Rick Mace

Tropical Smokehouse

Rick Mace’s childhood surrounded him from an early age by gardening, hunting, fishing and farming. His family’s 100-acre farm in Ohio inspired his culinary interest and naturally informed his understanding of a ‘field to fork’ philosophy. A South Florida “Rising Star Chef” and Palm Beach County’s “Chef of the Year,” Rick has cooked from Vermont to Vegas and beyond, most recently as the Executive Chef of Café Boulud Palm Beach. His world class training under the renowned chef, Daniel Boulud, has informed his journeyman’s style – making him the Master of Meat he is today.

After a decade helming one of the finest kitchens in South Florida, Pit-Master, Local Business Owner, and Gator Dad Rick Mace hung up his Chef Whites, grabbed a shovel, and set his mind on simple cooking with quality ingredients fueled by a hardwood pit fire.

Tropical Smokehouse is Florida Craft Barbecue. Starting with hand-harvested Florida Oak and Hickory burnt in their own 500 gallon custom made smoker all the way to heritage sourced ingredients and techniques that have evolved as collectively unique to Florida. Tropical Smokehouse is helmed by James Beard Nominated Best Chef South 2023 Chef Rick Mace, aka “BBQ King,” who couples his affinity for eclectic BBQ with the excellence he’s honed through working in fine dining kitchens (namely alongside Daniel Boulud) throughout his career. Tropical Smokehouse was named Southern Living’s #3 (of 14) The South’s Best Barbecue in Every State as well as The Best Locally-Owned Restaurant in Florida

The menu is a culmination of cultural diversity paying homage to Haitian, Dominican, Cuban and Jamaican cuisine. The most popular items include Smoked Brisket, Mojo Pulled Pork, Spicy Wahoo Dip, Cajun Gator Sausage, Hot & Sweet Hushpuppies, Fried Cobia Sandwich, BBQ JackFruit, Pork Spare Ribs as well as the Burger and its many variations. For patrons who long for lighter fare, Mace created items including smoked fish, salads, bowls all graced with Tropical’s signature smoke and sunshine style. For more information visit www.EatTropical.com or Instagram @tropcial_smokehouse Sizzle Reel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cIBDNszM_Mc&t=16s

Tropical Smokehouse is located at 3815 South Dixie Highway, WPB, FL. They will be opening a second location, Tropical BBQ Market, Summer 2023. The new fast-casual concept helmed by owners Jason Lakow and pitmaster/chef Rick Mace consists of a 1,900-square-foot space located at 206 Olive Avenue, West Palm Beach, FL, which also includes an added 600 square feet of bar area and available seating indoors (30 seats) and outdoors (20 seats). The restaurant is counter service, where guests can enjoy prompt and friendly service. The new concept includes the brand’s first-ever upscale deli market, where high-quality meats, salads and other menu items that have become synonymous with the beloved brand can be purchased to grab and go.