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Four + One Meet The Power Couple Who Share Restaurants And Rolex

Jimmy and Yen Ly of Madame – and now Monsieur – Vo are a horological match made in heaven.

Jimmy Ly is the chef and proprietor of the venerable New York City noodle spot Madame Vo. Recently, Ly – along with his wife and business partner, Yen – opened a second location, aptly named Monsieur Vo, serving up Vietnamese dishes that specifically pay tribute to fathers, brothers, and uncles whereas the O.G. Vo drew inspiration from the strong female cooking presence in Ly's life.

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I had a chance to meet Chef Ly at the opening of his new restaurant, and while I'm no food critic I'll take a page out of James Stacey's book and just say…chef's kiss. While I was eating my little vegetarian heart out, Ly approached me to say hello and the first thing I noticed was the white-dial, ceramic Daytona adorning his wrist. This was a watch guy, and I had to know his origin story.

Chef Kimmy and Yen

As with many of us, that story begins with his father who always had a watch. His dad came to the United States not speaking any English but became a successful entrepreneur. Along the way, he collected watches from Rado, Movado, Rolex, and a very special Vacheron. It was through his dad that Ly learned about brands like TAG Heuer which he owned in his younger days. But the first watch his dad ever bought him was a G-Shock, a "neon green stopwatch G-Shock," Ly recalls. "I showed it off to my friends because I wanted to be like my dad."

Years later, Ly would begin his collecting journey in earnest. Shortly after the opening of Madame Vo in 2017 he traveled to Vietnam, and it was there he purchased his first AP – a platinum Royal Oak chronograph (so you know he wasn't messing around). Then his mother gifted him his first ever Rolex – the Batman – and that's when the adventure truly began.

Chef Jimmy

The best part though is that he shares his passion for watches with his wife Yen. She might not be quite as fanatical as he is, but on the night I ate at Monsieur Vo, his wasn't the first watch I spotted. No, it was Yen's – a black ceramic 34mm AP Royal Oak that first caught my eye. Pretty cool.

Ly is the sort of chef who cares deeply about this hobby, but he also loves to cook with a watch on. Let's take a look at four pieces from his collection – plus one special place he can't stop thinking about these days.


The Four
Vintage Vacheron Constantin Patrimony

Some watches hold more meaning than others. When it comes to this particular Vacheron, Ly remembers it as being a core component of his father's watch collection and one of the foundational pieces that lead to his own enthusiasm for the hobby.

VC Patrimony

It goes deeper than that. This VC was also a gift from Ly's father – but not to him. "My dad really gave that to my wife when we got married," Ly says. "That was his gift to her, welcoming her as his daughter-in-law – it was the watch he had forever."

His and Hers Rolex Daytonas

Not many couples have the distinct pleasure of owning his and hers pieces – but Ly and Yen do in the form of a rose gold Daytona on a bracelet and a yellow gold model with the flat black dial and red accents – the modern Paul Newman – on an Oysterflex bracelet.

Everose Daytona
Gold Daytona on Oysterflex

"These two pieces I bought together because we got reviewed in The New York Times and it was such a milestone for us," Ly says. "We were the first Vietnamese restaurant to be reviewed by Pete Wells, so I bought these watches to commemorate that memory – me and my wife's achievement."

Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Black Ceramic Collaboration With Carolina Bucci (Edition of 300)

As I mentioned earlier, Yen was wearing a 34m black ceramic AP Royal Oak the night I met her – but not the one I expected. The standard 34mm ceramic RO (with black dial) was a watch she wanted for some time and was a watch she found herself on a very long waitlist for. But during her time on that waitlist, something else happened. Their authorized dealer informed them that another, yet-to-be-released watch was coming down the pike that they might be interested in.

Black ceramic AP Royal Oak

It turns out that staff from the boutique came to eat at their restaurant one night, and Yen just happened to be wearing her own salmon-dial RO, which Ly thinks may have sealed the deal for what was to come: this extra special, and limited variation on the black ceramic format with its colorful dial.

Black ceramic AP Royal Oak

Needless to say, the two of them rushed out to the AD to pick it up as soon as they got word, and now she wears it proudly at the front of the house.

Omega Seamaster Diver 300m 007 Edition

This is the watch Ly wears in the kitchen – his chef's watch. "This is the watch I kind of just bang around, I mean, it's James Bond," Ly says. "I remember watching Daniel Craig's interviews about the design process where he was talking about how he wanted it to be a tank, but light. He wanted it to do damage."

Omega Seamaster 007 Edition

Of course, Ly is a chef, not a secret agent (to our knowledge) but the watch still appeals to him. "I'm not going out of my way to do damage," he says. "But I am a little bit less mindful when I'm wearing this piece. I'm not as stressed. I'm worried more about what I have to do than, 'oh, I gotta be careful with my watch!'''

But it doesn't end there. "To be honest with you, Daniel Craig eats at my restaurant."


The One
The Restaurant: Monsieur Vo

What else would a chef pick? This is Ly's domain, his sanctuary. His new restaurant, Monsieur Vo is a special place because it is a location that has endured the face of countless challenges during pandemic times. It was the site of Madame Vo BBQ prior to the trials and tribulations that 2020 brought.

Monsieur Vo

"The pandemic happened and it crushed us," Ly says. "And then later there was a fire next door to us so they boarded up the whole block plus the pandemic. There was just one thing after another. We cried, I cried, I was gonna give it up."

But he and Yen persisted, and through it all, reimagined the site and opened it late last year as Monsieur Vo, where the vibes are great, and the food is even better. Just ask Daniel Craig.