How did Richie’s Tropical Kitchen start?  I met my wife, Daria, at a local gym in Marina del Rey, California where she was working as personal trainer.  As I spoke to her, I heard an accent that was intriguing and I was hooked (she’s a Kiwi – a New Zealander – not the fruit!).  Daria and I lead an active lifestyle and it is hard to eat healthy when you both work long hours. 

My first trip to New Zealand was a great experience (these photographs were taken in New Zealand).  The food tasted so different and seemed so incredibly fresh.  On our second trip to New Zealand, we visited some friends in Australia and spent a week in Fiji – the fruit and food was fantastic!  Upon returning home, I tried to cook healthy without cutting out the flavor.  One year, Daria decided to enter a bodybuilding show and had to eat seven meals a day to reach her target weight to muscle ratio.  Although the meals were healthy and nutritional, they were exceptionally bland!  One day, I decided to experiment and make her some BBQ sauce that was tasty and all natural (let me add – she did not like BBQ sauce).  When she came home, there were multiple pots of BBQ sauce on the stove and I had to convince her to try them.  The result of the taste test…Richie’s Tropical Kitchen Original BBQ Sauce was born!  Over the years, family, friends and Daria’s clients have been our taste testers and have happily obliged when we develop new flavors.

All of our products are based on the simple fact that freshness counts!  You will find an abundance of natural fruits in all of our products.  Our products add distinctive flavors to your meals without all the added sugars or preservatives. 

After years of developing and perfecting the products, we happily announced our official product launch at the Chile Pepper Zest Fest 2006 in Fort Worth, Texas. We were delighted to win four awards at our first show!  It was a great experience and I loved talking to all of the attendees that stopped by our booth!  Although I was a bit nervous going to Texas for our first BBQ show, the feedback we received from the people that tried our products was incredible.

We want you to experience the gourmet flavor of the tropical islands without all of the fuss of preparing a gourmet meal.  Try some of our recipes that are on the recipe link and let us know what you think.  We hope you enjoy our products and any feedback is greatly appreciated. 

Besides making great tasting BBQ sauces, Marinades and Salsa(s) – I love to fly helicopters – now if I could only get a BBQ pit in a helicopter (That’s me - Richie, walking away from the helicopter).  I have to thank my mother for making me a good cook – she always said I had better learn how to cook for myself because no woman in her right mind would want to be around me – she was wrong – I found Daria…

Stay safe, eat healthy and enjoy life!