11 NYE Traditions We Never Heard Of

When the clock strikes midnight on New Year’s Eve, you can hear the bottles of bubbly popping open for miles around. But in my house, that’s not the case. Instead, you’ll hear a “squish,” and then you’ll probably hear me choking. Why? Because of a bizarre Italian food superstition that promises good luck and good fortune. This got me wondering: Are Italians just food-obsessed (very possible), or is this something that happens the world over?

After some conversations around the office, I learned that almost everyone here has some kind of food and drink tradition on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day to ensure good luck for the following year. Click through to see our roundup from Refinery29 staffers about foods and drinks that bring them all the luck from many corners of our wide world — Happy New Year!