Lisa Barlow Speaks Out: Is Jen Shah's Era Over on Real Housewives of Salt Lake City?

Salt Lake City's Queen Bee Lisa Barlow Spills Tea on Jen Shah: "She'll Never Come Back"

The drama continues to unfold in the snow-capped mountains of Salt Lake City, where the Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star Lisa Barlow is dishing out all the juicy deets about her former castmate Jen Shah's prison sentence. As we all know, Shah, 51, is currently serving time at the Bryan Federal Prison Camp in Texas alongside infamous figures like Theranos fraudster Elizabeth Holmes and Ghislaine Maxwell, convicted associate of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

But what you may not know is that Barlow has been tight-lipped about her interactions with Shah since her guilty plea in July 2023 for conspiracy to commit wire fraud. The Southern District of New York U.S. Attorney's Office initially sentenced Shah to a whopping 78 months in prison, but the sentence was later reduced.

In an exclusive interview with thescholarlynote.com, Barlow finally broke her silence about whether she's still in touch with Shah. "No," she flat-out said, referring to Andy Cohen's recent comments that he "never" wanted to see Shah again on the show. "Andy made it so easy for all of us when he said [that] Jen will never come back."

Cohen's remarks seem to have solidified the Housewives' decision to move forward without Shah, who was accused of running a nationwide telemarketing fraud scheme targeting elderly and vulnerable people. Barlow echoed Cohen's sentiments, stating that her exit from the show "changed the dynamic" for all the women on the series.

"I mean, it dispels any interest in how the dynamic would change with her," Barlow explained, emphasizing that their approach is rooted in the legal system's principle of "innocent until proven guilty." She stressed that Shah had to be proven guilty or plead guilty, which she did, before they could make a decision about moving forward.

But what's really got Barlow's feathers ruffled is Angie Katsanevas' defamatory comment comparing her to Shah this season. The comment came after the ladies brought up lawsuits that Barlow faced in her business endeavors – many of which have been dismissed.

"That's defamatory," Barlow told thescholarlynote.com. "I'm not like Jen Shah. We owned so many businesses, we're not afraid of legal issues." She proudly pointed out that she and her husband, John, are co-owners of Vida Tequila, a successful tequila company, and founder of LUXE Marketing.

"I mean, nobody wants to deal with lawsuits," Barlow said with a chuckle. "I'm like, oh, yeah, I have dismissed civil cases." But what's really important to her is giving back to the community through her Park City restaurant, Premiere.

"We brought in an amazing chef, Angelique from San Francisco," Barlow gushed about her new culinary addition. "She's worked under three Michelin star chefs, and our menu is absolutely incredible." But that's not all – Premiere also serves a selection of drinks for those who may be sober-curious.

And as if the drama wasn't already real enough, Barlow has announced that she'll be taking Vida Tequila to the Big Apple this December. She'll be hosting a pop-up event from December 5 through the 15 at an undisclosed location in New York City.

In conclusion, it seems like Barlow is more focused on her business ventures and philanthropic efforts than rekindling any friendships with Shah. As she put it, "I wanted to give back to the locals, have a great place to listen to music." And judging by her sparkling personality and thriving career, it's clear that Lisa Barlow is the real queen bee of Salt Lake City – and the rest of the world is taking notice.