Réveillon is the Paris New Year's Eve custom of sharing a festive late-night meal.
The word réveillon comes from the French verb réveiller, meaning “to wake” or “to awaken,” and originally referred to a meal eaten late at night after a religious or family observance. In modern French usage, it can describe both Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve meals, depending on the context.
A New Year's réveillon may include champagne, oysters, foie gras, seafood, poultry, pastries, and other celebratory dishes, although menus vary widely by household and restaurant. In Paris, restaurants and hotels often offer special fixed menus for the occasion. The meal is part of a broader social evening and is not itself the midnight countdown.
Réveillon is sometimes confused with galette des rois, a pastry associated with Epiphany in January, not New Year's Eve. It is also different from Bastille Day, France's national holiday on July 14. The term therefore identifies the late festive meal rather than a particular dish or public spectacle.