Elena Dubaich Shades Chef Johnathan: “Didn’t Really Take Much Pride in His Job”
Elena “Ellie” Dubaich shed new light on her relationship with chef Johnathan “Jono” Shillingford on the Below Deck Mediterranean Season 9 After Show.
After a rocky start to the Below Deck Mediterranean charter season, the drama continues between Elena “Ellie” Dubaich and Johnathan “Jono” Shillingford.
Ellie and Jono’s tension started early in the season — the first charter, in fact! — when she woke him up in the middle of the night after some guests (who had put on their preference sheet that they liked late-night snacks) requested a midnight meal. As she explained in the Below Deck Mediterranean After Show video above, Ellie stands by her decision “100 percent.”
“It was the right decision given the circumstances,” she said in the clip. “Do I think we should be waking the chef every single night? No. That’s a bit ridiculous. But he blatantly disregarded the guests’ specific preferences. He was reminded of that in the middle of the night, and still didn’t care to get up and fix his mistake. He left his team member to fumble. So this was 100% Jono’s fault. It just went to show that Jono didn’t really take much pride in his job.”
Ellie went on to discuss how Jono’s approach to his career was different than other yachting professionals she’s seen.
“Most yacht chefs, they’re passionate about their food. They identify with their food. It’s part of their identity and who they are. That’s the passion and care I didn’t see in Jono,” she said.
Captain Sandy Yawn and Kate Chastain react to Jono Shillingford’s drama with Ellie Dubaich
At the time of the incident, Captain Sandy Yawn took Jono’s side.
“Never wake the chef. What you’re [Jono] going to do is prepare food for the panini makers, and whoever’s on nights make the panini. Don’t wake the guy…Don’t wake the chef,” she said. During an appearance on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen following the episode, she added that she thought Jono handled the situation well. “I’ve had chefs throw things when you wake them up. You shouldn’t wake them up.”
Now, even after seeing how everything played out, others are still in agreement.
During the After Show, Kate Chastain talked about how she would never wake the chef — and gave Aesha Scott some tips on what to do when guests request a night bite.
“I don’t wake up the chef because the guests are usually drunk. They won’t remember. But do you know who will remember? The chef, and I have to work with him when the guests leave,” she explained. “Go down to the crew mess, get the Tupperware of the crew lunch, and bring it up. It’s chef-cooked food from earlier in the day, and say, ‘We prepared this for you.'”
Chef Jono Shillingford Opens Up About His Mistakes on Mustique
Despite Ellie’s claims that Jono didn’t “take much pride” in his job, on the Below Deck Med After Show, Jono opened up about feeling disappointed in himself after serving tuna carpaccio to a guest who claimed raw fish could kill her.
“I was very stressed,” Jono explained. “I think by demonstrating to Sandy that maybe I wasn’t good enough or that she couldn’t trust my decisions as a chef, yeah, for sure, that’s very upsetting.”
