Chef
David Guas
- Discipline
- Chef
- Based in
- Arlington, Virginia, United States
i. Biography
The Climb
Pastry set the first terms of David Guas’s craft: precision, patience, and attention to detail. He began in New Orleans, Louisiana, where he was born on June 5, 1975 and raised, and where he started cooking Louisiana specialties as a teenager. That early work already pointed toward a practice shaped by local foodways rather than by abstraction. At the Windsor Court Hotel in New Orleans, Louisiana, the discipline of pastry took on professional form. David Guas worked there as associate pastry chef, a role that placed him inside a demanding kitchen environment and gave structure to his developing technique. He later moved into corporate pastry chef, a position he held until 2007. Those years established the technical base beneath the more expressive cooking that followed. Public visibility arrived in 2014 with American Grilled, where David Guas appeared as host. The role widened his audience, but it also matched a chef working from familiarity rather than novelty. That same year, he opened Bayou Bakery, Coffee Bar & Eatery in Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, where he served as owner from 2014–2016. The project carried New Orleans-inspired cuisine into a new setting without breaking from the food tradition that shaped him. Ownership continued at Lil' B in Washington, DC from 2017–2019. Read together, these roles trace a career that moved from pastry to restaurants, and from television to neighborhood business, while keeping Louisiana as the fixed reference point. Today, David is owner of Bayou Bakery, Coffee Bar & Eatery (since 2010), a throughline that holds the rest of the work in place.
Today
Bayou Bakery, Coffee Bar & Eatery in Arlington, Virginia is the current site of David Guas’s New Orleans-inspired cooking. The restaurant carries the flavors and references of his upbringing into daily service, turning place memory into an operating kitchen language. The Arlington base gives the work continuity. Rather than a career defined only by pastry posts, media appearances, or temporary projects, the ongoing ownership role creates a stable rhythm. David Guas reads here as a chef-owner with New Orleans roots and a business anchored in Arlington, a combination built on sustained presence rather than display.
Signature
David's signature dishes include DamGoodSweet—Desserts to Satisfy Your Sweet Tooth New Orleans Style. The book title is specific in the way the work is specific: dessert treated as a central register, tied directly to New Orleans style rather than framed as a side note.
Recognition
David's honors include Arlington Magazine cover feature, Best Chef of Arlington, James Beard Award finalist, Baking and Dessert Cookbook category, Arlington County COVID Hero Award, Good Neighbor Award, Community Weaver, and Arlington Best Business Award for Retail Small Business of the Year. The list maps a profile that has been recognized in culinary, civic, and local business circles, with Arlington as a consistent point of contact.
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of David
Where did David Guas work before?
David Guas's earlier career included Windsor Court Hotel, American Grilled, and Bayou Bakery, Coffee Bar & Eatery.
What recognition has David Guas received?
Arlington Magazine cover feature, Best Chef of Arlington (2014).
