Baird, who has been a frequent guest or judge on cooking reality TV shows, had no idea, however, that she would be doing the equivalent of campsite cooking with the added challenge of building a kitchen from scratch.

“Not only do we have to cook, but we also had to build our own kitchen from all the (expletive) lying on the beach,” said Baird, chef-partner at and in Denver. That includes making a stove with a wood fire.

The new series, premiering Tuesday on Food Network, is equal parts “Chopped” and “Survivor” and puts 12 professional chefs to the test in a way like never before. Not only do participants have to put together a cohesive meal out of mystery ingredients, but they also have to complete physical challenges to earn those ingredients — and then they have to build essential tools such as cutting boards to use and cook over an open fire.

Typically, each episode of “Chopped” features a new cast of culinary characters. But this season is different in that the 12 original chefs remain until there’s just one left standing. The competition starts out in teams before eventually each individual has to fend for themselves.

In addition to logistical challenges, like tending to a fire and cooking over an open flame, chefs have to overcome being unequipped in many ways. Baird said she was only allowed to bring a limited knife set and, because there were no previous seasons to watch for inspiration, she ended up missing some essential utensils. For example, a spoon.

As a seasoned camper and river tripper, Baird was well equipped for living and cooking outdoors throughout the competition. However, being constantly exposed to the elements on a beach presented unique hurdles.

“It’s the equator, it’s very warm, it would rain, it was windy,” Baird said. “The hardest part was keeping sand out of the judges’ food.”

Additionally, many of the mystery ingredients were native to the Caribbean, like mangoes, coconuts, and plantains. But Baird said there were also some curveballs.

“Sometimes I watch ‘Chopped,’ and I’m like, ‘Don’t you want the judges to have a good meal?’” she laughed.

Overall, Baird said her “Chopped Castaways” experience was both hard and rewarding, and very different from shows she has done in the past.

Baird gained fame in 2017 when she competed on Season 15 of Bravo’s “Top Chef,” where she parlayed her penchant for “fancy toast” into several wins, becoming a fan favorite and finishing in the top four. She was also a contestant on Food Network’s “Beat Bobby Flay” in 2019, garnering attention for beating Flay with her “pork green chili huevos rancheros.” During Season 18 of “Top Chef,” Baird was an All-Star guest judge over eight episodes.

How far will she make it on “Chopped Castaways?” Tune in to the Food Network on May 12 to find out. Locals can also join Baird for a premiere watch party at Bar Dough that evening.

In premiering Wednesday, embark on the journey to find love with all the ups and downs caught on camera. But instead of gimmicks – like, for example, being unable to see each other until they are engaged – there’s only one rule: You cannot ask anyone how old they are.

Hosted by former “Bachelor” Nick Viall and his wife, Natalie Joy, who are almost 20 years apart in age, the show aims to see if love can prevail when relationships are not bogged down by the stigmas often associated with age. Cast members range from 22 to 60 years old, according to Netflix, with one contestant hailing from Denver.

Angel Martinez, founder and owner of med spa, joined the cast for four weeks of filming in Whistler, Canada, in hopes of finding a partner. Though she originally turned down the offer – “I’m not going to do any trashy dating shows and I have a business to run,” Martinez told production – she ultimately decided it was a unique opportunity to take a break from work and mom duties to focus on her love life.

Martinez moved to Denver two decades ago to raise her kids and started both a skin care company and Angel Aesthetics along the way. Between those obligations, the 47-year-old admittedly didn’t have much spare time for dating.

“It����ap very difficult as a single mom to date in Denver. I’ve been just a workhorse the 20 years I’ve been here,” said Martinez, whose three kids are in their 20s. “(The show) was appealing to me because I have dated younger and older.”

Beyond that, the premise of “Age of Attraction” sounded interesting because it challenged Martinez’s own biases about what age means in the context of dating.

“Once I hear a man’s age, I put him in a certain category, especially being a strong, independent woman,” she said. “If they’re 30, I’m like, ‘OK, you’re practically my son’s age. Flattered, but I’ll be cougar for the night.’ And then if they’re too old, they’re set in their ways and I’m like, ‘OK, I’m with grumpy grandpa who doesn’t want to make date plans.’ ”

Of course, Martinez has been on the receiving end of ageism, too. She recalled a recent date with a man who commented that he had never liked someone as old as her. “And he was like 53,” Martinez said.

