My Kitchen Rules is no stranger to explosive drama and dinner table clashes, but Mary and Golden are staying out of it.
While this series has already delivered walkouts, fiery opinions and plenty of tense moments, the best friends say they were content to steer clear of the tensions.
“We knew there was going to be drama, but I think just our personalities, me and Golden stayed out of it,” Mary exclusively tells New Idea.
Their focus was always on the food, not the feuds, with Mary revealing they wanted to be judged alone on what they served up.
“The drama, that was fun to watch, but we didn’t want to be part of it,” she adds.
While viewers may have branded them as this season’s “quiet” team, Golden insists that couldn’t be further from the truth.
“Mary and I talk a lot,” she laughs.
“I’m loud, but I think when you’re put on the table with a lot of people that have stronger personalities, you sit back and just watch.
“We didn’t have to open our mouths. We literally just had to listen.”
Being one of the last teams to cook at the first Instant Restaurants, the pals admit they grew tired of the drama and were ready for their shot in the kitchen.
“I was there as a viewer sometimes, [it was like] I’m watching the drama at home,” Mary confesses.
“Like I said, can I have some popcorn please?”
While they knew drama came with the territory, Mary and Golden stayed focused on showcasing the best of Filipino food.
“We didn’t want to let the community down,” they admit.
As MKR‘s first Filipino team, they didn’t want to waste the opportunity to platform their culture. In fact, competing had been a long-held dream for Golden.
Mary initially asked her husband to sign up with her, but his polite refusal opened the door for Golden, and she couldn’t have been happier.
“Mary had no idea that when we first arrived in Australia, actually the first time I saw MKR, I actually told myself I’m going to be on the show one day,” Golden reveals.
“And then the moment she asked, I’m like, ‘What? Hell yeah, it’s about time’.”
With their first Instant Restaurant just around the corner, they insist they have no regrets and would do it all again, no matter the result.
