Big Al's Smokehouse BBQ (Dallas, TX)

Visited Big Al's Smokehouse BBQ today. I've been meaning to try this place for years but would forget about it so never made it by. I think I used to receive coupons to this place back when there was the super saver coupon packet that would show up in the mail every week. It was that same packet that I'd get the BOGO rib plate dinner coupon to Spring Creek Barbecue. Haven't seen that coupon packet for a long, long time.

Anyway, about a week or so ago, I saw some advertisement that they extended a special from January to continue through February which is a Saturday-only Pork Rib Rack BOGO. That means two racks for the price of one which is priced at $28.00 before tax. With only two more Saturdays in February, I figured I could jump on it today since the snowpocalypse has passed and who knows what next week will bring.

The restaurant wasn't very busy I'm sure because of the weather just getting better but there were about 5 people in the socially-distanced order line and about 3 tables occupied and spread out across the dining area. So I got in and out within about 10 minutes.

The photo shows what I ordered: the ribs after I sliced a few from one rack, a pound of brisket, a pint of fried okra, a pint of potato salad, a pint of mac-n-cheese, and a side (pint?) of banana pudding. I got it to-go as I was taking it home to feed the family.

So, here's what I thought:

• Ribs were tender and tasted okay but mostly flavorless except for the slight bark on them.
• Brisket was tender enough, not too moist or too dry, but like the ribs were mostly flavorless, maybe less so, except for the bark on them.
• Fried okra wasn't as crispy as my family preferred. Now in its defense, I did have to drive about 15 minutes home while the okra was in a bag so there could have been moisture build up which may have been absorbed by the okra. I just can't be sure. However, I have driven for about the same time with okra in a container from other places and it was still crispy.
• Potato salad was tasty. It wasn't "mustardy" or "mayonaissey" but it did have a tint of sweetness. I'm not a huge potato salad person but I could eat this again.
• Mac-n-cheese was different, a good different. It was more of a dry mac-n-cheese versus the typical runny, cheesy kind. It was actually pretty good and I would order again.
• Banana pudding was pretty tasty. It wasn't full of a lot of wafer but the pudding flavoring was good. I would order again.

So that's my brief overview of my first visit to Big Al's.

FINAL VERDICT: I think it wasn't too bad but, for me, there are other barbecue places closer to me, better flavor and about the same cost or less. If it were not for the BOGO deal, I probably would not have ordered a rack of ribs as $28 is a little pricey to me. I mean it could be exactly what a per-pound charge would cost at other places but don't know for sure. Maybe the Meat Lovers Plate or Dinner Plate is a better deal to try this place out if they aren't running the BOGO rib deal. Again, the barbecue wasn't bad. Other people may find it to their liking. It just wasn't as flavorful as I prefer.

Distorted (2018)

Distorted (2018). This was another one of those movies in my Hulu "my stuff" that I saw was expiring. It has been in my queue for some time but just hadn't gotten around to watching it. I put it in my queue to watch thinking it would be worth a watch but then I would find other movies that seem a bit more interesting. But an expiring item seems to be the way to push me to watch.

This lead characters are played by Christina Ricci and Brendan Fletcher (who I always think is Donnie Wahlberg when I first see him in a movie, I think because of his voice and looks at a quick glance). John Cusack is also in the movie but only for like twenty minutes tops.

The movie was not like what I expected based on the synopsis on Hulu and IMDB. I guess it's because it was pretty vague. Also, the way the movie started made me think it was a different kind of movie than I originally thought. I mean I don't really know what I thought because I have ADHD (not really but maybe).

FINAL VERDICT: If you already have a subscription for streaming and this movie is on it, it might not be a bad option if only a last option. I would not rent it but 'free' might be worth it.

The Villainess (2017)

The Villainess (2017). Had this movie in "my stuff" on my Hulu account for a little while now. It shows that it's expiriing but, of course, doesn't show when so I figured with the snowpocalypse going that I'd use the opportunity to watch it.

I think I know why I've been postponing watching. It's because it has no English audio and I'd have to read subtitles so I can't multi-task while watching the movie. However, as mentioned above, it's expiring so I had to buckle down for some reading.

The movie started off with some pretty good action. Some graphic bloody fighting and violence with a majority of it shot in the first-person view. Reminded me a little bit of Hardcore Henry. The middle of the movie lulled a little bit with some slower action and storytelling. There were some flashbacks throughout the movie for reference. The end was filled with the same bloody fighting as in the beginning.

This wasn't too bad of a movie. I did have to watch it over two days. Partly because we were without power for most of the past two days and partly because I just couldn't sit and read subtitles for the entirety of the movie in one sitting.

FINAL VERDICT: I would recommend this movie. I would have enjoyed it and watched it much sooner had there been English audio. Although tedious to read subtitles, they didn't interrupt or takeaway from the action when it occurred. So, yeah, definitely watch it on Hulu for "free".

Born a Champion (2021)

Born a Champion (2021). Finished watching this movie today. It took me a few days because we've been having power outages (more like power out) over the past few days. If not for this, I probably would have finished in one sitting.

This movie stars Sean Patrick Flanery. If you're any kind of movie person, you would know he was in Boondock Saints I and II — which were both pretty good movies (one better than two), The Dead Zone TV series, and Powder.

It also has Dennis Quaid but he doesn't really make an appearance until the latter part of the movie.

The love interest to Flannery's character is played by Katrina Bowden who isn't highly recognizable to me but she is pretty attractive so I won't forget her now. ;-) She's played in various other movies but they look like bit parts and nothing major.

Anyway, the movie is actually pretty good. You can find the synopsis but it's essentially about a fighter, of jiu-jitsu to be exact. The love story isn't a big part of the movie but the relationship plays a role in each of the characters' decisions and such.

FINAL VERDICT: I would recommend watching it. It's a good little story, although sad in parts, but overall a good movie. I paid $.60 to rent it from Redbox with a coupon but I wouldn't have felt bad if I paid the entire $1.85 rental fee.

The Breadwinner (2017)

The Breadwinner (2017). Was randomly browsing movies in Netflix on my phone because my power was out and saw this animated movie. It looked interesting so I clicked on it and what do you know, this movie was leaving Netflix in a few days. So, I decided I would give it a try.

Even though this was a movie about living in Afghanistan, it had English audio. It wasn't really a family movie but it could be a movie watched with family. I think it's rated PG-13 but probably because there are some violent scenes. Nothing too graphic but I guess enough for the MPAA to rate it as PG-13.

The story is kind of sad but it kind of has a happy ending. The way people and women were treated by the Taliban in Afghanistan seemed to be based on real life but here nor there, it pissed me off to see it...even in animation form.

FINAL VERDICT: It's worth a watch. I'm not sure where it will be available next since it's leaving Netflix in a day or so. If you find it somewhere else, I don't think it would be a waste of time to watch.