Tampa coffee fans just got a fresh excuse to swing off Kennedy Boulevard, as Kahwa Coffee celebrates its 20th anniversary with a new west Tampa location. The St. Pete-born roaster has grown from a single downtown café into a multi-site brand across Florida, with founders Raphael and Sarah Perrier steering the company through wholesale partnerships and a steady run of retail openings. Customers who showed up for the Kennedy Boulevard debut were met with giveaways and opening-week specials as the company marked the milestone.
New Kennedy Boulevard drive-thru debuts
The Kennedy Boulevard café at 2802 W Kennedy Blvd. in west Tampa, which includes indoor seating and a drive-thru, opened earlier this year, according to Kahwa Coffee. The company lists its hours and a menu of lattes, cold brew, pastries and grab-and-go options on its site. Local reporting notes that the Kennedy shop is the chain’s seventh Tampa location and its third drive-thru, part of a recent push to add quick-serve formats. Creative Loafing Tampa Bay covered the opening and the design of the new café.
Milestone promotions and claims
FOX 13 Tampa Bay sent a crew to the new location as Kahwa marked 20 years in business, filming scenes from inside the store and the anniversary festivities. FOX 13 Tampa Bay also ran a short video piece on the anniversary. Company and partner social posts during the opening week highlighted what they described as the brand’s “20th location,” with local partners reposting the congratulations on LinkedIn. Kahwa Coffee Roasters on LinkedIn shows several reposts celebrating the milestone and the Kennedy opening.
Roots, roast and local growth
Kahwa was founded in 2006 by Raphael and Sarah Perrier in St. Petersburg and has built a significant wholesale business supplying cafés, hotels and venues across the region, according to the company’s FAQ and media materials. Kahwa Coffee notes that its roasts are served in places ranging from airports to local grocery cafés and that it has more than a dozen retail cafés across Florida. Local business outlets have tracked the brand’s steady expansion, including a reclaimed-shipping-container café on Fourth Street that opened in 2024. Tampa Bay Business Journal reported on that opening and the company’s plans for further growth.
What this means for Tampa coffee drinkers
The Kennedy store, with its drive-thru and quick-serve layout, adds another grab-and-go option for commuters and students in west Tampa who want a local cup without a long detour. The opening also underscores the region’s appetite for homegrown roasters that have scaled both wholesale and retail operations without national backing. For now, Kahwa is leaning on local promotions and its app-based ordering to keep momentum going as it expands around Florida.
