Captain Glenn Teases ‘Below Deck Sailing Yacht’ Chef Drama – and Who Is His Favorite [Exclusive]
It isn’t totally smooth sailing for chef Ileisha Dell on Below Deck Sailing Yacht Season 4. Captain Glenn Shephard said that while Dell was an amazing chef and he loved her food, she had a few issues with timing this season.
“Ileisha’s a great chef. Food’s delicious,” Shephard told Showbiz Cheat Sheet. “During the summer, that department struggled a little bit with timings, getting the food to the table at the right times and subsequent courses and stuff like that. But I think that she did a really good job. And I think she’s a great chef.”
Why does Chef Ileisha struggle with timing?
One reason why Dell struggled with timing is that she described herself as being a “perfectionist when it comes to cooking” in the Below Deck Sailing Yacht Season 4 trailer. She seems confident in her craft, but admitted to being focused on ensuring that every dish is perfect – and that may end up being her Achilles heel this season.
Shephard emphasized that he would work with Dell and the rest of the crew again, but the departments experience struggle and conflict. “They’re all great in their own ways. I just think they’re all a great new addition,” Shephard said of the new crew members. “And I would really be happy to work with all five of the new people.”
Who is Captain Glenn’s favorite ‘Below Deck Sailing Yacht’ chef?
Shephard would work with Dell again, but does he have a favorite Below Deck Sailing Yacht chef to date? When pressed, he spilled. “It’s like picking your favorite child!” Shephard said. “But [chef] Marcos [Spaziani] really stands out.”
Spaziani never complained, embraced his position with gusto, and even continued to cook after smacking his head in the bilge. The injury was so severe, it removed a chunk of his scalp. “But he kept going!” Shephard said. “He’s that kind of guy.”
Spaziani told Showbiz Cheat Sheet cooking on Parsifal III was his first encounter with a sailing yacht. “So for me, moving like that, I love it! Adrenaline, you know?” he exclaimed. “Things like that are a challenge. So cooking when we’re sailing, for me, it was a very good experience and I actually love it. Everyone says you’re not going to be able to cook on a sailing yacht. And I said, well, try me! Actually, I think I baked when we were sideways. Stuff like that. And yeah, it’s a little bit dangerous, but I like that.”
Will the departments experience conflict this season?
Shephard said that while Dell struggles with timing, other departments also experience conflict. “But obviously, there can be a little conflict on deck or in the departments, in the interior department, for example. But I don’t see it all,” he said. “I hear about it afterward. But I think it’s probably best for people to tune in. But I think everybody still loves everybody. I don’t think there are any major falling outs.”
Last season, Spaziani dealt with some extremely demanding and wild guests. “There’s some crazy stuff that happens with the guests and stuff that I wish hadn’t happened. If you’ve seen the trailer, you’ve seen some kind of weird stuff on one of the charters, but nothing I haven’t seen before,” Shephard said. “Nothing that I don’t feel that we could handle, you know what I mean? So nothing outrageously crazy.”
“But we have some really great guests here,” Shephard recalled. “I just remember one group that we have so much fun with. We try to have fun with all of them, and we generally do. But there’s one group in particular that is such a great group of people.”
Below Deck Sailing Yacht is on Monday at 8 pm ET on Bravo.
