If you really want to p*ss Chef Rachel off, just forget the caviar. Rachel is on an absolute tear and it seems like nothing is going to stop her from exploding on this episode of Below Deck.
The primary charter guest, Tim, is turning 50. Tim likes wine, caviar, and white parties. There’s only one problem and it’s not that the guests are wearing mismatched shades of white… Provisions got messed up again and there is no caviar on this yacht. Rachel is comically throwing things and yelling. Luckily, the provisioner seems like he will be able to deliver, and just like that, Rachel begins to breathe again.
In the meantime, the crew members are falling apart. Shane, and his 3.5 GPA (HOW), is claiming that he doesn’t want to fail as a deckhand, but damn, he is doing a fabulous job at it. Plus, Francesca is growing more and more frustrated with Elizabeth. They just don’t seem to see eye to eye with service…and work ethic… Luckily, Ashling has shimmied in as Francesca’s new pet.
What is a white party without a steel drum? Francesca makes it happen for the guests and Eddie heads out to pick up the drummer, leaving the deck crew without a boss. Bad idea. Izzy is completely over Shane. Shane has the nerve to nitpick Eddie, who BTW, is his boss…and she is straight tired of picking up his slack.
As soon as Eddie comes back with the drummer, he turns right back around to scoop up the prized possession: caviar. Because Rachel simply cannot have the guests sit down for their meal without the caviar, Captain Lee has been put on stalling duty. Thankfully, these guests wish to have a full tour of the boat, so Captain Lee jumps on this opportunity and drags it out to the best of his ability.
All the while, Rachel is sweating down in the galley. Eddie has not returned with the beloved caviar yet and Captain Lee is running out of tour options. In his words, “If the caviar doesn’t show up, I’m sitting here with my d*ck in my hand.” OF COURSE tonight is the night Captain Lee is having dinner with the guests and time is ticking. Dinner is now 25 minutes late and Rachel is 25 seconds away from having a mental breakdown.
FINALLY, the caviar arrives. The steel drum plays, the caviar is served, and the guests are thrilled. As they enjoy their incredible meal, Izzy and James, the season’s best buds, reflect on how they work so well together. Izzy explains, “He’s got the strength, I’ve got the brains.” Who knew? Izzy and James. Name a more dynamic duo.
Dinner is in full swing and Rachel is knocking it out of the park. It turns out to be a perfect night for Rachel to show off her culinary skills since Captain Lee is dining with the guests. Captain Lee gushes over Rachel and states, “In my 35 years, I’ve never been so impressed. She’s the complete package!”
As dinner wraps up, the birthday guy introduces Captain Lee (and the crew) to a tradition — a very, very messy tradition — where they drink to longevity and prosperity using decanters. Let’s just say it involves red wine and pulling it far away from your mouth as you drink. In other words, this game STINKS. Not only are the guests staining the floor (and Captain Lee acts like it’s all okay through gritted teeth), but they are straight RUINING their white clothing. To allay any further stains, the guests provide Captain Lee with a “Tim is 50” T-shirt (that just so happened to be lying around), and like the champ that he is, the captain partakes in this “tradition.” #Doitforthetips.
Please be reminded of the timeline here — when Ash heads to bed, she phones her mom. Ash’s mom warns her to get a mask as COVID is starting to become more widespread. The coronavirus is not a full-on pandemic yet as it is only February…
As Elizabeth preps for the late-night shift, Francesca gets more and more stressed. The guests are tanked and Elizabeth is the one who is supposed to be in charge? Francesca believes that Elizabeth just doesn’t get it and gives her a stern talking to. Afterward, while Francesca complains about Elizabeth to Rachel, Elizabeth complains to Eddie and James about Francesca. It’s getting messy.
The next morning, Shane messes up AGAIN and Eddie SOMEHOW remains calm. The kid oversleeps and is one hour and 38 minutes late to his job. Apparently, his phone died in his sleep. Worst. Excuse. Ever.
Eddie is less than pleased. He makes sure to fill the captain in on Shane’s latest shenanigans and he doesn’t sugarcoat the details. Eddies states he found Shane this morning “curled up in bed sleeping like a f*cking log.” He then tells Captain Lee about Shane taking a nap and leaving the “garage door open.” Eddie is not holding back any information.
When Shane attempts to apologize to Eddie later in the morning, Eddie can barely listen to him lamely blabber on about his phone dying. It seems like he is just full of excuses… I can understand Eddie’s frustration with Shane, but it’s more difficult to see Francesca’s beef with Elizabeth. Sure, she may be a little spacey, but she cleaned up the night before and left the interior in pretty good shape, no?
A seamless breakfast before the charter guests prepare to head off the boat seems to have solidified a pretty great tip. All I have to say is thank God for Izzy — she has become Eddie’s righthand WOman, especially as Shane just keeps making mistake after mistake.
Surprise, surprise, here we are again with some docking drama. I wonder how this is gonna turn out? Maybe one time the yacht should hit something just to spice up this repeated Bravo storyline? Captain Lee is furious that no one was doing anything on the “f*cking stern,” and without even looking up, ya’ll know that it was Shane. And please. Shane has to stop with the notes. It’s not helping him AND it’s just making him look bad.
Everyone but the deck crew is sent to start cleaning up after the guests exit the yacht. Captain Lee lets them know that he is not happy and basically scares the living you-know-what out of them. This leaves Shane thinking, “My number one frustration is…” Um, Shane. You have ZERO room to be frustrated here.
At the tip meeting, Captain Lee basically swoons over Rachel, but he is vague about those crew members who are not pulling their weight. EVERYONE knows exactly who he is talking about and it leaves me wondering if it’s really fair that Rachel receives the same tip amount as SHANE. Come on — she totally did more than Sunshine did!
Shane believes that “when Eddie’s around me I get a little more nervous” and thus he cannot perform to his best potential. LOL. Sure. Shane, stop with the excuses, please. He has to know his a*s is on the line, especially when Captain Lee calls Eddie in for a chat. Captain Lee ponders, “I imagine having him [Shane] gone isn’t a whole lot different than having him here.” Good point, yet Eddie does not look satisfied. He holds his breath when Captain Lee calls Shane in. Will Shane hear those three little words: “Pack. Your. Bags?”
TELL US – THOUGHTS ON THE LATEST EPISODE OF BELOW DECK?
