Who Is Padma Lakshmi Dating? Meet Her Ex-Boyfriend Adam Dell

Padma Lakshmi was in an on-and-off relationship with her former boyfriend, Adam Dell, since 2009, but it seems the two have parted ways. Though the celeb chef and the venture capitalist haven’t announced their split, Padma was spotted kissing another man in June 2021.

Page Six published photos of the Top Chef star holding hands with an unidentified mystery man, who was later revealed to be Terrance Hayes, while walking her dog in New York City. Padma looked happier than ever as she gave the American poet a smooch at one point during their outing.

The lovey-dovey snapshots come as a surprise to fans considering many assumed Padma was still dating Adam. However, a source told Page Six the former lovebirds “broke up shortly after the new year.”

“It was very amicable,” the insider explained, noting Padma and Adam “are intent on staying the best of friends and remain like family” for the sake of their only child together. “[They] are still very close and are committed to coparenting their daughter, Krishna, who has always been their first priority.”

Padma’s team did not immediately respond to Closer Weekly‘s request for comment.

Since 2009, Padma has been romantically involved with Adam, though they called it quits a few times over the course of their decade-long relationship. The exes met two years after Padma divorced her ex-husband, Salman Rushdie, in 2007, and they started a family when they welcomed Krishna in 2010.

The Love, Loss, and What We Ate author and Adam split before Krisha’s birth, however, and they were involved in a tumultuous custody battle until it was settled in 2012. After spending the next five years apart, Page Six reported Padma and Adam were back together by 2017.

Things appeared to be better than ever for the duo, and in 2019, many speculated they were taking things to the next level when Padma was spotted with a diamond ring during an outing with her beau. Despite sporting the oval-shaped sparkler on that finger, the star’s reps denied rumors of an engagement.

Still, Padma and Adam stayed together throughout 2020, with the Tomatoes for Neela author uploading sweet photos of the ex-couple and their daughter while celebrating her 50th birthday in September. Padma said although the year was filled with “misery,” she was grateful to have Adam and Krishna.

“We made a cocoon for our family. We lived for the first time all under one roof,” she penned. “We became closer … I am truly blessed: a loving and attentive partner, a child that continues to be a miracle every day and work that I am proud of and fully engaged by with people I love.”

To learn more about Padma’s ex-boyfriend, scroll through the gallery below for fun facts on Adam!

Adam Is a Loving Dad

Padma and Adam welcomed their only child together in 2010, but the journey to parenthood wasn’t the easiest. As the Taste the Nation host once explained, she didn’t know the identity of Krishna’s father at first because she was romantically involved with both Adam and Theodore Forstmann following her divorce from Salman Rushdie.

“I probably shouldn’t have been with anybody and just taken the time I needed for myself,” the TV host shared during an appearance on Today. “But I was presented with two very different, very interesting men … I chose to do it. I was open with the men involved.”

Once Padma and Adam found out he was the father, the two dated for a little bit but split before Krishna was born. Despite the difficult road, Adam has never stopped being a dedicated father to his little girl.

Padma and Adam Are Amicable

Though Padma and Adam have shared an interesting relationship over the years, they’re making sure to put their differences aside for the sake of their daughter. This comes as no surprise considering the two will always have respect for one another.