Below Deck Mediterranean: We’ve lost one chef already, will Anastasia be next?

Below Deck Mediterranean has been plagued by staff problems this season, and third-stew-turned-chef, Anastasia, is not immune to those problems.

Below Deck Mediterranean has lost one chef already, will Anastasia be next?  Chef Mila was fired after a few charters, and in the preview, we heard Captain Sandy Yawn say, “your position is now redundant.”

The charter guests from last week said that they thought the food was okay, but definitely not five-star dining.  At the start of the episode, Sandy calls Hannah and Anastasia to speak with her.  Anastasia obviously did not love hearing that the guests did not love her food.

After that conversation, Anastasia sits down to work on the menu for the next charter.  Aesha asks her a question, and her response was, “The job I’m doing requires brainpower unlike vacuuming,” Anastasia says to Aesha.  Um, Okay?

The beginning of the end?

The new charter guests arrive, and though they are nice, things go downhill quickly with the food.  Anastasia goes up and confirms the guests would like lamb burgers with truffle fries.  Soon after, she sends up some large “fresh pasta” lobster ravioli – but one of the guests says they are cold. I don’t know about you guys, but I know that pasta in the air gets very cold, very quickly.  I’m not saying Anastasia is a bad chef because her pasta was cold, it just happens.  Cover them in sauce!  Cover them in cheese!  Put ’em in a bowl!

Anyway, the burgers come out at lunch and are very hot, but Anastasia starts cooking the truffle fries once the burgers have gone up.  The guests are chanting “truffle fries” to no avail – they take forever.  The truffle fries are dessert by the time they come up.

An interesting dinner choice

For dinner, Chef Anastasia makes some cajun fish with rice. Why?  No discernible reason.  The guests say the fish is not seasoned enough. The rice is also not hot enough.

Anastasia finds herself re-heating a few dishes and goes upstairs during dessert (which is pre-made cheesecake and key lime pie) to…defend herself?  “Let’s talk about dinner.”  She offers some extremely lame excuses about being a single chef in the kitchen and that’s why their food is cold. “I think it’s too cold in the galley. I’m just one person in the galley…”  But the final straw is when a guest points out a piece of hair on the pie, and Anastasia says, “Not mine!”  Ummmmm.

Sandy is in the corner with a giant smile on her face, internally asking “Why Anastasia? WHY?”  It is clear Anastasia cannot take any sort of criticism, constructive or not.

Is this going to be Anastasia’s last charter as Chef?  Next week’s Below Deck is a 90-minute episode…Ben? Is that you?

Below Deck Mediterranean is on Bravo Monday nights at 9 PM ET.