A Look At Our Full List of Culinary Masters 2019

We asked the best behind the burners to nominate the young guns you need to know about. Introducing the class of 2019.

By Joanna Savill 19/12/2019

What makes a great young chef? How to spot talent and how to nurture it? As with any business endeavour, there’s more to making it in the restaurant world than simply putting good food on a plate.

When we asked some of the best in the business to name the leading chefs of the future, concepts like “authenticity” and “belief systems” were clearly just as important to them as “natural talent” and “hard work”.

And so, without further faffing about, we’re excited to present the Robb Report Culinary Masters of 2019.

1. O Tama Carey

LANKAN FILLING STATION, SYDNEY

O Tama Carey

NOMINATOR: PAUL CARMICHAEL – MOMOFUKU SEIOBO, SYDNEY

“We’re in a time when people are open to more things,” says Paul Carmichael, the force behind the Caribbean-influenced menu at Momofuku Seiobo, the Sydney offshoot of the US brand run by super-chef David Chang. Here, you’ll try feisty, spice-laden dishes in a sleek but lively fine-dining space.

“Our cooking is a representation and exploration of the Caribbean region,” he explains. “I sometimes feel like a fringe dweller. But I believe if you do good things and are genuine about it, people generally like it. True passion and the ability to put it out there is definitely part of it.”

It’s a make-or-break quality that he recognises in another “fringe-dweller”, the chef and creator of Lankan Filling Station in East Sydney – O Tama Carey. “She loves what she does,” Carmichael says. “Feeding people, cooking, making people happy: that sort of stuff. The stuff that matters.”

Maldive fish? String hoppers? Short eats and pan rolls? For many, a meal at O Tama Carey’s tiny East Sydney eatery is a journey into the unknown – to the Sri Lanka her family hails from. And while her career has seen her cook everything from Chinese (with Kylie Kwong) to Italian (at Vini and Berta), it was years before she set up her own kitchen.

“I didn’t always dream of having my own place”, Carey says. “But in my mind I’d always wanted to do a hopper thing.”

Hoppers, in case you’re wondering, are soft starchy bases used to sop up rich and tangy curry sauces – whether a bowl-like lattice of rice-flour noodles (string hoppers) or the more pancake-like egg hoppers, both Sri Lankan staples. Once she’d decided that these would be the focus, Carey’s research included trying to learn her family’s recipes.

“I’d travelled to Sri Lanka, but while I knew the food, I’d never really done it professionally,” she says. “It was only when I started experimenting with making curry powders and actually cracked those that it all started to make sense.”

2. Trisha Greentree

10 WILLIAM ST, SYDNEY

NOMINATOR: DANIELLE ALVAREZ – FRED’S, SYDNEY

Their restaurants may be a stone’s throw apart, but there’s more than the ‘hood (Sydney’s Paddington) that brings Danielle Alvarez and Trisha Greentree together.

Both find their chief inspiration in fresh produce, which shines through in their cooking – it’s an approach that’s placed Fred’s among Sydney’s best. To Danielle, it’s a focus that will bring Trisha her own share of glory.

“I think true success is all about having a really strong belief system,” says Alvarez, who spent time at Alice Waters’ legendary Chez Panisse in California. “You need to have ownership of your vision and people that back you.

“I love this industry, it’s like family. And I feel so happy about the position of women now. Even compared to five years ago, it’s shifted from ‘How do we get more women?’, to ‘How do we keep more women?’. That’s a good place to be.”

“Pure curiosity and instinct” took uni-graduate Trisha Greentree into her first restaurant job while waiting to start her master’s degree. From the hatted Bird Cow Fish to working under Dan Hunter at Victoria’s Brae – Australia’s ultimate destination restaurant – she too did her time.

She also found her role models.

“People who genuinely love to cook and serve others,” she says. “People who live and breathe hospitality, not just professionally but wholeheartedly every day.”

