In some Asian countries, gold is used in food and drink, from fruit jelly snacks to coffee. Japan's gold leaf production was based in Kanazawa, and visitors can still find gold leaf shops and workshops selling green tea, and even candy, with gold leaf.

Europeans have included floating bits of gold leaf in bottle of liquor for centuries, at least since the late 1500s. Danziger Goldwasser, originally from Poland, which has been produced since 1598! The trend has become more popular in the US in recent years, in liquors such as Goldschläger.