Don't fight the Dining Dress codes!

[Uncleromulus]

Exactly! It's their "code"--but they do not make it a requirement.

So folks--a LOT of Folks--will decide it isn't for them and come as they are!!

And my guess is that the servers at WDW are so used to seeing folks not adhering to the requested code (which is hard to do since it allows for dungarees, shorts and t-shirts) they make no distinction as to which patrons will be good tippers.

 

[SouthJersey]

Exactly! It's their "code"--but they do not make it a requirement.

So folks--a LOT of Folks--will decide it isn't for them and come as they are!!

It's not enforced as to not lose business.
If they could guarantee identical guest volume, it would be enforced.
Why would they have it and ASK that it be followed if that's not what is intended?

It's not a 'requirement' simply because they don't want to lose sales.
To acknowledge a dress code and say, "nah", is ignorant.

Again, in terms of Disney, that's a lost cause. I'm speaking in generality. At home, if a place has a dress code and you blatantly disregard it, it's ignorant.

 

[Uncleromulus]

The ball is in their court.

They are well aware a lot of people won't adhere to the suggested code (and again, that's tough to do considering what it allows) and so they have a "not permitted in the dining room" list.

Which is probably the only enforceable part of their code.

And they are well aware that they would lose business if they ever got tough with a dress code.

So we come full circle--it's the way it is!!

 

[SouthJersey]

The ball is in their court.

They are well aware a lot of people won't adhere to the suggested code (and again, that's tough to do considering what it allows) and so they have a "not permitted in the dining room" list.

Which is probably the only enforceable part of their code.

And they are well aware that they would lose business if they ever got tough with a dress code.

So we come full circle--it's the way it is!!

As long as the food tastes good I don't careeeee lol.
I just think it would prevent the extremes I've seen. Nasty crusty feed in flipflops, deodorant matted underarm hair in cut offs. Blegh

 

[Jadyreen1282]

As long as the food tastes good I don't careeeee lol.
I just think it would prevent the extremes I've seen. Nasty crusty feed in flipflops, deodorant matted underarm hair in cut offs. Blegh

Great. Thanks for the visual!

 

[Uncleromulus]

Should say that it has been a long time since I have seen anyone in a WDW Signature restaurant dressed in something on the "prohibited" list...such as tank tops on men, swimwear, etc. Footwear-- as we know-- isn't mentioned anywhere.

Then again, I could probably count on one hand the times I have seen a man in a jacket--

 

[SouthJersey]

Should say that it has been a long time since I have seen anyone in a WDW Signature restaurant dressed in something on the "prohibited" list...such as tank tops on men, swimwear, etc. Footwear-- as we know-- isn't mentioned anywhere.

Then again, I could probably count on one hand the times I have seen a man in a jacket--

Narcoossee's, Artist Point and Jiko has been solid with dress code and proper attire.
Yachtsman and California Grill has gone to a 50/50 split our last two visits, where my deodorant visual came from.
Le Cellier, won't even bother commenting lol.

 

[TiggerTrigger]

For us personally...we like to head back to our room before dinner, freshen up, and put on something a little bit nicer...especially if it's a signature meal outside of the parks. And yes, I've been known to throw a pair of 5" heels for the meal and maybe even something with some sparkle (although not cocktail attire), before slipping back into something more comfortable before evening time in the parks. That being said, we do quite a bit of TS dining and while I've heard tales of people dressing like all out slobs at the signature spots...I have yet to see anything even questionable. I mean, we had meals at HBD, Yachtsman, Cali Grill, Flying Fish and Narcoosee's last trip and not once did I see anyone looking inappropriately dressed. You'd think with all of these reports of slovenly dressed diners that we'd see a few out of those 5 signature meals...or they're there and I'm just too busy enjoying my meal and vacay to be bothered?

 

[ErinsMommy]

One of the reasons I like LC more than Yachtsman - it's darker lol and in a park so I found it more common to see others and walk in wearing khaki or denim shorts - even bike shorts - and a t shirt. First and only time we went to Yachtsma we felt more out of place.

 

[smadath]

It's weird how your experience trumps my experience and makes yours the law of the land and I'm "wrong".
I've served in our restaurants and I'm friends with a good portion of over 100 servers between our family's restaurants and my uncle's.
Not speaking to Disney, if you're in a place with a dress code that is met by the majority of diners and you're dressed however you want to be, you are judged negatively by the staff and guests.
Your service isn't going to be trashed or subpar, but the guests who dressed the part and met the dress code will be treated better and attended to more.

