Part of my job as a food writer is to describe food. So my work on Top Chef, I feel, is an extension of that. When we give a criticism to the contestant, we want to make sure we tell them why its not working and why it would work if they did it a different way. – Padma Lakshmi

I think wine is such a big universe that its kind of like food – its intimidating to a lot of people, myself included. – Padma Lakshmi

The best thing you can do for someone is make them a beautiful plate of food. How else can you invade someones body without actually touching them? – Padma Lakshmi