New Year’s Eve 2022 In The South Brunswick Area: Fireworks, NYE Gala

SOUTH BRUNSWICK, NJ — It's almost time to ring in the New Year and scream goodbye to 2022.

From hotel parties to dinners and dancing, here is a look at some events happening in the South Brunswick area:

• New Year’s Eve, Orchard Park by David Burke: New Year’s Eve a la carte from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Special prix fixe 3-course menu, live DJ and dancing, party favors, photo booth, champagne toast & more with reservations starting at 8 p.m. On New Year’s Day enjoy brunch from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. A la carte dinner menu from 4 p.m. – 8 p.m.
• New Year's Eve Trap & Paint Party, Above Art Studios, New Brunswick: Do something different this New Year's Eve. Get creative by painting something while enjoying a drink. For more information, click here. Tickets are priced at $45 and $50, plus fees.
• Midnight fireworks in New Brunswick: New Brunswick's fireworks have returned! The Restaurant Guys present their renowned "Fireworks Spectacular" at midnight at Monument Square Park, across from Catherine Lombardi and Stage Left Steak. See all those who made it possible at NewBrunswickNYE.com.
• Many New Brunswick bars and restaurants will be open late for a post-fireworks nightcap. Learn more here: https://www.newbrunswick.com/p...
• New Year’s Eve Gala and Comedy Show, Hyatt Regency, Princeton: There will be a gala upstairs in the ballroom with dinner, dancing, and comedy show. There will also be a live feed from Times Square at midnight, party favors and a champagne toast. Click here for tickets and more details.
• New Year's Eve Celebration, Winberie's: Ring in 2023 at Winberie’s with an unlimited party food buffet, discounted drinks, a complimentary midnight toast, raffles and party favors. The celebration kicks off at 10 p.m. and goes until 12:30 a.m. Tickets are $39 per person and can be purchased online or in person at the restaurant. Tickets at the door are $49.
• New Year's Eve Dinner At Mediterra, Princeton: Dine like a king or queen before you ring in 2023. Mediterra will be serving a four-course New Year's Eve Dinner from 4 p.m.- 9:30 p.m. The price is $90 per person. Menu subject to change.

In the United States, one of the most popular New Year’s Eve traditions is, of course, the dropping of the giant ball in New York City’s Times Square. Various cities have adopted their own iterations of the event — the Peach Drop in Atlanta, the Chick Drop in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and the giant Potato Drop in Boise, Idaho.

The end of one year and beginning of another is often celebrated with the singing of “Auld Lang Syne,” a Scottish folk song whose title roughly translates to “days gone by,” according to Encyclopedia Britannica and History.com.

The history of New Year’s resolutions dates back 8,000 years to ancient Babylonians, who would make promises to return borrowed objects and pay outstanding debts at the beginning of the new year, in mid-March when they planted their crops.

According to legend, if they kept their word, pagan gods would grant them favor in the coming year. If they broke the promise, they would fall out of God’s favor, according to a history of New Year’s resolutions compiled by North Hampton Community College New Center in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

Many secular New Year’s resolutions focus on imagining new, improved versions of ourselves. The failure rate of New Year’s resolutions is about 80 percent, according to U.S. News & World Report. There are myriad reasons, but a big one is they’re made out of remorse for gaining weight, for example, and aren’t accompanied by a shift in attitude and a plan to meet the stress and discomfort of changing a habit or condition.