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News, Politics, Culture, Life, Entertainment, and more. Stories that matter to you.TV and Movies·Posted 28 minutes agoPadma Lakshmi Is Leaving “Top Chef,” So Here’s What’s Happening To The Show
Padma Lakshmi joined Top Chef as host in Season 2. After 17 years, she's leaving for new projects.
by Joseph LongoBuzzFeed Staff
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Sadly, it is time for Padma Lakshmi to pack up her own knives and go.
Bravo/Stephanie Diani/Bravo
The longtime host of Top Chef announced on Thursday that she’ll be leaving the hit Bravo cooking show after 17 years.
David Moir / ©Bravo / Courtesy: Everett Collection
Padma joined the show in Season 2, replacing Katie Lee who hosted the first season.
“After much soul searching, I have made the difficult decision to leave Top Chef,” Padma wrote in a statement on Twitter.
David Moir/Bravo
Since 2006, Padma has anchored 19 seasons of the Emmy-winning cooking competition series that spawned numerous spin-offs and made stars out of Padma and her longtime cohosts Tom Colicchio and Gail Simmons.
Virginia Sherwood / © Bravo / Courtesy: Everett Collection
“Having completed a glorious 20th season as host and executive producer, I am extremely proud to have been part of building such a successful show and of the impact it has had in the worlds of television and food,” she continued in her statement.
David Giesbrecht / ©Bravo /Courtesy: Everett Collection
Don’t worry, Padma stans. She’s not leaving our TV screens. In addition to her Top Chef duties, Padma has also hosted a travel cooking docuseries, Taste the Nation, on Hulu. Padma said in her goodbye statement she plans to continue with the show, as well as her books and “other creative pursuits.”
Courtesy of Hulu
Season 2 of Taste the Nation dropped in full on May 5.
“I am deeply thankful to all of you for so many years of love and support. Sincerely, Padma,” she ended her statement.
Chuck Hodes / © Bravo / Courtesy: Everett Collection
Thankfully, Top Chef isn’t ending alongside Padma’s departure. Last month, Bravo announced the series will return for Season 21.
David Moir / ©Bravo / Courtesy: Everett Collection
That’s about all the information we have at the moment. It’s unclear if Tom and Gail will continue or even take on main hosting duties themselves.
F. Scott Schafer / © Bravo / Courtesy: Everett Collection
Gail hosted Top Chef: Just Desserts from 2010 to 2011, so it would be easy for her to take over the reins. But this is just wishful thinking at this point.
Suddenly, binging all 20 seasons of Top Chef may have just skyrocketed to the top of my to-do list.
David Moir / © Bravo / Courtesy: Everett Collection
Thanks for all the great seasons, Padma.
Justin Stephens / © Bravo / Courtesy: Everett Collection
