People argue whether baseball or football is the national pastime. May we suggest that it is neither. Enjoying good food has emerged as our number one recreation. Just look at the number of fast food and "slow" restaurants popping up all over. The percentage of meals eaten outside the home is now over 50%. So knowing where to go for good food, especially good, garlic-laden food, is vital.
Since we travel a lot, we have the chance to visit restaurants all over the nation. More and more garlic is becoming a major player on the menu. We will provide our own reviews, but we would very much like to hear from you, too. Let us know about some of your favorite eating establishments and their prime garlic dishes. Or, if you have a commercial garlicky food item you would like to review or recommend, just e-mail us and we will include the information on our site.

Restaurants

GARLIC ROSE BISTRO (New Jersey's first all garlic restaurant)
41 Main Street
Madison, NJ

The Recorder's reviewer, Sherie Schmauder, writes: "The first thing to arrive at your table is a splendid garlic-olive dip for the very good Italian bread...It is pure heaven, and worth the visit all by itself...The restaurant is a storefront, with two levels for dining. It has an informal bistro atmosphere and can be cozy, especially when it is crowded...The menu is broad enough to tempt the most jaded restaurant goer." She gives the restaurant three stars.

THE AMBIANCE. This place is garlic heaven, virtually a museum. Garlic braids and knickknack cover the multiple room, two level restaurant. A garlic gift shop by the door purveys all kinds of garlic gadgets, trinkets, souvenirs and foodstuff. The place is always packed. They take reservations and that is a must on weekends and busy weeknights.

THE MENU is Californian-Italian-Garlic. Virtually every dish uses a maximum of garlic. Appetizers, salads, pizzettes, pastas, daily specials and dishes du jour are highly varied. Any meal should be accompanied by the bagna calda; a steaming dish of roasted garlic cloves in oil and a very good Italian bread. You can start with a garlic chowder, move on to a house salad with garlic vinaigrette dressing, perhaps share a small pizzette with garlic sausage or chicken with roasted garlic and mozzarella. The pasta (penne, neon ravioli or lasagna) all have their maximum complement of garlic. The daily specials include Italian garlic meatloaf (Monday and Wednesday), paella (Tuesday) and baccala con polenta (Thursday). Other specials include the mandatory 40 clove chicken, braised lamb shank (our favorite), braised rabbit, a great zuppa di pesce and giant salt roasted prawns. And for dessert, yes, they do serve garlic ice cream drizzled with hot chocolate. We actually recommend it, it is more than a "freak" food, very refreshing. There is full bar service with a good selection of wines, beers and liquors.

THE FOOD at the Stinking Rose is good. It is not haute cuisine, but the food has a home made quality normally found only in the great old neighborhood restaurants which now are on the decline. One can kick back and happily pig out on cloves in the company of other garliholics.

THE PRICES are quite reasonable for a popular restaurant in the city famed for its eateries. Most entrees are in the $10-$15 range.

THE SERVICE We found the service to be very efficient, fast and courteous. The wait staff was well versed on the menu selections. We were a little surprised that our waiter didn’t know what types of garlic the restaurant uses. After all, garlic is The Stinking Rose’s line of business. But the food he kept bringing was just fine

Rating: 4 ½ cloves (out of five)

Want more? The Stinking Rose cookbook is available from Garlic Books.

A visitor to The Garlic Store gave us a hot tip:
THE ARK RESTAURANT
Nacotah, Washington
This is a five star dining establishment located near Oysterville on the Long Beach Peninsula in southwestern Washington state, just north of where the Columbia River joins with the Pacific Ocean. The menu has a heavy garlic emphasis, and they are reported to have a garlic festival every June.
Anyone in the area, feel free to send us your candid review.

KYNSILAUKKA GARLIC
Fredrikinkatu 22
Helsinki, Finland

Customer reviews claim: "One of the first restaurants in Helsinki I had the pleasure to eat in. It was a pleasure, especially in the evening. Service is attentive without over intrusiveness. Waiters know the menu and described anything that was not clear. The digestive at the end of the meal (complimentary!) is delicious. Be adventurous - try the garlic beer." Woodii

"I have never eaten in a better restaurant. I recommend the skaldjurssoppa (crustacean soup). -la

"This restaurant thrives on the notion that garlic is very exotic to Finns. It therefore will try any improbable combination of garlic just for the heck of it. Gastronomically irrelevant and as expensive as the rest of the "trendy" restaurants in Helsinki" - Anonymous.
All reviewers give the restaurant five cloves.

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