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Captain Lee Rosbach from Below Deck always used to tell chief stew Kate Chastain that she looked more like the guests than a crew member.
As his longest-running chief stew, Rosbach and Chastain formed a friendship, but he almost fired her during her first season on the show. Who were the five chief stews who worked for Rosbach on Below Deck?
Who was Captain Lee’s first ‘Below Deck’ chief stew?
When Below Deck set sail in 2013, Adrienne Gang was Rosbach’s first chief stew. Gang, who is a yacht chef, was also part of the sizzle that production created and pitched to Bravo.
Gang ran a tight ship on Below Deck Season 1 but was replaced after one season. “What made the first season really good was that it was genuine conflict among people who were trying to learn each other. I think it was very authentic,” she told Dockwalk in 2014.
“We shattered the glass wall on the fact that crew really have drama,” she continued. “[Our owners] aren’t stupid, but we all did a magnificent job and managed to keep it together in front of the guests.”
Kate Chastain was Captain Lee’s chief stew for ‘Below Deck’ Season 2 – 7
Chastain took over the role of Rosbach’s Below Deck chief stew for six seasons, beginning on Below Deck Season 2. When Rosbach met Chastain, he thought she was a charter guest because of the way she was dressed. She quickly assimilated into the position, but an iconic moment during season 2 landed her in hot water with Rosbach.
When charter guest Dean Slover kept telling Chastain to smile, so she made a passive-aggressive move to create a “rocketship” blanket fold on Slover’s bed. Of course, the blanket fold was not a rocketship and Rosbach was furious with Chastain.
Rosbach expressed his anger in his Below Deck Bravo blog. “Kate, how could you possibly think that you could manipulate me into thinking that you were the victim here? Feigning ignorance? Really?” he wrote. “I asked you twice and you lied to me. Then, you tried to lie to me again. Then you want to blame the guests for your bad behavior. Your feelings were hurt, so you took it upon yourself to extract retribution for your hurt feelings without regard for the guests, the crew, or the reputation of the yacht.”
The crew received a great tip from Slover and Chastain continued as chief stew until she retired from yachting after Below Deck Season 7.
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Who was Captain Lee’s first chief stew on ‘Below Deck’ after Kate Chastain left?
Below Deck Season 8 chief stew Francesca Rubi had big shoes to fill after Chastain left. In fact, she became teary early in the season when she pushed herself too hard, and it took time to get up to speed in the role.
Also, doing her job with a camera in tow took a while to get used to as well. “You’ve got camera crew, you’ve got the sound guys all around you all the time and you’re trying to do your job and tend to all these guests,” she told ET. “I’m constantly looking in one direction and then changing… and it’s someone in front of you and you’re like, ‘Oh my god. There’s people everywhere.’ It’s challenging, that’s for sure.”
‘Below Deck’ Season 9 chief stew became the center of controversy
Rubi didn’t return and chief stew Heather Chase took on the role for Below Deck Season 9. She seemed to thrive early in the season, but when she repeated the N-word during the crew night out, it created a massive problem within the cast.
Black deckhand Rayna Lindsey was upset when Chase repeated the word and told her boss bosun Eddie Lucas about her concerns. But when he wanted to escalate the concern to Rosbach, Lindsey told him not to go to the captain. This caused more issues because Lindsey was still upset but didn’t want to address the issue. Chase did not return after a single season of Below Deck.
Fraser Olender was the first male chef stew on ‘Below Deck’
Below Deck Season 9 second stew Fraser Olender was promoted to chief stew on Below Deck Season 10. He became the first male chief stew in the franchise and worked under both Rosbach and Captain Sandy Yawn from Below Deck Mediterranean.
Rosbach had to temporarily leave the boat due to a medical issue and Yawn took over. Olender struggled under Yawn but managed to ultimately gain her respect before Rosbach finished out the season.
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