‘Below Deck’: Amy Johnson Admits Chef Ben Was Crazy To Work With but Says Chef Leon Was a Little Terrifying (Exclusive)
Stew Amy Johnson from Below Deck recently shared some revealing insights into what it was like to work with chef Ben Robinson and chef Leon Walker during season 3.
Johnson joined her brother Kelley on Below Deck Galley Talk to dish about the latest episodes. She admitted that watching the show gave her a little bit of PTSD. However, “[Filming Below Deck Galley Talk] was an absolute blast,” she dished with Showbiz Cheat Sheet.
“It was so fun to get to hang out with my brother. Just chill on the couch and watch the episodes and see them all together,” she said. “And also to be on this side of the drama! Like getting to eat, drink some wine, and watch it all go down and not be part of it.”
While she’s not involved in the drama this season, she humored Showbiz Cheat Sheet with a journey down memory lane. She recounted what it was like to work with Robinson but also shared that Walker was as intense as he seemed on the show.
Amy Johnson shares what made Chef Leon a little scary
Walker’s signature beef cheeks and endless disdain for chief stew Kate Chastain didn’t seem to unnerve Johnson, who is known for her sweet and sunny disposition. Even though she managed to smile her way through some awkward moments on the show, she was candid about her impression of Walker.
“You know, it was interesting with Leon because he didn’t say much,” she recalled. “You didn’t know if, like, those daggers were like … he was going to bring out his knife set and start throwing knives? Or if he was just going over the menu in his head.
“You never knew what to expect from him because he never really talked that much,” she went on to day. “And that’s always a little scary to me. I’m like, tell us what’s going on in there, so we can, you know, move past it. But he was just so reserved that you just didn’t know which way he was going.”
Indeed, Walker preferred to use other ways to express his frustration with the crew. Years later, Chastain shared that the animosity was so bad with Walker he poured honey in her bed when she was off the boat. “Fun fact: Leon poured an entire jar of honey in my bed while I was off the boat during season 3,” she tweeted in March.
Amy Johnson’s relationship with Chef Ben was just as crazy but in a different way
Robinson is a longstanding Below Deck fan favorite. He came in to save the day when Walker was fired and finished the season with the crew. Johnson worked with Robinson during both seasons 2 and 3 and she said he’s definitely unpredictable.
“You just never know what you’re going to get with that one, right?” Johnson laughed. “Yeah, he’s very entertaining and I enjoy him personally. But professionally, he’s a little tough to work with because you’re kind of doing a song and dance to whatever temperament you’re doing that day or that meal because it would change a lot.”
“But he’s great at his job,” she remarked. “And he is a hoot in the galley. I mean, when he’s not, you know, screaming and not, for the most part, is very, very funny. Fun to be around.”
Johnson and the rest of the Below Deck Galley Talk crew will have plenty to say when a new episode airs on Friday, Jan. 15 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Bravo.