Now heading up a small but like-minded team at cult restaurant/wine bar 10 William St, she’s found the perfect platform for her produce-focussed ethos. For Greentree, it’s all about sustainability and thoughtful farming practices.

“Nothing is more uplifting and inspiring than energetic vegetables that grew in healthy, fertile soil,” she adds.

3. Josh Niland

SAINT PETER AND THE FISH BUTCHERY, SYDNEY

NOMINATOR: KYLIE KWONG – CHEF, AUTHOR AND RESTAURATEUR

They say it takes at least 10 years to become an overnight sensation. And, not yet 30, Sydney chef Josh Niland is certainly on that trajectory. With a groundbreaking Sydney restaurant and fish business, a just-released book (The Whole Fish Cookbook) and a global tour to go with it, he’s poised for the kind of success many would merely dream of.

Three years ago, Niland and wife Julie opened Saint Peter on Sydney’s Oxford Street. It was to be no ordinary fish restaurant. From endless experimentation with less-used species and a ferocious no-waste approach, a whole new set of envelope-pushing techniques and dishes emerged.

“The potential use of fish that goes beyond the fillet inspires me every day,” Niland says. “Minimising waste and reducing our impact on the environment around us should be an innate quality in all of us, like maths or English.”

From a tartare of aged tuna served with a fish-eye cracker to chef-wife Julie’s immaculate lemon tart for dessert, it’s all bloody delicious. And as for Niland, he’s well on his way.

No stranger to national and international fame, Kylie Kwong is one of Australia’s most highly respected chefs. And she knows what it takes to get there. “An innate passion for cooking, a sense of generosity, a crystal-clear vision, an underlying commitment and focus…”

She’s also a huge Josh Niland fan. “Josh is a force of nature,” Kwong explains. “He’s highly creative, technically super-impressive, very, very bright on an emotional and intellectual level, has his feet firmly planted on the ground and supports sustainability, locally grown and harvested produce, ethical business practices and so on.” And, Kwong adds, “He’s so pleasant, humble and easy to deal with.”

4. Tom Hishon

ORPHANS KITCHEN AND DAILY BREAD, AUCKLAND, NZ

NOMINATOR: AL BROWN -DEPOT EATERY AND OYSTER BAR, FEDERAL DELICATESSEN, BEST UGLY BAGELS AND MORE, NZ

Al Brown is something of a hospitality godfather in his native New Zealand – with countless awards, and food businesses, to his name. He’s also well liked, has a great love for his industry and happily champions the next generation of chefs.

As Brown sees it, there are some fundamentals to success.

“To understand and learn the laws of basic cookery and the importance of developing a palate,” he says. “Too many young chefs these days just want to know how to use the sous-vide machine and arrange edible flowers with a pair of surgical tweezers.”

Which is why he has a lot of time for Orphans Kitchen’s Tom Hishon: “Tom is an intelligent chef who cooks with his heart. He manages to create delicious tasting food thatis also innovative, and without gimmick. I have a massive respect for what he does. He’s an all-round good guy, with a terrific philosophy around connection and love of the land.”

Tom Hishon has no hesitation in articulating his restaurant’s philosophy. “I utilise what grows around us, whether native ingredients, produce from community gardens, or from amazing farmers, fishermen or hunters,” he says. It’s a stance that’s earned him widespread respect in culinary circles and titles such as NZ Chef of the Year.

A manifesto on the Orphans Kitchen website extolls virtues such as “purity, simplicity and sustainability”, alongside more practical considerations such as “respect for New Zealand’s erratic weather”.

It means a regularly changing menu – though you can expect dishes like locally caught tarume (the Maori word for snapper) pan-seared and roasted in butter, served with a bordelaise-like sauce made from an intense fish-head and collar stock, and with local collard greens on the side.

“Super simple, but that’s what people are wanting,” he says. “That’s what I want when I eat out – good produce and a couple of nice techniques on the plate. I wanted to do a fresh take on New Zealand cuisine and our national food, and at the end of the day, just have fun.”

