Chilling new details about ‘awkward’ restaurateur, 52, who gunned down pregnant wife and own kids, 4 & 8, in home
THE murder-suicide of a prominent restaurateur couple has rocked their tight-knit community as new details have emerged about the husband who police said gunned down his family.
Investigators said Matthew Mitchell fatally shot his wife and business partner, Thy Mitchell, and their two children, aged 8 and 4, inside their lavish River Oaks home in Houston on Monday before turning the gun on himself.
Sign up for The US Sun newsletter
The Mitchell family were found dead in their home on Monday after police said dad Matthew Mitchell gunned down his loved ones Credit: Instagram/thy_travelers
Matthew and Thy Mitchell were successful co-owners of the Houston restaurant Traveler’s CartCredit: Instagram/thy_travelers
The Mitchells’ restaurant was featured on Guy Fieri’s show Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives on the Food Network Credit: Instagram/travelerstablerestaurant
The couple was named the 2025 Restaurateurs of the Year by the Houston Chapter of the Texas Restaurant Association Credit: Instagram/thy_travelers
The Mitchells were well-known figures in the Houston hospitality industry, owning and operating a successful restaurant, Traveler’s Cart, offering a global cuisine inspired by the family’s travels.
The couple was named the 2025 Restaurateurs of the Year by the Houston Chapter of the Texas Restaurant Association.
Their eatery was featured on the Food Network with TV host Guy Fieri in 2021, and one of their chefs appeared on the Beat Bobby Flay show.
In the episode of Fieri’s Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, the renowned restaurateur described Traveler’s Cart as a place where diners could choose from an extensive menu.
Read more in The U.S. Sun
‘NOT ON SCENE’
Nancy Guthrie cops break silence on Kash Patel’s claim they blew case
FULL DISCLOSURE
UFO files coming ‘very soon,’ Kash Patel says as pastors warn ‘prepare now’
“I don’t know about your family, but at the Fieri house when we’re going out to dinner there is a long standing debate of what we’re going to have,” Fieri said in the episode.
“Somebody wants Italian, somebody wants Mexican, somebody Asian, usually me, wouldn’t it be great if there was a restaurant where you can get all those things, but done in a legit way,” he added before walking into the Mitchells’ eatery.
At one point, the restaurant’s chef presents Fieri with a plate filled with braised oxtail, and when the TV presenter takes a spoonful of the dish, he declared it to be “in the running for the best.”
“I don’t ever say something is the best, but I will tell you what, this would be in the running,” Fieri said.
Most read in The US Sun
The deaths of the seemingly unblemished family left a former employee in shock and never imagined Matthew Mitchell, 52, was capable of such violence.
“Most crazy thing I ever heard of happening to people I know,” a former employee at Traveler’s Cart, who asked not to be named, told The U.S. Sun in response to the news about the family’s death.
“I would have never guessed in a million years this would happen to their family.”
The former employee, who worked at the Mitchells’ restaurant from 2022 to 2025, remembered Thy for her “infectious laughter.”
The couple’s two children, an 8-year-old daughter and 4-year-old son, were found dead in their beds, police said Credit: Instagram/thy_travelers
An investigation into the family’s death remains ongoing Credit: Instagram/thy_travelers
“Thy was an amazing woman. She was so friendly and well-loved by all her employees. A good kind-hearted woman who was doing amazing things in the community.”
Thy, 39, was also a creative fashion designer, launching her own clothing brand in 2023.
However, the ex-employee said there was a clear difference in demeanor between Thy and her husband, whom she described as reserved.
“They were prolific in the hospitality industry. They always seemed like the perfect couple. Matt was not as friendly as Thy,” she added.
“He was always a little awkward and didn’t like too much spotlight.”
The former employee said she never witnessed any violent tendencies from Mitchell, but eerily said he would get “easily agitated.”
She declined to get into specifics when speaking with The U.S. Sun.
Houston police were called to the family’s affluent River Oaks home on Monday after the couple’s babysitter arrived at the home at 5:30 pm and uncovered the gruesome scene.
Officials said that preliminary evidence showed that Mitchell killed his wife Thy, who was pregnant at the time, and their two children before shooting himself.
