Hot take on sig dining dress code

[Kooks and Bay Bay]

WDW is for all ages.

I believe only V&A has an age restriction and I would also expect fully compliant dress code attire for that restaurant.

And just because something is called "signature" that does not mean that it has a dress code. In many cases at Disney that means "We are charing you a premium prices or two TS credits for this meal because we can".

My rule of thumb is...
If its in a park I'll wear what I deem appropriate for the park and dining so maybe instead of jean shorts and a graphic tank top I'll wear khaki shorts and a patterned top. I'll still be wearing sneakers though.
If its outside of the parks and I CAN I will wear a dress.

If you want true signature dining and adults only then go to a true signature restaurant.

 

[loves to dive]

The dress code thing doesn't bother me, but even in the parks I rarely wear Tshirts or shorts. I'm a shirt and skort kind of gal, or a sundress in the summer. Colder weather I'm in leggings and tunic of some kind. So my clothes are usually o.k. for signature restaurants. I do wear a ball cap to the parks but don't wear it to eat, I'll go to the bathroom and kind of straighten my hat hair (I wear short hair) and put my cap either in my bag if I'm carrying one it will fit in or on my lap or in a chair at my table.

The kids thing does sometimes bother me but only if they are in my space. I once was eating at Mon. Paul's and my adult son and I were sat at a table where one side was chairs and the other bench type seating. The table next to us had two kids under 10. The kid on my side (the bench seating) decided she was just too tired to sit up so she laid down, which would not be problem except she laid all the way across to my space and kicked me the entire time. Mom and Dad said nothing, by the way, I'm old enough now that I would probably politely ask the child to stop and since I have gray grandma hair they usually listen to me. I've also eaten at places with the same set up where the kids next to me were great. Being kids they were a little rowdy but kept it in their space and the parents actually told us if they were bothering us to let them know. We were fine with it. I've also eaten at signature restaurants where some of the adults have had more than enough adult beverages and were more loud, rowdy and impolite than most children would even think of. V&A's the only place you are truly going to get that signature experience and I've even eaten there where a big table of adults were a tad too loud.

 

[0FF TO NEVERLAND]

I always dress up for signature restaurants. Always. I enjoy it.

There are certain ones where you are more likely to see people dressed up. ( Cali Grill, Topolinos. Citricos. Flying Fish )

I don't really care what other people wear while I am there. Sure I would like some people to dress up a little bit, and a lot do.

I just try and time it so there is more of a chance it will be more adults and more dressed up

Usually my top Sig restaurants will be on a Fri and Sat Night, after 7:30pm

Never really had any issues during those times. I personally have never seen crying babies or anything during those times. Younger kids, sure. But usually the parents enjoy dressing them up a little bit to. Just depends on the day

 

[ScarletFire]

Yoga shorts and running bra make me chuckle but I don't care. I'm oblivious most of the time.

 

[Mle8308]

Say you are staying at All Stars but you are at MK with an ADR at 7 pm for California grill. So are you walking over to Contemporary or hopping on Resort Monorail at 630 pm or are you leaving MK at 4pm to wait for a All Stars bus that you don’t know exactly when it’s coming, 20 minutes on the bus , walk back to your room, everyone shower and dress up, walk back to bus stop, wait for bus back to MK , ride bus to MK, go through security again to walk or monorail to Contemporary?

Exactly! And what if you are staying off property? Or have driven into Orlando for the day to go to a park then dine? It's Disney - which means theme parks and kids! I give people a pass if they are dressed in park clothes in a signature restaurant. Though I absolutely agree that parents should monitor their kids behavior and if it becomes disruptive, then take them out of the restaurant. And no loud iPads or phones blaring Baby Shark over and over again (I do actually like the jingle, just not when I'm trying to relax).

 

[Mle8308]

Yes, Disney does have more relaxed dress codes, but that doesn’t mean people should show up to a nice restaurant in sweaty T-shirts and shorts. It ruins the atmosphere. And yes, bringing small kids to dinner at 8 PM almost guarantees fussing and crying. It’s better to come earlier or choose a different place

Probably better to not eat at a Disney sit down restaurant if you don't want to see people in sweaty t-shirts and shorts. Or go to V&A's. It is what it is and it's not going to change.

 

[marielynn724]

Meh. I gave up a long time ago when formal night on cruise ships turned into a come as you are free for all. I used to love getting all glammed up for the night. But if people can't be bothered to go put on some nice pants or a skirt when their room is literally a 5 minute walk from the restaurant, I definitely don't expect them to go through the hassle of returning to their resort to freshen up at a theme park, which could tack an extra couple of hours onto their day.

