We'll be staying 3 nights in different appartments in five cities and we're planning on dinning out in nice restaurants at least once in each city. The rest of the time, we plan to cook breakfast and dinners in, and make sandwiches for lunch. Has anyone done that? Any suggestions? This will be our first time not staying in hotels.
Posted by
Atlanta
3262 posts
Hi Lora,
It will really depend on the size of the kitchen where you are staying. We stayed in a small apartment in Paris but the kitchen wasn't really wasn't large enough to prepare significant meals. We bought supplies at a local grocery (milk, bread, etc.) For breakfast we ate cereals or pastries from a nearby bakery, for dinner roasted prepared meats from a market supplemented with a salad or veggies from the local market. It also will depend on what's available locally--I'd keep it simple!
Posted by
Sacramento, California U.S.A.
10605 posts
We did it in Paris. We had an apartment for 10 nights. We ate all breakfasts in, did a lot of picnic lunches and cooked at least half of our dinners. The kitchen was small, but I didn't care. I was cooking in Paris!!
I would suggest bringing a variety of sizes of ziplock bags. I would not count on finding them there. They don't take up much space and they are light. I just put a bunch of bags inside a gallon sized one.
You could take a thermal type bag (they sell a very thin and lightweight one at my local grocery store for about $2) that is supposed to keep food cold or hot for 3 hours. Something like that might be handy to transport small amounts of food from one location to the next. You could also use it to put your picnic in.
Posted by
Virginia, USA
5850 posts
What 5 cities will you be visiting? If you list them, people may be able to provide good suggestions.
You will find that in many cities you can buy nice prepared meals. For example, Paris has great prepared foods. In Paris, I got a full kitchen thinking that I would do some real cooking. Instead, I found myself buying local food to bring home and sample ... roast chicken, cheese, quiche, etc. Charcuterie shops sell great prepared dishes and some of the markets have nice food. This is still significantly cheaper than eating out and with the added benefit that you get to sample local cuisine.
I agree with the suggestion to bring some ziploc bags. This will also be useful if you want to bring something to the next city. For example, if you buy coffee and sugar, you probably will want to put it in the ziploc and bring it to your next city.
I would also recommend bringing one of those reusable grocery bags; they are great when you go to the market and want to carry your groceries back.
Find out about the markets in the cities that you will be visiting. These can be both excellent cultural experiences and a great source of take-away meals. For example, I love Borough Market in London; it is open Thurs - Sat. In Stockholm, Östermalms Saluhallen has great Swedish food for takeaway.
Posted by
point pleasant beach, nj, usa
646 posts
Definitely. We rented apartments in Venice and Florence and had no trouble finding a supermarket. It was nice to be able to not have every meal in a restaurant. It is actually fun to shop in a local supermarket, somehow you feel untouristy. We took advantage of the fresh pasta, nice greens, and jarred tomato sauce (marinara, arribiata, etc.) They were really good, not like the jarred stuff we have at home.
Posted by
OP
Mercer Island, Washington
30 posts
Thank you... zip lock bags. Great idea. I already check there are grocery stores in the area.
: )
Posted by
Puyallup, WA, USA
881 posts
Zip lock bags, canvas shopping bags for the win.
One thing I've noticed, Lora is when we self catered, we tended to buy too much food. We were outside the place so much, I'd try to go with the European "buy what you're going to eat on the way home" philosophy - and ask the local shop where to go for the "good stuff" cheeses, salamis, etc, etc, etc Have fun!
Posted by
Napa, CA
3580 posts
Last year I stayed in apartments in Paris. I bought breakfast foods at local grocery stores. I had boiled eggs, orange juice, and a fresh croissant with my home-made coffee for breakfast. For later meals, I bought take-out food at a nearby Chinese deli.
If you are using VRBO for apartment rental, most of the sites show pictures of the rooms in the apts. Look at the kitchen. Some have a refrig, a microwave over, and a sink. A stovetop burner and clothes washer are often included. Some kitchens are about what you would find in a small RV at home; some are larger and have all the cooking equipment you would need for serious cooking.