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James Talarico dispelled veganism accusations and spoke out on soaring beef prices while visiting Smokey Joe’s BBQ on Tuesday (one of the Observer’s Top 50 restaurants).
The Texas state representative and Democratic Senate hopeful isn’t the biggest fan of smoked, grilled, broiled, or really any kind of meat — that is, if you’ve been listening to Ken Paxton. While accepting the Republican nomination last week, Paxton said that “tofu Talarico” is a “vegan who thinks God is nonbinary,” while cautioning his supporters that the candidate was an existential threat to Texans’ way of life.
After again removing all doubt that he is, indeed, a meat-eater while eating some of Smokey Joe’s Texas Monthly Top 50 barbecue, Talarico met with reporters outside the joint for a press gathering. He said Paxton’s false allegations that he is a vegan rang hollow against issues like soaring food prices, especially beef.
“Ken Paxton doesn’t have anything to run on,” Talarico said. “He doesn’t have solutions to lower people’s costs and unrig this economy. So, all he’s got is name-calling, and he’s going to lie about what I eat. I’m gonna focus on making sure Texans can afford to eat.”
Definitely not a vegan
Other Republicans have also echoed and even amplified accusations that he eschews meat products like brisket or burnt ends — and by extension, is no true Texas politician. Donald Trump has repeatedly mislabeled Talarico as a vegan and told reporters after Paxton won the nomination that “you can’t get elected as a vegan in Texas.” After the candidate was seen eating a potato, egg and cheese taco in Austin, Texas. Gov Greg Abbott wrote on X that “Homie is not beating the vegetarian allegations.”
That order, made while campaigning with Democratic gubernatorial candidate Gina Hinojosa and Barack Obama, has added to online discourse, as have his past remarks from his 2022 reelection campaign for the Texas House of Representatives. At a fundraiser for the Human Legislation Network, Talarico said it was imperative to cut down on meat consumption in the face of climate change and that he was proud to announce that “our campaign has officially become a non-meat campaign.”
On Tuesday, Talarico admitted that some of his past statements have not helped his case, but quickly drew the focus back toward beef prices.
“I’ve been in public service now for four terms,” he said. “I have sometimes missed the mark in decisions that I’ve made, but I think with the rising price of meat, we may all be forced to be vegans.”
Meanwhile, beef prices continue to soar
According to an analysis of U.S. Department of Agriculture data by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, brisket prices at the beginning of 2025 averaged around $6.44 per pound. That price has increased by nearly 30% in June 2026 to $8.37 per pound, and compared to 2020, when the price was closer to $2.50 per pound, it’s a nearly 235% increase.
Rising meat prices, fueled by herd declines and drought, have hit barbecue joints especially hard. While reiterating the impact of inflation on consumers, Talarico told reporters that “we need a U.S. senator who’s going to fight for this economy.”
Photo by Alison McLean
“What this race is about is everywhere I go across the state of Texas, whether it’s in big cities or small towns, whether it’s red areas or blue areas, whether it’s visiting small businesses like this, everyone is struggling,” he said.
He called for tax relief for ranchers and a fully funded USDA. The Trump Administration has proposed nearly $5 billion in cuts to the department’s fiscal 2027 budget, amounting to nearly 20% of the USDA budget, in a move critics have warned will have an outsized impact on farmers and ranchers. Trump’s deal to increase the amount of Argentinian beef entering the U.S. market was also criticized as the “Argentinian bailout.”
“It’s forcing small businesses to cut back,” Talarico said. “We even got legacy businesses that may be forced to close their doors because of these rising prices. It’s these crazy tariffs that are driving up the price of everything, including the styrofoam that you use, plastic utensils, the materials that small businesses need; all of that has gotten more expensive.”
What did Talarico order?
While he may have opted for a meat-free option in Austin, Talarico was served a platter of brisket, sausage, Texas Twinkies and ribs while visiting Kris Manning’s acclaimed barbecue joint.
“I come from central Texas, where we’re known for our barbecue,” he said. “I gotta say, it’s got nothing on southern Dallas barbecue.”
But the candidate’s favorite bites, he said, weren’t the usual staples of most Texas barbecue joints. He lauded the sides and brakes, a specialty Manning said is “always something that you can find in southern Dallas.”
Brakes, by the way, are a crispy dish made from repurposed rib meat that’s left over after trimming, such as rib ends. Manning and his pit crew marinate the meat, throw it on an old-fashioned offset smoker and finish with a fresh dusting of jerk seasoning.
“It’s one of our highlights in southern Dallas,” Manning said after the press gathering.
The second-generation owner and pitmaster said he and Talarico had a productive conversation before the media availability.
“It made us feel great to have his support — to come in and, one, want to do something about the prices; and then, two, to care, check out our business, come eat barbecue, and taste what southern Dallas barbecue is,” he said. “That’s our goal.”
Manning added that rising prices have been hard on his business. Typically, he prefers grass-fed beef, but with rising prices, he has increasingly been forced to opt for choice to supply Smokey Joe’s.
“How much of the price can the customer take on before they say, ‘You know what, we’re not going to get brisket.’ I mean, it just doesn’t make sense financially, and essentially, people that don’t eat pork stop coming to barbecue places.”
