It takes more than a high-speed crash to slow down chef and restaurateur Tim Ma. The electrical engineer–turned–culinary force recently wiped out on his e-bike. But as with his business ventures, Ma got up, rebounded, and kept moving.
It’s not the first time he’s had to recover. As a Chinese American navigating both fine-dining and fast-casual terrain, Ma has built a reputation on gutsy moves — whether launching his first restaurant in Vienna in 2009 or reimagining American Chinese cuisine at his latest ventures in DC’s Chinatown.
For the 47-year-old, food isn’t just a business; it’s a calling to showcase his heritage, one that’s driven him to own or operate more than 20 restaurants over the past 16 years.
“If you look at the common thread between everything I’m doing right now, it’s all centered around culture,” says Ma. “Maybe that’s because I’m getting bold — looking back on my life and thinking, ‘What kind of impact have I made?’”
From Lucky Danger in Arlington and DC — a modern take on American Chinese takeout — to eclectic restaurants like Kata, Any Day Now, Tacocat, and Sushi Sato, Ma threads elements of his Chinese heritage throughout each concept.
Coming Full Circle
The prolific chef hails from a family of restaurateurs. Ma’s parents, both born in China, opened a Chinese restaurant called Bamboo Garden in Arkansas when he was young, and his uncle owned Paul Ma’s China Kitchen in Yorktown Heights, New York. After spending time in both Arkansas and New York, the Ma family eventually settled in Centreville. Growing up in the business sparked an early curiosity about the culinary world, but his parents had other plans.
“The typical immigrant story: [My parents] worked in tougher, blue-collar jobs. … So their kids, like all of us … went to Columbia University or Wellesley,” says Ma. “I [studied] electrical engineering at Georgia Tech, and then I did my graduate degree back here at Johns Hopkins, with a master’s in the same field.”
Ma worked as an engineer for eight years, eventually rising through the ranks at Raytheon. But by age 30, the pull to own and operate a restaurant grew too strong for him to ignore. He quit his job, sold most of his possessions, and moved to New York to attend the International Culinary Center, known at the time as the French Culinary Institute.
“It was very frowned upon by my family,” he says. “It was quite the conversation to be had, like, ‘I’m going to quit my engineering degree, spend all my money on culinary school and living in New York City, and work for $8 an hour. ’”
But Ma stayed the course. After an externship at Michelin-starred Momofuku Ko and time on the line at Momofuku Ssäm Bar, he moved to St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands, where he started fleshing out a concept for what would become his first restaurant. In 2009, after spotting a Vienna restaurant for sale on Craigslist, he made the leap.
“I bought the original Anita’s [New Mexico Style Food] off a credit card and then just figured out how to open a restaurant,” he says. “We built it on our own … putting drywall up, redoing bathrooms.”
With the help of friends, Ma and his then-wife, Joey, transformed the tiny space and opened Maple Ave Restaurant in August of 2009. After a slow start, the nine-table restaurant thrived and was named by Northern Virginia Magazine as its No. 1 restaurant in 2013. He sold the business in 2015.
“It really prepared me for where I am today,” Ma says. “Now I can navigate much bigger projects.”
He dove headfirst into a flurry of new ventures: Water & Wall in Arlington (2013 to 2017), Chase the Submarine in Vienna (2015 to 2017), Kyirisan in Shaw (2016 to 2019), and the Lucky Danger takeout in Arlington (2021). Add in his other concepts under the Tim Ma Hospitality Group, and his work as executive chef at American Son at the Eaton DC Hotel, and it’s no surprise he’s become a prolific fixture in the DMV culinary scene.
“Transitioning from an engineering career to a hospitality career takes a certain level of bravery, perseverance, and craziness, but he made that transition look seamless,” says friend Stephen Bell, a food and beverage specialist and real estate broker.
Reclaiming the Narrative
The divorced father of three admits that the pandemic gave him space to hit the reset button and reassess his priorities. He was drawn back to his roots, reminiscing about visceral childhood memories of what it means to be Chinese in America. Creating Lucky Danger as a pop-up in 2020, and then an Arlington takeout spot in 2021, Ma hoped to offer reimagined Chinese takeout.
“That was ultimately when I first developed the mission and vision for Lucky Danger,” he says. “How do you use food as a mechanism to start a conversation about the culture?”
Lucky Danger is Ma’s tribute to tradition, filtered through an inventive, American lens. The buzz has been strong: In 2021, The New York Times wrote that “Lucky Danger joins a new generation of American Chinese takeout restaurants redefining how this food is regarded.” The concept has expanded to locations in DC at Nationals Park and on D Street. And it’s coming soon to Johns Hopkins University in Maryland.
The flagship, full-service DC location’s menu includes labors of love for Ma — beef short rib and bone marrow dumplings, crab lo mein, and Chinese-style prime rib with watercress — all an homage to his heritage and culinary background.
“I think he’s got a great combination of bringing different tastes together in unique ways,” says Winston Lord, Ma’s business adviser. “It’s very approachable.”
But even as he explored creative and cultural expression through food, the rise in anti-Asian sentiment during the pandemic hit close to home. In response, Ma joined forces with fellow chef and restaurateur Kevin Tien to launch Chefs Stopping AAPI Hate (CSAH), a nonprofit dedicated to combating racism against Asian American and Pacific Islander communities. Since its founding, CSAH has raised more than $500,000 for like-minded organizations and AAPI-owned small businesses through takeout initiatives, community dinners, night markets, and high-profile fundraisers.
“In Tim, there is such a sense of empathy, of compassion,” says Pam Yee, CSAH’s executive director. “He’s driven by what he wants to do in the world, and it is to help people.”
Those close to Ma say his generosity is second nature.
“Chefs Stopping AAPI Hate is just another selfless example of him caring for others,” says Lord. “I think that translates into his food, too.”
What’s Next?
Ma shows no signs of slowing down. With several new ventures underway — including a not-yet-
announced spot in NoVA — he anticipates overseeing around 14 distinct concepts by year’s end.
For now, he’s focused on deepening his roots in DC’s Chinatown and embracing bold culinary risks that honor his Chinese heritage, all while continuing to advocate against AAPI hate. The paths may vary, but for Ma, the purpose remains deeply personal.
“There is truly a passion and joy in it for him,” says Yee. “I don’t think it’s risky. I think the safest thing for him to do is to do things that he knows and he loves.”
Feature image courtesy Tim Ma Hospitality
This story originally ran in our August issue. For more stories like this, subscribe to Northern Virginia Magazine.
