Hawaii Music Award Winner Justin Kawika Young, and ACM and CMT nominated artist Nelly Joy.

FRIDAY, JULY 26, 2019 | Lauren Wahl and Simply Put | Miko's Mon'Taj | The Moondance Band | The Element | Tsunami Band | Angelique Lucero | Dolce Musica | Evan Thomas Blues | Graceland | Samba Cruz | Vintage Noise | Glory Tributes | One Country | The John Michael Band | The Trouble with Monkees | Vital Sign Band
SATURDAY, JULY 27, 2019 | Sweet HayaH | Maroon Vibes | Soul Kiss | Everyday People | Colbie Caillat featuring Gone West | Amanda Gray | Transistor Radio | Ave Wisnia | Brad Wilson | Bear Market Riot | Mason Douglas | Jeff Ricketts and the Dirt Road Band | The South Bay Dub All-Stars | Noach Tangeras | The Wild West Show
SUNDAY, JULY 28, 2019 | California Groove | Hot Country Sunday: KRTY 95.3 presents Waterloo Revival, Caylee Hammack, and King Calaway | McKenna Faith | Good Time Charlie | Mariachi Estelar | Mike Osborne Band | Tommy Huxley's Blues Avenue | The Eldorados Band | The Deadlies | Fishhook | Sacred Fire | TinMan

CELEBRITY CHEFS ON THE CHALLENGE BUTTER COOK-OFF STAGE

James Beard Award-winning chef and Top Chef judge Tom Colicchio, Real Housewives star Teresa Giudice, MasterChef Season 9 Winner Gerron Hurt, and Rosewood CordeValle Resort Executive Chef Alexander La Motte will all be appearing live on the state-of-the-art Challenge Butter Cook-Off Stage.

ALL ABOARD THE GARLIC TRAIN!

This year, tickets for the popular Caltrain Garlic Train (running on Saturday, July 27 and Sunday, July 28) will include connecting trips to as far north as San Francisco at no additional charge. With a convenient shuttle bus running to and from the Gilroy station, this is the easiest and most relaxing way to get to the Festival!

CELEBRATING 15 YEARS OF HOT COUNTRY WITH KRTY 95.3

2019 marks the 15th year of partnering with KRTY 95.3 to present exciting live performances by up-and-coming country artists. Past acts that have gone on to big country careers have included Rascal Flatts, Kip Moore, Michael Ray, Dustin Lynch, and many more.

This year, don’t miss King Calaway, Waterloo Revival, and Caylee Hammack performing live on the Amphitheater Stage on Hot Country Sunday!

NEW 2019 SIGNATURE COCKTAIL

Visit the cocktail booths near entertainment stages on both sides of the park to try the NEW signature cocktail for 2019: a refreshing Whiskey Daisy (similar to a whiskey sour) made with Jameson whiskey. It’s like a little bit of whiskey sunshine! You can also still get the Garlic Festival Mule served in a souvenir copper mug.

GOURMET ALLEY

The heart of the Gilroy Garlic Festival is the world-famous Gourmet Alley. In this gigantic outdoor kitchen, volunteers serve up all the official food of the Garlic Festival, while the Pyro Chefs put on a spectacular flame-up show preparing garlic-laced calamari in huge iron skillets.

LIVE ENTERTAINMENT

Festival visitors enjoy the sounds of live rock ‘n roll, country, jazz, blues, reggae, swing, and more on three entertainment stages.

COOKING CONTESTS

On Friday, first responders battle in the Champions for Charity event, while aspiring young chefs battle in the Garlic Chef Jr. competition. Saturday is the 41st annual Great Garlic Cook-Off. Professional chefs take the stage on Sunday for the Garlic Showdown. And BBQ pros and amateurs compete in the Gilroy Garli-Que BBQ Challenge on Saturday and Sunday.

SHOPPING & SOUVENIRS

Vendor booths on both sides of the park showcase a colorful variety of fine arts, handmade crafts, and unique, high-quality creations from over 100 talented artisans, including jewelry, ceramics, paintings, photographs, sculptures, and more…even garlic bulb hats and henna tattoos!