Fun includes an annual “root to petal” month where the whole menu is transformed into vegetarian and vegan dishes. “It allows us to explore vegetables the same way you might treat meat,” Hishon explains,

The dishes he explores include cauliflower cheese with pickled, brined cauliflower, served besides soured, smoked macadamia sour cream. “You feel great after you eat it.”

“I knew when I was 13 that I wanted to be a chef,” Hishon concludes. “I started in a dish pit in the local town, worked for great chefs in London, and essentially just tried to develop my own food style.”

5. Jo Barrett

OAKRIDGE, YARRA VALLEY

NOMINATOR: BEN SHEWRY – ATTICA, MELBOURNE

The force behind one of our best restaurants, Ben Shewry has won recognition way beyond our borders, including several World’s 50 Best Restaurants listings for Attica.

He’s always run his own race – something Jo Barrett appreciates. “I’ve always looked up to Ben,” she says. “And I love that he’s never been afraid to be creative.”

There’s plenty of mutual admiration here. When asked to nominate the young chef he’s most impressed with right now, Shewry had no hesitation in naming Barrett.

“When you are looking around at young chefs now, things have changed a bit,” says Shewry. “They’ve grown up with tools that didn’t exist for me – Instagram, for example.

But Jo doesn’t subscribe to that level of bullshit. She has such a high skill level and skill set. She focusses on all the foundational pieces you need to make a great chef.”

“I’ve always wanted to be a chef,” says Barrett. “My fondest food memories are of the veggie patch we shared with our neighbours and one of them teaching me how to make ginger beer and scones… I love gardening. And I love food!”

Co-head chef in regional Victoria with her partner Matt Stone, Jo now has the huge Oakridge Winery vegetable garden to draw on. And aside from running the dessert and pastry side of the menu, she bakes bread, makes cheese, cures salami and has even learned the pastry chef’s art of pastillage, otherwise known as ‘sugar work’.

“I figured if I wanted to be a good chef, I needed to know every section,” she explains. “Before I came to Oakridge
I was looking to be a butcher. But I signed up to do pastry and I’ve been a bit stuck in it ever since.”

A connection with the earth and the ingredients of the country is fundamental to Barrett. “I’ve always felt very spiritual, responsible for our planet,” she says. “Now, it’s about bringing the technical in with the spiritual to create nourishing food and great experiences for people.”

6. Kenny McHardy

MANUKA WOODFIRE KITCHEN, FREMANTLE, WA

NOMINATOR: DAVID COOMER -TRUFFLE FARMER AND CONSULTANT CHEF, ISLAND MARKET, TRIGG, WA

As the name of his Fremantle restaurant indicates, Kenny McHardy’s cooking is all about flames, coals and embers. And like many of this year’s Culinary Masters nominees, it’s also all about direct connections to farmers and producers.

After working under big names like Gordon Ramsay and Marcus Wareing, it was during a short stint in WA’s Great South West that the penny dropped.

“I spent a lot of time with producers and growers and fishermen and farmers,” he says. “And it sparked a concept in me that I’d never taken seriously before.”

Next step was a place of his own. That was four years ago in a former pizzeria “at the wrong end of town. We also had a one year old and a four year old so our timing was really great.” And while there are still a few pizzas on the menu – including, in season, a truffle number with potato andmornay sauce – signature dishes include a terrine of Dorper lamb and a flatbread with smoked eggplant baba ghanoush.

“Cooking never made sense to me before. But this way of working is such a natural thing to do.”

Known for such outposts as Star Anise, Pata Negra and Fuyu, WA legend David Coomer was increasingly focussing on his 11-year-old passion project – a truffle farm in the beautiful town of Manjimup – when he first worked with McHardy and a friendship and mutual admiration was born.

“Kenny is a great guy,” says Coomer. “He passionately supports local producers and works in a kitchen the size of a wardrobe, with just one piece of equipment – a wood-fired oven – from which he cooks super delicious, Mediterranean- inspired food. Manuka is just your perfect local.”

