The Garlic

The restaurant offers valet parking, mixing in a hint of class and luxury with the inviting and laid back atmosphere. From the parking lot you sojourn through a shaded garden corridor, twinkling with fairy lights, wafting the delicious aromas of the air toward the classic double-​doors.
Two dedicated ambassadors of hospitality greet you warmly at the hostess table, seating you with gracious pleasure. The committed servers cater to your palate with great haste, wasting not a moment of the experience of the intimate Sicilian ambiance.
The famous roasted garlic and bread are accented by extra virgin olive oil that harken to images of a rustic peasant village in the Old World as does the Balsamic vinaigrette added to bring out the full farm-​to-​table flavor of the stone ground wheat.
The entrée portions are extraordinarily generous and the chef crafts each delicacy with the goal of highlighting each individual flavor while maintaining the harmony of the olfactory experience.
Real talk: the live music was an 11 on a scale of 1 to 10. Highly recommended… great value.

Extremely unique atmosphere with great service. The setting is unlike any other I’ve been to. Be warned — a large percentage of the tables are outside, which can be hot during the dead of summer, but they do a great job of providing shade and cooling devices. And it creates a truly awesome tropical jungle atmosphere. On top of that, the food was great — highly recommend the rib eye and chicken marsala.
Afterwards, we arrived to our car with a dead battery. The manager (Jamie) was amazing, going out of her way to help us get jumper cables and even offering her own car to help start ours. All in all the experience was great, and even when we were presented with an obstacle that could have «ruined» the evening, the staff did everything they could to make sure we were on our way quickly. Highly recommend.

I have been to The Garlic three times and gotten the Sea Bass each time. It’s wonderful, served hot with potatoes and fresh vegetable. Service is great, drinks are strong (plenty of alcohol), bread is equally good. Highly recommend!

I love The Garlic! Every time I’m in New Smyrna Beach. Quaint, entertaining and delicious. And they have rosemary in the parking lot landscaping.

By far the best food I have had in years! The best staff, atmosphere and dining experience!!! Would highly recommend! Wish we found it sooner! You will love it!!! Portions are enormous so bring your appetite!

Excellent. Service was pro. Food was plentiful. Ambience was beautiful and interesting. Best place we went to on vacation.

Love to find a unique restaurant with great Italian food. Very eclectic décor. Cool ambiance. I guess we were seated on the bar side? There was live music when we got there. The girl singing had an amazing voice. Loved the bread with roasted garlic. Husband got cioppino. Fairly pricy compared to other places but he loved it anyway. I had the 4 cheese crabmeat ravioli special. Lots of crabmeat in the handmade pasta. Great restaurant.

Had to see what the hype was all about since I think every person I’ve met from the area recommended we tried this place while we were in town. Really cool atmosphere — would definitely be a regular if I lived closer just to enjoy the vibe! The food was also pretty good, obviously the garlic spread that everyone on here is raving about, but the best dish that anyone reading this NEEDS to order are those mussels. All I can say is wow!

Holy garlic.
This place is definitely a must-​try for any italian food lover. Even with a reservation, it often takes some time to get seated so grab a drink and be prepared to wait. The atmosphere is gorgeous and one of the most unique restaurant settings I’ve seen.
The food is absolutely excellent. For an appetizer, they bring out an ENTIRE baguette with a bulb of roasted garlic to spread. I was quite shocked at the amount they bring you considering it’s complimentary. The food is pricey but the quality definitely matches. I had filet mignon ravioli and it melts in your mouth. If you order the spaghetti and meatball dish, no joke the meatball is the size of your head.

I always look forward to coming to this spot! The atmosphere is unlike any other and the food is always great. A great spot to come with family or just to come for a drink and listen to live music. Great service, always friendly. Im still trying to figure out how to replicate this design for my future backyard :)

Best meal in town. You don’t expect this in a beach town but totally worth the visit! Been coming for years and it’s as good the 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th etc times as the first.
Can get loud but always always always good.

Among the things you would not expect to find in a tiny beach town is good Italian food. However, New Smyrna Beach has a rare gem tucked inconspicuously on 3^rd Avenue called The Garlic. It was highlighted on the Travel Channel in their search for the World’s Greatest Garlic Grub. While the intent of ambiance at the Garlic is Olde World Tuscany, I felt more like I had been transported into a hobbit’s dwelling straight out of Lord of the Rings. With trees blocking most all sunlight inside, you wander through a maze of cave-​like rooms for seating. It even has a giant brick oven imported from Italy in the center of the open-​air restaurant. The terrain is absolutely mesmerizing. In fact, the only thing that supersedes the atmosphere is the food. Every table is served a bulb of garlic sauteed in olive oil & balsamic, paired with toasted Tuscan bread to dip. You will want to make this your entire meal– but don’t do it! Be hobbit strong! Move to the main courses! While all the dishes are exquisite, you have to order the Bocce Ball. Appropriately named, it’s a 16 oz filet mignon meatball lightly topped with marinara sauce that looks like a big brown bocce ball placed in the center of a gigantic plate. I suggest splitting it as an appetizer. You’ll thank me for that recommendation. My only let down was that Frodo & Bilbo didn’t lug it out to my table.
If you ever find yourself in the Shire at New Smyrna Beach, hit the The Garlic!