I have a Disney cruise coming up and it's only one part of a long extended vacation. My suitcase simply does not have the space for a nice dress that I will only be wearing for one evening out of a multi-week trip. I always make an effort to look nice in my outfits but sometimes that's impractical. If the trip wasn't so long and we were only going on the cruise, I would totally go all out and pack something really special. I'm just constricted by packing space this time unfortunately!

 

[JLTraveling]

I have a Disney cruise coming up and it's only one part of a long extended vacation. My suitcase simply does not have the space for a nice dress that I will only be wearing for one evening out of a multi-week trip. I always make an effort to look nice in my outfits but sometimes that's impractical. If the trip wasn't so long and we were only going on the cruise, I would totally go all out and pack something really special. I'm just constricted by packing space this time unfortunately!

That's totally fair. I did a one-way cruise to Alaska and then another month traveling through the interior before flying home. Definitely didn't have any extra room myself on that one!

 

[keishashadow]

As for children's behavior in signatures - it's WDW - I've come to expect chaos and noise everywhere. When I really can't take chaos and noise, I vacation elsewhere.

Enjoying WDW is highly dependent upon setting one's expectations of others to a low bar

By preference, we do more of resort casual/wicking sports clothing It tends to look neat & fresh longer & it's what we own. It easily can cross over from the parks to dining

I'm usually in a longer tennis skirt or a light, breathable sleeveless dress (with modesty shorts underneath)

As for people freshening up for dinner...there are many who need to realize taking a dip in the hotel pool is not the same as showering, with soap

 

[_19disnA]

When we go out to eat (Disney or elsewhere) I honestly don't care what someone else is wearing, none of my business. I don't look around judging others. If parents are making an effort to deal with unruly/noisy children that is probably all they can be expected to do. Sometimes you just never know how a small child might behave in a public setting. After being in one of the Disney parks all day long, they are probably tired from the walking/heat/crowds.

I assume the Disney person at the entrance to the restaurant has been trained in how to deal with issues related to attire. That is their job to enforce whatever applicable dress code, not mine.

 

[GoingSince1990]

At signatures I will usually wear my nicest shorts, a golf/polo shirt, and Timberlands, and I always really feel like I’ve made an effort compared to many of the people dining there.

 

[LKing]

I know the difference between WDWs dress code.... I don’t understand why people can’t leave the parks and change into more compliant clean clothing

While you may know, others who don't visit regularly may not.

Personally, I hadn't been to WDW in >10 years. Only because of threads like this one, did I know that the resort restaurants were dressier. We were staying off site so I knew it wasn't reasonable timewise to go back to our hotel to change clothes. I purposely avoided booking ADRs for any resort dining. However, I was told by multiple people on this forum that the dress code was not very strict, so I made reservations and we packed a couple of polo shirts and sundresses. We did not pack slacks, dress shoes, make- up, or cologne/perfume. On days when we had resort dining booked, we wore clothing that we thought would be "compliant" (ie. shorts & polo shirt, sundress) to the parks. Both of us wore running shoes (yes, with a sundress) and had backpacks. After a long day, I'm sure we arrived at the restaurants smelling like the parks. The CM didn't give us a second glance. No one mentioned that we weren't "compliant, hadn't "cleaned up", or that we were carrying backpacks and wearing Disney "Celebrating" buttons.

It bothers me to read this thread and think that other guests might have looked down on us, or that what we wore somehow impacted their ability to enjoy their dining experience.

 

[si-am]

I ate at Cali Grill one year and a woman was in there wearing a literal bathing suit coverup over a bikini. Ultimately, it didn’t affect my experience but I DID raise an eyebrow and wondered why she was let in that way.

My worst experience was at Boma, with bench seating. The young girl at the table next to me— maybe 5-6 years old— was watching a really LOUD video the entire time which kind of ruined my experience. I still get irritated when I think about that!

I feel like Disney CMs are, in general, taught to be non-confrontational. Which is fine and good! Just wish more things could be confronted at times.

 

[patty57]

It bothers me to read this thread and think that other guests might have looked down on us, or that what we wore somehow impacted their ability to enjoy their dining experience.

If anyone looked down on you for your attire, or you impacted anyone's dining experience because they didn't like your clothing, it isn't your problem. It is their problem.