7. Hugh Allen

VUE DE MONDE, MELBOURNE

NOMINATOR: SHANNON BENNETT VUE DE MONDE, MELBOURNE

Shannon Bennett was just 24 when he opened an edgy new-wave eatery in Melbourne’s Carlton. Almost 20 years on, that restaurant is now a beacon of contemporary Australian fine dining, set on top of the city’s flamboyant Rialto Tower, and with a young head chef, Hugh Allen, 24, driving the kitchen. It’s not hard to see the similarities.

“Yeah, I see a lot of me in him,” Bennett says. “He communicates very well and also takes criticism better than he takes compliments – very similar to how I think.”

While Bennett sees the industry changes of the last decade as positive, he’s also felt his share of controversy over wages and other business practices. “We need to get rid of the tall poppy syndrome in this country and celebrate aspiration,” he states. “Customers’ expectations are changing, too. They’re really looking for aspirational dining.”

Following his leader’s mantra, it’s all about aspiration for Hugh Allen – and it comes from his three years at the ultra-famous Noma in Copenhagen (currently No. 2 on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list).

“Noma was a tough time but it was amazing, even though I was exhausted for three years,” Allen recalls. “But the energy was incredible – everyone had come just to be at Noma.”

Returning to Vue, where he’d earlier completed his apprenticeship, he was inspired by the Noma philosophy of celebrating ‘time and place’.

Now he’s bent on showcasing the best of Australia to overseas visitors and locals alike with dishes such as hand-dived sea urchin on bunya nut cream, and kangaroo cured on a warm salt rock.

“I want to celebrate Australia. And I want to be somewhere people are excited to come – the best of the best,” he adds.

8. Kane Pollard

TOPIARY, ADELAIDE

NOMINATOR: JOCK ZONFRILLO – ORANA, ADELAIDE.

Jock Zonfrillo is on a high. He’s just wrapped up a two-month pop-up in Sydney, bringing the native-ingredient-centred tasting menu of his hit Adelaide fine-diner Orana to a wider audience, and receiving great acclaim in the process.

“Everyone loved it,” Zonfrillo says excitedly. “It’s an acknowledgement of the value of those ingredients and the culture they’re coming from.”

Temporary is also a way forward, he says, at a time when the traditional bricks-and-mortar model is challenged by soaring rents, wages and fit-out costs. And he believes younger chefs have already worked that out.

“When I was young, people had to push me and drag me kicking and screaming in the right direction. But someone like Kane is intelligent enough to know that he is good and that success will come for the right reasons.”

Kane is Kane Pollard – the young chef behind Topiary, a simple modern-Australian eatery in a plant nursery on the city fringe. Pollard’s cooking has wowed even the chefs Jock hosts for the annual Tasting Australia festival.

“And yet it’s not trying to be anything other than a really nice restaurant in a garden centre – one that recognises its customer base and works to its strengths.”

Level-headed and below the radar, Pollard is already where he needs to be says Jock: “He cooks delicious food with good produce and knows where it comes from. If the next generation are all like him, we’re in very safe hands.”

Kane Pollard grew up in the Adelaide Hills as part of a market-gardening family. “Holidays were spent pulling stinging nettles from the rows of rhubarb or planting seeds for the next crop of Brussels sprouts. I’d go exploring, wading through the masses of wild fennel, dodging spiky chestnuts or picking blackberries. I think that’s where my interest in ingredients, and how your senses react, began.”

Starting in local pubs at 15, he picked up the basics and went on to learn the tougher lessons, like the importance of discipline, quality control and organisation in the kitchen. “I also learned that creativity is what keeps you positive. And the more I pushed myself to create the more I wanted to jump out of bed in the morning.”

Fast-forward to now and the beautiful garden surrounds of his Adelaide-foothills restaurant. “Being involved in the planting, growing, harvesting, foraging and searching is really important to me.” He also shares the strong no-waste philosophy of today’s best and brightest.