“I get it from both sides, and that����ap why I really was intrigued by throwing age out of the mix,” she said.

While Netflix’s “Love is Blind” seeks to put personality over physical looks, “Age of Attraction” seemingly takes the opposite approach. By casting , it����ap as though the show is subtly trying to challenge the notion that getting older means getting uglier. Whether or not it successfully does that – or ends up reinforcing conventional standards that tie beauty to youth – remains to be seen.

As a veteran of the beauty industry, Martinez understands this dichotomy all too well. Social media has “ruined the idea of beauty,” she said, especially for women who are pressured to retain youthful looks to be considered attractive. At her spa, Martinez aims to help women embrace their age, not hide it.

“The reason I opened this was not to look younger or not look my age. I’m very proud of being 47 years old. I think that feeling great at your age and feeling confident at your age is how it should be,” Martinez said. “I care more about the health of the skin and you feeling confident at 47, 65, 35 and not trying to be 20 again.”

Tune into “Age of Attraction” on Netflix starting March 11. Watch the trailer below.

Michael Diaz de Leon, currently chef at taqueria Molino Chido in Aurora’s Stanley Marketplace, is one of 16 participants in “America’s Culinary Cup.” The show premieres on CBS at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday with an extended episode introducing the contestants who are vying for a $1 million cash prize.

This is De Leon’s first experience on television, he said in a phone interview Tuesday, calling from New York City where he was promoting the show. In 2022, he had auditioned for “Top Chef,” the long-running reality series on Bravo previously hosted by Padma Lakshmi, but was not selected.

“I was pretty sour about it,” de Leon said, thinking his TV career had fizzled before it even started.

So he hunkered down in the kitchen at BRUTO, the gourmet small-plates restaurant where he worked at the time. The following year, he was a James Beard finalist and BRUTO received a star in the inaugural Michelin Guide in Colorado.

Around the same time that De Leon signed a lease with restaurant operator Tommy Lee for the Molino Chido property in the spring, he got a call from the producers of “America’s Culinary Cup” asking if he wanted to participate in the series, he said. Lakshmi, whose company was putting on the production, would be the host, and the grand prize was the largest for a food competition in television history, the producers told him.

They got his attention. De Leon and the other competing chefs met with Lakshmi and the show’s judges in September, filming the show from New York City studios.

“It was harder than I expected it to be, to be fair,” De Leon, 37, said, keeping mum on the show details. “It pushed me, made me grow and I found out a lot about myself as a chef and person.”

The premise of each episode revolves around the chefs’ approach to one of “10 culinary commandments,” including meat, vegetables, sauces, sustainability, consistency and culinary science. It also includes segments focused on the backgrounds of the chefs.

Also among the contestants is Malyna Si, a chef and food and beverage consultant in Jackson, Wyo. Her previous experience includes leading the kitchen at Capa, a Michelin-starred restaurant at the Four Seasons Resort Orlando in Florida.

When it comes to television, I am a faithful reality series fan.

From dating shows like “Love Island,” “Love is Blind” and “Married at First Sight” to docusoaps like “Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” and makeovers like “Queer Eye” – no program is too fringe that I won’t give it a chance.

So when I recently found myself in between seasons of “Below Deck” and experiencing a dearth of “The Real Housewives” content, I decided to turn on “The Traitors” for the first time. It quickly became my new TV obsession.

For those unfamiliar, “The Traitors” is a reality TV game show featuring well-known personalities from other reality series, who spend a couple of weeks sequestered in a Scottish castle competing for money. The whole cast competes as a group in absurd and macabre challenges as they try to add cash to their collective pot of winnings. A select group of so-called traitors — secretly appointed by actor Alan Cummings, the show’s host doing the absolute most — work behind the scenes to sabotage the rest of the cast, who are known as faithfuls. Each night, the traitors eliminate one faithful by figuratively murdering them, ending their time on the show.

