Thomas Keller wears a Rolex Cosmograph Daytona

In the third season of The Bear, Carmy stands in a stainless steel kitchen in the whites of The French Laundry, facing the chef whose restaurant they belong to. Thomas Keller plays himself, one of several working chefs the season brought in to cameo. He runs The French Laundry in Yountville and Per Se in New York, both holding three Michelin stars.

On Keller's wrist is a Rolex Cosmograph Daytona, reference 126519LN, the white gold version: a 40mm case, a black ceramic bezel scaled as a tachymeter, an Oysterflex strap. Rolex named the Daytona for the Florida speedway and built it to time a car around a track, and at retail it is one of the harder watches in the world to actually buy. The precious metal version is scarcer still than the steel one most buyers are already waiting on.

By Time and Tide's account, the production put no prop on Keller at all: the Daytona is his own watch, the one he wears off camera. The Bear is preoccupied with time. Its kitchens run on a countdown, and red digital clocks glow in the background of its tensest scenes. Keller spends the scene in a chronograph built to measure speed, worn by the chef whose cooking is known for taking its time.