Coronavirus Pandemic: Famed Gilroy Garlic Festival Cancelled Over Fears Of The Coronavirus
GILROY (CBS SF) -- The pungent smell of garlic, an annual Spring ritual in the Salinas Valley, will be missing this year as organizers of the famed Gilroy Garlic Festival announced Friday they were cancelling the 2020 event.
Each year, the festival has lured thousands to the Salinas Valley town with delights ranging from garlic ice cream to the original garlic fries to shrimp scampi from the booths along Gourmet Alley, the gigantic outdoor kitchen where the world-famous "Pyro Chefs" put on a spectacular flame-up cooking shows.
For over four decades, the community has been at the heart of the Gilroy Garlic Festival. Our volunteers, vendors, sponsors and guests have generously supported our more than 150 local charities.
"Given the unprecedented national emergency we face and its unknown trajectory, we must put the health and well-being of our community first," organizers said in a news release. "Sadly, this means we are unable to host the Festival this year."
The organizers said the festival would return the weekend of July 23-25, 2021.
