All-Stars 12/8 Show Discussion **Spoilers**

[MFWalkoff]

She used to be a vegetarian when she was a teenager, but she has been shown eating meat in almost every Top Chef episode. And have we forgotten about her infamous cheeseburger commercial?

Lakshmi was brought up as a vegetarian[20] and has admitted that because of this, she sometimes becomes "squeamish" when sampling other cultural delicacies.[21] However, in 2009, she starred in a television advertisement created by Mendelsohn Zien Advertising for the Carl's Jr restaurant chain eating a Western Bacon Cheeseburger and in her second cookbook Tangy, Tart, Hot and Sweet she credits the chain with bringing her away from vegetarianism during her teenage years.[22]

[Dragonlady]

I guess we've just read different things about Padma.
I understood her to still be a vegatarian but must eat meat due to her job on TC, even though it sometimes makes her "squeamish," as she said.

As for her Carl's Jr commercial, being a woman, yes, I had forgotten that. If I were a man, I doubt I would have forgotten.

But I'm surprised that she says a Carl's Jr hamburger changed her mind about being a vegatarian. Having some of the marvelous dishes on TC would be more apt to convert a vegatarian to meat, at least, in my thinking. But to each his own, I guess.