Marcus Samuelsson - New Judge on 'The Taste'

Photo - Food Network

People.com reported today that Chopped judge Marcus Samuelsson will be the new judge/mentor on the 2nd season of ABC's The Taste.  It was also announced on The Chew today.  He will be joining Anthony Bourdain, Nigella Lawson, and Ludo Lefebvre who are all returning from last year.  Marcus is replacing judge/mentor Brian Malarkey, who was told back in June that he would not be invited back to be a judge.

Many people were surprised to see The Taste renewed for a 2nd season after producing bad ratings toward the end of its first season.  There has been no air date announced for the upcoming season yet.