FreshFlat

During a semester abroad in New Zealand I joined three fellow students to build FreshFlat, a web app that helps roommates manage groceries and recipes together. Living as exchange students we often bought the same items twice or forgot essentials, so we created a tool that would keep everyone in sync.

Purpose

FreshFlat makes it easy to see what food is already in the kitchen and what needs to be bought. By sharing a common pantry and recipe planner, housemates avoid duplicate purchases and can quickly decide what to cook.

Key Features

• Flat creation and invitations for new members
• Shared pantry with quantity and expiry tracking
• Real-time updates and quick search
• AI powered recipe suggestions based on selected ingredients
• Recipe collection for your favourite meals
• User accounts with profile management
• Admin controls for the flat
• Responsive single page design

Technical Overview

The app is built with Next.js and uses Supabase for authentication and database storage. We integrate the OpenAI API to create recipe ideas, which return structured data that is easy to display. Deployment is handled through Vercel so the app is accessible right from the browser.

Challenges

Getting the authentication flow correct and integrating AI in a reliable way were early hurdles. We iterated on prompts and learned how to handle Supabase redirect URLs in production. Coordinating work in a team of four also taught us the value of clear communication and frequent testing.

What Makes It Interesting

FreshFlat stands out by blending a communal pantry with an AI recipe generator. The option to mark ingredients as shared or private mirrors real flat life, and the mix of practical features with a fun AI chef keeps users engaged.

What Was Learned

Building the project expanded my knowledge of Next.js, Supabase and OpenAI integration. It also improved my skills in agile teamwork, Git collaboration and designing user-friendly interfaces.

Improvements and Next Steps

We would like to add a dedicated mobile app, real-time syncing, a shared grocery list and expense tracking. More recipe options and better notifications are on the roadmap as well.

Conclusion

FreshFlat started as a semester project and became a showcase of how modern web tools and a bit of AI can improve everyday life. The code is open source and a demo is available online. Feel free to explore it and share your feedback.