Kate Chastain Shuts Down Rocky Dakota's Accusation That She Was Drinking During the Below Deck Fire
But #BelowDeck's chief stew wasn't completely shocked Rocky called her out like that, either.
Part one of the Below Deck Season 3 reunion ended with a shocking accusation. Raquel "Rocky" Dakota claimed Kate Chastain had been drinking when the kitchen fire broke out on charter this season. Kate denied Rocky's accusation during the reunion, and she explained why Rocky would make such a statement in an exclusive interview with All About the Tea published Tuesday. "I actually wasn't that shocked when Rocky accused me of drinking," Kate said. "She has no boundaries and will say or do anything if she thinks it is to her benefit, regardless of truth or reason. I think at that point in the reunion, Rocky was feeling overwhelmed with all of the negative feedback she was receiving and resorted to finger-pointing and blame-shifting, which is sad and not surprising."
Of course, Kate and Rocky were frequently at odds during this season of Below Deck, mostly because they couldn't see eye-to-eye on the chief stew's leadership style. "I'm not exagerrating when I say that this season on Eros was the most difficult charter season of my career, mostly because of Rocky's blatant disrespect and disregard for the amount of work we needed to accomplish," Kate explained. "She didn't want to work and she didn't want to learn, which meant that Amy [Johnson] and I had to pick up her slack most of the time. Then, to add insult to injury, she would bad mouth me to the crew, saying I was an awful slave driver when all I ever wanted was for her to do the job she signed up for."
Not only did Kate find Rocky uncooperative during the season, but she also thought she was disruptive to the entire crew. "Climbing up onto the radar while the boat was underway, jumping off the boat in her underwear with guests onboard and having almost daily hysterical breakdowns made having Rocky on the boat feel like we were all just hostages to her emotional whims," Kate said. "She was out of control the entire time and any attempt to hold her accountable for her actions only made her behavior worse."
Rocky's criticism of the quality of Kate's leadership during the Below Deck reunion doesn't seem to have fazed Kate. "Quite frankly, Rocky's opinion of my management style doesn't hold a lot of water. And actually, I would say that it is her professional demeanor that is rude and she is the one who wrote me off," Kate told All About the Tea. "Rocky didn't appreciate the way I ran the interior, but she certainly wasn't complaining when the charter guests left us generous tips. I think she not only owes me an apology, but she also owes Amy and I a big 'Thank You' for all of the money we earned her."
Rocky also found herself involved in a lot of drama with Eddie Lucas this season when the two revealed they had hooked up multiple times while aboard the Eros. However, Kate told All About the Tea that she thinks Rocky liked the controversy it created. "I think Rocky enjoyed the drama from the aftermath of it all more than the fling itself," Kate explained. "It's no secret she loves attention and this was just another way for her to get it."
And what did Kate have to say about the other crewmember she had a major feud with on the Eros, Chef Leon Walker, and his decision to not attend the Below Deck reunion? "I wasn't surprised at all seeing as how Leon was mentally checked out of the entire Below Deck experience from day one," Kate said. "I was disappointed, however, that he chose not to attend, as I would have loved for both Andy [Cohen] and Ben [Robinson] to meet him and witness firsthand what I had to deal with for five long weeks."
Speaking of Leon's replacement, Kate also revealed where her relationship with Ben stands today. "Ben and I are great friends. He is one of the funniest people I know and we have both been there for each other to offer a laugh and advice when needed," she said. "In regards to past hook-ups or arguments, we both know that neither are ever that serious and at the end of the day we will always be friends, nothing more, nothing less."
Will Kate and Rocky get into it some more during part two of the Below Deck reunion airing Tuesday, December 1 at 8/7c? See what you can expect in the clip, below.
