Bravo orders Top Chef 7, which is now casting; Padma Lakshmi is pregnant

Top Chef has been renewed for a seventh season, which is unsurprising considering it’s Bravo’s biggest and best competition series now that Project Runway has left for Lifetime.

The network hasn’t yet announced the location, nor how Padma Lakshmi’s recently announced pregnancy will affect her participation in the show. Padma’s Endrometriosis Foundation of America recently announced her pregnancy (but not the father) and said that, because “of her condition, this pregnancy has been referred to by her physician as nothing short of a medical miracle, and due to its delicate nature, we ask/implore the press to respect Ms. Lakshmi’s privacy at this time.” How strange, announcing a pregnancy publicly and then asking for privacy.

Anyway, while Padma is only guest starring in her upcoming sit-com, she did recently tell me that she doesn’t know how many seasons she has left.

Open casting calls for season seven start Oct. 18 in San Francisco, and will also be held in Miami (Oct. 25), Chicago (Oct. 26), DC (Nov. 4), New York (Nov. 8), Dallas (Nov. 11), and L.A. (Nov. 15).