Willie Nelson's Favorite Breakfast Is A Simple Classic

As a country music legend and Texas native who also spent a good chunk of his career in Tennessee, you might assume that Willie Nelson's favorite breakfast would be one of the classic dishes Southerners always have on their breakfast table. But while he can appreciate biscuits and gravy, Nelson admitted in an interview with Southern Living that he usually opts for a lighter breakfast. "If you want to know the truth, about all I eat is oatmeal in the morning," he told the outlet. Nelson went on to share that he actually does eat other breakfast foods aside from oatmeal — but he prefers eating them in the evening, when he typically goes for bacon and eggs.

Nelson's preference for oatmeal appears to be reserved only for when he eats at home, and not something he would order when dining out. In the early 2000s, he owned a restaurant in Austin called Willie Nelson's Lighthouse that served an all-day breakfast item called "Willie's Breakfast." This dish, reportedly his standard breakfast order, included biscuits and gravy, two eggs fried in leftover bacon grease, and fruit — but notably, it did not include oatmeal.

Among the myriad of choices available for the first meal of the day, you might be wondering why Nelson prefers something as basic as oatmeal. Aside from the obvious reason — that he just likes how it tastes — Nelson explained to E! that he simply doesn't have a big appetite. The most he has room for aside from oatmeal is "an egg or two and a waffle maybe." He also shared that he likes toast and Orgain plant-based protein shakes.

Nelson didn't elaborate much further on why oatmeal specifically is his go-to, but he did mention to Southern Living that he tries "to eat pretty sensible." Oats are a nutritionally-balanced breakfast, making them a good choice considering he doesn't like to eat a lot of food in the morning. They're also a slow-release carb, meaning they help you stay energized throughout the day. Given that Nelson is still busy and active in his career, even in his later years, it makes sense that he would pick a breakfast that would keep him energized all day.

Willie Nelson isn't one to gatekeep his favorite recipes. Through the years, he's shared how to make his banana bread, his grandmother's buttermilk biscuits, and once his sister even shared the recipe for his favorite biscuits and gravy breakfast. But when it comes to oatmeal, Nelson has yet to reveal what goes into it — unless you count the lyrics to his song "So Much To Do," which state, "my oatmeal tastes just like confetti."

Though many celebrities have chefs who prepare their breakfast for them, that doesn't seem to be the case with Nelson's oatmeal. In his interview with E!, Nelson referred to someone named Annie who does all the cooking for him, most likely referring to his wife, Annie D'Angelo, who also does all the grocery shopping. Judging by Nelson's comment, it's most likely D'Angelo who's responsible for his breakfast. As for what she puts in her husband's oatmeal, all we can say for sure is that it must be something good, being that it's usually the only thing Willie Nelson eats every morning.