Not a Good Tool
While I love Mario Batali's cooking show, I can't say the same for his garlic slicer. It seems poorly designed to me. There is such a large space between the sliding hopper and the cutting surface, that large pieces of the garlic cloves slide out uncut. I had a similar product from Norpro that worked much, much better -- and I wore it out. I tried Mario's because I liked the handle, but I sadly returned it to the store. It just doesn't work right. I'm going to buy another Norpro.
Total Disappointment!
This looked so great I couldn't wait to get it. The size is wonderful but the guard slips off and most of all, it isn't sharp enough so the garlic just jams. I thought if anyone could make a great garlic mandolin it would be Mario but unfortunately, I cannot recommend it. Sorry, Mario!
Garlic Slicer/Shredder
The garlic slicer/shredder is okay once you figure out how much pressure to apply to the pusher when slicing or shredding. Press on the pusher to hard and the hopper will come off. As for shredding, it doesn't perform any better than a decent garlic press OXO Steel 58181 Garlic Press, Stainless since all of the garlic doesn't get shredded. The slicing side will slice but again, not the whole clove so a knife performs better in that regard. But the slicer produces thinner slices than what I can get with a knife. Also, this works best with one clove at a time. It's not a bad tool but it hasn't improved or enhanced anything for me in the kitchen so I don't consider it to be an essential item, and I wouldn't buy it again.
