‘Below Deck Med’ Producers Recall This Red Flag Moment With Chef Mila
Below Deck Mediterranean producers recently shared that the crew had a red flag moment when they saw the provisions chef Mila Kolomeitseva from season 4 ordered.
How a yacht chef handles provisioning can be very telling, and Kolomeitseva’s provisioning skills did more than miss the mark. “It seems to be that ordering from a provisioner is kind of an art form for a yacht chef,” Bravo Vice President of Current Production Josh Brown said on the Below Deck Med After Show. “I don’t know if anyone remembers last season when Chef Mila first got on board.”
“She way over-ordered her provisions,” he recalled. Cameras flashed back to a dock filled with crates of food. The crew is scratching their head, wondering why there are so many provisions. “Holy crap, who ordered that,” Captain Sandy Yawn wondered.
Chef Mila’s provisioning skills tipped off the crew
Brown said the massive provisions were a “bit of a tip-off to some of her fellow crew members that maybe she didn’t have it all together,” he said.
“It didn’t make the show because of showtime, but she’d ordered like 32 cans of whipped cream,” showrunner Nadine Rajabi recounted. “But it was interesting.”
Kolomeitseva may have been the reason why Yawn was so triggered this season from seeing chef Hindrigo “Kiko” Lorran’s nachos. Kolomeitseva began the season by serving steaks that she microwaved for the guests. Cameras also captured her licking a raw steak. She served Mexican food using Old El Paso boxed ingredients. Kolomeitseva made nachos for the guests, which Chief Stew Hannah Ferrier refused to serve. She also made pancakes using Aunt Jemima mix.
She was fired after she served slimy fish from a can to some of Yawn’s friends who were charter guests. Third stew Anastasia Surmava briefly took over, and later chef Ben Robinson finished out the season.
Provisioning means anticipating the unexpected
Chef Tom Checketts explained how provisions on boats work. “It’s like you calling your local supermarket and just have them drop off what you order,” he said. Rajabi added that there are companies that can source everything.
“When you’re on a yacht, you don’t have that time,” Rajabi added. “So basically, you’re putting together your shopping list, if you will, your provision list. And you call the provisioner, and you say these are my wants, this is what I need. And they come and deliver everything to you in that big truck that you guys see. That’s anywhere from floral arrangements to party supplies to decor, to food … to anything.”
Rajabi and Checketts shared that provisioners can secure nearly anything, even in the most remote locations. Checketts added that yacht chefs need to keep the crew and dietary requirements in mind too. You also need to anticipate the unexpected.
“What if the guests come on board, and then suddenly everybody wants green juice,” he said. “And then you’ve run out of all your green vegetables in one day. Well, you didn’t see that coming. So you need to make allowances for things like that.”
