Get Your Garlic Fix Here

So do you like garlic or do you LOVE garlic? For anyone in either category that lives near or is going to visit Orange County, CA, you need to make Garlic Jo's in Corona del Mar a must stop for dinner. The restaurant is very easy to find and is located on the PCH at MacArthur. I actually thought this restaurant was a lot larger when looking at it from the outside and on their web site, but it is not that big. It has about 15 tables and a bar area. The decor is clean white with hanging bunches of garlic and chile peppers. The wait staff is fantastic, quick to fill your drinks and always there when needed. The kitchen was small, but very clean, and opens out to the restaurant. It would be a great place to go out with a group of friends or a romantic dinner.

Now onto more important things, like the food. It was too die for. I was there with my fiance and a family friend. The restaurant came highly recommended from members of my future in-law family. Thanks Micah and Amber!!! We had a really difficult time making decisions on what to get. First thing you should know is that if you don't like garlic don't go here, but if you do read on. The garlic bread is a baguette of chewy white bread topped with their crushed garlic spread, no butter and garlic sprinkles here. You will definitely want more of the bread. Our waiter was a great help in making recommendations. Second thing you should know is that they offer a section on their menu that is called "Recommendations for 2". Basically, the price is your entire meal from garlic bread and salad to your entree and side dishes. It really is enough food for 3 people if you add another meat entree to the mix. Here is what you get:

• Garlic Bread - 2 pieces. As mentioned above, the bread is heaped with a crushed garlic tepanade. WOW!!!
• Carpaccio (scallop or albacore. This was described to us as Italian Sushi. We didn't try this, but definitely will next time) or Salad (spinach & garlic salad, thai style salad, mexican salad or chef salad) We opted for the spinach & garlic salad. This salad was fantastic. It wasn't super fancy, but was SUPER flavorful. The garlic soy sauce dressing was not overpowering. The highlight were the toasted garlic chips on the salad. I loved them. The waiter tossed the salad and served it to us.
• Original Pizza (Choice of: garlic pizza, thai chicken pizza or yellow chili pizza) We were going to chose the garlic pizza, going for the all out garlic assault, but thanks to the waiter we ended up trying the thai chicken pizza. This was our favorite of the night. The pizza crust was lighter than a tortilla shell and crispy, shaped in a square. We were hesitant at first because of the big slices of red chiles on the pizza. We all tried the first bite with the chiles on, but in the end only one of us was able to make it through the pizza including the chiles. The sause is a sweet garlic sauce with a kick. This was an amazing dish. It could easily be an appetizer.
• Garlic Rice or Pasta (Choice of: garlic fried rice, mozzarella & roast garlic spaghetti or Mexican pepperoncino pasta) I wanted the garlic fried rice, but was out voted so we chose the mozzarella & roast garlic spaghetti. While this was not a highlight of the dinner, it was done well. The pasta had small balls of mozzarella mixed in and the tomato sauce was light. The dish was basic but good.
• Choice of entrees: Original Garlic New York Steak, Original Garlic Chicken Dinner or Grilled Fish Dinner (choice of ahi or salmon). We had a rib eye steak and the original garlic chicken. The rib eye came out on a sizzling cast iron plate cut into strips so that it is easy to share. Cooked rare initially, it cooks more the longer it sits on the plate. If you want it to stay rare, pull it off quick. The garlic chicken came out cut in strips also and was the table favorite for its garlic infusion. All of the entrees came with mashed potatoes, which quickly became roasted garlic mashed potatoes when the waiter squoze a full head of roasted garlic into each one, and steamed vegetables.

Not that this all wasn't enough food, we decided to have dessert. We didn't come all of the way to miss the sweet things that garlic is used in also. While not as spectacular, the desserts were good. We had the chef's choice dessert platter with chocolate cake, garlic tiramisu and garlic ice cream. The tiramisu had a slight garlic flavor to it, in the end was the least favorite of the choices. The garlic ice cream was wonderful when combined with the chocolate cake.

The price for the entire dinner depended on your choice of meat, but ran from $50.90 for the chicken to $64.45 if you upgraded your steak to the tenderloin filet. An excellent value and more than enough food for 3 people. All in all, this is definitely destined to remain a favorite on our list.

Here is a link to another review of Garlic Jo's from OC Metro, a food and entertainment weekly, here in the OC.