What the First Night in a Brooklyn Apartment is Really Like (When You’re Not in a Movie)

There’s something magical about your first night in a new apartment. Just picture it: You get to eat food out of takeout containers and camp out on the floor—and that’s the worst case scenario, a lot of the time. Sure, there are piles of boxes to unpack, but for that one night you can just revel in the excitement of your place—just like these eight Brooklynites did.

“Last July, I moved to Williamsburg from California with just four suitcases in tow. I went to Love House, this showroom I’ve been lusting after on Instagram, in the hopes of getting something—anything!—to sit on that wasn’t my cold hard floor. I ended up finding a beautiful, semi-well-priced ottoman. I got in an Uber XL with it and, on my way home, I spotted Xi’an Famous Foods. After negotiating with the driver to wait for me by bribing him with a lamb burger, I ran inside and got myself some spicy lamb noodles. I went home, plopped down on my new ottoman, and ate dinner while watching ‘Schitt’s Creek’ on my phone.” —Emily Wong, Williamsburg 

“I moved suddenly from South Florida to Brooklyn and took the first apartment I found, on Troutman Street. The building was going through a huge renovation and there was literally nothing in the apartment, just unfinished walls and construction dust. One of the first tenants in the building met me at the door to show me around. We put mattresses down in what would eventually be the living room. He aimed his projector at the wall in front of us and I spent the whole night getting my ass kicked in Street Fighter while eating lamb and rice from the shop next door.” —Christopher Sands, Bushwick

“After a decade living in Chelsea, I moved to Williamsburg. My first night, I ordered from Bar Beau, a local spot, and I slept with my shades lifted because I had to fall asleep staring at the magnificent views from my apartment. I literally look out over the water at the Freedom Tower—it’s magical!” —Kiara Horwitz, Williamsburg

“My wife and I moved to Brooklyn a year and a half ago. The first night we took a walk with our dogs, who grew up in quiet Florida, ate some pizza, and slept on an air mattress on our living room floor. It was awesome.” —Sarah Klena, Park Slope 

“On my first night in my new apartment, I ordered branzino from Deniz, a Mediterranean restaurant four blocks away, drank prosecco provided by the building, and toasted to my new digs!” —Tamiko White, Fort Greene

“My roommates and I ordered a giant box of cannolis and New York cheesecake from our incredible neighborhood pastry shop, Circo’s Pastry’s, which has been in the neighborhood since 1945. We devoured it all on our kitchen floor. Classic BK night.” —Lilly O’Leary, Bushwick

“On my first night in Brooklyn, I smudged the entire apartment, adding rose quartz crystals everywhere to introduce good vibes into my new space and repeating ‘only positive vibes here’. After that, I had a dance party with my boyfriend.” —Antoinette Beauchamp, Greenpoint

“I spent that first night ordering pizza from Ria Bella and, instead of unpacking, I posted endless stories of my view on Instagram. Can you blame me?” —William Li, Greenpoint