Ahoy, garlic lovers! Trader Joe’s has docked a new culinary creation on our shores, and it’s as bold as the canals of Venice themselves. The Garlic Gondolas are here, bringing the unapologetic swagger of garlic bread, the comfort of gooey cheese, and the heft of rustic pizza dough—all shaped like a boat, because why not? While these savory vessels promise a delightful voyage through flavor town, let’s just say the garlic isn’t merely the captain—it’s the entire crew. Whether you’re setting sail as an appetizer, a sidekick, or even a main course, these Gondolas might need a co-pilot like marinara sauce or a protein-packed deckhand to make the journey smooth. Buon appetito, adventurers—just pack some breath mints for the ride!
I’ll be honest, I didn’t know what to expect with these. They look delicious and very interesting but I was a little afraid of the wording on the packaging. It literally says “Very Garlicy” and while I like my garlic, it’s possible to overdo it…
I just want to say I make a lot of pizza from scratch and read and study pizza making all the time. I am on multiple pizza forums and have a real pizza oven and I have never seen these except they look very similar to something called “Khachapuri” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khachapuri which are cheese stuffed breads that look like a boat. But upon closer inspection, they are different in one main way and that these gondolas are made out of thin dough.
When you open the box, you are greeted by these two thin flat boat shaped pieces of dough. You can see the filling sticking out a little. I was seriously concerned that these might not puff up and look like the picture on the box. So, I warmed up the oven and followed the directions by putting down a piece of parchment on a baking sheet.
Then I set a timer for 10 minutes and put them in the oven. The box says up to 12 minutes but to be safe I wanted to come back early to make sure they didn’t burn or anything. When I came back after 10 minutes they weren’t quite browned up enough and looked they just weren’t cooked through. I waited two more minutes and still not done. Then finally at 14 minutes they looked perfect and I pulled them out. Your mileage may vary.
They looked picture perfect when I pulled them out of the oven and filled the house with garlic aroma. Just let them cool for a while because the filling is like molten lava. BTW, there is no other way to cook these. They might be too big for an air fryer and you certainly don’t want to put them in a microwave. You really need to bake them in an oven.
Final Thoughts
Trader Joe’s Garlic Gondolas are a clever idea with a lot of potential, but they don’t quite stick the landing. While I expected a strong garlic flavor, the intensity here was almost overwhelming—far beyond what you’d get from a classic garlic bread. The dough didn’t help matters, leaning more toward gummy than satisfyingly chewy. Plus, the filling felt incomplete, as though these Gondolas were meant to carry more—maybe bits of meat, tomatoes, herbs, or even extra cheese to round things out. As they are, they feel like a half-finished idea. If you’re a garlic superfan, you might enjoy these as a starting point, but for most, they’ll leave you wishing for a little something extra. A solid 7 out of 10 for creativity, but room to grow.
