Chef David Guas Is Becoming DamGoodSweet

Edited by Jennifer L. Price

Nearly 10 years ago, David Guas left his hometown of New Orleans, where he was part of the pastry team at the Windsor Court Hotel under the direction of Executive Chef Jeff Tunks, to make a move that would forever change his career path.   Guas packed all his belongings and joined his mentor Tunks in Washington, DC to open DC Coast.  This casual chic dining establishment brought dramatic change to the dining scene in the nation's capital, and in the years that followed, Passion Food Hospitality opened additional restaurants with great success.  Guas became Executive Pastry Chef of DC Coast, TenPenh, Ceiba, and Acadiana, researching and developing the dessert menus for each of the wide-ranging styles of cuisine.  

In 2004, his elegant takes on Southeast Asian and Latin desserts as well as comforting down-home favorites earned him the title of Pastry Chef of the Year from the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington.   Bon Appétit magazine named him one of eight pastry chefs titled "Dessert Stars" in the country in an issue that featured his Mexican Vanilla Bean Cheesecake with Guava Jelly and Mango Lime Salad on the cover.  Throughout his career, Guas has been acknowledged for his talented hand at making "irresistible desserts" by such well respected publications as Food & Wine, Cooking Light, Food Arts , Chocolatier, Pastry Arts & Design, Esquire, Nation's Restaurant News, The Washington Post, Food Service Monthly, and Washingtonian.  He has made regular appearances on NBC's Today Show, de-mystifying everything from pastry dough to Mardi Gras king cakes for the nationwide viewing audience.     

Now he is following Tunks' example of chefly independence, and setting off on his own.  Come Labor Day, under the name DamGoodSweet Consulting Group, Guas will launch an entrepreneurial career as a private consultant to restaurants and restaurant groups around the country, developing dessert menus, advising pastry staff, and sharing his considerable expertise with operations that recognize that perhaps their pastry departments could use a boost.

Guas will also be engaging in some local pastry catering, and devoting some of his hard-earned spare time to finishing his first dessert cookbook, to be published sometime early next year.

At about the end of 2008, we can all look forward to renewed access to Guas' sweet treats, when he opens Bayou Bakery [exact location to be determined.]  The name is a nod to his roots in Louisiana and his culinary inclination. Another major influence in his desserts today is drawn from his Cuban heritage, through his Havana-born father.   Delectables that have become his signature desserts over the past 10 years will be among the many choices offered daily, and if what the restaurant critic of The Washington Post writes about Guas' desserts is any indication – "I have yet to find a single dessert I can say no to" – that "damgoodsweet" will be well worth the wait.  

Keep your eye out for information on Chef David Guas and his endeavors.  His future experiences already include the Southern Exposure festival in Greenville, South Carolina September 14-16, and The Today Show on October 25, 2007.