Below Deck Down Under Recap: Captain Jason Fires Sous Chef Over New Job

The new season of Below Deck Down Under lost its first crew member before the second charter was even over.

During the Monday, February 17, episode of the hit Bravo series, Tzarina Mace-Ralph and Anthony Bird continued to butt heads in the kitchen. Captain Jason Chambers attempted to smooth things over by reminding Tzarina, 30, that she was in charge as the chef.

“We have to work together. You have some managing to do. It is your department, fix it,” he told her. “Every galley is full of egos with chefs. But at the end of the day, there is one head chef and a sous chef. He needs to step in line and she needs to take control.”

Tzarina, however, didn’t know how to start fresh with Anthony, 26.

“My mind has been racing so hard about how I am meant to manage Anthony to make him do what his job is and what I need him to do,” she said in a confessional. “It is early in the charter season so I need Jason to see that I can manage my own department.”

After communicating with her sous chef about the next charter, Tzarina went to her cabin to plan the menus. Anthony took that as a slight as he unpacked provisions and prepared for guests to arrive in half an hour.

“I don’t want to be taken advantage of. I am organizing, I am putting provisions away, I am doing guest and crew food and I am cleaning the galley. I am doing everything,” he noted. “I just want to work as a team, is it that hard?”

Tzarina offered Anthony a break, which he took as an insult. He specifically told Tzarina that saying he should lie down was “a bit patronizing.” Captain Jason, 53, overheard the argument and acknowledged that he was “keeping an eye” on the situation.

Despite Tzarina’s attempts to mend the tension, Anthony started a secret job search.

“I just feel a bit insulted. I am struggling to get on with her,” he explained to a friend on the phone. “She’s an awkward character and I can’t work like this. I have to work in a dirty galley and put up with dirty food. I’m just caught within a weird situation for me to be in.”

A text message was seen being sent from Anthony to another chef, which read, “Do you know of any boats hiring? I don’t think it is working for me here.” Later in the episode, Anthony didn’t hesitate to throw shade at Tzarina’s cooking in a confessional.

“I am really glad to showcase my cooking style which is modern with flavor and a bit more passion put into it,” he shared. “Tzarina’s cooking is a little more basic with a flower on top.”

Tzarina grew frustrated with Anthony as he started to ignore her orders completely. Meanwhile, Anthony had a different perspective on the subject.

“At this point, I am just a bit over it. She’s not a great manager and if I am being honest, I don’t respect her as a chef and I don’t feel like I am being treated like a human,” he said. “So I am ready to leave because I can’t take any more of this bulls—.”

Season 3 of Below Deck Down Under reunited Jason, Tzarina and fellow alum and deckhand Harry Van Vliet. They were joined by newbies bosun Wihan Du Toit, chief stew Lara Rigby, deckhands Johnny Arvanitis and Adair Werley and stews Brianna Duffield and Marina Marcondes de Barros.

Jason ultimately told Tzarina that she didn’t need to keep Anthony on staff if he wasn’t being helpful, saying, “If it isn’t working for you then why don’t you just move on?”

He continued: “It doesn’t matter how good you are as a sous chef, the ego in Anthony is disrespectful. It isn’t going to last long. We might just have the wrong sous chef for Tzarina.”

Before Tzarina could make a decision about her future, Anthony got offered another job and told her he would leave after two more charters. Tzarina took the information to Jason, who wasn’t happy with the way Anthony handled the situation.

“I have tried everything to make him happy. All he has done is bitch behind my back and make me feel s—y and I am done. I am exhausted,” Tzarina told Jason. “He said he just found a job but for me will do the next two charters. I feel like I have been so professional and so calm and understanding and friendly and generous. For me, I would just like him to go now.”

Jason couldn’t agree more about dismissing Anthony. “He is disrespecting you. He had a very short job with you and now he has another one and he is leaving on his terms,” he noted before speaking with Anthony.

“You feel like the environment is not for you and you have a better opportunity? I just find it hard to be halfway through a season and jump off and find another job,” Jason told the sous chef. “You can go today — this morning. Pack your stuff up there and that is just the way I operate.”

Jason previously told Us Weekly that viewers could expect a firing — or two. “I do cut some cancer out. No pun intended since I just had a melanoma cut out,” he said earlier this month. “But I do get on top of some things — whether it is a termination or not — you’ll have to wait and see.”

Despite keeping his hopes high for this charter season, Jason didn’t mind stepping in when necessary.

“If you’ve seen me on seasons 1 and 2, I’m all about positivity and team’s that run themselves. I’m not here to micromanage you. I’m here to help,” he noted. “Our end goal is to get to a point where we do grow, succeed and give the guests everything they want. That is a simple task to follow, isn’t it?”

Below Deck Down Under season 3 premieres on Bravo Mondays at 8 p.m. ET. New episodes stream the next day on Peacock.