Celebrity Travel: Go away with Gavin Rossdale

Gavin Rossdale is the lead singer and songwriter for the British grunge rock band Bush and an occasional actor (“The Trainer,” “Constantine”). He’s also the host of his own VIZIO WatchFree+ cooking show, “Dinner With Gavin Rossdale,” where he has conversations with guests like Serena Williams, Brooke Shields, Selma Blair, Common and Sir Tom Jones over meals that he prepares for them. “The challenge of this show wasn’t getting it distributed,” Rossdale said in a Zoom interview from his Los Angeles home. “It was finding the right people. Everyone is assuming I was already friends with them and that’s not necessarily true. There had to be an element of risk for everyone. The food could suck. I could be dull. We could have no chemistry and have nothing to say to each other. Instead, it was really inspiring to learn from all these separate individuals who've achieved so much.” For more information on Bush’s concert tour, check out their website at https://bushofficial.com/tour.

Q: When did you realize the importance of a really good meal?

A: I have always responded to great food. But I was lucky enough to spend some time in Spain when I was a kid between the ages of 10 and 14 for two weeks during the summer. It was the kind of idyllic package holidays you have in Europe – all-inclusive in a hotel. You have to eat at the hotel, but it's really nice food. So having that, it was simple but really good. I wasn’t used to the seasonings and aromatics, but it was a great learning experience.

Q: Did you cook for your children when they were babies?

A: Yes, I was super into cooking already. For me, it was just a real thrill to make their baby food by scratch – everything by hand, nothing out of jars ever, always fresh as much as possible. And so that was such a wonderful thing. I’m not special. So many people can cook. It's not like rocket science, is it? I have a nice feel for it and I like to make things look good. So I'm always trying to make it look really pretty and palatable. You want to make food that is comforting that will make everyone feel better.

Q: What kind of cuisine do you seek out whether at home or on the road?

A: Any meal with all of my kids. Dinner last night, we all went for Japanese shabu-shabu. My favorite cuisine is Korean, though.

Q: Have you been to South Korea?

A: Yes, I went to Seoul. It is the most extraordinary country. I love it. I would love to go back.

Q: Where are some places you want to visit in the near future?

A: Well, my boys really, really love the whole world of Japan, South Korea and Singapore. Our super- duper dream is to go skiing in Japan. And I think if you're that far out, it'd be really great to get them to the Gold Coast [in Australia]. I mean, there're so many beautiful places to go.

Q: As a foodie, do you also cook on the tour bus?

A: I make a lot of breakfasts on the bus. When I travel, it really shows me how hard it is for a lot of people to eat healthy, to eat something that’s not deep fried. I make really nice eggs. I prepare six boiled eggs in soy sauce, wine vinegar, a little bit of mirin and just leave them to marinate all day. And I just take one out to eat for a great burst of energy.

Q: Following up on that, how do you stay healthy on the road?

A: I'm obsessed with tennis. I basically train with a coach at home for an hour, hour and a half four times a week. I work really hard at it. I’ve been so focused on being good at tennis that I'm inadvertently super fit from it. So when I sing and run around an arena or am going sightseeing as a tourist, I can do all that without being winded. So that's my balance, because it’s really fun to go out at night and eat at a nice place, you know what I mean?

Q: Where are some favorite dining spots?

A: If I was in Chicago, I would be at Alinea every night. And on the nights I wasn’t there, I would be at Roister (now permanently closed).

Q: When you’re traveling, do you order from restaurants to your hotel?

A: The problem I have with deliveries is that nothing tastes good by the time it gets there. The only thing that sort of benefits from the ride is Indian food. When I was in London, there's a Malaysian restaurant that I love that serves this dish called Kueh Pie Tee. It’s filled with bamboo shoots and little baby shrimp. It's so good. They had these little takeout boxes that had air holes. So the food arrived perfect. I was like, “[More delivery services have] got to get hip to these.” If you’ve ever ordered French fries, my pet peeve is that they’re ruined because they just steam in the container.

Q: On your upcoming North American tour, are there any cities you haven’t been to before?

A: I think there are a few new places that are super far out. We’ve always done well in Canada and, quite honestly, we hadn’t played there enough. I can't wait. It’s great to go back to places like New York. It's good to go to wherever, but when you go to these out-of-the-way places, it's just so wild.

Q: How do you keep from getting jaded playing the same spots?

A: Because it's so incredible to go anywhere. The privilege of knowing these incredible countries is a gift. You know, I literally have been everywhere. I wish I was bigger in Hawaii [laughs], because I would love to play there again.

Q: What have you learned about eating out?

A: Restaurants are always better when the owners are there. Their presence seems to make the difference.

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(Jae-Ha Kim is a New York Times bestselling author and journalist. You can reach her at www.jaehakim.com, follow her on Instagram and X @goawaywithjae, or read more from her on Substack (jaehakim.substack.com).)