Tahiti Motor Court opened as a 17-room motel in 1954, welcoming guests to the growing South Tampa area. By 1961, the Tahiti Court transitioned from its original L-shaped structure to a 42-room facility with a pool, a 2-story wing fronting Dale Ave, and a coffee lounge at the center. With that expansion, the owners changed the name to Tahitian Inn.

In 1972, 19 more rooms and a new office were added, and in 1984 18 were added. While the beloved coffee shop had become a landmark and home to some colorful regulars, it closed in 2000, a victim of its own success. The owners did not calculate the public outcry about the closing. The coffee shop reopened after a multi-million-dollar renovation in 2003 that included a corporate center, day spa, and fitness center. After announcing it would close due to high rent, another Tampa staple, Pach’s Place, moved from its home of 25 years on Bay to Bay Blvd. and took over the coffee shop in 2018, hoping to keep two Tampa icons alive.

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