Lucky DangerTim Ma

Tim Ma is a critically-acclaimed chef and food & beverage entrepreneur. Growing up in a family of restauranteurs, Tim's family pushed him towards an engineering career as he earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the Georgia Institute of Technology, and a Masters of Science from Johns Hopkins University. After a successful 8-year engineering career, Tim decided to pursue his passion for cooking and left it all behind - selling everything he owned and moving to New York City - to attend the French Culinary Institute, now the International Culinary Center.

Following an externship at a 2-Michelin Star Momofuku Ko, and cooking at the highly regarded Momofuku Ssam, Tim moved to St. Thomas, USVI to cook and formulate the plan for what would be his first restaurant. In 2009, Tim - along with help from dear family and friends - purchased a restaurant found on Craigslist with his last remaining credit card, remodeled it with those dear friends and family, and opened Maple Ave Restaurant on August 15, 2009.

Fast forward to 2013, Tim opened his second restaurant, Water & Wall, to rave reviews and Maple Ave was ranked the #1 restaurant in Northern Virginia. Always on the lookout for a sandwich, Chase the Submarine - Tim's dream vision for a craft sandwich shop - was brought to life in November 2015. March 2016 saw the opening of Tim's first DC restaurant, Kyirisan, which offered creative Chinese-French cooking in a modern, home-like setting, winning awards such as Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand, and an annual recurring spot in Washington Post’s Best Restaurants Dining Guide. Tim also joined as Culinary Director of healthy school meal delivery service Box’d Eats in 2017.

In September 2018, Chef Ma opened American Son, a restaurant located in Eaton DC which reimagines modern-day American cuisine and epitomizes what it genuinely is: a melting pot of diverse immigrant stories. Eaton DC is the first and flagship hotel under Eaton Workshop, a global purpose-driven company from founder Katherine Lo, at the intersection of culture, content, hospitality, wellness, and progressive social change. Lo hand-selected Chef Ma to bring to life her vision of offering new dining experiences that have a genuine point of view; and together, they are introducing a new culinary offering in Downtown D.C. that celebrates and explores what it means to be American today. In September 2019, American Son received its first nod in the Michelin Guide with the Bib Gourmand designation.

In November 2019, Tim took over as Executive Chef of Prather’s on the Alley in the Mount Vernon Square neighborhood, and also signed on as Culinary Director for Laoban Dumplings, attaching his Chinese heritage and unique culinary perspective to the humble dumpling shop. In the same month, his family was honored by the Smithsonian Museum of American History by including himself, his Uncle Paul, and their family heirlooms from their history of restaurants into the new “FOOD: Transforming the American Table 1950-2000” exhibit.

In November 2020, in the middle the pandemic, Tim founded Lucky Danger, an updated take on American Chinese take-out by a Chinese American. The concept received rave reviews by critics and guests alike, leading to 5-months of complete sell-outs every night, the cover of the Washington Post, New York Times Food section, the Wall Street Journal, among many publications. Lucky Danger currently has two locations in Arlington, VA, and Washington, DC.

In May 2021, he co-founded the Chefs Stopping AAPI Hate non-profit that was able to expand into 4 cities (NYC, DC, SF, Detroit) and raise over $200,000 in the fight against Anti-Asian hate. The non-profit was featured on the Today Show, as well as culminated in Tim and his co-founder Kevin Tien speaking at the Solidarity Against Asian Hate Rally on the National Mall.

In November 2021, Tim developed and assisted in opening Bar Chinois, a French cocktail dim-sum bar, which replaced Prather’s on the Alley and the original pop-up location of Lucky Danger. Even in its short time open so far, It has seen incredible success and blown the doors wide open for Asian-themed bars.

Upcoming for 2022, Tim has expanded once again serving as COO for Ex-Pat Ventures, which will open 2 sports bars with integrated sports gambling in Western Market at 2000 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington DC.