I can't say any meal right now, but I suggest you either bring a small amount of flour and sugar, or buy when you first get there.

Also, warning, try not to make smelly food that will permiate the hallways. I managed to never do so, but others did and I really didn't want to second-hand smell what others had for dinner.

I'm not sure why you'd need to bring anything if there is a grocery store nearby, except maybe emergency breakfast provisions for the kids until you can get to the store. Presumably, you'll be out and about during the daytime, so do you plan on packing lunches? If so maybe someone can pack a soft sided cold chest/backpack (maybe use as a carry on) so you can pack food with you if you don't want restaurant food. I'd probably do that and have dinners out because dinners are much more complicated usually. Cereal and toast, boiled eggs for breakfast, or toaster waffles, etc. Fruit for breakfast and lunch is easy. I sure don't want to cook much on vacation and 4 days of easy food, sandwiches, hard boiled eggs, cheese and fruit, etc. is not going to harm anyone.

How long is the flight? Because you can freeze some things and put them in cooler bags under the seats. Chili or soup, a lasagna, cooked meats for sandwiches or cutting into pasta. Whatever it is that you're wanting to bring from home. If you're unsure what you can get there, call the store. Check if a delivery service like Instacart has them. There will probably be more in the store than the listings, but it'll give you an overview. Also, write out plans for every meal with ingredients lists. You don't have to follow them, and can rearrange on the fly, but that'll let you know if there's something simple to bring that you need, and lets you breeze through the store when yo do go shopping there.

My grandson plays ice hockey and so he and his Mom go all over the US for games. They tend to stay at hotel suites with a kitchen so they can cook meals. I asked her about your question. I have six sticky notes full of her ideas. (I'll probably get more tomorrow after she thinks about it. )

She says that most of these kitchens usually are: 2-burner stove top - no oven; microwave; fridge; and dishwasher.

She carries a little set of ready-to-go stuff every. Here goes......

Bring: small packages of salt & pepper, and your usual spices and herbs; Chili powder; garlic powder; a decent knife (checked bag); at least one rubber/silcone spatula; measuring spoons.

Do not bring flour and sugar because the TSA will think they are drugs.

Print out recipes at home or put on phone or tablet.

Suggestions to buy: toaster pancakes and waffles, and syrup; *eggs; breads; flour; sugar; fresh fruit; prebaked things that need baking in that oven you probably don't have; foods to make recipes.

Foods to make: boxed Mac& Cheese; noodle-type soups; pot stickers; Spaghetti and Meat Sauce; anything you have the equipment to make... like fried pork chops, etc.; Chili and that cornbread you bought prebaked.

She said that she always gets a dozen *eggs just to boil, which she does first thing since they come in handy for everything from a quick breakfast to a handy snack.

Trader Joes (if possible): Frozen oatmeal - two servings to a pkg; the pancakes and Belgan Waffles are better than most; check out their pre-made fresh meats/meals in the fresh foods refrigerated section - these are ususally good and can be reheated in the microwave; there are lots of premade cooking ingredients here too; and salad fixings.

I don't think I missed anything. Whew!

We tend to eat in more than out when we travel, but usually it is for a 1-2 week stretch. I really like those Snap Lock 2 Tbsp. dressing containers to carry spices. They are small, don’t leak and seal tightly enough to keep smells in check. Consider taking useful supplies that you won’t need a lot of and are easy to pack but expensive to buy there—foil, wax paper, zip-locks.

For meals, we try to have some foods that are generally accepted for 2-3 of the meal times and have some versatility. For example, ham, potatoes, muffins/biscuits/tortillas, breads or sandwich rolls that work for sandwiches at lunch or garlic bread with dinner, and vegetables that can go into an omelet as well as be a dinner side. Pasta is another favorite that can be used many ways; the plain Ready Pasta in the pouches cook in 1-2 minutes in the microwave. Most grocery stores have ready to cook meals that are more convenient than from-scratch ones, but still are quite reasonably priced when compared to eating out or buying a number of ingredients.

You may also want to check the supplied pans when you get into the room. I find that having a large dutch oven, and/or large skillet is useful when cooking for more than a few people, but they sometimes have to be requested and can be limited in number per property.

