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Four Sisters

April 26, 2022 by chito

When Thanh and Kim Lai with their six children immigrated to the US from Vietnam in 1982, they dreamed of opening a restaurant that sold street food — a taste of home from Ho Chi Minh. The first rung towards that goal was a 30-seat restaurant in the Eden Center that served Thanh’s unique recipes. Thanh’s cooking was such a hit, that their restaurant was featured in Anthony Bourdain’s ‘No Reservation’.

The next rung was when they decided to to open a new restaurant in Virginia’s Mosaic District called Four Sisters named for their four daughters — Ly, Le, Lo-Ann and Lieu.

Now their son, Hoi Lai and his wife, Joyce has opened an eatery in Clarendon, VA., on April 2014 with the same name, but with a fast-casual concept. The menu consists of appetizers, banh mi sandwiches, pho, vermicelli bowls and rice dishes.

I was invited by the Lai’s to cover the Grand Opening which kicked off with a Vietnamese lion and dragon dance and face painting.

“When a lion enters a restaurant, it symbolizes the removal of negative energies and brings good fortune, health and prosperity,” said Hoa.

Joyce Lai receiving face painting

Hat Boi is a traditional art form for Vietnamese people.

Children feed the lion lucky money in red envelopes known as ‘Li Xi’.

Then from the corner of my eye, I saw her. She looked Vietnamese but then she looked half Caucasian. She had short brown hair with golden highlights and matching horned rim glasses. Dressed in a casual pink tank top she seemed to be enjoying her Banh Mi. It was topped with carrots, jalapeños and cilantro and I noticed she had soaked the lemongrass pork with a healthy dose of Sriracha sauce.

I ordered a Singha beer and some crispy spring rolls and introduced myself.

“Christine,” she said as she wiped her hand on a napkin and reached to shake mine.

“Beautiful day for a Banhi Mi, isn’t it?” I asked.

“Yes it’s a beautiful, sunny day.”

“Do you like to eat out a lot?”

“From time to time, but I’m pretty skilled in the kitchen.”

“What do you like to cook?”

“Everything but I prefer fish. And I’m partial to the cuisine of my home country.”

“Superb. Always exciting to see a new Vietnamese restaurant opening in Arlington isn’t it?”

“Absolutely, I’m a big fan of Four Sisters.”

“How’s your lemongrass pork BTW?”

“Tender and bursting with flavors, but I’d rather have a lemongrass margarita.”

“Haha, wouldn’t we all.

Hoa Lai making preps for the Grand Opening

Photos by

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Photos by Skvora Limited Media

Related posts:

Iron Chef
Hong Kong Pearl Dim Sum
Greene Turtle Hot Sauce

Filed Under: VA Tagged With: Vietnamese

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After I retired from the Navy, I attended George Washington University to earn my MBA. I left with a diploma, and with a food tech startup called RUNINOut. Our goal was to add as many restaurants, stores and attractions to the directory and after running it for five years, I felt I had oversaturated the local Washington, DC market. It was time to take RUNINOut on the road. In order for my startup to grow, I had to add more restaurants – that meant getting outside the Beltway and exploring the highways and byways in small town suburbia. I bought a truck and drove cross-country for two years. Here's my adventures in the Washington, DC area and beyond.

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