Downtown brunch spot with troubled history files for bankruptcy

A downtown Phoenix brunch spot has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. It’s the latest curveball in the turbulent history of Breakfast Bitch, a restaurant that’s served eggs and French toast with an upbeat party vibe on Roosevelt Row since 2022.

The bankruptcy filing for BB Restaurant Group, LLC was submitted to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Arizona on Monday, Feb. 2. It comes on the heels of two separate lawsuits recently filed against the restaurant group in Maricopa County Superior Court.

The bankruptcy filing was signed by Derrell Hutsona. He and his wife, Tracii Show Hutsona, own Breakfast Bitch and are listed as members of BB Restaurant Group in documents filed with the Arizona Corporation Commission. 

When a company files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, it can continue to operate while reorganizing and restructuring its debt. The restaurant group’s debts are estimated between $100,001 and $500,000, per the filing, and owed to more than a dozen creditors.

“BB Restaurant Group is affiliated with several entities,” an emailed response from Breakfast Bitch to New Times explained. “We are simply restructuring, with plans to consolidate some of the entities.”

A turbulent past

The Hutsonas founded Breakfast Bitch in San Diego in 2019. They expanded to downtown Phoenix in late 2020, initially opening a spot inside the Cambria Hotel. The cheeky breakfast joint debuted a food truck concept, Bitch on the Run, at The Pemberton in February 2021, but didn’t remain there for long. 

That same month, Tracii Show Hutsona was arrested and charged with wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.

Federal prosecutors alleged that during a four-year period – from October 2015 to November 2019 – Hutsona stole more than $1 million from Joumana Kidd, an actress and ex-wife of Jason Kidd, the former NBA star and current head coach of the Dallas Mavericks. Prosecutors called Hutsona a “serial fraudster,” saying her scheme included transferring hundreds of thousands of dollars from Joumana Kidd’s checking account and two college savings accounts for Kidd’s children to her own at a time when Hutsona was being paid $80,000 a year as Joumana Kidd’s personal assistant.

In July 2022, Hutsona pleaded guilty to one count of fraud. In early 2023, she was sentenced to 51 months in prison and three years of supervised release. She was also ordered to pay $1,148,759.28 in restitution to her victims.

Hutsona reported early to a federal prison in Phoenix in March 2023 after prosecutors said she had harassed victims and called her a flight risk. 

With one of its owners incarcerated, Breakfast Bitch experienced setbacks. The original location of Breakfast Bitch closed in San Diego’s Hillcrest neighborhood in October 2023 after operating for just over four years. 

Five months later, Breakfast Bitch’s Roosevelt Row landlord asked a Maricopa County Superior Court judge to evict the restaurant and order it to pay overdue rent and fees. The landlord voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit two weeks later, noting the restaurant had paid its rent.

The problems went beyond financial concerns. Health inspectors found issues with cleanliness and food safety at the restaurant. During routine visits in 2023 and 2024, inspectors found several priority violations at the Phoenix eatery. Issues deemed “priority violations” pose the greatest risk to staff or customers.

In April 2024, a judge granted Hutsona’s request for a reduced sentence. In her request, she noted the restaurant was “struggling” without her, 12News reported. Hutsona was released to a residential re-entry program after just under a year and a half in prison. 

“I am remorseful for the mistakes I’ve made in my life,” she told 12News in December 2024. “However, they’re not exactly what they were made out to be.”

Her return didn’t immediately fix issues. In October 2024, a health inspector recorded six priority violations, including improperly stored and undated food. When inspectors note these kinds of issues, they’re generally corrected in real time. That’s how most issues at Breakfast Bitch were addressed, though inspectors returned in November to reinspect a dishwashing machine. In health inspector visits since, the restaurant has had no violations or significantly fewer. During its latest inspection in January 2026, the restaurant received a B health grade.

New legal challenges 

Now, Breakfast Bitch and its owners face new legal challenges.

In late December, Tiffany Wates and Krishanda Allen filed a lawsuit claiming Breakfast Bitch’s Boujee Bitch — lobster cakes served with a basted egg and hollandaise sauce on a croissant — made the two plaintiffs “violently ill.”

“Plaintiffs sustained painful and serious injuries, some of which may be permanent in nature,” the complaint read, noting the two “have incurred health care expenses” as a result. 

In its response filed on Monday, an attorney for Breakfast Bitch’s parent companies denied the allegations. 

Then, in January, the restaurant’s Roosevelt Row landlord filed a lawsuit again seeking to evict the restaurant. Breakfast Bitch owes $48,354.06 to Roosevelt Row Apartments, LLC in unpaid rent, interest and late fees, a complaint filed on Jan. 21 in Superior Court said. A judge has stayed this matter until August, while the bankruptcy case proceeds. 

The restaurant group’s creditors include its building landlord, Allen and Wates, per its bankruptcy filing. A meeting of creditors in BB Restaurant Group’s bankruptcy is set for March 10.