Does This Metal Bar of ‘Soap’ De-Stink Garlicky Hands?

Pungent foods like onion and garlic like to leave their mark. They often result in a very savoury, allium-y pair of hands, which I never minded, but some are deeply offended by. That seems to be driving force behind Rub Away, the stainless steel odor-absorbing bar.

Historically speaking, I have never been troubled with this particular issue — soap seems to work well enough, and a little lingering garlic odor is not particularly offensive to me. But I was still curious by the promise of de-stunk mitts, so I agreed to test the product with Joel, on camera, as is our custom.

Spoiler alert: I don’t get it. Maybe Mrs. Meyer’s Peppermint soap is particularly good at getting rid of stubborn odours, but Rub Away did not perform any better than the minty smelling surfactant. I am, quite frankly, puzzled by the glowing reviews, though intrigued by those who claim it finally solved their body odor issues, as well as the lady who said it got rid of “dead mouse smell.” (I am, however, not surprised it did not work for this mechanic, as it is supposed to work by binding to sulphur which, as far as I know, is not present in gasoline.)

I won’t tell you what Joel thought of Rub Away — which I keep wanting to call “Rub Off” — because you need a reason to watch the video. I will, however, leave you with this: Hours later, after Joel and I had said “goodbye” and I had closed my laptop for the day, I caught a whiff of garlic while reading a book. Normally, it would not have bothered me — as I have already mentioned (twice), I do not find garlic’s aroma offensive. But lies and deceit? Now that’s what I call offensive and, by that measure, this metal bar offended me.