Below Deck Down Under Recap: Battle of the Egos

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Ben’s return to Below Deck has been pretty rocky, to say the least. He’s a well-known chef who’s always been a bit irritating, but usually manages to be likable. This week, Daisy pointed out that he often uses his charm to cover up his unpredictable behavior. Daisy and Ben have a complicated relationship – they clearly care about each other, but also frequently clash, similar to the dynamic Ben had with Kate Chastain in the past. In fact, Ben’s been thinking about Kate, noting that while she didn’t share much, Daisy tends to overshare, which adds even more stress when he’s already feeling overwhelmed.

This week, Ben has been consistently frustrated with Daisy’s attempts to maintain a high level of service on the yacht. Despite a past mistake – serving soap to guests on a previous charter – he doesn’t seem as concerned about the kitchen’s performance as she is. The whole crew seems off, likely due to lingering effects from having two days off. Jason, always an early riser, found the main salon in complete disarray one morning. To make matters worse, everyone was late for the 7 a.m. start time set by the captain. Jason, who rarely loses his temper, was visibly angry and firmly reminded the crew that he’s their boss, not a friend. He went around waking everyone up and gathered them for a stern lecture. No one dared to speak up, not even Mike, who immediately questioned the early start time.

Jenna found herself in a complicated situation. She secretly met with Ben early one morning, sharing a kiss and reassuring him that her feelings for Eddy weren’t overwhelming. Then, she spent two more hours cuddling with Eddy. After that, she started avoiding Eddy, even complaining to Daisy about his intense affection, which she’d previously described to Ben as “love bombing.” The final straw came when Eddy brought her coffee with a sweet note. Jenna then told him she didn’t see a long-term future for them due to their different lifestyles, admitting she typically prefers someone like Ben, who gets flustered when asked about her. Eddy was shocked by this sudden rejection and confided in Mike, claiming Jenna said he couldn’t afford her lifestyle – a statement that seemed like a projection of her own feelings. Sharing this information with Mike is likely to cause further drama, similar to a previously tense situation referred to as ‘Katina’s gun’.

Daisy comforts Jenna, telling her she made the right decision. Relationships that start on a boat move incredibly fast, and Jenna explains she’s never had to end things so soon – they’d only been on one date! This also explains why the conflict between Ellie and João seems so dramatic – they only kissed once, but you’d think they were much more involved, like they shared a life together. Ellie is completely uninterested in speaking to João. She ignores him when he tries to say hello, and later, when she sees him flirting with Daisy, she complains to Ben that his behavior is awful and manipulative.

We’ve got a new group coming aboard for a quick two-day charter – four couples, all friends, from Arizona. They’re here to celebrate Joanna’s birthday, and her daughter, Shanel, is along with her husband and some childhood friends. Honestly, the initial impression was that Joanna might be a handful. Shanel looked totally dreading the trip with her mom, and we heard she’s super picky with food. But she turned out to be surprisingly relaxed, despite all the build-up! Captain Jason is really cracking the whip on the crew, pushing everyone hard and hinting at some big changes if things don’t improve. He’s been saying that a lot lately, so I get the feeling those changes are definitely coming soon.

Daisy is committed to fixing the problems between the kitchen staff, so she tries to resolve the conflicts. She starts by meeting with Mike and Alesia, firmly telling them they need to improve their teamwork. She asks them to put aside their personal issues and specifically asks Mike to stop causing trouble, though she doubts he will. Alesia is frustrated that she’s being reprimanded for Mike’s actions, which she feels isn’t fair. As soon as Daisy leaves, Mike tells Alesia to just forget about it, which sounds like he wants to avoid dealing with the issue altogether.

Daisy tries to resolve a service issue with Ben before the guests arrive. She suggests he plan the menu in the morning to avoid last-minute stress, but Ben argues that unpredictable guests make advance planning impossible. Daisy then proposes discussing the menu with the guest of honor to get requests and still have a general plan. Ben dismisses this idea and ignores her suggestions. Surprisingly, despite their conversation, Ben starts making Joanna a beautiful chocolate-mousse cheesecake for her birthday, even though she specifically requested a vanilla cake with ice cream. Daisy questions why he didn’t confirm her preference first, but Ben is confident Joanna will enjoy it anyway. Ellie agrees with Ben, further frustrating Daisy.

