Kristen Kish has been named the next “Top Chef” host

Christine Kish, the celebrity chef who won season 10 of “Top Chef” more than a decade ago, will return as the next host of the long-running cooking competition, Bravo announced on Tuesday. She will succeed Padma Lakshmi, who said last month she was leaving the show, which she has hosted for 19 of its 20 seasons.

Kish, who has hosted several other food-related series, will take the reins on Season 21, which the network said will take place in Wisconsin. She’ll join food writer Jill Simmons and chef Tom Colicchio at the judges’ table.

“Top Chef is where my journey began—first as a competition chef, then as a guest judge, and now as a host—I’m honored to help continue to build this brand,” Kish said in a statement. “I feel like coming home.”

kish, who was adopted from South Korea and raised in Kentwood, Michigan. Attended Le Cordon Bleu in Chicago. She then spent a decade working in restaurants in Boston, rising through the ranks until she became the first woman in Boston Head Chef at Barbara Lynch’s Crown Jewel Restaurant, Menton.

As The New York Times reported in 2014, Lynch encouraged Kish and another young chef from her group of restaurants to compete on Top Chef.

Kish won Season 10, and has become a familiar face on the show in recent years as a guest judge. I opened too her first restauranthas released a cookbook and hosted or starred in several shows including “36 hoursTravel Channel show is a collaboration with The Times;Iron Chef: The Quest for the Iron Legend,” And “Restaurants at the end of the world.“

Ryan Flynn, senior vice president of NBC Universal, said in a statement that Kish was “the perfect host for the next chapter of ‘Top Chef’ as we tackle a new area of ​​the country that we haven’t explored.”

both of them colic And Simmons She posted Instagram posts on Tuesday afternoon praising the choice of Kish.

“She’s an excellent cook, has a global perspective, and most importantly, being a contestant and judge in the past, she knows what it takes to win.” @employeeColicchio Books.

Impressed beyond words to have her take this seat at the judges’ table, Simmons said.

In a statement to The Times on Tuesday, Kish added that she was “already overwhelmed by the incredible outpouring of support from ‘Top Chef’ fans who have embraced this new chapter.”

“I’m anxious to get started!” She said.

Maya Salam contributed to this report.