Ultimately though, Pollard’s real motivation is his creativity.  And making people happy. “If someone says that was the best dessert they’ve ever had, then it’s a good day, because you know no matter what, they’ll always remember that.”

 

 

 

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How Off-the-Rack Suits Got Sophisticated Enough to Win Over Bespoke Guys

Ready-to-wear tailoring has never been better, and it offers even the most particular dressers a fast, easy platform for experimenting with their look.

By Aleks Cvetkovic 18/02/2025

The world moves fast—and for once, tailoring is moving a little bit faster.

Guys around the globe are rediscovering their love of suits, but many have determined that they can’t stomach the monthslong wait for bespoke. The good news? Ready-to-wear tailoring has never been better.

That’s in part because bespoke makers are beefing up their off-the-rack offerings. Anderson & Sheppard’s shop-in-store at N.Y.C.’s Bergdorf Goodman—the first outpost beyond its London flagship— opened in December with, among other things, a sharp wool-and-cashmere jacket in a delightful shade of teal. Huntsman’s recent fall-winter collection, billed as its most comprehensive assortment yet, offered everything from tuxedos to shooting breeches. Even Leonard Logsdail, Hollywood’s highly esteemed bespoke purveyor, is experimenting with hem-and-go models.

But non-custom tailors are upping the ante, too. Some of the best ready-to-wear suits on the market come from such brands, whose wholly distinctive points of view provide a welcome departure from the rigidity of many bespoke tailors’ house styles. The preponderance and diversity of such high-quality, easy-to-access threads has recast off-the-rack suits as the ultimate way to experiment with your look, not just a way for some to get dressed on the cheap. What’s more, it reflects the new reality that even people who suit up regularly might want to show up looking different on Thursday night than they did on Tuesday morning.

“Life nowadays is much more fluid,” says Chris Modoo, a London-based stylist who once worked as a tailor on Savile Row. “Things happen, invitations appear. You might get an invite for a black-tie party in the South of France for next Saturday.” Ready-to-wear is the obvious solution when you’re in a last-minute menswear quandary, but “it also means you can try new things.”

One maker worth a test-drive is Husbands Paris, founded by Nicolas Gabard, who sees his role as an “archivist of the past.” His look, inspired by stylish men such as Yves Saint Laurent, David Hemmings, and Gary Cooper, is unabashedly striking—think long, fully canvased jackets, broad lapels, structured shoulders, and wide-leg, high-waisted trousers. These wares are made in small workshops in Italy and Portugal, where craftspeople infuse them with high-end details such as hand-sewn buttonholes and silk bar tacks, a form of stitching that reinforces seams and pockets.

Thom Sweeney L.A. store Brett Wood

They’re the kind of touches any menswear enthusiast can appreciate—even if they’re the trees to Gabard’s style forest. Clothes like this are designed as a form of wearable self-assurance, enhancing what Gabard calls a “classically masculine” silhouette: broad shoulders, slim waist, narrow hips.

“Of course, tailoring has to fit well, but it also has to bring something else,” he says. “More and more [Husbands] customers want to be confident, powerful, and sexy in their outfit.”

When you want to look more suave than soigné, turn to the indie Milanese brand Massimo Alba, which is known for its chic casualwear but made its name with easygoing tailoring. “A great suit is not just about the way it fits but about the way it makes you feel,” says the eponymous label’s founder of his relaxed approach. “For me, the essence lies in balance, between structure and softness, elegance and ease. In my opinion, a suit should adapt to the wearer, not the other way around.”

Alba’s creations are cut from plush materials such as corduroy and flannel, featuring natural shoulders and only the lightest of canvasing in the chest, which results in a less-formal look. Which is not to say they aren’t workhorses: Daniel Craig wore one of Alba’s Sloop suits to dodge bullets in 2021’s James Bond film No Time to Die. “I always focus on fabrics that move with the body, details that whisper rather than shout, and cuts that allow for freedom,” Alba adds.