When we've done self catering we take our own preferred coffee, and tea, a measured amount of pasta and a small jar of pesto. Pasta and pesto is the first meal. After that we buy locally. What country are you flying to? Beware that you are often not allowed to take in fruit, veg or fresh foods. We had our English apples confiscated at Boston once.

We usually check our softsided cooler packed with items that my nonsalteating husband can't easily buy and have never had a problem on a domestic flight.

A good slicing/cutting knife and a can opener are 2 things I don't count on them having, but if you're flying, the knife might not be an option, even in a checked bag...?

I'm also thinking a nice big bowl and a spoon for mixing/serving.

Thanks for reminding me, carolb. I meant to add a small knife sharpener to my travel list for next week, since the knives are always dangerously dull.

Keep in mind that the $10 knife at the grocery store should stay sharp for a couple of weeks.

From the TSA What Can I Bring/Sharp Objects page (tap to read). The first line refers to carry ons:

That's good to know, pillog - I wrap kitchen knives with a couple layers of heavy foil when packing them, or you can use a folded piece of cardboard, secured with tape.

And I thought about possibly purchasing a cheap one too, but having to buy a lot of things might defeat the purpose of saving money by not eating out. Something I've done in the past is buying picnic stuff - bread, lunchmeats, cheese, condiments and fresh fruit. Frozen entrees prepared in a microwave can be economical as well.

I've flown a few different times with food in my bags. Know that your bag will get searched. I 100% guarantee it. I did ask the airline the first time if there were any rules about putting food in bags. Their only concern is that they don't want anything to leak. So, if you do take stuff make sure to wrap it really well.

The first time it was a whole vacuumed back NY Strip Loin. Buggers left my suitcase on the tarmac in AZ instead of getting it on my connecting flight. So when I finally got my bag the next day that went in the garbage. My bag was gone through.

The next time I cooked for my mom's wedding. I bought pork loins, a brisket, the brine for the brisket, a few other things, and my knives in a zipped soft sided knife case. I had everything clearly marked and even put a note on my knife case that the knives were not sheathed. My bag was gone through.

The third time I was going to my sisters and planning on doing a lot of baking. So, I bagged up my fancy flours, a few other things, and again clearly marked each one. Since I was sure they'd go through my bags again I even wrote them a note that said something along the lines of "I'm going to visit family that doesn't cook so I have to bring my own stuff." And, if you haven't guessed already, it was gone through.

I have a photo file and a list when we travel---air or car. Traveling air with just a small bag bag, carry-on, is an issue.

Make a small grocery list of your usual diet that is comforting.

My carry-on has, at all times, a dozen tea bags, a few instant expresso pixies, a couple miso powder soups. Mini salt and peppers, the snap ones. That is for work when we often do not know what the hotel will provide.

My last Vrbo, not the house we wanted, did not even have a cutting board. The knives were ginzu that can't be sharpened. No salt or pepper. No washing machine soap. One dishwasher pod. Cheap scratched set of non-stick pans.

Obviously the cleaning staff gets a perk and takes the left-over stash. But they should leave at least two laundry loads of soap. (we just needed one and a pain day 4 not having soap). Also a pain to have to do grocery shopping for basics day one.

I now have a small soft insulated crate that is easy to carry with a small cast iron, small enameled dutch oven, a set of cheap Ikea thin cutting boards. A few knives i rarely use. A dozen sheets of parchment, A couple old kitchen towels between the pans, and a couple fresh sponges. And a small dish soap container. A few dishwasher pods or at least a weeks worth.

Even the most remote groceries and petrol stations have bread, eggs, cold cuts, cheese, cans of tuna, potatoes for a mash or salad, pasta, tins of beans and tomatoes. Not the best quality always but fine in a pinch. All groceries have good frozen vegetables.

Ha - aziline reminded me I've flown home with food in my checked luggage - once with a bunch of wild plums, and another time with a pound and a half of hickory nuts and a frozen loin of venison 😃

Ooo that sounds like a yummy haul.

I should have included the one time they didn't go through my bags. I'm in UT and our liquor laws are, well to be nice I'll say, silly. So while visiting my sister I bought 4 large bottles of hard liquor from Costco and packed them in my bag. I thought FOR SURE they'd go through it. Nope! That must be a typical thing they see.