The couple’s 8-year-old daughter and 4-year-old son were found in their beds.
Thy’s sister confirmed her sibling’s death in a gut-wrenching social media post, saying the family was “heartbroken and grieving deeply.”
An investigation into the incident remains ongoing.
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call or text the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text Crisis Text Line at 741741.
News
“MOM, WHY DOES DAD WANT TO HURT US?” 😢 The pain in their voices is unbearable — just moments before Thy Mitchell’s children lost their lives at the hands of their father. Matthew Mitchell, a well-known restaurateur in Houston, allegedly killed his wife and kids before taking his own life. The question they asked their mother, “Why does dad want to hurt us?” echoes in the minds of everyone who hears it. What was going on in that house that led to such a heart-wrenching end?
Houston restaurateur allegedly shot his wife and 2 kids before turning the gun on himself HOUSTON (TCN) – A restaurateur whose eatery was profiled on Guy Fieri’s “Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives” allegedly fatally shot his wife and their children before taking his own life.According to the Houston Police Department, officers were called on May 4 to […]
“SHE PREDICTED HER DEATH…” 😱 — THY MITCHELL’S HAUNTING POST DAYS BEFORE THE HORRIFIC MURDER-SUICIDE Just days before being slain alongside her children, Thy Mitchell posted something that now feels bone-chilling. Was it a sign of what was to come, or just a tragic coincidence?
Restaurateur’s haunting post just days before she and her 2 kids are killed by husband: ‘The foreshadowing is chilling’ The prominent Texas restaurateur who was slain alongside her kids in a shocking murder-suicide by her husband had made a haunting post about her future just days earlier. Thy Mitchell, 39, posed alongside husband Matthew Mitchell, 52, […]
**“WHY DIDN’T YOU SAVE MY MOTHER?😭 Group Who Found Woman Trapped in Rocks Told ‘Don’t Rescue Her’ By 999 — And Then She DIED”**
Group who found mum trapped in rocks ‘told by 999 don’t rescue her’ before she died Saffron Cole-Nottage, 32, was walking by the sea in Lowestoft, Suffolk, when she slipped and fell, becoming stuck head-down between two boulders as the water rose around her Joe Smith 19:22, 06 May 2026Updated 23:51, 06 May 2026 Passers-by […]
“BYSTANDERS SAID IT FELT LIKE ‘AN ETERNITY’ 😢 Mother Tragically Passed Away In Front Of Her Daughter After Freak Accident Near Sea Rocks”
Mother drowned in front of daughter while trapped headfirst in sea defence boulders as horrified bystanders described ‘waiting an eternity’ for 999 crews to arrive, inquest told A mother who plunged headfirst down a gap between sea defence boulders drowned in front of her daughter as the tide rose over her head and members of […]
“IN THAT MOMENT… HE SAID SOMETHING NO ONE EXPECTED” 😳 A Texas nurse who suddenly fell into a coma during her honeymoon in Japan left her family in shock. As doctors fought to keep her alive, her husband stood there… and said one sentence that changed everything. What he said is now being talked about everywhere. 📌 Full story in the comments
Texas nurse Sarah Danh’s family shares health update after revealing she suffered stroke before emergency flight back to US Critically ill Texas nurse Sarah Danh squeezed her mom’s hand in the hospital and “faintly nodded” when asked if she could hear them — just days after suffering a stroke before her emergency flight back to […]
“WE DIDN’T THINK SHE’D COME THIS FAR…” 💔 A newlywed Texas nurse slipped into a coma right after her honeymoon in Japan — a sudden, heartbreaking turn no one could explain. Doctors prepared for the worst… but now, there’s a development they didn’t expect. Is this the moment everything changes? 📌 Full story in the comments
Texas nurse who fell into coma on honeymoon in Japan is off life support, breathing on her own; family shares hopeful update Sarah Danh (Image courtesy: Facebook/Khang Le) Sarah Danh, a newlywed bride who went to Japan for her honeymoon and slipped into a coma after a sudden medical emergency, is now off life support […]
End of content
No more pages to load