And freedom is precisely what this newfound inventory of great ready-to-wear tailoring provides. Modoo advises some clients to look to bespoke tailors for investment-level garments, such as morning suits, tuxedos, or the dark, serious stuff you might need for a funeral or odd courtroom appearance. “You know you’re going to wear these for 10 or 15 years,” he says. Let the new class of distinctive ready-to-wear step in when you want to try something that just wouldn’t make sense as a bespoke order. “Your pink-velvet blazer for the Christmas party? How well does that need to fit?”

London bespoke tailor Caroline Andrew is one of many who admits ready-to-wear has its place. Courtesy of Caroline Andrew

Fortunately, with so many options available, the fit is easier to dial in. You can expect most high-end operations to make a long list of changes, from ensuring that the seat of the trousers drapes appropriately to cutting working buttonholes on the jacket. For a peerless experience, you can always reach for garments from one of the many talented bespoke tailors offering ready-to-wear. At Thom Sweeney, such clothes are “all influenced by our bespoke cut,” says Thom Whiddett, who cofounded the brand with Luke Sweeney in 2007. “You try on [our ready-to-wear] jacket, and you immediately get a sense of the proportions and shapes that we put into a bespoke garment.”

That alluring sense of near-instant gratification is the point. For some, nothing will ever replace the distinguished feeling of slipping into a bench-made suit—and plenty are willing to wait for it.

“You have to mentally buy into the process and enjoy it,” says Caroline Andrew, a London bespoke specialist. “The journey is just as important as the finished product.” But ready-to-wear sets the time-strapped tailoring enthusiast down a different path: discovering new facets of your personal style at a record pace.

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Tom Brady Wears a Jacob & Co. Watch Decked in Yellow Sapphires to the Super Bowl

The $740,000 Caviar Tourbillon was an opulent choice for the former NFL star.

By 17/02/2025

Tom Brady was on the field tonight at the 59th annual Super Bowl game, and while the retired NFL hero—a seven-time Super Bowl winner (the most of any footballer in history)—wasn’t playing, he came dressed to impress with a $116,400 Jacob & Co. watch on his wrist.

Brady, who is a notable watch collector, recently sold off several of his timepieces at a Sotheby’s auction called “The GOAT Collection: Watches and Treasures from Tom Brady” this past December. Those timepieces ran the gamut from a Rolex Daytona Ref. 6241 to a unique Audemars Piguet Royal Oak with his name spelled out in diamonds across the salmon-colored tapisserie dial. His Rolex Daytona sold for over $1.5 million, and, in total, his auction raked in around $7 million. So, he’s well-equipped for a new watch purchase.

Whether or not he owns the six-figure sapphire stunner or it was a paid spot, the watch certainly stood out against his conservative but immaculately fit gray suit. “Tom Brady is the epitome of excellence, both on and off the field,” said Benjamin Arabov, CEO of Jacob & Co, in a press release sent out by the company shortly after Brady’s appearance. “We’re thrilled to see him wearing two of our most prestigious timepieces on the biggest stage in sports. The Billionaire Mini Ashoka and Caviar Tourbillon embody the precision, luxury, and innovation that define Jacob & Co. We’re honored to have him represent the artistry and craftsmanship behind every piece we create.”

Like much of Brady’s wrist candy, his 44 by 15.8 mm Caviar Tourbillon is not easy to come by. It is limited to just 18 pieces. It features hours, minutes, and a one-minute flying tourbillon in the JCAA43 movement with 216 components and 72 hours of power reserve. The movement itself is set with 338 brilliant-cut diamonds, while a total of 337 yellow sapphires adorn the case and dial. The clasp is decorated with another 18 baguette-cut yellow sapphires, and the crown comes with 14 baguette-cut yellow sapphires and one rose-cut yellow sapphire. As far as gem setting goes, this is one extraordinary piece, but it certainly seemed like a surprising choice for Brady, who was otherwise dressed like he just stepped out of a boardroom or a Ralph Lauren catalog.

