BBQ News
Southfork Ranch from TV show Dallas to host first BBQ country music fest
A new BBQ and country-music fest is coming to Southfork Ranch: Called The Smokeout Fest, it'll take place at the famed venue in Parker, north of Plano, on Saturday, September 7.
The event will combine a barbecue competition with a lineup of country music acts that include Gary Allan, Ryder Grimes, and Paul Cauthen, as well as a surprise musical guest they aren't yet revealing.
The contest is hosted by The Outlaw BBQ Association, a North Texas barbecue competition organization that hosts similar events across Texas — one of a small handful that can officially sanction such events.
The Southfork fest will feature 50 teams of "pitmasters from across Texas," cooking BBQ for awards and cash prizes. Attendees can taste their entries and cast votes for their favorites in the People's Choice award category. The three top favorites earn $5,000 each.
For these kinds of competitions, 50 is a high number, says Tim Esh, spokesperson for The Outlaw BBQ Association, and a regular competitor himself.
"A typical event might draw 30 to 35 teams, but it can be as small as 15 teams, so 50 is at the top," Esh says. "You get all levels, from backyard hobbyists to restaurant owners, even to high school teams."
Teams pay an entry fee and camp overnight — "It's like a NASCAR weekend, but you do a cookoff and get to go to a concert," he says.
For the public, tickets are on sale and can be purchased online. Presale tickets are $45 until August 7, then go up to $55 after August 7. VIP tickets are $100.
The schedule is as follows:
- 12 pm: Gates open for VIP Experience
- 2-5 pm: (non-VIP) Barbecue Experience
- 4:30 pm: Gates open to concert area
- 5:30 pm: Concerts begin
Parking is $20.
Best known for its role as the Ewing family home in the television series Dallas, Southfork Ranch was acquired in 2022 by Centurion American Development Group, the development company owned by CEO Mehrdad Moayedi, with a goal to develop the real estate. Events like this raise the property's profile.
Trammell Crow Residential filed plans to build a $64.1 million, eight-building apartment project but the city of Parker is in a water moratorium and is not accepting the development of any new water meters, putting the timeline on hold.