The Errant Æsthete

For a brainy model with a hot new cookbook, marriage to a literary superstar creates opportunities—and problems. Top Chef’s “Please pack your knives and go” Padma Lakshmi now has an empire in the making, but Salman Rushdie (current husband, soon-to-be ex) won’t be part of it. Mary Jo Sales of Vanity Fair profiles a star in the making:

To move around New York with Padma Lakshmi is to be accosted by foodies, that new breed of American hobbyist who knows the meaning of amuse-bouche—a chef’s one-bite calling card; Padma says hers “would have bacon in it …”