Flying across the U.S. to daughters wedding my carryon was an igloo cooler packed with foods for a Sunday morning post wedding brunch. I knew what I wanted to serve but didn't know if it would be available where we were traveling. One of our guests introduced himself at the out-of-towner dinner and said he noticed me on the same airplane due to the cooler. He thought I was a medic transporting something like eyeballs.

My husband usually travels with boxes of cold cereal because he likes bran flakes rather than the high sugar offerings at hotels.

I prefer to buy food after I arrive rather than take it with me, but I will take lemons and oranges from my back yard. I would never take salt and pepper with me (salt is very cheap), but I will take dried chiles de árbol, if I think they might be difficult to find.

You did not say where you are going or where you are going from, and that makes a big difference, regarding availability.

When I go somewhere, I want to eat the local food, and buying it there is not much different from buying it where you live and taking it with you. I enjoy the experience of grocery shopping at the locations I visit, and this also eliminates the problems one can encounter with carrying food on a plane.

Unless you are visiting a food desert, I would wait and buy food when I arrived. You might find interesting food items that you don't find at home, but then that depends on where you are going and where you are now. I do not see any advantage to buying food before you leave, unless you are going somewhere where food is not readily available, such as a wilderness area.

Things may be very different now. When I was young, travelling by highway all across the West, one could always find something to eat—but finding good fresh food was as hard as LPink describes, even in large towns/small cities. One small town had a couple of fine dining restaurants, and several other good cafes, but the one grocery store was a bit larger than a convenience store, but the offerings were similar, and the produce was sad. There was a large town with a military base about an hour's drive away. The price differences, despite the gas and wear and tear, were good enough, I suppose, to keep the local store very basic. A lot of travellers stayed in this town for a week or more at a time. It was a walkable town. Most didn't want to spend a day on a shopping trip, even if they had cars. The restaurants did well.

Coming from Califorinia, the quality of vegetables and fruit we found to be pretty bad in what otherwise seemed like nice stores, Things labelled ”From California” were often what we recognized as ”the culls”—sad things that they wouldn't even put out at better stores. We also found buying good quality meat on the road could be very difficult, though, again times might have changed. There was a grocery store butcher, in a small city, however, who had good meat, but in funky, cheap cuts. He practically wept in gratitude when asked if he could cut some proper steaks. That's fine for long trips with flexible itineraries, but a time waster if you're going for a week or less,

There's good reason to bring food if you prefer your homecooked meals, favorite ingredients, favorite prices, special diet, etc., especially if there isn't a ”food scene” where you're going. Sandwich fixings can be found anywhere, especially if you don't mind subbing pickles for fresh vegetables. The rest can be anything from splendid to non-existant.

I do just like CA Kate z9 suggested. I travel with a chef's knife, serrated 5" knife, peeler, corkscrew, a knife sharpener. If arriving at night, snacks for the kids and packaged oatmeal for the morning til we have a chance to go to the store. Also, favorite spices, chulula hot sauce. If arriving in the daytime, hubby gets the kids settled while I go to the store.

As long as there is a grocery store nearby, I wouldn’t bring anything (absent special dietary needs). It’ll be easy to throw together simple quick meals. Introduce the grandkids to TV dinners (seriously, when I was little they were great fun), food from the deli (hopefully there is one), jarred pasta sauce, other timesavers. More time for sightseeing!

Why bring food like that? You are setting yourself up for a closer involvement with security. Anything frozen is still a liquid and you are not able to bring any sizable liquid at all.

Just go and do a bit of shopping when you get there and maybe buy more convenience food that you maybe dont buy at home, just to keep it easy for you. It is only a few days. Get some frozen lasagne and cans of something.

So you dont have the right pan and the right brand of flour to make grandma's famous this or that, you will still be better off if you dont have to eat out the whole time.

If we drive to things like this, we do bring some things that we want. But to fly with all that is a different story. That just seems to be highly problematic and probably not necessary.

I did bring some ground coffee one time when we went somewhere simply because I knew that I wanted the coffee and that it would not be there for me. But it was a small bag of ground coffee.

All went well. We brought a knife and a few non salty spices in small containers and some spray oil we had on hand. The suite was a 1600 SF 2 BR! The huge pool had a sandy beach for the littles! Saw "O" great show! Everything was great.....except for the Vegas part.

I'm glad to hear your stay was a good one. It sounds like you had a really nice rental. And, O is a great show. And, I feel the same about Vegas.