While on the road with the Indigo Girls, the rock icon discussed how she stays fueled between performances.
Musicians are notorious for being meticulous (and even a bit superstitious) about the food they eat before they take the stage. Keith Richards requires a shepherd’s pie before every Rolling Stones gig and Willie Nelson eats oatmeal every morning, so it should be no surprise that Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Melissa Etheridge is similarly particular about her touring diet.
Currently, Melissa is in the midst of a 32-city, cross-country tour with folk duo Indigo Girls ahead of the much-anticipated release of a new single this fall. In an interview for Taste of Home, I got all the deets about how she eats on the road and how it differs from her diet at home.
What does Melissa eat while touring?
The “I’m the Only One” singer-songwriter described what she eats as “one of the most important things to take into consideration” while on tour. Ever since she was diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer in 2004, she said she’s been on a “health track,” limiting sugar, gluten and dairy in her diet to reduce inflammation. She also aims to stay very hydrated on tour, saying she drinks over a gallon of water a day on the road.
“It starts with health,” Melissa said. “I’m in my sixties now, so I’ve got to really keep it up.”
For breakfast, Melissa is a creature of habit. She brings a hot pot on the road to fix up the same thing—hot cereal from Bob’s Red Mill—for breakfast each morning. The cereal is made of brown rice, corn and buckwheat.
Backstage, Melissa likes to snack on vegetable chips, hummus or tuna salad. Because she’s relying on a different caterer in each city, sometimes this means she’ll be stuck with a baked potato and a salad for dinner on tour.
As for what you won’t find Melissa eating on tour, she said her burger-eating days are beyond her. “Even if I could, I just don’t like ’em anymore,” she said.
What are Melissa’s favorite restaurants on the road?
Still, Melissa’s food restrictions don’t prevent her from eating deliciously while on the road. She said she looks forward to playing certain cities known for their cuisine, like Chicago, where she’s playing a show on August 17.
Melissa said she and her wife, Linda Wallem, are “big Top Chef fans” and, when in Chicago, they make it a point to stop by Girl & The Goat, the restaurant owned by Top Chef winner Stephanie Izard. “Fortunately, I can call her and say, ‘Hey, can we get in?’ because that’s a big long line waiting to get into that restaurant.”
Chicago’s Monteverde, whose executive chef Bailey Sullivan also competed on the Bravo show, is another favorite. Melissa also shouted out The Norwegian, a Nordic-themed restaurant in Rockford, Illinois, as well as Cathy’s Kitchen in Ferguson, Missouri, as two other favorite spots she likes to visit while on the road. And she’ll never say no to a hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant, she added.
What does Melissa like to cook at home?
When Melissa’s back at home, she eats “a lot of salmon,” especially fattier cuts of Scottish salmon, often topped with teriyaki sauce and served with a salad and rice on the side. Chicken piccata is another favorite recipe. Melissa loves to cook, and her wife typically assists as the vegetable-chopping sous-chef. “I just try to make really healthy, clean food,” Melissa said.
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