Welcome to Dining With the Stars, a feature in which Atlanta notables walk us through their dream food day in the metro area.
It’s hard to remember a time before E Roland -- formerly known as Ed -- and his band Collective Soul was a presence on the music scene.
It’s been 25 years, to be exact, since the group out of Stockbridge made a splash with their multi-platinum debut, “Hints Allegations and Things Left Unsaid”, featuring the singles “Shine” and “Breathe.”
Subsequent albums spawned hits including “December,” “The World I Know,” and “Gel.”
“So much of what we do is based on the camaraderie-ship of the band,” said Roland, the band’s frontman and chief songwriter. “The five us work together as a family, and I’ve never been at more ease — and never been more pleased — than going onstage with these guys right now, night after night.”
To celebrate a quarter century together, the band is releasing “Blood,” its 12th album, and have hit the road with fellow ‘90s hitmakers the Gin Blossoms for tour stops across the country.
Being on the road a lot means Roland, who now lives in Sandy Springs with his family, doesn’t eat out often. But when he’s in town, he has some go-tos that keep him full in between songwriting and recording sessions.
Favorite place for breakfast: I'm not really a big breakfast guy, but if I ever do it, it's the Waffle House. I'll start the day off with biscuits and gravy, and my boy gets two order of bacon and pecan waffles. My wife's an excellent cook, and as much as I travel, the last thing I want to do is eat out.
Waffle House, multiple locations. wafflehouse.com/
Favorite place for lunch: I really like the chicken salad at Breadwinner Cafe, and sometimes I'll do lunch dates at Brooklyn Cafe. If the band's in and we're recording, we'll do Hearth Pizza Tavern. We'll start with something like the Brussels sprouts and a chopped salad. I like to get a spicy pie called the Ring of Fire (that has chile oil, cheese, chorizo salami, cherry peppers, caramelized onions, cremini mushrooms and cilantro). If we do a happy hour, we also like Hearth -- we're beer snobs and like to try different beers, and they have a good selection. And if we want to try something and they don't have it, they'll usually order it for us.
Breadwinner Cafe, 220 Sandy Springs Circle, Sandy Springs. 404-843-0224, breadwinnercafe.com/
Brooklyn Cafe, 220 Sandy Springs Circle, Sandy Springs. 404-843-8377, brooklyncafe.com/
Hearth Pizza Tavern, 5992 Roswell Road NE, Sandy Springs. 404-252-5378, hearthpizzatavern.com/
Favorite place for dinner: That's family time, and if we go out we usually go to Kaiser's Chophouse. I get the filet mignon, and my boys have gotten the T-Bone, filet and New York strip. We'll usually get mashed potatoes, sometimes with diced jalapenos for some bite. And the bread pudding. It's a cool atmosphere, especially for a family.
If the boys are doing swim lessons or meets, we’ll go the Horseradish Grill. The fried chicken is my go-to -- it feels good and Southern.
Kaiser's Chophouse, 5975 Roswell Road, Sandy Springs. 404-549-2882, kaiserschophouse.com/
Horseradish Grill, 4320 Powers Ferry Road, Atlanta. 404-255-7277, horseradishgrill.com/
Favorite place for late night food and drinks: If we do anything late night, we'll do a quick run to Clay's Sports Cafe to get wings.
5975 Roswell Road, Atlanta. 404-843-1233, clayssportscafe.com/
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