Traveler's Table owner called 'Vietnamese Superwoman' as friends reflect

Every so often, Lena Trang and Thy Mitchell would have a girls night with other women in the Houston food-and-beverage industry. They would laugh. They would drink. They would vent. For Lena, Thy was her "Vietnamese Superwoman." A hero.

It was one of the many memories Trang was forced to lift higher than the most recent: learning that Thy, her husband Matthew, and two young children were all found dead inside her River Oaks home on Monday evening.

Houston Police investigators said the Mitchells' deaths appear to be the result of a murder-suicide. All four people were found with gunshot wounds inside their townhome on Kingston Street in the River Oaks neighborhood of Houston. Though police have yet to reveal the names of the victims, Thy's sister confirmed Tuesday on social media Thy and her two children, ages 8 and 4, had died. 

Remembrances pour in

But above the din of the graphic and horrific news playing out on social media was the growing chorus of Thy's family, close friends, and coworkers who shared what they had loved most about her. Longtime Houston restaurant industry notable Jonathan Horowitz first met Thy at a Texas Restaurant Association trade show at George R. Brown Convention Center.

"It was early on in the Traveler's Table days, and I think the one thing I remember from the very beginning was just her massive smile," said Horowitz, founder of Convive Hospitality Consulting. "And then once you got to know her and talk to her a little bit, what stood out to me was somebody who had an oversized personality in a very small package."

Horowitz thinks that energy showed in the way Thy had managed Traveler's Table and Traveler's Cart, along with her involvement in the community. She was, as Horowitz said, someone who always showed up. She showed up for her customers, and she showed up for her people.

Thy's personality was a major draw for Benchawan Jabthong Painter and her husband Graham. The Street to Kitchen and Jantra owners had only known Thy since late March when they all attended the Women's Leadership Awards hosted by Houston Woman Magazine. 

"She was the one we bonded most with at that whole show," Graham Painter said. "We just had an amazing conversation with her and felt a kindred spirit with her."

Mitchell's beautiful friendship with another chef

Trang, who just opened Lena's Asian Kitchen along the Southwest Freeway, had known Thy since 2021 when she hired her as a private chef. When Trang's catering business took off, Thy was there again to support her. 

From there, it blossomed into a beautiful friendship filled with nights of fun and laughter about their struggles in the food industry. They would talk about the time a cook walked out during the middle of a shift. Or a catering order one of them got that required 10 unique food and had allergy restrictions. Or how they were just getting by with two hours of sleep.

"It was always one of the best nights that we ever had. Thy was so fun to hang out with, and we would laugh literally about anything silly," Trang said. "Thy was not just a friend, she was looking out for me and supporting my business without asking for anything in return." 

Across every aisle is the question: How could this have happened? With no answers in sight, some people are choosing to respect the Mitchells' relatives' wishes to respect their privacy. Others are keeping Thy alive in their hearts through the power of shared memory.

"We were cooking at a Chefs against Cancer event at the Four Seasons Hotel. As we were setting up and looking up, there was Thy, bright and shining as always," Painter said. "She was just this spirit that brought energy and positivity to the whole room."