BBQ News

Dallas barbecue veteran and founder of Big Al's Barbecue dies

Big Al, RIP.

Photo courtesy of Big Al's

A barbecue veteran in Dallas has gone on to meet the barbecue gods: Alvin Darrel Plaskoff, founder of Big Al's Smokehouse Barbecue, passed away on November 24; he was 74.

Following a stint selling meat, Plaskoff opened the iconic Big Al's near Dallas Love Field in 1973, in the same barbecue zone as the famed Sonny's. It remained a family-owned and -operated restaurant serving hickory-pit smoked Choice meats including brisket, pork ribs, and beef ribs plus house-made daily sides. Big Al's also offers take-out, delivery and catering.

Plaskoff was born in Cleveland, Ohio, on January 31, 1944. When he was six, his family moved to Miami, Florida. After graduating high school and briefly attending community college, Al got married, moved to Dallas, and began raising a family.

He spent the late '60s and early '70s as a meat salesman for Farmer's Meat Market in downtown Dallas, selling briskets, hams and other meats to an array of barbecue restaurants.

"Travis Dickey, Red Bryan, Bob White – you name it. I sold to all of them," Al said in 2016, recalling an era when brisket and prime cuts were more dominant in the North than the South.

His family will continue running the business, along with a legacy of multiple entrepreneurial and communal successes.

Preceded in death by his parents, Al is survived by wife Linda Daniel, brother Martin Plaskoff, daughter Lauran Weiner, son Bart Plaskoff, two daughters-in-law, one son-in-law, and five grandchildren.

A memorial service will be held at the Temple Emanu-El of Dallas, at 8500 Hillcrest Ave., on November 27 at 12 noon.

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Weed News

Texas AG Ken Paxton sues Dallas over decriminalization of marijuana

Photo courtesy of US Fish & Wildlife

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The City of Dallas has been sued by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton for its efforts to decriminalize marijuana.

According to a release, Paxton has sued the city for adopting a city charter amendment that would decriminalize marijuana-related offenses and prohibit police from enforcing Texas law.

That amendment was Proposition R, or Dallas Freedom Act, which decriminalizes possession of four ounces of marijuana or less. Voters passed the amendment in the November 5 election, with 67 percent voting in favor.

The lawsuit, filed against the Dallas City Council, alleges that Proposition R is unconstitutional and violates Texas drug laws criminalizing any amount of marijuana.

Paxton says that cities can't "pick and choose which state laws to follow." He's proposing a permanent injunction to stop Proposition R from going into effect.

"The City of Dallas has no authority to override Texas drug laws or prohibit the police from enforcing them," says Paxton in a statement. "This is a backdoor attempt to violate the Texas Constitution, and any city that tries to constrain police in this fashion will be met swiftly with a lawsuit by my office.”

Before the recent election, possession of two to four ounces of marijuana could result in a punishment of 180 days in jail and a $2,000 fine.

Ground Game Texas, the activist nonprofit that has also helped get marijuana decriminalization on the ballot in elections across Texas, first got the issue on the ballot in July with the necessary 50,000 signatures.

Dallas is not the only city to be sued; Paxton also filed lawsuits against five other cities in Austin, Denton, Elgin, Killeen, and San Marcos in January for their ballots and policies decriminalizing marijuana.

Both Austin and San Marcos had a judge overturn their cases, according to a FOX 4 report.

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