Still staying to the restaurant industry and not Disney World, I'm not sure if you're in a honky-dory fantasy land in your head, but the restaurant industry is notorious for negatively viewing African American guests and foreigners as poor tippers and foreigners with disgust and dread. Are you going to pretend that the food service industry doesn't approach minority tables with the assumption of a poor tip and being ran around? Because anyone even outside of the food industry knows that's a huge, recurring stereotype among food servers. But, judging people on their dress appearance is a stretch? Maybe in Applebee's, yeah. If you walk into a restaurant like Capital Grille or Del Frisco's not meeting the dress code, you're going to be viewed negatively and that you're 'out of place' and assumed that the tip is going to reflect it.

I'm not telling people to wear suits, I'm saying you should meet the established dress code that they have for a reason. But no, our self-entitled American society trumps that, where we acknowledge a dress code exists and literally say, "Nah, I want this food, but screw their dress code." It's weird that in Spain, Italy and throughout the UK, dress codes aren't an issue being met and I never see people in lounging home clothes at nice restaurants.

Anyway, back on topic. The dress code policy in Disney is not enforced because it was overran with guests not adhering. So, instead of dropping demand and sales by enforcing it, they've allowed it to fall to the wayside. A good 30% or more will be in park clothes at many of the signatures.

I think you may be misinterpreting why people leave 'bad' tips. My DH and I like to dress comfortably. We go into restaurants expecting to leave a 20%-25% tip. We don't have children, so we tend to 'people watch' during the meal. If we notice (which we will if we need refills or such) that our server has vistited other 'more appropriately dressed' (in their opinion) tables a half dozen times, and ours once, then we are leaving a lower tip. The server does not get a good tip for prejudging me and placing me lower on the Triage List.

So, it's possible, as Nancy said, that the server's actions are what inspired bad tips, and not the patrons attire.

 

[senadler]

Many PP have stated going back to change for dinner, and mentioning nicer pants, khaki's, etc. for the signature restaurants. And while I would typically wear something nicer than park clothes, there are many people that are going to these restaurants directly from the park. A few are even in the parks. There is also very little dress code requirement, this is the listing:

Dress Code for Signature Restaurants is Resort Casual. Not permitted in dining room: Tank tops, swimsuits or swimsuit cover-ups, hats for gentlemen, cut-offs, torn clothing of any kind, or T-shirts with offensive language and/or graphics.

While I think many dress much nicer than this in the signature restaurants, it is clearly not required. Shorts and T shirts would meet this requirement.

 

[Uncleromulus]

Especially if you are using Disney Transportation, going from a park to your hotel to change and then going to the restaurant could take a # of HOURS.

 

[SouthJersey]

I think you may be misinterpreting why people leave 'bad' tips. My DH and I like to dress comfortably. We go into restaurants expecting to leave a 20%-25% tip. We don't have children, so we tend to 'people watch' during the meal. If we notice (which we will if we need refills or such) that our server has vistited other 'more appropriately dressed' (in their opinion) tables a half dozen times, and ours once, then we are leaving a lower tip. The server does not get a good tip for prejudging me and placing me lower on the Triage List.

So, it's possible, as Nancy said, that the server's actions are what inspired bad tips, and not the patrons attire.

I didn't say that's why people leave poor tips.
If you go into Del Frisco's or Capital Grille dressed below the average diner, the service will be lesser than those dressed to the restaurants preferred standard.
I've managed several Starr restaurant groups in the Philadelphia area, one Jose Garces location and Union Trust steakhouse. Whether you'd like to believe it or not, if you're dressing in blatant disregard of the suggested dress code and average guest, you're being viewed negatively by the waitstaff and as shallow as it seems, you're viewed as being out of place unless they know you from prior. I've seen it first hand for years in a half dozen upscale restaurants. I can tell you from my experience in restaurants, the guest using multiple credit cards to pay and way under 20%, were the ones clearly disregarding the dress code. So when someone comes in out of the norm of the establishment, that's what the server is expecting and gets the mentality of "I'll do my job, but I'm not going above and beyond."

