Once the chaos of moving day dies down and you've put personal touches on your apartment in Tampa Bay, it's time to stock up on all those kitchen staples your mom seemed to always have on hand. To make the day easier, we've compiled a grocery list perfect for the first week in your new place!
Renting an apartment in Tampa is a fun, fresh new start! There's something liberating about starting from scratch with empty pantry and refrigerator shelves. However, the process of stocking up can also be overwhelming. Our best tip? Don't over plan or over-buy! Start with a short list of a few recipes you'd like to make and buy the staples needed to create those recipes. Over time, you'll fill your ingredient arsenal with staples that you can use again and again. If you're not sure where to start, try this list to help get you going.
Cleaning Supplies
Feel free to tailor this section to what your apartment has, such as a washer and dryer or dishwasher, but make sure you have the bulk of these on hand from the get-go to avoid a last-minute Target run when you spill something. And if you are renting a pet friendly apartment with your furry friend, you might need to add a couple items to the list, like a good lint roller.
Paper towels
Toilet paper
Aluminum foil
Plastic wrap
Laundry detergent
Dish soap
Glass cleaner
Light bulbs
Sponges
All-purpose cleaner
Tissues
Garbage bags
Ziploc bags
Pantry Staples
This is definitely the grocery list section with the most staple food items, so be sure to think through what type of carbs work best for you and stock up. For bread, our friends at MFA recommend buying "a few loaves of bread while they're on sale, and then freezing the extras."
Rice
Pasta
Bread
Oats
Cooking oil
Beans
Canned soups
Peanut butter
Chicken broth
Breakfast cereal
Honey
Coffee
Fridge
Depending on your meat and dairy preferences you may be able to skip this section; if you do plan on buying a few animal products, make sure you don't buy more than you can eat before it expires.
Meat
Milk
Eggs
Butter
Cheese
Lunch meat
Condiments and Spices
On your first-week shopping trip, stick to the basics. Once you're all settled you can start experimenting with other spices. Your first shopping trip can get expensive, but you can always pick up spices at the dollar store to save money.
Salt
Pepper
Garlic powder
Ketchup
Mayonnaise
Hot sauce
Salad dressing
Soy sauce
Vinegar
Baking
It can be tempting to keep none of these on hand if you don't see yourself as much of a baker. However, basic items like flour and sugar always come in handy, even for basic dinner recipes.
Flour
Sugar
Baking powder
Baking soda
Vanilla extract
Yeast
Fresh Produce
This section should be tailored to your own preferences to reduce waste. A couple key things to remember are that root vegetables, like potatoes and onion, keep longer than most fresh produce, and anything you don't eat frequently can be bought frozen or canned.
Fresh fruit
Potatoes
Garlic
Onion
Leafy greens
Broccoli
Celery
Bananas
Apples
Oranges
Frozen
These items will be especially helpful during your first week, before you've gotten into a rhythm of preparing meals. In general, it's helpful to always have a couple heat-and-eat meals in your freezer.
Single-serving dinners
Frozen vegetables
Pizza
Ice cream
Waffles
Toiletries
We recommend printing this list of toiletries then crossing off anything you already own before hitting the aisles, to make sure you don't double up on any of them.
Cotton balls
Toothpaste
Floss
Shampoo and conditioner
Body wash
Deodorant
Hand soap
Neosporin
Sunscreen
Band-Aids
Lotion
Whatever the reason for the move, make sure the first week in your Tampa apartment is a breeze by organizing all your basic items before heading to the store. You may even find that you need to make multiple trips to the store for all these week-one staples. In that case, maybe bring a couple friends to help you out and carry in grocery bags, especially if you don't have an
elevator in your apartment complex.