Garlic is a behemoth of a restaurant and something of an institution in this town. Make reservations, come early, or pay the cost (your time). You’ll be able to hang out in one of their many nooks and hideaways while you wait, with a glass of wine, but it gets crowded beyond my personal comfort level.
Once you actually get sat and all, it’s a pretty space with large, filling, family-​style portions. I was feeling self-​destructive so I ordered their heart-​attack dish (forget the name), which was a bit – nay A LOT, of everything – veal, sausage, beef. Super-​hearty and gamy, and lasted for another 2 days (lunch x 2). The garlic mash with olive oil they use as a house starter is very fitting, and pretty much perfect.
A good place to load up on carbs and the other goodies they have on the menu, and a good choice for groups. Tabs are a bit high, but nothing you wouldn’t pay in a more expensive restaurant market.

Food was mediocre at best. My sister in law had the chicken piccata and it had to be sent back because it was sour. I had the seafood canneloni which was a disaster. It was smothered in cheese to the point I couldn’t taste anything else. It’s what I’d expect to get at applebees but for twice the price.
I had good experiences in the past, maybe it was just an off night.

Outstanding service and nice enviorment. We sat outside and were greeted by a quirky older gentleman (sorry I can’t remember his name). He was awesome and entertaining. We thoroughly enjoyed our meal and time and we will be back.

Uhm… definitely not a 4 star place. I actually like the vibe, festive and cozy, but the food was all very mediocre. Starting from the smashed garlic and bread and house salad that comes with our meal seemed like something they pulled out of a prepackaged bag from a grocery store. My Pollo Masala was not that great. No love or quality put on the food. Matt’s Pomodoro was simple, easy to make at home. And the 15 year old liked his bacon wrapped filet Mignon but we all know that kids are not the best source for quality. A ho hum experience. I hope these photos don’t look very good because it was not. I barely touched my food.

This place is Overpriced the food is not what I expected.
Will definitely not eat here again.

The Garlic has one of the best ambiance you could ask for in a restaurant. The Blu Bar side is where I typically eat, since it’s very eclectic and outdoors. There are heaters for the Winter, but those are rarely necessary, considering it’s Florida.
Above I mentioned the ambiance, but to elaborate, the lighting is perfect. It’s dim overall, but bright enough to see menus, company, etc at your table. The live music is absolutely incredible! The guy the other night sang renditions of well known songs, as well as his own music, while playing either the piano or guitar. The decibel of the live music doesn’t overpower conversation, which is nice.
Every time I have been, the waiters have been excellent. My waiter the other night gave very honest suggestions, and explain that the Bocce Ball (16 oz filet mignon meatball) is more of a novelty item than for taste. Everything is great on the menu, but he said there are better items than that.
If going on a Friday or Saturday, I would recommend getting there before 6:00. The wait can get extensive on the weekends, but on a Tuesday night, I can typically get in with no wait at all. Also, they do not do reservations for parties under 10.
I highly recommend the Pepper Bacon Wrapped Filet Mignon or the Ravioli Bolognaise. However, I would not stop at just those items. There are many other entrees I plan to try in the future. For starters, the Lamb Lollipops with Blueberry Jam and Goat Cheese are fantastic. I’m sure there are other tasty starters, as well.

We live the Garlic and visit whenever we’re in NSB. Our secret is to ask to sit at the counter in front of the clay oven where you can bask in the glow and watch your steak being prepared.
This cozy spot gets 5 stars for atmosphere, service, and consistently good food. Try the eggplant stack, the hot artichoke dip and a steak.
We shared a huge bone-​in ribeye!

This place is delicious! Be prepared to sit outside. You may want to wear bug spray. We asked our server for bug spray and he had some for us to use.
Majority of seating is outside. They have fans to cool you off. There are multiple bars you can sit at. Many nights there is live music.
They start you with roasted smashed garlic and a warm loaf of Italian crusty bread.
Salads come with the meal. It is romaine lettuce with tomato, carrot, and cucumber. The only dressing is balsamic and oil.
We had a ravioli trio special. For $ 22 you got three types of ravioli… chicken, goat cheese, and kale. The tomato sauce served with it was garlicky and amazing!
I had the bocce ball (16 oz filet meatball). It has melted mozzarella cheese and a red sauce. Below it you will find linguini. The meatball was awesome, but you should ask for extra sauce.
My dad said the shrimp scampi was the best he’s ever had.
We ended with choosing a tiramisu and orange cake from the dessert tray. There were many yummy options… chocolate lava cake, cheesecake, chocolate fudge cake, cannoli, carrot cake, fruit tart, graham cracker cake with Nutella icing…
Service was good throughout the evening. There is free valet or you can try and find a spot behind the restaurant on the street.
Restaurant is creatively decorated. Make sure you see the large structure of candle Wax behind hostess stand. Be prepared to wait if you come after 6pm. Even during the week it’s busy. Food is $ 20+, but great quality!!!