Welcome to garlic heaven
That sweetly pungent smell wafting up from the south can mean only one thing: The Gilroy Garlic Festival is back. The 38th annual event will run Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Christmas Hill Park, with garlicky food, cooking competitions and live music. If there are tears shed, it might not be from chopping garlic: Festival ambassadors Sam Bozzo and Gene Sakahara are retiring after their final cooking presentation at noon Friday. On Saturday, it’s the home chefs contest. (Plus there’s a Garlic Train running from San Jose this day.) Sunday’s lineup features a professional chef showdown. Tickets: $15-$20; parking is now $10 but includes free shuttle. Details, train tickets: http://gilroygarlicfestival.com. — Linda Zavoral, Staff