Improvements in its political and tourism sectors have encouraged Lao PDR to explore export options for its traditional waxy rice varieties. As such, farmers and agriculturists are exploring ways to enhance yield and capture high-quality traits into improved varieties such as Thasano1 (TSN1) and Thadokkham1 (TDK1). In this study, the effects of nitrogen (N) on yield and quality traits were investigated in two traditional varieties, Hom Nang Nouane (HNN) and Kai Noy Leuang (KNL), and in two popular improved varieties, TDK1 and TSN1. The plants were cultivated during the 2006 wet season at the Rice and Cash Crop Research Centre, NAFRI, Lao PDR, and were subjected to four N rates. Results showed that while increased N rates enhanced yields and yield components in TDK1 and TSN1, the two traditional varieties, HNN and KNL, were not as responsive. In contrast, the quality traits assessed in this study of the four varieties were not affected by N. Yield and textural attributes further suggest that TSN1 is a better candidate than TDK1 for breeding programs aimed at combining quality traits from HNN and KNL into improved varieties.