A Few Favorite Moments with Padma Lakshmi

You didn't think we'd let the day go by without a few Top Chef mentions, did you? Afterall, it is the final finale tonight. Tonight! So not to seem like the only media outlet not in on the party, the LAT runs a profile of hostess with the mostess, Padma Lakshmi, today. An odd choice considering our local contestant, Antonia Lofaso, just left the show last week and the Times has yet to take any real interest in her. But with Pads, we learn so much we already knew---37, newly divorced from Salman Rushdie, former model. Still, the profile yields a few quality moments:

Favorite fact: As an actress, had roles in Mariah Carey's Glitter and "a memorable turn" on Star Trek: Enterprise.

Favorite fuck-off moment: She puts on 12 to 15 pounds a season and therefore has a wardrobe in two sizes.

Favorite Tom thought: "It was clear she knew what she was eating and how to talk about it. When we're judging, I want someone to challenge me, and she's very articulate, so we can spar."

Favorite quote: "My greatest pleasure is to put a plate before you and watch you. But you know it's true! I long to hear you say, 'Mmmmm.'"

Next steps: More cookbooks, another cooking show, her own brand of bottled chutneys, perhaps a jewelry line and a memoir. The show is loosely described as "a group of fun, eclectic people come over to her house for a dinner party; we watch her prep, get ready and cook; guests arrive and eat; maybe someone plays music." Oh, Pads.
· Padma Lakshmi: The Anti-Martha Stewart [LAT]
· Full Top Chef Coverage, Including Recaps, Interviews, More [~ELA~]