Benjamin Arabov, son of Jacob & Co. founder Jacob Arabov, is now the CEO of the company. The 32-year-old recently took to Instagram to post that he was looking for a rebranding agency with experience in visual identity and packaging. As far as marketing goes, however, with Tom Brady, he’s golden.

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This Vintage Rolex Day-Date Has an Ultra-Rare and Coveted ‘Bark’ Design

The ultra-cool piece from Wind Vintage also comes in pristine condition with a desirable patina.

By Paige Reddinger 17/02/2025

Over the last four years there has been a resurgence in interest for 18-karat yellow gold watches. Much of that is due to fatigue over the long-running craze for steel tool watches, but it is also in part due to the rising value of gold (which shows no sign of slowing), rendering these once undesirable pieces increasingly worth collecting. Add to that the fact that, in some niche and stylish circles, unusual bracelet treatments, gem-setting, and interesting dials are becoming increasingly appealing and you have a new wave of watch collecting emerging. Steel sports watches are still the bread and butter for most dealers, but as pockets of interest in more unusual timekeepers, often from younger and fashion-forward collectors, continue to rise we’re seeing some really fun pieces pop up on the market. Case in point: This 1980s Rolex Day-Date in 18-karat yellow gold with a sapphire and diamond dial from Wind Vintage currently available exclusively on The Vault.

It wasn’t that long ago that dealers had a hard time unloading an all-gold gem-set piece. Eric Wind, the notable dealer and founder of Wind Vintage, says five years ago he would have sold this piece for around $23,000 to $28,000. The asking price today? $45,000. “It is very rare,” he tells Robb Report. “I think that was all clearly hand-done. Funnily enough, bark watches were not very desirable in the past. You know, even five to 10 years ago, they were very, very hard to sell. But, over the last three to five years, there’s been such an emergence and interest in jewellery and watches and work like that engraving and other kind of artistic forms that the watches took.” The style of engraving he is referring to on this watch can be seen on the bezel and middle links of the bracelet that is referred to as “bark” for its rough tree-like appearance.

“Bark” engraving on the bezel and bracelet of the Wind Vintage 1980s Rolex Day-Date
Courtesy of Wind Vintage

And while the bracelet is certainly a notable feature that will stand out in a sea of Submariners and Daytonas, the dial is also worth bragging about. Its diamond minutes track and sapphire hour markers are executed in what is known as a “string dial” because it looks like a string of pearls. “They’ve become very popular,” says Wind. “They were very expensive back in the 80s, just because of the cost of the stones, and there are just not many that exist on the planet.” Likewise, Wind says the canary yellow matte dial is not something he comes across often, having only seen a couple of others.

An up-close look at the patina and “bark” engraving on this 1980s Day-Date from Wind Vintage.
Courtesy of Wind Vintage

Part of what makes this watch so hard to find on the market is that pieces like this often didn’t survive past their ’80s heyday. “A lot of times these watches were so undesirable that dealers would replace the bezel inserts and put on fluted inserts, or smooth bezels or fluted bezels and melt down the bracelets or polish the center link so they looked like a standard Day-Date. Those dealers should have learned that what goes around, always comes around. Now with these interesting Rolex watches on the rise, they’ll become even harder to find.

A Wind Vintage 1980s Day-Date with “bark” engraving and a gem-set “string dial”
Courtesy of Wind Vintage

If you’re interested in the piece and want to speak to Wind about it IRL, he will be at Robb Report’s House of Robb event in San Francsico today during the NBA All-Star weekend.

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Soccer Star Kylian Mbappé Is Now an Investor in Watch Marketplace Wristcheck

Just like Jay-Z.
Published on February 7, 2025

By Abby Montanez 11/02/2025

Kylian Mbappé just went from brand ambassador to investor.

The celebrated French footballer, who currently plays for Real Madrid, has taken a stake in luxury watch trading platform Wristcheck, Hypebeast reported lat week.

