![]() ![]() She was also, for many years, the only voice of color at many of those judging panels, and her presence in that respect cannot be discounted. More than Gail or even Tom, Padma’s omnipresence as the only judge present for both Quickfires and elimination challenges makes her vital to the Top Chef experience. She brings a grace to the proceedings, is willing and able to banter with guests and contestants without ceding any of her power as a judge, and, most importantly, Padma just is Top Chef. Frank: If you go back and watch that first season of Top Chef without Padma, it is clear: Top Chef loses a lot. Remember her reaction to the Gabe Erales revelations? Her frustration and disappointment felt sincere, and that forthright emotion, in contrast to how pretentious Top Chef can sometimes be, has always been part of Padma’s appeal. She’s a knowledgeable, calm figure who always seemed to genuinely care about the contestants, who was enthusiastic about the challenges - even when they were silly movie tie-ins for other Universal properties like Jurassic World Dominion and Fast X - and who wasn’t afraid to stand up to Tom when their opinions differed. I say all this to emphasize how long Top Chef has been on and its influence on this genre, and to argue that Padma as host has been central to this success. The series has dozens of Emmy nominations (and one win for Outstanding Reality Competition Program, back in 2010), and we’ve experienced the meme-ification of Richard Blais, the goofiness of Tom’s ongoing linen-suit phase, the intense friction between the Voltaggio brothers, and the sexual-misconduct scandal that overshadowed season 18. It’s probably hyperbolic to say Top Chef changed American dining forever, but many of this series’ veterans got restaurants, businesses, and TV deals of their own, and there is a real impact there. Roxana Hadadi: Let me be upfront and say while the last two seasons of Top Chef have really tested me, I’m not yet ready to pack my knives and quit a show I have watched from the beginning, in my college dorm room while eating dining-hall fare. Frank - for an emergency discussion on whether the series we’ve watched for nearly two decades is over as we know it. ![]() Has that transformation been undercut by the current World All-Stars season, which could end in back-to-back wins for divisive chef Buddha Lo, who was also victorious in Houston-set season 19? And what about Lakshmi’s announcement that she’s leaving hosting duties to continue working on her Hulu series Taste the Nation and “other creative pursuits” who could ever fill her shoes? Vulture convened its Top Chef fans - critics Roxana Hadadi and Nick Quah, writer and Good One host Jesse David Fox, and writer Jason P. (Two words: New Orleans.) But in the past few years, Top Chef has become a gentler, more encouraging place, with challenges that urge contestants to cook from their personal backgrounds, a supportive vibe from longtime host Padma Lakshmi (who took over from season one’s Katie Lee Joel), and episodes focused on undervalued culinary traditions. For its first decade or so, Top Chef was a cutthroat contest with constant industry name-dropping and a fratty atmosphere - remember Marcel’s almost forcibly shaved head? - that seemed most strongly shaped by head judge Tom Colicchio’s preferences. Over 20 seasons of Top Chef, which debuted slightly over a year after Project Runway brought glossy reality prestige to Bravo, we’ve watched the competition series transform.
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