The Newstand 1900 Broadway Suite 106, (210) 459-9779, thenewstandtx.com Opened by actor Tommy Lee Jones’ former private chef, the Newstand began serving coffee and sandwiches inside the north-of-downtown Jefferson Bank building early this summer. Credit: Courtesy Photo / Page Pressley

Names: Page Pressley and Dez Rodriguez

Title: Owner-operators of The Newstand coffee shop

Previous jobs: Presley was actor Tommy Lee Jones’ former private chef, and also did work for Austin’s Emmer & Rye restaurant group and Potluck Hospitality in San Antonio. Rodriguez was a speech pathologist.

Where to find their multi-concept coffee shop: 7 a.m.-7 p.m. daily in the same building as the swanky new sushi bar Nineteen Hyaku, 1900 Broadway, Suite 106.

Casual dining spot The Newstand made its debut last week at the Jefferson Bank building on Broadway, serving up a variety of sandwiches, pastries, coffee and — naturally — hard copies of bonafide newspapers. The Newstand’s coffee and espresso-based sippers use roasts from Austin’s Proud Mary Coffee and San Antonio’s Pulp Coffee Roasters.

We sat down with both Pressley and Rodriguez to chat about how the concept came about, their long-term plans and their dedication to Newstand’s growing staff.

How was the concept born and how did you bring it to life?

Page Pressley: We were on the River Walk going for a jog one night after our respective previous jobs, and we were working opposite hours and opposite days. [Rodriguez] is a speech pathologist by trade, and I’m obviously in food and beverage. And so we were just like, “This is rough, dude. All this to work for other people’s benefit.” And so we just thought about what we could do that we both would love and that would allow us to work together. We both love coffee. So, the decision was made, and we were like, “OK, how do we make it so that this can hopefully make us a living?” It was obvious that it was probably going to be beneficial to sell more than coffee, and I have had a lifelong obsession with sandwiches. I’m an avid bread baker and pastry maker. So, it just kind of like seemed like kismet that they could all just exist in one space. It’s taken a lot of shapes between then and how it is today, of course, but yeah, it started just with going for a run together.

So you have a lifelong obsession with sandwiches? Are the ones at The Newstand ones that you have made yourselves at home? Are they representative of your favorite sandwich setups?

PP: They’re all kind of epic iterations on regional American classics. So they’re our take on an egg salad sandwich, or a BLT … they’re not traditional by any means. But hopefully, they deliver the same kind of like, emotional feeling that those sandwiches deliver when you have the best version of them in their hometown. We’re just doing them here in San Antonio.

Dez Rodriguez: I just think they’re our favorite version of those things, and we’re trying to open our hearts and our passions to the community and create a space where they can enjoy the things that we love to work on. And if you don’t, hey, you know, thanks for coming and trying it. We’re not for everybody. And that’s okay, too.

Post-COVID, it seems a lot of operators have decided they really be can’t be weighed down by negative opinions any more. Do you agree?

PP: I mean, we hold ourselves to really high standards, do the best that we can to make everybody happy. But, if you don’t like our focaccia recipe or how we make our muffins or whatever, you know, that’s okay.

DR: And hopefully we can win those over with our customer service.

PP: Yeah, Dez has just been doing a remarkable job of customer service, for someone who hadn’t really existed in the industry before. I’ve been kind of shocked, because we basically said, “Hey, guess what, your first food and beverage experience is going to be business ownership.” You know, that’s hard. But she’s been amazing. I knew we wouldn’t be failing with her at the helm.

I was actually going to ask about that, Dez. What have you discovered about yourself so far through this venture?

DR: I think I’ve definitely found my place and what I want to do. I love creating positive experiences for people, and being able to consistently do that is really fulfilling. When I went to school, that’s why I chose to be a pediatric speech therapist, because a lot of times kids don’t have the support that they need. And to be able to give them a voice and make them feel safe and make them feel heard, now I can bring that sense of safety and warmth into this space. And that extends to our staff, too. Page and I are doing our best to make sure our team is taken care of and has everything that they need to support us. I can’t do it without them.

Page, is that outlook something that you have developed based on what you wish you’d seen from working for larger restaurant groups?

PP: My whole career, I just get so fucking tired of where I am, and I just have to leave after like three years. For a long time, I thought there was something wrong with me. But the truth of it was, for someone who has high aspirations or a very entrepreneurial spirit, they know key contributing team members are an integral part of your success. You couldn’t have otherwise been successful without them. I feel it’s incumbent upon [a business owner] to make ownership and partnership available to their team, because if they show that loyalty to you, you owe them that in return. Not just a paycheck.

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