An Arlington chef and business owner from New Orleans is feeling both pain and hometown pride in the aftermath of the city’s terror attack on New Year’s Day.
David Guas, owner of Bayou Bakery, Coffee Bar & Eatery in Courthouse, first heard about the tragedy on Wednesday morning. Hours earlier, an attacker had driven a truck into a New Year’s Eve crowd on Bourbon Street, killing 14 people and wounding about 30 others.
Stunned, Guas immediately checked in on at least a dozen friends and relatives who live in New Orleans.
“It was just an empty, numbing feeling,” he told ARLnow. “That’s always sort of the torn element of emotion, that you can’t physically be in the city while the city is going through that. You can’t physically go hug a family member.”
Guas’ loved ones were thankfully safe, but pain lingers for the New Orleans native, whose culinary career is rooted in the city’s culture. He said these last few days have been particularly difficult as more news about the attack has been revealed.
“It’s hard to say ‘all the best for a new year,’ and wishing everybody the best, when you literally are one foot out the gate on day one, and you see this on the news,” Guas said.
In a somber time, Guas has been reflecting on the Christian holiday of Epiphany, which marks the start of the Mardi Gras season in New Orleans on Jan. 6. Commemorating visit of the Magi to the infant Jesus, it’s a day that, for Guas, signals “revelation and insight.”
“We look toward the next thing, to try to find some kind of salvation or some kind of ease on emotion,” Guas added.
In keeping with New Orleans tradition, Guas’ bakery will soon again be filled with a seasonal staple: king cakes. Bayou Bakery has produced them annually since its 2010 founding, receiving national acclaim.
For Guas, those cakes and other traditions around Mardi Gras now symbolize standing united with his hometown in “remembrance and resilience.” He noted the king cake’s sprinkle colors of gold, green and purple, which represent power, faith and justice — values to hold onto during a difficult time.
Guas expressed gratitude for all the support he’s received in Arlington since the attack, and said that his heart goes out to his hometown and the families of the victims.
“Even though I’ve lived in Northern Virginia for 26 years, [New Orleans is] always home,” he said.