 

[Lewisc]

JMO People should consider the dress code when booking a restaurant. The current dress code is basically no bathing suits. People looking for a more formal look have a couple of restaurants to consider. People who aren't willing to comply with the minimal requirements should eat at the pool restaurant.

The previous dress code was pretty casual. People not willing to comply should have dined elsewhere.

Restaurants that required jackets frequently had loaner jackets available

 

[scrappinginontario]

When i dine at a restaurant I’m there to spend time with family and friends and enjoy delicious food! I have so much better things to do than be concerned about another person is wearing. It’s none of my business!

 

[MabelM]

I never book signature restaurants because the last thing I want to do is pack a dress or some other outfit that is only appropriate for one dinner. I actually enjoy getting dressed up for dinner, just not in Disney. While I am not opposed to fine dining prices in general, I cannot justify the Disney tax on top of a fine dining prices. I know I am in the minority on this since the restaurants are so popular. I make it easier for everyone else to get a reservation!

On our trip in March, I was a little more lax than I would normally be because of some time constraints, but we were not eating in fine dining establishments. Even staying on site makes it difficult to have time to get ready for dinner, if you are maximizing your time at the parks, which we try to do.

 

[Stacybaeasm]

It bothers me to read this thread and think that other guests might have looked down on us, or that what we wore somehow impacted their ability to enjoy their dining experience.

I don't think I could even tell you 5 minutes after I leave a Disney restaurant who was sitting at a table near me and what they wore. I'm there to be with friends and have food that I love in the place that I love. And also - who cares what anyone else thinks? I will never see these people again in my life. If I want to wear my tiara and a gown OR wear my Minnie Ears and park clothes, as long as I am not violating a Disney rule, I'm gonna do me and wave at anyone staring, pointing, and judging.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

as long as I am not violating a Disney rule,

Technically Disney has rules about dress code. Don't get me wrong I don't disagree with your point but I think using your above statement can become a slippery slope because both park rules and restaurant rules are based on dress codes, one is aimed at the general atmosphere the other a specific atmosphere but both (in the cast of restaurants owned by Disney) fall under Disney's rule and thus not adhering to it would be violating it. The ramifications for violating a park rule differ than a restaurant rule but both are still rules.

In other words I wouldn't use your rationale for not adhering to a dress code of a restaurant.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I have a Disney cruise coming up and it's only one part of a long extended vacation. My suitcase simply does not have the space for a nice dress that I will only be wearing for one evening out of a multi-week trip. I always make an effort to look nice in my outfits but sometimes that's impractical. If the trip wasn't so long and we were only going on the cruise, I would totally go all out and pack something really special. I'm just constricted by packing space this time unfortunately!

I think it depends on the cruise line and their dress codes.

The cruise line we've done now twice has a dress code after 6pm of "elegant casual" which means you're packing nicer clothing anyhow for the evening, daytime is resort casual but athletic/work out clothing and swimwear are only permittable on in specific areas. That doesn't stop some people from dressing more casually than the dress code but the majority do indeed at least dress nicer. Formal attire has for sure ebbed down from full on ball gowns and sparkly attires and tuxes (though the cruise line does not require a tie regardless) to less of those and most men just wear a jacket and slacks with a nice shirt underneath but formal night only applies to one restaurant which means the rest of the ship is under the elegant casual rule. Expedition ships when the first one was launched they kept the formal night on it but quickly scrapped it as Antarctica, Amazon, etc are just not the right kind of places to worry about a gown or a suit especially as there are much stricter airline rules regarding luggage size and weight. They keep this even if they aren't going to more exotic locations.

On our most recent cruise when we were talking to a couple on an excursion about how we all travel we mentioned that we do personal item and carry on one certain trips but on the cruises we do checked, personal item and carry on. They did much longer cruises than we were doing and just mentioned that they do personal item and carry on and just don't care about the dress code. The way they put it though was that they felt that they were connected enough as the husband said "we know people and have cruised enough with the line" that they just don't adhere to the dress code much. While he was nice personally it was not a good look for him at all and came off incredibly snooty.

That said a theme park environment is truly different for me as in the expectations of adhering to said dress code have to align with that environment of being in a theme park. However, I would probably not book a restaurant that required a strict dress code most especially if we're talking during heat. We do checked bags for WDW/USO trips but I'd probably be sweaty and icky and would want a shower and change and it's just a bunch of wasted time for me. If it's outside of the actual theme park and it's just at the hotels if I did a restaurant that had a strict dress code I would only book it for arrival day where I can have the time to do it. But that is my own opinion.