The traitors’ goal is to conceal their identities until the end of the game, because if they survive, they will hijack the winnings. Faithfuls also have chances to banish traitors by voting them out of the castle during a nightly event called the roundtable.

It’s a game of trust and betrayal, of gossip and groupthink. The whole plot is excessive, campy and over-the-top — and it works because the participants are, too.

The most recent season featured icons of fashion, glamor and drama, such as Lisa Rinna of “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” “RuPaul’s Drag Race” star Monét X Change, and Colton Underwood of “The Bachelor.” There were also famous faces from other places in pop culture, such as Olympic figure skaters Tara Lipinski and Johnny Weir, and comedian Ron Funches.

Big personalities playing over-sensationalized versions of themselves in a lavish castle with the couture to match, “The Traitors” is like the ultimate escapist version of reality TV in that it is so far removed from reality it feels like watching a live-action fantasy.

In one episode, for example, the participants join Cummings in the castle’s dining hall for a gathering henceforth known as the Black Banquet. Cummings has tasked the traitors with committing a murder in plain sight — meaning they have to convince a faithful player to touch a jeweled brooch in front of everyone else without raising suspicions. That person is then cursed and slated for murder.

The setting, characters and costumes place viewers squarely in a whimsical world, though that all gets starkly juxtaposed against real human nature when Cummings offers the players an antidote that will save them should they be revealed as the traitors’ secret sacrifice. Paranoia overtakes several players who vie for protection. It turns out to be for naught — the wrong players drink the antidotes and the cursed faithful gets escorted out by two individuals in hooded cloaks.

Ridiculous and over-dramatized? Yes. Addicting television? Absolutely.

Part of “The Traitors” success comes from the character development, and watching each player navigate balancing their own integrity and intuition with the fear they could be next on the chopping block. Showing leadership is a good way to build alliances, but if misconstrued for over-confidence, the whole group could turn on you. One misstep and all fingers point your way.

In several episodes, viewers see participants acting decisively and self-assured in private conversations, only to show up to the roundtable and completely change their thinking. The show is something of a case study in group dynamics and the power of manipulation. It may also make you reflect on your own personal biases.

Like, what exactly makes a person trustworthy? And how would you prove your own innocence when public perception is stacked against you? Comedian Funches spent numerous episodes defending his honor as a faithful, as the other players nit-picked his actions and reserved demeanor. Few believed him until he was banished from the castle and forced to reveal he was, in fact, on the right side of the game.

“The Traitors” Season 4 finale aired on Feb. 26 on Peacock, which means by the time you read this, the fate of the faithfuls and the identities of the traitors will be revealed. But if you’re not invested yet, all the better, as I find this show is best binge-watched versus kept up with week-to-week. Now that I’ve developed a taste for mock murder, I can’t wait to watch all the previous seasons I missed.

The duo behind the “Fixer Upper” empire purchased a property in Woody Creek, near Aspen, in 2024 for $5.5 million and spent several months renovating the three different abodes onsite as part of a limited TV series called “Colorado Mountain House.”

The project included redesigning the two-story main house to add bedrooms, bathrooms, a new kitchen and two new fireplaces, as well as updating two guest cottages. The couple even enlisted help from their eldest daughter Ella to lead the redesign of the smallest building.

Overall, the home married Joanna’s rustic-chic aesthetic with a Colorado cabin vibe, leaning heavily into natural design elements like wood and stone, and green tones for the color palette. It’s a stunner, to be sure.

Take a virtual tour below. Or catch up on “Fixer Upper: Colorado Mountain Home” by streaming it on HBO Max.

Dirty sodas? Secret menu? Sounds a little salacious, yes? In reality, these nonalcoholic sippers are perfectly PG — classic sodas remixed with creams and flavored syrups. But they did recently spill over to Colorado menus (and elsewhere around the country) from Utah after being the beverage of choice on “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,” a scandalous reality show that follows TikTok mom influencers in Utah.

“We don’t drink alcohol or do drugs, and so it����ap kind of our vice,” said one of the “Mormon Wives,” Demi Engemann, in a confessional during the show’s first season, which aired in 2024. The women have frequently shared their custom dirty soda orders and helped catapult the once-niche drink, often guzzled from 44-ounce mega cups, into the spotlight. The series also features B-roll of Swig — the fast-growing Utah-based chain widely credited as the originator of the dirty soda — cementing the beverage’s pop-culture moment.