Off the filed, the 26-year-old soccer star is a known timepiece collector and has served as an ambassador for Swiss marque Hublot since 2018. With this new partnership, the forward joins a growing group of influential backers, including Jay-Z. The rapper and business mogul took an equity stake in the Hong Kong-based company last summer as part of a recent funding round of $7.9 million.

“I’m thrilled to join Wristcheck as an investor through Coalition Capital,” Mbappé said in a press statement. “As a Hublot ambassador and someone passionate about watches and innovation, I see Wristcheck as a platform that truly understands the next generation of collectors. They’re reshaping the watch industry with a forward-thinking approach that blends technology, transparency, and creativity.” Mbappé did not immediately respond to Robb Report‘s request for comment on his new business endeavor.

Kylian Mbappé is an investor in online watch shop Wristcheck.
Tnani Badreddine/DeFodi Images via Getty Images

Launched in 2020 by renowned horophile and Instagram personality Austen Chu, Wristcheck offers a platform for collectors to buy and sell pre-owned watches that have been authenticated by Swiss-trained watchmakers. Since it was founded, the company has raised more than $21.6 million in funding from investors including the Alibaba Entrepreneurs Fund, Gobi Partners GBA, and K3 Ventures.

Mbappé, meanwhile, has achieved remarkable success in his soccer career. He won the 2018 FIFA World Cup with France, becoming the youngest player to score in a final since Pelé. At PSG, he has secured multiple Ligue 1 titles and domestic cups. Individually, Mbappé has earned the Ligue 1 Player of the Year award and regularly features in top European scoring charts. And in 2020, he was ranked the world’s highest-paid player, surpassing rivals Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

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Sotheby’s Will Put on the Largest Auction of Breguet Watches in Decades This Fall

To celebrate the revered watchmaking house’s 250th anniversary, the sale includes rare collectibles belonging to living Breguet family members.

By Paige Reddinger 11/02/2025

Interest in Breguet has experienced a quiet resurgence among savvy collectors who appreciate the brand’s deep-rooted watchmaking heritage. This growing enthusiasm will soon take center stage with an upcoming auction that shines a significant spotlight on the storied Maison.

Founded in Paris 250 years ago, Abraham-Louis Breguet was one of the most influential watchmakers in history, best known for inventing the tourbillon and the automatic winding system—along with many other groundbreaking innovations. His legacy continues to inspire modern masters such as F.P. Journe and Philippe Dufour. You can see Breguet’s influence pointedly in pieces like F.P. Journe’s famous Chronomètre à Résonance timepiece, voted one of Robb Report‘s 50 Greatest Watches of All Time.

Now, Sotheby’s has announced “the largest sale of Breguet timepieces in three decades.” Though the auction won’t take place until November, the auction house is already working to build anticipation. In the meantime, it might be wise to brush up on the most coveted Breguet references.

Breguet 1827 Perpétuelle à Tact watch made for King George IV Breguet

What may pique collectors’ interest is the sale is being curated in conjunction with Breguet and Emmanuel Breguet, the vice president and head of patrimony, who happens to be a descendant of the original Monsieur Breguet. So far, the only timekeeper publicly associated (at least visually) with the auction is the 1827 Perpétuelle à Tact watch made for King George IV. Still, it hints at the historic level of pocket watches, wristwatches, and clocks that will be on offer. Abraham-Louis Breguet was a frequent supplier of high-end and state-of-the-art timepieces for royalty, including Marie Antoinette, Napoleon Bonaparte, and King George III.

Other highlights include an open-faced montre à tact (a watch that replicates the internal hour hand on the cover of the pocket watch via an arrow so that time could be read via touch) with a calendar and moonphase indications that was the inspiration for the Ref. 3330. A pendulette with alarm, perpetual calendar and repeater, and a two-color gold open-faced tourbillon watch is said to be a part of the sale, although no images were provided as of press time. More info on what will be in the sale will come this spring.

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