Unassociated Press

“Mr. Baker did they call your cab already?” asked co-owner and manager Regina Estrada of Joe’s Bakery and Coffee Shop on East 7^th Street in Austin, Texas, her voice loud enough to be heard over the robust lunch crowd by the elderly black man slowly walking with a cane to the exit.

Estrada, whose grandparents, Joe and Paula Avila, founded the bakery in 1962, quickly and gracefully slid out of the corner booth, put her hand on Mr. Baker’s shoulder and walked him to the door.

Giving personal attention to customers, especially to the elderly, is typical of Estrada, who attributes her personable demeanor as being based in Mexican American culture.

“To us, it’s not about getting bigger,” said Estrada, who graduated from Texas State University in 2002 with a business degree, “it’s about doing the best with what we have and taking care of family, employees, and customers and making people feel at home,” said Estrada.

27 years old with a generous serving of red lipstick and just an inch or two above five feet, Estrada hardly comes off as the shrewd businesswoman that she is.

“To get ahead in life, nothing is beneath you,” said Estrada, who believes when there’s a job to be done, whether it’s replenishing the bathrooms with fresh toilet paper or taking out the trash, there’s no hierarchy in the small, family-run restaurant.

Estrada, an efficient multi-tasker, seemed to respond to non-verbal cues from the wait staff that signaled her to put out various fires with customers or the kitchen; these mere glances frequently took her away from the corner booth, mid-sentence.

“My grandparents had an elementary school level education. They taught themselves,” said Estrada, who began working for her grandparents when she was a freshman in high school, “It wasn’t something I wanted to do when I was in college, but I realized the significance of the business…” she slid out of the booth again, mid-sentence, to answer the phone.

She slid back a few minutes later, picking up exactly where she left off, “the customer comes back to something like where they come from.”

The pastries and cuisine of Joe’s Bakery and Coffee Shop is distinctly Mexican American, as is the décor of brightly colored walls covered with family photos, including a few faded photos of a young Joe Avila during the Korean War placed beside new, autographed photos of Mack Brown and Darrell Royal.

Overlooking Mack, Darrell and the lunch rush hangs a gigantic portrait of the Virgin Mary.

The customers, who ranged in dress from business casual to torn T-shirts and jeans, seemed to know each other and frequently hopped from table to table to greet other patrons while an older, seemingly exhausted waitress wearing a T-shirt that read “You’ve tried the rest now have the best”, placed two glasses of water and a single straw on a table but was gone before the customer could ask for another for the man seated beside her.

“It’s hard to be perfect all the time,” said Estrada, mother of 11-month-old Izabella, “I try to remember that in my professional and personal life.”

Many patrons of Joe’s have suggested the business open another location, but Estrada is concerned about the future of the economy and the changing dynamics of East Austin.

“The way the economy is right now-paper goods are going up, the cost of corn is up-flour has risen dramatically. If things skyrocket, it’s not sensible to stay in business,” explains Estrada, visibly frustrated, “We can only pass so much on to customers.”

There have already been complaints.

Napkin dispensers are noticeably absent from the tables and the restaurant has begun charging customers for to-go cups of water, attributing the charge to the rising cost of paper goods and a 40 percent increase in utility costs; a large cup of water now costs $1 and a small cup costs 75 cents.

“We’ve had to tighten the reigns,” said Estrada. “We’ve had to increase the price of bakery items because of the cost of flour.”

As the economy takes the lead as the imminent concern among voters, Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John McCain both have emphasized the issue on the campaign trail, but Estrada was skeptical about the upcoming presidential election and if it would change the current small business environment.

“Quit talking, do what it is that you’re going to do,” said Estrada, whose husband, Felipe Estrada, works for Randolph-Brooks Federal Credit Union, “My husband gets calls all day from people asking if their money is safe.”

Despite the new charges and slowing economy, Estrada has not noticed a drop in customers.

“Loyal clientele makes the difference,” she said, “Even when times are tough they still come to eat.”

Estrada was less optimistic about the “gentrification” of East Austin.

“It’s hard for families to accept changes in the neighborhood,” she said, “East Austin was the only place for the minorities.”

Estrada says the media doesn’t represent the effect on families who have been living in East Austin for decades.

“The news media puts their spin, they don’t realize how personal it is,” she said, “Every where you used to see an empty lot, now you see condos.”

Though she begrudgingly adjusts to the new look of the neighborhood, Estrada resisted blaming the new, higher income families that have moved in.

“What was neglected for so long, now people feel they’re being driven out of their homes,” she said, “How do you tell an old woman who was born in her house that she’ll have to leave because she can’t afford the property taxes?”

Whether one regards the new developments in East Austin with contempt or as a revival of the city-and pending the ominous outlook of the global economy- Regina Estrada at Joe’s Bakery & Coffee Shop seems to have the right formula for maintaining the longevity of this East Austin staple.

Even if they did run out of chicken today.