 

[smadath]

I didn't say that's why people leave poor tips.
If you go into Del Frisco's or Capital Grille dressed below the average diner, the service will be lesser than those dressed to the restaurants preferred standard.
I've managed several Starr restaurant groups in the Philadelphia area, one Jose Garces location and Union Trust steakhouse. Whether you'd like to believe it or not, if you're dressing in blatant disregard of the suggested dress code and average guest, you're being viewed negatively by the waitstaff and as shallow as it seems, you're viewed as being out of place unless they know you from prior. I've seen it first hand for years in a half dozen upscale restaurants. I can tell you from my experience in restaurants, the guest using multiple credit cards to pay and way under 20%, were the ones clearly disregarding the dress code. So when someone comes in out of the norm of the establishment, that's what the server is expecting and gets the mentality of "I'll do my job, but I'm not going above and beyond."

I believe when you say those who dress "below average" leave lower tips. I'm just saying that may be because they haven't received the same level of service as others. If a server goes into serving a table with the attitude "I'll do my job, but I'm not going above and beyond" but then goes above and beyond for other tables of course they are left a lower tip. What else would they expect? In my case, that l lower tip is because I received substandard service in comparison with other tables. Not because of what I was wearing.

 

[OasterP]

I seems like overall most people do follow the dress code, as it seems very lax (with a few exceptions).

In the real world though - I see people disregard dress codes all the time, and I think it just is another sign of the "Rules don't apply to me" attitude that so many seem to have.

 

[TeachTink]

So the dress code for signatures says no Tshirts with graphics? That means my husband and I can't go to Le Cellier with Mickey Tshirts on?

We have never been to signature dining before. We are certainly not going to waste 2 hours of our park time to walk out to the bus stops, take a 20 min ride to our hotel, change, ride 20 min back, walk all the way back to world showcase. Will we really be "frowned upon" or seen as bad tippers if we have sneakers, shorts, and Mickey tshirts on?

I was looking forward to trying Le Cellier but if I am not welcome in a tshirt with a graphic on it, I may cancel my reservation.

 

[Lisaloo]

We are 28 days away from our WDW trip. I can't wait to not notice what everyone is wearing in the signature restaurants we have ADRs for each night of our stay.

 

[Lisaloo]

So the dress code for signatures says no Tshirts with graphics? That means my husband and I can't go to Le Cellier with Mickey Tshirts on?

We have never been to signature dining before. We are certainly not going to waste 2 hours of our park time to walk out to the bus stops, take a 20 min ride to our hotel, change, ride 20 min back, walk all the way back to world showcase. Will we really be "frowned upon" or seen as bad tippers if we have sneakers, shorts, and Mickey tshirts on?

I was looking forward to trying Le Cellier but if I am not welcome in a tshirt with a graphic on it, I may cancel my reservation.

It's only "offensive graphics" so Mickey will be fine (at least for 50% of the people posting.)

 

[GaSleepingBeautyFan]

I will never forget the night when my husband and I went to Artist Point for our 6pm anniversary dinner in 2009 and at the table next to us was a hairy guy in a wife beater and shorts and the rest of the family didn't look much better. It grossed me out but I sat so I wouldn't have to look at him during the meal.

I'd made my husband put on a polo shirt and khaki's for that dinner and I wore a dress and my husband fumed the whole time because he felt like he could've just worn his beat up jean shorts and a tshirt. Kind of ruined the evening.

Now he doesn't even want to go to any more signature meals. I sure hope Disney is better about reinforcing the dress codes in the resort hotels restaurants.

 

[Goofy'slady]

My mum raised all four of us girls to always consider a dress code or the appropriateness of the restaurant when going to dine. Checking out the overall atmosphere to get an idea of how most of the crowd dresses is key for me. I will go as far as looking online at photos of diners and the restaurant itself. If we are not dining in the parks then we generally will dress for dinner. We even go so far as to buy dresses especially for certain places. We always buy new island inspired dresses when dining at Ohana. We have dresses for 1900 Park Fare since it's at the Grand Floridian and I'm taking my youngest for a mother and daughter tea afternoon at the Grand Floridian on another day and we have dresses for that day as well. Nothing over the top fancy but nicer sundresses nonetheless and cuter sandals than what we would wear inside the parks.

It's easy for me since I wear mostly skirts and dresses all through summer anyway. As a matter of fact I don't own shorts at all so even in the parks I'm wearing dresses and skirts just a little more casual and park appropriate.