A familiar face is sharpening their knives to host the next season of Top Chef<\/a><\/strong><\/em>. And this time, it\u2019s someone who has already been through the heat of the popular cooking competition \u2014 season 10 winner Kristen Kish<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n Kish, crowned Top Chef<\/em> champion in 2013, is replacing the show\u2019s longtime host, author, and activist Padma Lakshmi<\/a><\/strong>, who announced in June that she was leaving the competition<\/a> after 17 years and 19 seasons. Bravo announced the news in a press release Tuesday (Jul. 11, 2023).<\/p>\n This is perfect. She\u2019s exactly the right person to become the host as she\u2019s personable, she truly knows food, and she\u2019s experienced what the contestants will experience.<\/p>\n In a video she posted to Instagram, the chef said she is excited to return to the show that launched her career as a public figure, adding that it feels like a \u201cfull-circle moment\u201d and a \u201chomecoming.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cTop Chef<\/em> is where I started my journey \u2014 first as a competing chef, then a guest judge. And now as host, I have the honor of helping to continue to build this brand,\u201d Kish said in a statement. \u201cI\u2019m thrilled to sit alongside Gail [Simmons] and Tom [Colicchio] as we get to know new incredible chefs and see what they cook up. It feels like coming home.\u201d<\/p>\n Kish was born in South Korea and adopted by a family in Michigan, where she showed an early interest in cooking. Her mother suggested she attend culinary school, which she did at Le Cordon Bleu in Chicago.<\/p>\n Before her appearance on Top Chef, <\/em>Kish worked in multiple high-end restaurants, including a Michelin-star establishment, where she oversaw back-of-house operations. After winning the Top Chef<\/em> title, Kish became the head chef of another fine dining restaurant before leaving her role in 2014 to travel and write a cookbook.<\/p>\n Top Chef<\/em> will not be Kish\u2019s first hosting gig. She was the co-host of 36 Hours<\/em> on the Travel Channel, which partnered with the New York Times<\/em> to feature recipes from the newspaper\u2019s cooking column. She also hosted Fast Foodies<\/em> on truTV.<\/p>\n In addition to her adventures in television cooking, Kish started her own restaurant, Arlo Grey, and published her first cookbook, Kristen Kish Cooking<\/a><\/strong><\/em>.<\/p>\n \u201cKristen Kish represents everything that makes Top Chef<\/em> incredibly special,\u201d said Ryan Flynn, the senior vice president of current production at NBCUniversal Television & Streaming, in a statement. \u201cShe\u2019s an acclaimed chef, and her experience as a cheftestant, winner, and judge, alongside her culinary curiosity, makes Kristen the perfect host for the next chapter of Top Chef<\/em> as we take on a new region of the country we haven\u2019t explored.\u201d<\/p>\n Season 21 of Top Chef<\/em> will take place in the Wisconsin cities of Milwaukee and Madison for the first time in the show\u2019s history, though the network has not yet announced when the new season will air.<\/p>\n![\"Padma](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/socialitelife.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/padma-lakshmi-06022023.jpg?resize=180%2C180&ssl=1\")
<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n![\"Kristen](\"https:\/\/socialitelife.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/kristen-kish-photos-07122023--1160x1840.jpg\")
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