Padma Lakshmi is unquestionably a woman of taste. As a host of the beloved food-competition series “Top Chef” and the star of the culinary docuseries “Taste the Nation,” she’s spent nearly two decades artfully conveying—and critiquing—flavors and aromas for an audience. Before that, she was a fashion writer and model, cultivating her own sense of what’s worth wearing and seeing. And she isn’t done evolving: she’s recently begun performing standup comedy, an art form with a notoriously steep learning curve. In a live taping at The New Yorker Festival, Vinson Cunningham, Naomi Fry, and Alexandra Schwartz talk with Lakshmi about the difference between discernment and pickiness, how travel has expanded her taste, and her approach to rendering judgement on TV. “I see my job as helping,” Lakshmi says. “I see my job as being the person in the kitchen who’s saying, ‘Does this need a little salt?’ ”

Read, watch, and listen with the critics:

“Top Chef” (2006—)
“Taste the Nation” (2020-23)
“RuPaul’s Drag Race” (2009—)
“American Idol” (2002—)
“Project Runway” (2004—)
“Padma’s All American,” by Padma Lakshmi
“Padma Lakshmi Walks Into a Bar,” by Helen Rosner (The New Yorker)
“Art in the Age of Artificial Intelligence” (The New Yorker)
Dijon’s “Baby”
“Frankenstein” (2025)

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Critics at Large is a weekly discussion from The New Yorker which explores the latest trends in books, television, film, and more. Join us every Thursday as we make unexpected connections between classic texts and pop culture.