Chef Ben Teases New Show, Cruises, and a Safari Beyond ‘Below Deck’ [Exclusive]
Chef Ben Robinson may re-appear on Bravo’s Below Deck Galley Talk or Below Deck and Below Deck Mediterranean reruns, but he said a brand new show is in the works.
Robinson teased a show he’s been pitching to networks and says a return to television is a real possibility. “We’re really looking forward to having, maybe a Chef Ben show,” he dished with Showbiz Cheat Sheet. “We’re pitching networks right now. It’s a slow process. But we’re positive and we’re really hoping for that.”
He is pitching a new show to networks
Robinson was the original Below Deck yacht chef. He quickly became a fan favorite and was the crossover chef to Below Deck Mediterranean. He ended up doing three and a half seasons of Below Deck and a season and a half of Below Deck Med.
He explained that Below Deck was supposed to be a springboard to a Chef Ben show. “That was the game plan,” he said. “That’s why I got onto the Below Deck. I never saw that as the end goal. I thought this would be a good opportunity and 10 years later, we’re still talking about it. So, I mean, it was a great opportunity and hopefully one day we’ll be able to really develop something special and something that’s exciting.”
‘Below Deck’ chef reveals he’s never been on a cruise
He didn’t specify what the show would entail but Robinson loves to mix his food with travel. He recently embarked upon a VIP Virgin Cruise excursion where his special guests got the Chef Ben treatment. Robinson said it was his first cruise and it definitely wasn’t what he expected.
“I was very apprehensive of cruise ships, coming from a yachting, snobby sort of background,” he admitted. “But I really enjoyed it. I enjoyed the entertainment and it was just such a big boat. Even though we had like 850 passengers on board, it seemed lonely. And that’s just a massive testament to how large the boat is. So there were very quiet lounges throughout and it just didn’t seem busy.”
“So I always thought it would just be like middle Americans running around with fanny packs,” Robinson laughed. “Kind of like some kind of grotesque shopping mall. But it really wasn’t that at all. And it was very accommodating. I loved it. I got to drink all day, which was amazing. So I’m learning. And the trick to drinking all day is a good old Englishman should really just drink beer all day. And then maybe after 10 p.m., sneaking in a few glasses of wine and calm down, you know, if you go the distance, you’re going to be all right. You know, I’m still learning how to be a professional drinker [laughs].”
‘Below Deck’ fans can meet and see Chef Ben in other ways too
Robinson is planning to host another cruise. Plus he’s going on safari and is inviting guests to join him. “We’ve got a safari coming up in October that I’ll be hosting. I’ll be kind of the food director, so it’ll be all my meals. But I’ll be working with the lodge staff out there in Lyons Sands Resorts near Cape Town,” he dished.
He is also cheffing for private parties and events. Plus he teased a “blow torch” cookbook he’s been working on for a while. Details are slowly trickling out and he may have more information about the cookbook before Father’s Day. Fans can also pick up a Chef Ben chef knife and apparel.
“We have knives, we have apparel now,” he shared, which can be purchased on his website. “We have chef jackets and bandannas, aprons. We’ve got a lot of stuff. So we’re really moving forward. But, you know, with anything in life that’s bigger than we are, it’s a slower road and hopefully, it will pay off. So that’s kind of what we’re doing. We’re planting seeds, nurturing our roots, and hopefully, we’ll grow and turn into something beautiful.”
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