This month marks the anniversary of the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Traveling is tough, but we’ve learned new protocols and become cautiously optimistic about venturing out again. It’s hard work in the Texas heat for Travis Mayes preparing barbecue for the legions of hungry fans who line up at the window in Garland. The family-run business was hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and then the St. Valentine’s weekend freeze broke the water pipes and the firewood was stolen. (Photo by Gerald E. McLeod)
A cold smoker in Garland. For more than 40 years Meshack’s BBQ Shack in the suburbs west of Dallas has been serving smoked meats out of a cinder-block building. It’s a small, family-run business with