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The Gilroy Garlic Festival gives visitors the opportunity to not only taste some garlicky goodness, but learn how to make it too.

Santa Clara University Executive Chef Josh Grimes and his sous chef Mark McGowan were the newbies of the three competing collegiate teams at Friday afternoon’s Garlic Bowl II, held on Cookoff Stage at the 36th annual Gilroy Garlic Festival.

The 36th annual Gilroy Garlic Festival got off to a scorching start Friday as large crowds poured through the gates to get to the garlicky goodness. Here are some of the day’s highlights:

Most parents tell their children not to play with fire, but Gilroyan Steve Janisch inspired his daughter to do the exact opposite.

GILROY—The family that volunteers together, stays together.

Each year, the hard work of the Garlic Festival’s volunteers truly pays off with revenue distributions based on the amount of man-hours they put in.

A simple swab of your mouth could save someone’s life. That’s what the Gilroy Rotary Club and Be the Match National Bone Marrow Program team at the Gilroy Garlic Festival want you to know.

While the adults are taking in the food and entertainment of the Garlic Festival, there will be plenty to keep the younger festival goers busy, too.

When it comes to Gilroy’s annual celebration of all things garlic, there’s one item on the menu that often evokes a strong reaction. Love it or hate it, garlic ice cream is a popular treat during the Garlic Festival, which often falls on some of the warmest days of summer.

Similar to the rise in his professional career, Vito Mercado climbed the ranks from a Garlic Festival volunteer in Gourmet Alley to president of the Gilroy Garlic Festival Association.