Industry insiders say you can expect to see these sugar-spun dirty sodas popping up everywhere in 2026 and beyond. They’re an easy win for restaurants, coffee shops and fast-food chains because they allow owners to leverage ingredients they already have behind the bar or barista counter.

“Dirty sodas are simple to execute, highly customizable, and very profitable,” said Jonathan Tofel, founder & CEO at Mission Field, a Denver-based, global CPG (consumer packaged goods) innovation, insights and strategy consultancy. “They give guests something playful without adding complexity to the kitchen.”

That����ap certainly the case at Snooze, which creates more of a scratch-made dirty soda, building its strawberry shortcake dirty soda with Sprite, vanilla syrup and a house-made strawberry purée — normally destined for pancakes but moonlighting here in beverage form — plus a splash of vanilla cream that����ap also used in French toast. Other $3.95 dirty sodas include a pineapple upside-down-inspired version and a creamy, fizzy Fanta-based orange dreamsicle.

Never had a dirty soda before? “It����ap like a cream soda when you mix it up,” explained Jordan Russell, senior brand manager at Snooze.

Where to find dirty sodas in the Denver area

Cookie and soda shop Twisted Sugar’s pitch to franchise owners leans on both habit and indulgence: The average American drinks a whopping 38 gallons of soft drinks a year, yet still craves new flavors, according to the company. Its market research also points to a thriving “sweet treat” culture, showing that 70% of consumers buy desserts at least once a week as a form of self-reward.

At the soda shop’s Highlands Ranch outpost (3624 E. Highlands Ranch Parkway), that appeal is on full display. On a recent weekday afternoon, the store was bustling with high schoolers. A wall of syrups beckoned soda lovers to create their own combinations, but I opted for a pre-imagined menu favorite: Peaches and Cream, made with Sprite, peach purée and cream. Flavor add-ins, though, range from coconut to green apple, kiwi, lavender, passionfruit, vanilla and more.

At Punch Bowl Social (65 Broadway, Denver), an eatertainment spot, dirty sodas have earned a permanent spot on the menu, including a Dirty Cherry Cola ($7) with cold foam and a black cherry syrup or an alcoholic version with Jack Daniels for $12. The $12 Pineapple Express is made with tequila, Jarritos pineapple soda, pineapple, lime and strawberry.

The team at Ziggi’s Coffee, which has several locations in the Denver metro area, said it originally tested dirty sodas in select markets and the drinks quickly became a guest favorite, so the shop added them as permanent menu items in June 2025.

Ziggi’s Dirty Sodas start with familiar soda bases like Dr Pepper, Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Starry and Mug Root Beer, then get “dirtied” up with flavor infusions, fruit purées, creamy finishes and toppings like boba, fruit or whipped cream. The lineup ranges from fan favorites like Ridin’ Dirty (Dr Pepper, a splash of vanilla and a coconut cream twist) and Neon Wave (Mountain Dew with blue raspberry, coconut and raspberry cold foam) to seasonal drinks. The coffee shop features 20 signature combinations, plus many more ways to customize your own drink.

Look a little closer, though, and the dirty soda concept isn’t entirely new. Soda drinkers have been experimenting with mash-ups for decades — ever since fast-food restaurants moved soda machines out from behind the counter and gave customers free rein to mix their own drinks, Tofel said.

“Coke and a root beer mix?” he said. “Orange soda and Mountain Dew? Dirty sodas took this type of natural experimentation up another level.”

How ‘Mormon Wives’ created a drink trend

Many Mormons follow a health code known as the “Word of Wisdom,” which discourages alcohol, coffee and tea. Soda, however, long occupied a gray area. But in 2012, the church clarified that caffeinated sodas were, indeed, acceptable, according to an episode on NPR’s “All Things Considered.”

Around this time, the market was wide open for indulgent, customizable non-alcoholic drinks, says Ben Tannenbaum, a beverage-industry analyst whose newsletter Proof Points tracks industry trends.

