With its bright exterior, red-green-orange bunches of fresh fruit in clear view, and bright yellow-green-pink neon sign showcasing its name, Taste of the Tropics stands out amongst its neighbors in the Post Oak Mall food court. Times have changed and mall traffic has decreased, but the sense of family and emphasizing quality over quantity has never wavered.
After four decades in the College Station mall, Taste of the Tropics is expanding under the new owner, Abdul Motin, to a location inside the Jones Crossing H-E-B. Plans to open a brick-and-mortar storefront location with a drive-thru are also in the works.
Taste of the Tropics owners are working to bring all the fruity goodness into 2024.
Blending family, food and culture
Bringing families and cultures together unites the Boykins and Motin families. While the Bryan/ College Station communities have changed, the company’s long-term goals and mission have not. Being known for a great product continues to inspire the family values that launched the business. It is also what has kept Taste of the Tropics alive and thriving.
When it opened in October 1984, Taste of the Tropics brought Katyla Boykins’ South American culture with an American twist to Bryan/ College Station mall-goers. With their parents’ help, the Boykins’ dreams proved fruitful, as their only storefront has remained a success for over four decades.
“There was an article written by The Eagle, and we were the first business they featured in their business section in color,” Katyla says. “With that, we realized in our mind and solidified the fact that we were a driving force in town, and after that article came out, we could not stop the masses. We had calls and businesses trying to franchise and take it off.”
Success didn’t come overnight for the young couple. It was several years before the shop reaped the benefits of all the hard work they put into it.
“We knew we had something good,” Thomas Boykin says. “We needed to refine it because it was in the ultimate primitive stages back then, like many upstarts. There’s a lot of growth that takes place as far as improvements of a product.
“Ours is the difference between night and day from the beginning to where it is now. We just had hopes of just staying with it, improving it as best as we could and adapting it to our clientele — that was the motivating factor — make the hurdle each time.”
Over the years, the Boykins continued learning about the community’s tastes, while juggling their excitement about bringing new flavors with fruits like guanabana. It was a process of trial and error as the population became more diverse because of students attending the nearby Texas A&M University.
“Back in the ‘80s, the student community was not as large as it is now,” Katyla says. “The international community was not as strong as it is now, so many of the flavors that we were excited about introducing to the community were not as popular as we thought they were.
“After a little while, people were trusting, but we actually did discontinue some of those flavors because they were not as popular, and it was hard to keep fresh fruit on hand,” Katyla recalls. “We witnessed how our customers and clientele grew and diversified.”
Growth happened the old-fashioned way: through word-of-mouth marketing. Thomas says the business owners confirm they have never spent a dime on advertising outside the required annual mall coupon book fee.
“We figured word of mouth was proof,” Thomas says. “If you happen to come by, try it, and you decide; that’s what we want.”
After 35 years as owners and conversations with their daughter Kensey, the Boykins decided it was time to step away from the food business.
“Both of our children got involved at their own time, and that’s how they learned work ethic,” Katyla says. “It really provided them with an insight to what it is to provide a service and be proud of what you do.
“My daughter actually at one point, she really thought that this would be her path,” Katyla says. “As a family, we were very happy because we were together, but looking back, she realized, ‘How do I do this totally on my own?’ Thomas said, ‘You can’t; you have to have a partner — or us — involved to help you.’”
It was the start of the search for new owners for the business the Boykins had spent nearly half of their lifetime cultivating. As offers rolled in from prospective buyers, none of them fit what the Boykins say they were looking for until 2019, when the couple decided to turn to their longtime friend, Abdul.
“We know that he’s dedicated,” Katyla says. “That’s why we decided that if we’re going to pick somebody who’s going to continue the business that is not one of our own, we better find somebody who’s dedicated to the same idea that we are. He has demonstrated that he wants to, very much, continue what was started.”
Grateful for grasshoppers
Abdul came to New York City as an 18-year-old from Bangladesh and with $250 in his pocket. After six months in the Big Apple, Abdul packed his bags and moved to Austin for three years before eventually settling in B/CS, where he opened a t-shirt business — still running today — in Post Oak Mall.
Soon, Abdul noticed the long lines in front of Taste of the Tropics. He yearned to run a business with similar success, but it wasn’t his desire to succeed that led him to own the shop: it was grasshoppers and fish. When Abdul asked a mall management office staffer about finding a fishing partner, he was introduced to Thomas.
“We went fishing for [the] first time, and he made me catch grasshoppers for almost two hours,” Abdul recalls. “I was super mad, but I was like, ‘Well, I’m not gonna give up.’ After that, we became really good friends even though I wasn’t from here.”
Years and countless fishing trips later, the bond between the families would lead to Abdul’s takeover of the smoothie business.
“Abdul had always been interested in the shop, which played a major role,” Thomas says. “We had many offers of people wanting to take the place. We felt like it was going to be an investment and that they were not going to actually be at the store.”
Abdul’s youth and enthusiasm led to updates, including computerized payment and ordering systems. A new emphasis on social media outlets like Facebook and Instagram are now in place.
“We were running it in a way that was extremely successful, but it was reaching the time where we have to move on,” Katyla says. “As owners, we didn’t want to take that chance ourselves. We weren’t ready to change how we do things, but Abdul said we can do it.”
The Boykins are no longer the owners of Taste of the Tropics, but Abdul says he’s blessed they have never truly walked away.
“From the beginning, they helped us out, and they still help us out,” Abdul says. “It was very tough because I didn’t know anything about the smoothie business.”
The bond between the two families has continued to grow. When the Motins lost their home in a house fire eight months ago, the Boykins didn’t hesitate to take the reins on business temporarily.
“Mr. Boykin was my fishing guru, so from there, we’ve really become family,” Abdul says. “This kind of relationship we have, everything we do, they’re still there. [Thomas] taught me each and every part of the business, especially the quality — ‘We are here because of the quality.’”
Taste of the Tropics is located inside the Post Oak Mall food court at 1500 Harvey Road in College Station and is open Mondays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sundays from noon to 6 p.m. The new H-E-B location will open in mid-January at 11675 FM 2154 in College Station. For more information or to order online, visit tasteofthetropic.com.
