It was Friday, Dec 4, 1971. I was an 8-year-old boy getting jazzed as we neared the best hour of television we have known in its long and storied history. Yes at 8 o’clock on ABC we had the Brady Bunch followed by the Partridge Family at 8:30. My Grandma Zee was at the house as my parents were about to head out to the Memorial Auditorium to see a production of the Nutcracker Sweet. As normal, my Dad was sitting in the family room, ready to go, as he waited for my Mom, who was not. I walked into the family room when that smell hit me. I am talking about the unmistakable smell of someone eating raw garlic. Yes, garlic has a strong, pungent odor, but it takes on a whole new dimension when a person is eating it raw. My Dad would peel a clove and then suck and chew on it like it was a lifesaver. I had learned to live with it, but Mom was not quite as forgiving in this arena. The smell would fill up a room like…. Well believe me it would fill up a room.

I began to panic as I realized that not only would he be polluting everyone within 5 rows of him at the auditorium, but they were also about to hop in the station wagon and pick up two other couples. The effects of a high-fiber diet would have been more tolerable on that car ride than what they were going to have to deal with marinating in the aroma that was now my Father. I began to yell, “MOM! MOM! DAD IS EATING GARLIC! She bolted out of the bathroom like Mama Cass when she hears the dinner bell (I will apologize for that at the end) with one curler still dangling from her bouffant screaming, "NO, FRED, NO!! She gave that man a tongue lashing that would generally be reserved for a P.O.W. or whoever actually put up money to make Police Academy 5. Eventually, her words left the room, but the smell of garlic stayed around like an old college buddy who still lives with his parents. As they made their way to the car, I new this may be a night they would remember for all the wrong reasons.

The next morning, Mumsie filled me in on the evening’s events. They picked up the other couples who immediately picked up on the fact that someone either forgot to bathe, or my Dad drank a sewage shake before leaving the house. They proceeded a good 10 miles to the auditorium with all six station wagon windows down on a rainy December night. Upon getting out of the car, it became apparent that all corsages and bouffants were now wilted. Halfway through the first act, the couple sitting next to my dad got up from their fourth row seats, never to return. At the conclusion of the show, my dad tried argue that they probably just were not enjoying the show. That may have held some water, until they noticed that same couple coming down from the only unsold seats on the second deck.

What is the point of all this you might ask. Well, if you have been reading my article in the past, you know by now there isn’t one. But it does lead me to this month’s restaurant – Johnny Garlic’s at 10505 Fairway Drive in Roseville. Given my Italian heritage, the love of garlic comes rather naturally for me. The scent of garlic saluting in olive oil is what I expect to smell at the pearly gates. The smell of garlic coming from a sauté pan is far different then that of garlic wafting from my Dad's pie hole.

Johnny Garlic’s is not to be confused with Mikey Salami’s or Stevie Nicks. It is, however, along the same vain as Johnnie Carino’s or Macaroni Grill.

Johnny Garlic’s serves a mean caesar salad, and if you truly are a garlic lover, try the Cream of Roasted Garlic soup. For a tasty and unusual take on chicken wings, try the Brick in the Wall appetizer.

For your entrée the Bloody Mary Flank Steak is great, if you want something from the grill. Of course, it is the pasta that rules at Johnny’s. If you like it a bit spicy, you must just try Penne with hot links and chipotle shrimp – simply awesome. If you like Fettuccine Alfredo, you will love Johnny’s.

You can expect to pay around $30 to $40 for dinner for two. They are attracting big crowds so be prepared.

On that note, I apologize. May Cass rest in peace and continue to California Dream.