🥯 Today is National Bagel Day — But Here are 15 Other Weird Food Holidays You Didn’t Know Existed
Today is National Bagel Day (January 15th), which got me thinking: How many random food holidays are actually out there?
Turns out, there’s a “national day” for basically every food imaginable. Some make sense, like pizza, ice cream, beer, but others are completely bizarre.
I’ve rounded up a list of 15 other weird food holidays that are random, wacky, and downright polarizing (like National Pickles Day 🥒) so you can add them to your calendar.
🍻 1. National Beer Day (April 7th)
National Beer Day commemorates the day in 1933 when the Cullen-Harrison Act went into effect, allowing the sale of beer with up to 3.2% alcohol content.
This act was the first step in ending Prohibition in the U.S., and to this day, beer lovers across America celebrate by cracking open a cold one (or several).
Breweries often offer specials, and bars throw parties. It’s basically an excuse to day-drink on a Tuesday and call it “honoring history.”
The holiday falls the day before National Beer Day in some regions, creating a weekend-long celebration that beer enthusiasts take very seriously.
🍕 2. National Pizza Day (February 9th)
America’s love affair with pizza gets its own day every February when pizza chains across the country offer deals, discounts, and freebies to celebrate.
Fun fact: Americans consume around 3 BILLION pizzas annually, and the average American eats about 46 slices of pizza per year.
This is clearly one of the most celebrated food holidays for one of the country’s favorite foods.
Whether you’re team New York thin crust, Chicago deep dish, or Detroit square, everyone can agree pizza deserves recognition.
National Pizza Day is the perfect excuse to order delivery, ignore your diet, and eat an entire large pizza by yourself while binge-watching TV.
🍦 3. National Ice Cream Day (Third Sunday in July)
Unlike most food holidays that fall on random dates, National Ice Cream Day is officially recognized by the U.S. government.
President Ronald Reagan designated it in 1984, also declaring July as National Ice Cream Month.
Ice cream shops offer promotions, and Americans consume approximately 23 pounds of ice cream per person annually.
The holiday always falls on a Sunday, making it perfect for family outings to local ice cream parlors.
With flavors ranging from classic vanilla to bacon-maple-bourbon-pretzel (yes, really), there’s something for everyone.
It’s one food holiday that actually makes sense given America’s obsession with frozen dairy desserts.
🧁 4. National Cupcake Day (December 15th)
Cupcakes get their moment in the spotlight every December just in time for the Christmas holiday season.
These miniature cakes in paper wrappers became trendy in the 2000s thanks to shows like “Cupcake Wars” and gourmet cupcake shops popping up everywhere.
The holiday encourages baking and sharing cupcakes with friends, family, and coworkers.
Bakeries often donate proceeds to animal welfare organizations, adding a charitable element to National Cupcakes Day.
Some bakeries create cupcakes that cost $5+ each, proving Americans will pay premium prices for tiny cakes.
With red velvet, chocolate ganache, matcha, salted caramel, cupcake flavors have become increasingly elaborate.
With something for everyone, this holiday is basically an excuse to eat cake for breakfast and call it “festive.”
🥒 5. National Pickle Day (November 14th)
Love them or hate them, pickles have their own day.
Americans consume more than 2.5 BILLION pounds of pickles annually, making this briny holiday more legitimate than you’d think.
Since the holiday is in November, these pickle ornaments for Christmas have also become popular — because nothing says holiday spirit like a glass pickle.
Pickle enthusiasts celebrate by eating dill pickles, bread and butter pickles, pickle-flavored chips, and even pickle juice (which some athletes drink for muscle cramps).
Restaurants like Sonic offer discounted pickle-related items while the internet debates eternal questions like:
Are pickles cucumbers? Are they a fruit? A vegetable?
National Pickle Day doesn’t answer these questions, but it does give pickle fans a reason to celebrate their favorite fermented food.
🥄 6. National Mayonnaise Day (February 1st)
Mayonnaise, the condiment people either love or absolutely despise, has its own day.
Mayo defenders celebrate by making homemade aioli, slathering sandwiches, and defending their favorite brand (Hellmann’s vs. Duke’s is a serious debate in some regions).
Mayo haters use the day to question why anyone would celebrate “egg slime in a jar.”
Americans consume about 3-4 pounds of mayo per person annually.
The holiday highlights mayo’s versatility: sandwich spread, salad base, cake ingredient (yes, mayo cake is real), and even hair treatment.
National Mayonnaise Day is oddly controversial for a condiment holiday.
🍩 7. National Donut Day (First Friday in June)
National Donut Day was created in 1938 by the Salvation Army to honor women who served donuts to soldiers during World War I.
Unlike most food holidays invented by marketing departments, this one has genuine historical significance.
Major chains like Krispy Kreme and Dunkin’ offer free donuts, causing lines around the block.
Americans consume more than 10 BILLION donuts annually, spending roughly $2 BILLION on these fried, sugary circles.
The holiday’s charitable origins have been overshadowed by corporate promotions, but hey, free donuts are free donuts. Amirite!?
It’s one of the few food holidays where you can actually get something free just for showing up.
🧀 8. National Cheese Lovers Day (January 20th)
Cheese gets multiple holidays throughout the year, but National Cheese Lovers Day is the big one.
Americans consume about 40 pounds of cheese per person annually, which is more than any other country except Denmark.
The holiday celebrates all cheese: Cheddar, brie, gouda, manchego, American singles (if you’re brave enough to call that cheese).
Restaurants offer cheese-heavy specials, and wine shops pair it with tastings.
Lactose-intolerant people suffer silently while cheese lovers post Instagram photos of elaborate charcuterie boards.
The holiday proves America’s obsession with putting cheese on everything: Burgers, fries, pizza, nachos, and increasingly random foods like donuts and coffee.
