Maybe you know Lainey Wilson from Yellowstone, where she plays the musician Abby. Maybe you know her career as an award-winning country music artist. Or maybe you’ve been following her since she was living out of a camper in Nashville, working to break into the music industry. But if you really know Wilson, you know she’s always on the go.
“I slept in my bed last year in Nashville close to 15 nights,” Wilson laughs while sitting down to chat with Delish. “I don’t even know what day is, where I’m at, what I’m doing.”
Wilson just wrapped up her first headlining tour, taking her album, Bell Bottom Country, on the road to completely sold out venues.
However accustomed to life on the road she might be, though, she’s also learned the importance of keeping some stability in her daily lifestyle. Most importantly, keeping herself fueled to go perform onstage or on the Yellowstone set, day in and day out.
Wilson was eager to share with us some of the restaurants she loves to visit while on tour, her go-to snacks, and finding balance with a busy schedule.
She Loves Trying New Restaurants While On Tour
Wilson says that she grew up a picky eater, but she’s become more adventurous. And touring has significantly helped in expanding her palate. “I feel like I have a band and crew who are just really a bunch of foodies,” she says. “They’ve kind of pushed me outside of my comfort zone and made me try things out on the road that I wouldn’t necessarily try on my own.”
Just one of her many food adventures involved trying Indian food for the first time while in London. “I think I’ve been over to London five times at this point, and every single time I go, I have to go to Hankies,” she says, “I had never had Indian food before I had Hankies, and they kind of set the bar real high.”
“I feel like we find really good food everywhere we go,” Wilson says. And she’s developed a repertoire of plenty of “must-gos,” like Hankies, while touring around the world.
She’s eager to shout out as many restaurants as she can remember in various cities. There’s Maple & Ash in Chicago, which she notes has a seafood tower and a dessert tower. In Tulsa, she praises Bull in the Alley, a “speakeasy-type steakhouse” that she stopped at before playing the historic Cain’s Ballroom. And, most recently, she went to Bistro in Jackson Hole, where she had ricotta pillows and escargot.
“Growing up in Northeast Louisiana, never in a million years did I think I’d be out here eating escargot, but shit happens,” she jokes.
Of course, for her, nothing beats Louisiana cuisine, and she makes sure to shout out her favorites at home, too.
“Especially this time of year, I miss being home in Louisiana because it’s crawfish season,” she says. “So whenever I got off of my headline and tour, I was like, ‘All right, we got to find some crawfish.’” For now, she’s had to settle for Nashville crawfish, but she says that Cormier’s in West Monroe, Louisiana, is a gem.
She’s Learned That Preparation Is Key
Wilson is no stranger to living on the go. Long before her headlining tour, Wilson lived a “best of both worlds” double life as a high schooler and professional Hannah Montana impersonator. However, Wilson has learned the importance of keeping a stable diet while on the road.
“I will say I feel like I’m becoming a little bit more prepared than I used to be,” she says. “I really do enjoy meal prepping and having things handy, because I feel like when you don’t have those things handy, that’s when you mess up and that’s when you eat something that makes you feel bad.”
However, Wilson also admits that it’s tough to maintain a steady three square meals a day while on tour. “It’s really hard to make sure that you’re disciplined enough to do that. I try my best that I possibly can,” she says.”
Some of Wilson’s go-tos are scrambled eggs and bacon for breakfast, and yogurts or salads for lunch. “I love all the dressings that are basically not healthy for you,” she laughs, “The ranch, all of the thick mayonnaise-based dressings are what I really, really like.” She also prioritizes protein like grilled chicken and shrimp. Or, if it’s available nearby, she loves sushi.
As for snacking, Wilson says that her tour rider is pretty similar to her rider on the set of Yellowstone. Beef jerky, cheese, hummus, and almonds are some of her staple snacks. “There’s a certain kind of water called Hint that I really like,” she says, “It makes drinking water fun, I guess you could say.”
Of course, with all of the hard work of touring Wilson also recognizes the importance of a sweet treat. “Even if it’s just a little piece of candy, I’ve got to have my dark chocolate,” she says. “At some point in time, I will have a bite of chocolate every single day.”
Overall, Wilson says she tries to keep as healthy as possible to keep herself fueled for performances. However, with a schedule that involves starting a 90-minute show at 11 p.m. and getting offstage around 1:00 a.m., she also is realistic about keeping things balanced. “After a show, they might have a pizza, and I might dig right in,” she says.