“Drive-thru soda shops like Swig and Sodalicious became the local Starbucks equivalent — social gathering spots built around fountain sodas jazzed up with flavored syrups and cream,” he said.

Swig opened its first shop in St. George, Utah, in 2010, and has since grown to more than 120 locations around the United States. (There are none in Colorado, though.)

“Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” was a cultural accelerant, Tannebaum points out. After the show premiered in September 2024, Yelp saw a more than 600% increase in dirty soda searches from the prior year.

“It did what reality TV does best and made regional culture feel accessible and aspirational to a national audience,” he said. “Suddenly, dirty sodas weren’t just a Utah quirk; they were a lifestyle product.”

And corporations took notice. Once you have those search numbers, chains move fast, Tannebaum said.

Taco Bell experimented with a Dirty Baja Blast, Jack in the Box has Twisted Sodas, and Sonic got in the game, too. Coffee-mate even released retail dirty soda creamers so people can DIY at home.

“Now I’m waiting for the first dirty, dirty soda — dirty soda with alcohol — brand to launch,” Tannebaum said. “It’s only a matter of time.”

“It����ap been on the market for a while, so it just feels like the timing is really right for me to potentially make a really good deal on this property,” Chip said at the start of the Dec. 9 premiere.

That would be a good thing, considering Joanna’s grand design vision involved gutting both floors of the house and reconfiguring the entire layout to move the kitchen and add bedrooms.

But a really good deal? The actual sale price: $5.5 million.

That����ap according to Pitkin County property records that show the home, located on two acres in Woody Creek, sold in November 2024. The buyer was a limited liability company that The Denver Post was able to connect to the Gaines family by cross-referencing additional public records. (We are not publishing the address to respect their privacy.)

In addition to a 3,662-square-foot main house, the property also has two additional cabins and a trail that goes right down to the river.

In episode one of three of “Fixer Upper: Colorado Mountain House,” a local contractor and crew make quick work of demolishing the home’s interior while the Gaineses oversee the project from their home base in Waco. Eventually, they come back up to choose paint colors and finishes in person. Viewers also met the couple’s oldest daughter, Ella, who will soon get the chance to try her hand at family business and redesign one of the small cabins.

airs Tuesdays on HGTV and streams on HBO Max.

Their journey to turn a 1960s build into the alpine abode of their dreams is featured on a new limited HGTV series called The three-episode series premieres Tuesday night on HGTV, Magnolia TV and HBO Max.

This is the Gaines’ first project outside of central Texas, and , there are unique challenges that come with the location, “like the fact that it snows about six months out of the year, and material deliveries on mountain roads can get a bit dicey.” Add in the fact that the home currently has zero – Joanna’s words – bedrooms, and the couple clearly has their work cut out for them.

The trailer (below) doesn’t disclose exactly where the property is, but there are clues that it is located in the high country. For one, there’s about a foot of snow on the ground and a river walking distance from the deck down a hill. Oh, and also bears.

The cast and crew apparently cross paths with a bear during their project, as evidenced by the title of the second episode, “Bear With Us.” This year, bear-human conflicts reached their highest level since 2019 and Colorado Parks and Wildlife attributed the increase, in part, to the animals investigating unoccupied homes.

“Fixer Upper” is hardly the first show to renovate mountain homes. In 2022, a program called “Building Roots” showcased home reno projects in Pagosa Springs, which were also led by a transplant couple from Texas. And last year, the HGTV design competition “Battle on the Mountain” came to Breckenridge.

Representatives from HGTV previously told The Denver Post that it films a lot in Colorado because of the diversity of “towns and communities that range from mountain towns to desert communities, traditional neighborhoods, thriving urban centers and more.” Turns out, the state’s natural beauty also makes for great television.

The show is called and it aims to both showcase the Mile High City’s thriving music scene and add a new twist to overplayed reality dating formats. Creator and executive producer LaRue Allegretto said the idea started as a joke – “It was legitimately a pun,” they said – but it caught fire after of the most recent season of “Love is Blind” for not representing the Denver archetype.

