The new season of Below Deck has officially kicked off with a spanking new chief stew in tow.
Matter of fact, Bravo has cleaned house almost entirely with new deckhands and interior crew aboard My Seanna.
Captain Lee Rosbach is back for Season 8, but this time without his trusty chief stew, Kate Chastain.
In her place is Australian native Francesca Rubi who already knows that she had big shoes to fill.
Viewers certainly had their share of criticism for Kate during her stint on the show, but love her or hate her, it was hard to deny that she was a big presence on Below Deck.
Furthermore, her bitchy resting face and sarcastic banter makes for good reality TV, so fans are a little skeptical about what this new chief stew will bring to the table.
Understandably, everyone is comparing the newbie to the former Bravo alum, but Francesca has no problem giving Kate the props she deserves.
Francesca says Kate was a “fantastic chief stew”
The new reality TV star recently sat down for a chat with Entertainment Tonight to dish all about Season 8 of Below Deck.
During the interview, the topic of course turned to Kate– and whether Francesca felt pressured by the comparisons being made by viewers.
The Aussie native had nothing but glowing things to say about the 37-year-old, but doesnt think that fans should compare the two.
“From what I’ve seen Kate do on the show and how she works, she’s a fantastic chief stew,” notes Francesca.
However, she adds, “I don’t think you can compare the two of us. We have different work experience backgrounds on yachts and off yachts…but she’s a fantastic chief stew and from what I saw she lead the team really well and had a great sense of humor.”
“We’re totally different people,” exclaimed the former event manager.
“We’ve also grown up in totally different worlds. We operate differently.”
Francesca says she’s doing the best she can
During the interview, Francesca also talked to the media outlet about her mindset going into the season.
She says, ” I went into there just doing the best that I could and with the skills that I have, and the work experience that I have. I believe that I could do the best job that I can!”
Before ending the chat, the new chief stew did admit to having some similarities with Kate.
“The thing that we do have in common is working really hard, and earning respect from your peers and captain, and that takes time.”
What do you think of Francesca’s chief stew abilities so far? Is she a worthy replacement?
Below Deck airs Mondays at 9/8c on Bravo.