🥓 9. National Bacon Day (December 30th)
Bacon’s cult following earned it a holiday right before New Year’s Eve.
The bacon craze of the 2010s led to bacon-flavored everything: Bacon vodka, bacon toothpaste, bacon ice cream, and even bacon-scented cologne.
Americans (excluding vegans and vegetarians, of course) consume roughly 18 pounds of bacon per person annually.
National Bacon Day encourages bacon-wrapped everything: Dates, jalapeños, scallops, asparagus, even other meats like bacon-wrapped hot hogs.
Health-conscious people pretend this holiday doesn’t exist while bacon enthusiasts plan elaborate breakfasts.
The day also sparks debates: Is turkey bacon real bacon? What about Canadian bacon (aka back bacon)?
Most bacon purists say no, insisting only pork belly strips count as authentic bacon.
🥑 10. National Avocado Day (July 31st)
The millennial generation’s favorite fruit have their own summer holiday and even Chipotle often offers deals on guacamole despite famously charging extra.
Americans consume approximately 8 BILLION avocados annually, mostly as guacamole or avocado toast.
One of the most beloved of all Mexican fruits and veggies, the holiday celebrates avocados’ healthy fats and Instagram-worthy green color.
Restaurants create avocado-centric menus featuring avocado fries, avocado smoothies, and avocado ice cream.
The day also highlights debates about whether avocado toast explains why young people can’t afford houses; a controversial take that older generations won’t let die.
National Avocado Day is basically permission to eat an entire bowl of guacamole solo.
🫓 11. National Tortilla Chip Day (February 24th)
Tortilla chips — arguably just a vehicle for salsa, guac, and queso dip — have their own February holiday.
Americans consume tons of tortilla chips annually, especially during Super Bowl weekend and Cinco de Mayo.
The holiday celebrates all chip varieties: white corn, yellow corn, blue corn, flavored, restaurant-style, and the controversial “lime” chips that some people love and others find repulsive.
Debates rage: Are Doritos tortilla chips? What about Tostitos Scoops?
National Tortilla Chip Day doesn’t resolve these questions, but they’re still no less amazing to eat.
Mexican restaurants often offer chip and dip specials, giving people excuses to eat their weight in free chips before dinner even arrives.
🍪 12. National Oreo Cookie Day (March 6th)
Oreos, America’s best-selling cookie and now a bona fide cultural icon, celebrate their birthday with a national holiday.
In fact, Americans have consumed more than 450 BILLION Oreos since the cookie’s creation.
Created in 1912, Oreos now have flavors ranging from classic to bizarre, like Birthday Cake Oreos, Candy Corn Oreos and Swedish Fish Oreos.
The holiday sparks the eternal debate: Do you eat them whole? Split them and eat the cream first? Dunk them in milk first?
According to Nabisco (the maker of Oreos), dunking is the most popular method, but I’m sure they won’t fault you for not doing so.
National Oreo Cookie Day encourages experimentation like deep-fried Oreos, Oreo milkshakes, Oreo balls, Oreo-crusted cheesecake, and more.
It’s a celebration of America’s favorite sandwich cookie, after all.
🌭 13. National Hot Dog Day (Third Wednesday in July)
Hot dogs, everyone’s favorite mysterious meat tubes, get their own mid-summer celebration right in time for BBQ season.
Americans consume about 20 BILLION hot dogs annually, with 150 million eaten on July 4th alone.
National Hot Dog Day falls conveniently during baseball season ⚾️ connecting America’s favorite stadium food with its pastime.
The holiday ignites fierce regional debates: Ketchup or mustard (Chicago does no ketchup at all), chili cheese dogs vs. plain, and whether hot dogs are sandwiches (they’re not, according to food experts).
Nathan’s Famous, one of the most famous hot dog restaurants in the U.S., also hosts their famous hot dog eating contest in Coney Island, NY.
In case you were wondering, Joey Chestnut holds the Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest record with 76 hot dogs and buns consumed in 10 minutes.
It’s a day when no one judges you for eating three hot dogs in one sitting, even though they absolutely should.
🥜 14. National Peanut Butter Day (January 24th)
Peanut butter, the protein-packed spread found in 90% of American households, gets recognized in late January.
Americans consume about 700 million pounds of peanut butter annually, spending roughly $850 million on the stuff.
The holiday celebrates all forms: Creamy, crunchy, natural, and those weird squeeze pouches.
People debate Jif vs. Skippy, discuss whether natural peanut butter tastes like sadness, and question if almond butter counts (it doesn’t; it’s clearly almond butter, not peanut butter).
National Peanut Butter Day encourages PB&J sandwiches, peanut butter cookies, and eating it straight from the jar with a spoon at 2 am.
🥣 15. National Cereal Day (March 7th)
Cereal, the breakfast food that adults increasingly eat as dessert (or is that just me?), celebrates in early March.
Americans purchase about 2.7 BILLION boxes of cereal annually, though consumption has declined as people opt for protein-heavy breakfasts.
The holiday resurrects childhood memories: Saturday morning cartoons with a bowl of sugar-coated cereal, fishing for prizes at the bottom of the box, and arguing over who gets the last bowl before grocery shopping.
Modern adults rediscover cereals like Lucky Charms, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, and Fruit Loops.
National Cereal Day is basically permission to eat kids’ cereal for dinner and call it “nostalgic” instead of “immature.”
The Bottom Line on National Food Holidays
There’s a food holiday for everything: National Taco Day (first Tuesday in October), National Croissant Day (January 30th), National Coffee Day (September 29th), etc.
While most were invented by marketing departments looking to boost sales, they’ve become genuine celebrations that people actually observe.
So go ahead, use National [Insert Food Here] Day as an excuse to indulge. (No judgment here 👍)