Daisy was right all along. Ben finally agreed to make the vanilla cake Joanna asked for, but it ended up giving him twice the work for no good reason. He made a chocolate cake first, despite being specifically asked for vanilla! Later, Daisy managed to resist saying “I told you so” when a guest asked about Italian food at Joanna’s leopard-themed birthday party. Ben explained the menu was all non-Italian – things like duck spring rolls and wahoo fish – but the guest really wanted anchovy-lemon pasta. This caused a last-minute rush just ten minutes before dinner, all because no one had a simple conversation beforehand. Ben ended up making everything – the spring rolls, the fish, and the pasta – and even had to cook the pasta twice because he forgot to set a timer. The pasta was a hit, but guests complained that the fish was overcooked and tough, the service was slow, and the portions were small. They did enjoy the vanilla cake, which Ben tried to shape like a leopard but ended up looking more like a sphinx. Betul simply said, “Wow. So good.” As requested, Joanna got a dance with Magic Mike (and Eddy) while holding her cake, which was a bit awkward with her husband and child watching, but she loved it.

The next morning at breakfast, the guests told Daisy they were hoping for some cookies. Daisy passed the request on to Ben, who was just starting a break with Ellie. Ben questioned whether the guests actually asked for cookies, or if Daisy was simply trying to be thoughtful. I realize I sound like I’m defending Daisy, but even if it was her idea, what’s wrong with wanting to make the guests happy? She’s just trying to help Ben! He made the cookies, but grumbled throughout the process. Later, when Daisy couldn’t provide the exact time the guests wanted the cookies, Ben became frustrated and angrily told her to leave the kitchen, even shooing her away with a whistle and a hand gesture. Daisy was so surprised she initially laughed, which only made Ben more upset. She decided she wouldn’t offer him any more advice on how to do his job.

The guests loved the roast beef, applauding when they finished, and were thrilled when cookies arrived. They left feeling completely satisfied. Ben shared details of his disagreement with Daisy with João, who suggested they all have dinner that evening with their head of department to talk things through and start fresh. João also spoke to Daisy, who agreed to the dinner after explaining her perspective on the cookie situation. Ben, as he often does, decided to take a nap, joking with Mike that as head of his own department, he should be invited to the dinner. Mike thought the joke was hilarious, and it was a hit before they even left the Katina for the night, despite seemingly not realizing that cleaning a toilet involves more than just bleaching it.

The guest comment cards were all negative about the food, and Jason is furious that Ben overslept and made him late to the tip meeting. He shocks the crew by bluntly saying he doesn’t care that Ben was absent. When Ben arrives, Jason publicly calls him out, sarcastically suggesting applause before criticizing him for not leading by example. He repeats to the chef what Daisy said – that better organization and communication with guests are needed. Despite the food complaints, the guests surprisingly leave a $28,000 tip, averaging $2,100 per person. The guests named “Magic Mike” as the most valuable performer, which is the last thing Mike wants to hear, and he jokingly says he’ll spend his share on hairspray.

Jason seemed to relax and handed Ben the disco helmet. At the Head of Department dinner – where João and Ben intentionally dressed to match Daisy’s colors, hoping to improve the atmosphere – Daisy asked Ben to apologize for telling her to leave the kitchen. She was worried he was unintentionally giving Ellie the impression that it was acceptable to ignore her instructions, something she’d already discussed with Jenna. Ben deserves credit for being willing to admit when he’s wrong. He apologized to Daisy and even told her he loved her, showing that despite his tough exterior, he was open to hearing her concerns. However, when he went outside and overheard Daisy and João discussing how upset Jason was about the earlier meeting and how badly Ben had messed up, he felt like they were ganging up on him and that the dinner was a setup. He left Daisy and João to pay the bill and walked off angrily.

Back on the Katina, Betul – a fan favorite who hasn’t had much screen time this season – isn’t feeling well and decides to stay in. Mike keeps repeating the HOD joke, which is really starting to annoy Jenna, especially when he suggests she’s not capable of working on deck. Eddy has been trying all day to cheer Jenna up, hoping to win her over, but his attempts are undermined by the fact that he finds Mike funny. With the complicated love triangle between Eddy, Jenna, and Ben, plus the ongoing tension with João, Daisy, and Ellie, it looks like the night out will be full of drama.

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2026-04-28 05:56