Are cooking shows on their way out?

September 10, 2025 by
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Cooking shows have proliferated in the past 20 or so years – every streaming service has multiple offerings, as do more traditional broadcast and cable networks. These vary from competitive reality TV to educational programs to travel shows. Programs like Top Chef, Chopped, Hell’s Kitchen, Good Eats, America’s Test Kitchen, No Reservations, and dozens more have educated and entertained us for decades. But the glory days of cooking TV are behind us, says David Sillito of BBC News, who believes that TV cooking shows are dying out.

There are several factors that go into Sillito’s equation, but the most obvious is the rise of social media shorts (TikTok), which goes hand-in-glove with user-generated videos offered on YouTube. As of February of this year, YouTube is the most watched content on American televisions, and the UK is catching up. This is not even counting what people watch on their phones or laptops. British broadcasting regulator Ofcom published a report in July that claimed British TV is facing a crisis. “Time,” it said, “is running out to save this pillar of UK culture and way of life.”

How people consume entertainment (and to a lesser extent, educational content) has seismically shifted over the last two decades, with the change accelerating due to the rise of social media and streaming services. Kids today find it quaint that we used to have to schedule our TV viewing in order to catch our favorite programs. I have not owned a television for over ten years so I am not the best judge of what is currently on offer, but I have noticed that friends and family seem to consume less traditional programming. I am not surprised by the claim that cooking shows – likely joined by other traditional network programs – are on their way to becoming relics, because the old saying is true: nothing lasts forever.

Category: Antipasto

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12 Comments

  • Indio32  on  September 11, 2025

    In my opinion TV needs to concentrate on production quality things like Stanley Tucci’s ‘Searching for Italy’ etc and leave the questionable Short form stuff to the likes of TikTok/YouTube

  • matag  on  September 11, 2025

    I’m tired of the competition shows! I don’t care who can beat Bobby Flay. I liked watching Bobby show me how to make something for brunch. I loved watching Tyler Florence go out and find the best dish and then come back and show me how to make it. Heck I even miss Emeril saying BAM

  • KarenGlad  on  September 11, 2025

    Never been a fan of the cooking games…watch very little of the food tv programming here in Canada because the majority are food related competitions. It’s boring.Though the British and Canadian Bake Off shows are an exception.

  • lean1  on  September 11, 2025

    I don’t watch competition cooking shows. I like learning technique from the likes of Julia Child I hope that can continue.

  • vickster  on  September 11, 2025

    I miss the traditional cooking shows that Food Network airs. Now it is mostly competition shows and I don’t get much out of them.

  • JimCampbell  on  September 11, 2025

    I agree with the comments made on watching competition shows. I am going to throw restaurant rescue shows. I’m tired of seeing people spit food out.

    I like being taught something. I like watching people who have a pleasant personality and who show, through their expression, that they are enjoying what they are doing, and are passionate about teaching others. It’s why I like Lidia, Jacques, and on any given day I may even toss Ree in there.

    But I think the downfall of TV in general is the lack of new content. Too many reruns and old stuff. TikTok/YouTube constantly have new content. Why tune into a cooking program that’s 10 years old and I’ve already watched at least twice.

  • Rinshin  on  September 11, 2025

    No cooking games etc. The only ones I used to ever watched were The original Iron Chef. Never watched any bake offs, show offs, reality this and that. So cut throat, stupid and not real. Don’t trust tik tok. I watch you tubes and non competitive or non silly shows on food on netflix.

  • Lsblackburn1  on  September 11, 2025

    Okay I’ll admit that cooking shows like Chopped or tournament of champions have been a guilty pleasure, especially after a long day at work. They have, however, become too repetitive and the faux idolization of the chefs is pretty cringey. I am watching a lot less (except I think I’ll never get tired of Top Chef!)

  • FuzzyChef  on  September 12, 2025

    But …. there’s serious cooking shows on Youtube and Tiktok and other streaming. Even PBS has great streaming food shows. Cooking shows arent going away, they’re just changing stations.

  • JaniceKj  on  September 13, 2025

    I agree with everyone’s comments. TV cooking shows are out. They have been. Their production line/format are all the same. Too many short-cuts, drama, loud music, voiceovers that are truly annoying. It practically stimulates stress and ADD! I switched to just a few ones on PBS/Create TV… and now continue to follow on YT only. Lydia is my favorite!

  • rosajane8  on  September 14, 2025

    I think I agree that TV cooking shows are going out -possibly because they focus on competition shows as opposed to actual cooking shows (I miss Emeril!!!) but I don’t think cooking shows in general are going out..we just watch them on a different “platform” (I’m looking at you, YouTube)

  • bnefarm  on  September 16, 2025

    Most of the show’s are competition type shows; I still enjoy Master Chef and the seasonal baking championship shows and Great British Bake Off so I guess there is still a market for them but that seems to be all there is on Food TV.

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