10 December 2025
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On a quiet afternoon in Thao Dien — Saigon’s bohemian-luxury enclave — the serene villa of CieL set the stage for a conversation with Viet Hong Le, the chef-founder and winner of the MICHELIN Guide Vietnam 2025 Young Chef Award.
Wearing a simple T-shirt and carrying a calm, gentle presence, the Saigonese chef greeted guests in the garden that wraps around the main villa. The space blends warmth with a touch of intrigue, defined by striking contrasts. Inside, the dining room is pristine and professional; just beyond a large glass wall, a lush garden unfolds, anchored by a bold graffiti mural that injects a hint of wild, youthful energy.
“Fine dining is still a new experience for many Vietnamese diners. For those unfamiliar with it, walking into a space that feels too luxurious or formal can be intimidating. That’s why CieL welcomes guests with a graffiti-covered wall. It creates a lively vibe and signals that the service here is friendly, open and relaxed,” Hong explained.
Hong’s path to the kitchen was anything but predictable. Raised in a modest yet comfortable family, he barely cooked during his school years. On the rare occasions he did step into the kitchen, it was only to make instant noodles or fry an egg. He went on to study business at university, but in 2010, after his first year, he took a part-time service job at a five-star hotel in Ho Chi Minh City — and everything began to change.
“Back then, Vietnam’s F&B scene wasn’t as developed as it is now. The best dining experiences and top chefs were all in hotel restaurants,” Hong recalled. “One day, I found out chefs earned quite a good salary and had the chance to train abroad. That’s when I decided to pursue this path seriously.”
He soon moved into the hotel kitchen, but the reality was far from glamorous. The pay for a kitchen assistant or commis chef was modest, and shifts often stretched beyond ten hours a day. Yet what he gained — hands-on experience and the guidance of seasoned mentors — proved far more valuable than any paycheck.
In 2015, sensing it was time to move beyond hotel kitchens, Hong set out on a new path with the help of an unnamed friend he considers a guiding figure in his career. “She gave me the chance to train abroad, and I chose France.”
“I’ve always admired Chef André Chiang, the celebrated chef behind the former Two-MICHELIN-Star Restaurant André in Singapore. He’s well known for blending classic French techniques with Asian creativity and precision. In his book Octaphilosophy: The Eight Elements of Restaurant André, he wrote that for any young chef aspiring to earn a MICHELIN Star, there are two places to go: France and Japan.”
Hong then left for Paris to attend L’École Ferrandi. But what stayed with him most wasn’t just the technique. “France gave me a true love for food,” he recalled. “People cook everywhere — in alleyways, in grand restaurants. They listen to the ingredients, experiment and create something soulful. French cuisine, when made in France, just feels more alive.”
After completing internships at the restaurants Le Bien Aime and Le Marine in France, Hong went on to work at noma in Copenhagen and Disfrutar in Barcelona.
“For chefs, noma is like Harvard. Almost every young chef dreams of going there, even just for a short time, to learn and be inspired,” he said. “What I truly absorbed was their mindset. Despite being a Three-MICHELIN-Star restaurant, their service was so warm and welcoming, it felt like home. That’s what I’ve brought to CieL. I want people to walk in and instantly feel a sense of comfort.”
Hong returned to Vietnam in 2019 and began a new chapter with The Monkey Gallery, where he met his future business partner, Mai Thanh Liem, and shared his vision for CieL — a dream inspired by his walks under the Parisian sky.
“Ciel means ‘sky’ in French,” Hong explained. “When I was in Paris, I got into this habit of always looking up while walking down the street or sitting by a window. The sky was constantly changing. One moment it was blue, then gray, then glowing gold. There was something about it that made me feel free, like anything was possible.”
But CieL didn’t launch right away. The world was hit by the pandemic. The F&B industry suffered deeply. And the two young men needed more time to work, save and prepare for their big dream.
“Cooking is a journey of knowledge and emotion. Go out and see the world. Let your skills and spirit be shaped by different cultures.”
“I wanted to bring the sky into my restaurant. A real sky, not just one painted on the ceiling. I wanted a garden inside. I wanted a graffiti wall. That’s why the space for CieL had to be built from the ground up — we couldn’t just repurpose an existing venue.”
During this preparation phase, Hong traveled to Japan, the second destination Chef André Chiang had recommended to aspiring chefs. There, he joined the team at SÉZANNE, a Three-MICHELIN-Star contemporary French restaurant in Tokyo led by Chef Daniel Calvert, known for its refined technique, seasonal Japanese produce and understated elegance.
“The restaurant in my heart is SÉZANNE,” Hong reflected. “It was there that my culinary identity fully came together — a triangle composed of French technique, Japanese minimalism and Vietnamese ingredients.”
So how does that triangle come to life at CieL? “Every dish starts with the ingredient, whether it’s wild duck, fish maw, asparagus, lobster or watercress. Then I test different techniques — frying, roasting, steaming, fermenting, making sauces — to find the one that lets the ingredient shine.”
The menu at CieL doesn’t follow a specific cuisine, nor is it fusion. “I create freely, starting with the best ingredients I can find, whether local or global.”
“To me, Vietnamese ingredients have such distinct flavors that define our cuisine, like aromatic herbs or wild duck. Around times like Lunar New Year, when local supply is abundant, up to 70% of CieL’s menu is made with Vietnamese ingredients. But at other times of the year, availability becomes a factor.”
To better manage the supply of Vietnamese produce and elevate ingredient quality, Hong and his CieL team have developed their own farms, using customized methods for cultivation and animal raising. For example, when raising ducks or chickens, they design the feed themselves — mixing husked rice and grains — to achieve the exact fat content they want in the meat.
At the MICHELIN Guide Ceremony Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang 2025, held in Da Nang, Hong received both a One MICHELIN Star and the MICHELIN Young Chef Award 2025. He recalled, “I heard my name called and walked from my seat to the stage. During that short minute, I thought of my team, of everyone who has been a part of CieL, whether they’re still here or have moved on. The Young Chef Award and the MICHELIN Star aren’t just personal achievements — they belong to the whole team.”
Success didn’t come without its thorns. In CieL’s early days, driven by the goal of earning a MICHELIN Star within the first year, Hong pushed himself and his team to the edge — fourteen-hour workdays, a six-person crew handling the workload of twelve, and nonstop research and testing of new dishes.
It wasn’t until a team member resigned that Hong paused and reconsidered his approach. He realized that for a restaurant to be truly sustainable, he first needed to create a sustainable life for himself and his team. Only a cohesive, passionate and balanced team can infuse each dish and every detail of service with the warmth and sense of freedom that define CieL.
Looking ahead, Hong remains both grounded and ambitious. “We’re just at the beginning with CieL. The journey is still young, and I always remind myself and the team that there’s still so much to learn.”
That belief also shapes his advice to younger chefs: “Cooking is a journey of knowledge and emotion. Go out and see the world. Let your skills and spirit be shaped by different cultures. Without realizing it, all of that will show in the food you create.”
This spirit of constant learning is also woven into CieL’s design. At the heart of the restaurant, a skylight opens directly above the central kitchen. Diners can sit around it, enjoying their meal while watching the chefs at work and glancing up at a sliver of the Saigon sky.
For Chef Hong, though, the skylight carries a deeper meaning. “There’s a Vietnamese saying, ‘A frog sitting at the bottom of a well.’ It reminds us how limited our view of the world can be. That’s why we must never stop expanding our knowledge, perspective and understanding.”
