Owner of Arizona restaurant ‘Breakfast Bitch’ released from prison

PHOENIX — One Phoenix restaurant owner is on a path to redemption after landing in some hot water.

Tracii Hutsona is back at the helm of her restaurant, ‘Breakfast Bitch’, a popular and provocative spot in the Roosevelt Row neighborhood, after a stint in federal prison.

“I’m just grateful for life lessons, ” Hutsona said in December 2024.  “I’m grateful to be back.”

Hutsona was arrested in 2021 and eventually took a plea deal for wire fraud, admitting she stole more than $1 million from actress Joumana Kidd, NBA star Jason Kidd’s ex-wife.

RELATED: ‘I’ll be back’: Breakfast Bitch owner surrenders to prison; gives 12News exclusive interview

Court records say this occurred while Hutsona was working as Kidd’s assistant.  Hutsona was previously convicted in another federal scheme. 

In the latest case, prosecutors called her a “serial con artist” and Hutsona was originally sentenced to more than four years in prison.

Hutsona spoke with the 12News I-Team exclusively in March 2023 before surrendering to federal prison and vowed she’d be back to run her restaurant.

While she was incarcerated, a judge reduced her sentence. Now, after spending only about a year and a half behind bars, she’s finishing her sentence in a residential re-entry program. Bureau of Prison records say her release date from the program is June 2025.

“I am remorseful for the mistakes I’ve made in my life,” Hutsona said. “However, they’re not exactly what they were made out to be.”

The Phoenix restaurant survived her incarceration, too, with Hutsona’s family pitching in.  But change didn’t come without struggle.

“Of course, that’s hard on everybody,” said employee Travis Gomez. “And of course, that’s hard for reputation’s sake.”

Hutsona said they shut down their San Diego location.

Also, earlier this year, the Phoenix restaurant received violations from Maricopa County Public Health. County records show that those have all been corrected.

“No one wants to see the correction, they only want to see the negative,” Hutsona said. “That’s what’s juicy.”

“Not that I don’t take them seriously,” she added. “I absolutely do…we live in a society that really loves drama.”

 “Do you have any regrets?” asked the I-Team’s Erica Stapleton.

 “Of course I have regrets,” Hutsona responded.  “If I could go back in time and change some of the decisions that I’ve made, I would. Now, I’d like to have no regrets moving forward.”

As for the new chapter, she doesn’t have to start from scratch.  Her employees are standing by her.

 “I think now with her back I’ve seen a huge difference,” said manager Riona Rugova, who started while Hutsona was in prison. 

 “When she left, she took the energy with her in a way,” said Travis Gomez. “When she came back, it was like a breath of fresh air.”

Gomez said he worked for Hutsona before and after her arrest and incarceration.

“Sure, I’m serving breakfast and I’m calling people bitches, but it’s more than that,” he said, saying employees are like family.

The restaurant is also giving back, collecting Angel Tree donations for kids of incarcerated parents. 

“Children have nothing to do with the mistakes that their parents make,” she said.

 Hutsona said it’s not the first time she’s worked with the program and hopes to continue supporting the cause, especially given her own personal experience. 

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