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The Daily Dish Awards Season

Padma Lakshmi Shares Exactly How Her Daughter Reacted to Top Chef's Multiple Emmy Nominations

The Bravo's Top Chef host is also up for an Emmy with Tom Colicchio at the 2020 virtual ceremony.

By Jocelyn Vena
Padma Lakshmi Top Chef Emmy

In case you missed the big news, Bravo's Top Chef is up for four 2020 Emmy Awards, including one for Padma Lakshmi and Tom Colicchio, who have been nominated together in the Outstanding Host for a Reality or Competition Program for their work as co-hosts.

How to Watch

Watch Top Chef Season 21 Wednesdays at 9/8c on Bravo and next day on Peacock.

Top Chef's four 2020 nominations for Season 17 also include Outstanding Competition Program, Outstanding Directing for a Reality Program, and Outstanding Picture Editing For A Structured Reality Or Competition Program.

The Daily Dish spoke to Padma in a phone interview last week and she shared how she was feeling about all the Emmy love this year.

"I’m feeling really good. I mean I’m happy that this season was so well received. I think that it was a real comfort to everybody in quarantine to be able to eat vicariously through us. But also, experience restaurants and things of that nature through us at a time when we were all home and cooking. I’m really proud of my whole crew, everyone you don’t see on camera, who works really, really hard," she said. "This Emmy nomination really should go to them. I think that because we had an All-Star season, it was really beautiful because you already have an emotional connection with all of the contestants from day one. Usually. When it’s a new season, it takes you a few episodes to get to know everybody and pick who you’re gonna root for, etcetera. But it really, this season you didn’t need to do that, obviously."

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Padma did share the good news of all the Emmy love with someone special in her life, her daughter.

"I didn’t even know they were being announced, obviously, that day and when I got a call from my publicist I didn’t even know what it was about. Like I mean, [laughs] you know, so completely — I mean I guess I, you know, honestly, one week and one month is running into the next in quarantine. So, I had completely forgotten that it was Emmy season. And so, I was really excited and happy, especially because of the host nomination," she said.

"I told my daughter, who was not with me and she was like 'OK, thanks, I got to go, I’m on the other line with my friends,'" Padma recalled, with a laugh. "'Cause, you know, she hasn’t been able to see a lot of her friends, so she was FaceTiming with a playmate. And so, you know, for her it’s like yeah, mom, whatev."

Still, her daughter did tune in to Season 17, even if she was seemingly too cool about the nods and love for the season. 

"We never missed an episode, I don’t think, this season 'cause we’re certainly home," Padma shared. "I mean she feels a great proprietorship over Top Chef. She’s grown up on set. So, she feels like she’s part of the crew, and so, I think it was just catching her at the moment I caught her. But I’m sure she’s happy about it. She’s just, she’s 10 and so she’s a tween and so they have to be jaded and not be excited about anything."

While fans will have to wait until September 20 to find out if Top Chef and the hosts should go home with any trophies, you can relive Melissa King's Season 17 win, below.

The Top Chef Season 17 Winner Is...

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