“I was like, well, I’ll make a little video, kind of cheeky. I didn’t mean to start anything with it,” said Allegretto, a local tattoo artist and muralist who uses they/them pronouns. “That video ended up getting and thousands of comments.”

Admittedly, Allegretto has no experience in TV production, but they said people came out of the woodwork – or shall we say “wook-work” – to offer legal guidance, filming assistance and more. Allegretto said they are working to get financing and possible distribution on a streaming service, but doesn’t have concrete details yet.

That hasn’t stopped people from applying. More than 350 people have so far submitted applications since they opened on Nov. 28, Allegretto said.

“It was a joke until it wasn’t. But it’s no longer a joke. We are well outside the realm of joke at this point,” they said.

“Wook” is a slang term that generally refers to a culture of people in their 20s who attend a lot of music festivals or follow jam bands around the state or the country. The word sometimes refers to the drugs and hygiene habits that can accompany this culture, .

The concept of the show is similar to conventional dating shows in that contestants (wooks) will seek to find partners while undergoing a series of challenges that test their compatibility. After 12 episodes, the last people standing earn the prize of everlasting love. (At least, that����ap the hope.)

“Wooking For Love” will have some notable differences, however. For one, the premise revolves around the live music scene, so dates and challenges will likely take place at concerts and venues, Allegretto said. Contestants could be on the crew setting up for a show, running a vendor booth, or simply enjoying themselves in the crowd. Some of those challenges could include all-nighters.

“Wook has a pretty variable definition,” Allegretto said. “Some people definitely use it derogatorily and some people use it endearingly. We’re looking at the broadest in that you’re involved in festival culture; it����ap an important part of your life. You work, you play, you live in the music and the community, and ultimately what you’re looking to get out of life is that richness of connection and experience.”

The cast is expected to live together at a ranch in Morrison, the Colorado version of a “Love Island” villa, and arrive not in limos, but Subarus in which they may be car-camping together and “vibing under the Colorado sky,” per the website. And instead of hosting elimination ceremonies and handing out roses, Allegretto said participants will have periodic “vibe checks” and cut off wristbands if they want to ditch their couple – or throuple. “Wooking For Love” hopes to recruit Denverites of all genders and sexualities, and also those open to polyamory, Allegretto said.

Participants won’t get legally married at the end of the show, they added. Instead, there will be a “sacred bass union” for those who stick it out through the finale, when participants will be put through the wringer, helping produce a local festival.

Allegretto anticipates hosting auditions in February before beginning filming in the spring. Their team is also in the process of shopping networks, and if all goes well, Allegretto hopes to hit the airwaves by late 2026 or early 2027.

“It����ap going to be warm and humorous, and (we’re) picking people who are messy but wholesome. Wholesome degenerates is really the sweet spot,” Allegretto said.

Is your heart thumping like an 808 kick drum? Apply now at .

On Nov. 10, as , of TikTok and “Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” fame, embarks on her journey to find love. The show is currently seeking Coloradans to join Paul and her gaggle of suitors on , about 20 miles north of Steamboat Springs.

Filming is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 10. It����ap unclear what exactly the cast will be doing there, but the show often features events, such as talent shows or pageants, that they film in front of a live audience. Those interested in participating must apply for tickets by emailing info@bachelornationaudience.com with specific information outlined at .

Paul’s casting as the show’s lead is a significant departure from the norm of the 23-year-old franchise, which usually recruits personalities from past seasons to lead the new ones. It����ap also notable because Paul, 31, is already a celebrity and mother of three whose past relationship tribulations have played out on both phone and TV screens. For example, “Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” viewers know she was arrested during a domestic violence incident that played out in Season 1. Talk about potential for the most dramatic season ever.

The consensus in reality TV circles is that this crossover is an effort to bring eyeballs back to ABC’s once-a-hit show that has since been outdone by newer inventions like “Love Island.” It also makes sense because “Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” is a Hulu production. Both Hulu and ABC are owned by Disney.

Season 22 of “The Bachelorette” premieres March 22, 2026. The last time the franchise was big news in Colorado was in 2022, when local nurse and former Denver Broncos cheerleader Gabby Windey was the star. Spoiler alert: It didn’t work out for her on the show, but she has since married comedian Robby Hoffman.