FUN FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY

Kids of all ages enjoy lots of fun rides, games, and hands-on activities—as well as kid-friendly food—in the Children’s Area. Near the Cook-Off Stage, you can make your own garlic braid for a fun, free souvenir and watch garlic topping demonstrations presented by Christopher Ranch.

WHAT'S ON THE MENU

GOURMET ALLEY: THE OFFICIAL FOOD OF THE GILROY GARLIC FESTIVAL

Gilroy Garlic Shrimp
Garlic Calamari
Garlic Scampi
Pasta con Pesto
Pepper Steak Sandwich
Gourmet Sausage Sandwich
Zesty Garlic Fried Calamari
Garlic Fries
Garlic Bread
Gourmet Alley Combo Plate
Other food vendors throughout the park offer a wide variety of garlic-laced food and other treats.
DON'T FORGET THE GARLIC ICE CREAM!

Your trip to the Gilroy Garlic Festival is not complete until you’ve tried the famous garlic ice cream! Free samples of garlic soft-serve are available at the OLAM booth on the Park Side (near the Cook-Off Stage).

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Attractions include: Gourmet Alley / Food / Beverage | Champions for Charity | Gilroy Garli-Que BBQ Challenge combines KCBS contest on Saturday with a Backyard BBQ Ribs Challenge for amateurs on Sunday | Great Garlic Cook-Off | Garlic Showdown

Entertainment: Children's Area - Arts & Crafts - Miss Gilroy Garlic Festival Queen Pageant Winner and court, and the new, Garlic Chef Jr. cooking contest in 2018.

Garlic Amateur Cook-off

Per contest rules, each recipe must contain at least six cloves of garlic. Past dishes:

Hazelnut-Crusted Garlic Cheesecake with Orange-Hazelnut Syrup
Sweet-Savory Garlic Cornbread Berry Shortcakes with Garlic Thyme Brittle
Roasted Garlic Raspberry Brown Betty with Garlic Black Pepper Gelato
Smoky Salsa Roja Shrimp and Roasted Garlic Cotija Grits
Spicy Island Barbeque Pork, Garlic Fries and Cilantro-Garlic Sauce
Garlic-Nut Biscotti with Whipped Feta & Blistered Tomatoes
Lamb T-Bones with Cranberry Garlic Salsa, Lemon Biscuits and Salad
Shanghai Sliders with Asian Pickled Garlic and Ponzu Peanut Slaw
Oysters on the Half Shell, White Rosemary Garlic Pizza, Roasted Garlic Chicken Quesadillas, Garlic Ice Cream, Gourmet Garlic Aioli Burger, Garlic Jelly, Garlic Onion Rings, Garlic Frog Legs, Fried Garlic Garlic Chicken Wings, Garlic Chocolate, Garlic Kettlekorn, Garlic Crab Fries, and more!

Founded in 1979, Gilroy Garlic Festival entertains over 100,000 visitors at Christmas Hill Park in Gilroy, hosting three popular cooking competitions, presenting 60 live concerts, and serving a critically-acclaimed cuisine enhanced with over two tons of fresh California garlic.

Gilroy, California -- Each summer in July the Gilroy Garlic Festival attracts hundreds of thousands of people to smell, taste and see the greatest garlic dishes on this side of the universe.

Gilroy, a city situated along Interstate Highway 101 in northern California south of Silicon Valley, could just be another road stop if it weren't for that smell. What is that pungent odor? It's garlic! Garlic grows incredibly well in Gilroy and an annual event and local industry has spun off many products that people simply love. Garlic dusts, oils, sauces, and relishes are but a few of the items that you can purchase--all made in Gilroy.

Gilroy is home to California's most unique botanic garden called Gilroy Gardens Family Theme Park. For tourist information about this wonderful destination, check out Gilroy Visitors Bureau -gilroyvisitor.org

California Festivals