Tim Ma

Tim Ma risked it all 8 years ago by leaving behind a career in engineering to follow his dream of opening a restaurant. He along with his now wife Joey, quit their jobs, moved to New York City, where he enrolled in The French Culinary Institute now, The International Culinary Center.

In 2009, Tim and Joey with the help of family and friends opened their first restaurant which they found on craigslist and funded solely on credit cards. Fast-forward to 2013, Tim and Joey opened Water & Wall, a neighborhood restaurant with modern American fare and fantastic wine program highlighting Virginia wine. Tim had always wanted to open a craft sub shop and so together with his wife they opened Chase the Submarine (Vienna) in November 2015. In March of this year, Chef Tim opened his first DC restaurant concept Kyirisan, a Chinese-French menu in a home like setting. In 2016, DC’s new Michelin Guide honored Kyirisan as a “Bib Gourmand” restaurant.