How dressed up do you have to be to dine at Disney?

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ocarina's picture
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How dressed up do you have to be to dine at Disney?

I'm having a suitcase planning nightmare! For one of my meals at Disney I will need to dress up, but how many of my other restaurants are dressy and would I be able to get in and not get dirty looks if I just wear smart trousers and a plain top? For my days in the park I plan to wear whatever keeps me cool and not sunburnt - which might not be particularly great for signature dining?

Anyway, any ideas - so far we are eating at Le Cellier, Via Napoli, Yak and Yeti, Tonys T Sq, Flying Fish, Shulas, Yacht Club, Jiko and Narcossees.

*stares at her suitcase* How will I fit all of my souveniers on the way back in it??! awesome

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I love to dress up a bit in the evenings, especially when dining out. However, sometimes in Disney, I have felt over-dressed in jeans, a nice top and eyeliner!! Many people dine at table service in the evening in "park wear" ie. shorts, trainers and Mickey t-shirts! For signature dining, trousers and a plain top would be more than acceptable. I have found in some restaurants the air conditioning is very cold so I always take a cardigan type top too.

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ocarina's picture
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Ah phew - theres nothing worse than feeling the eyes of the staff on you when you've misjudged the dress code Sad

Miss Mikki wrote:
I have found in some restaurants the air conditioning is very cold so I always take a cardigan type top too.

Oh that's a top tip, Miss Mikki - I really feel the cold and would not be happy eating feeling chilly.

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ocarina wrote:
Le Cellier, Flying Fish, Shulas, Yacht Club, Jiko and Narcossees.

Okay... I'm the opposite. I dress for dinner, especially at Disney.

You have a LOT of Signature dining... read this article I wrote on Disney's dress code. It tells you what Disney says is appropriate at the restaurants that I've quoted.

http://www.wdwforgrownups.com/articles/dressing-disney-signature-dining

Will you see people who haven't dressed to code? Yes.
Does that mean you should be one of them? Not in my opinion.

Do I treat my family like a stern school marm that raps their hands and the mere thought of not dressing for a signature dinner? You betcha. I get serious about appropriate dinner attire and they all fall in line. No one wants the wrath of Mom.

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Part of the fun for me is dressing a bit nicer for dinner, putting some make up on, getting out a pretty dress etc. I would dress up more at signature dining. The normal restaurants you can wear things a bit more relaxed though Smile

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dewingedpixie's picture
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I pretty much live in sundresses at Disney. I carry a jean jacket or cardigan because as stated it gets chilly. Note I dont own shorts hence the sun dresses.

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Flying Fish, Shulas, Yacht Club, Jiko and Narcossees are the only ones I would even think of dressing for, the others are park wear. A nice pair of slacks or a simple dress will do for any of the others. Some do like to dress for Disney like Kristen said, but you will find all types. I usually dress 2 or 3 times for dinner while in disney. I take black slacks with 2 or 3 different blouses and call it done. Easy on the packing.

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ocarina's picture
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Kristen K. wrote:
ocarina wrote:
Le Cellier, Flying Fish, Shulas, Yacht Club, Jiko and Narcossees.

Okay... I'm the opposite. I dress for dinner, especially at Disney.

You have a LOT of Signature dining... read this article I wrote on Disney's dress code. It tells you what Disney says is appropriate at the restaurants that I've quoted.

http://www.wdwforgrownups.com/articles/dressing-disney-signature-dining

Will you see people who haven't dressed to code? Yes.
Does that mean you should be one of them? Not in my opinion.

Do I treat my family like a stern school marm that raps their hands and the mere thought of not dressing for a signature dinner? You betcha. I get serious about appropriate dinner attire and they all fall in line. No one wants the wrath of Mom.

Oooh that's a fab article - thank you Kristen! muchlove

I think you are right, though, I don't often dress up at home (or go out for meals!) and this holiday is a mega out-of-character splurge, really. I should get dressed up, get lots of photos and make each meal an event.

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ocarina's picture
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RobynPrincess wrote:
Part of the fun for me is dressing a bit nicer for dinner, putting some make up on, getting out a pretty dress etc. I would dress up more at signature dining. The normal restaurants you can wear things a bit more relaxed though Smile

I think you are right, Robyn - I'll make a bit of an effort! Smile hopefully I can sneak some dresses into my partners suitcase when he isn't looking...

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dewingedpixie wrote:
I pretty much live in sundresses at Disney. I carry a jean jacket or cardigan because as stated it gets chilly. Note I dont own shorts hence the sun dresses.

I hate my legs, so also don't own shorts! Sun dresses are a fab idea, can just dress them up a bit with some jewellery or a nice shrug in the evening. Smile

Phew, so glad its not expected to wear a proper fancy gown.

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ocarina's picture
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angels444 wrote:
Flying Fish, Shulas, Yacht Club, Jiko and Narcossees are the only ones I would even think of dressing for, the others are park wear. A nice pair of slacks or a simple dress will do for any of the others. Some do like to dress for Disney like Kristen said, but you will find all types. I usually only dress 2 or 3 times for dinner while in disney. I take black slacks with 2 or 3 different blouses and call it done. Easy on the packing.

Phew, fab stuff Smile Blouses and dark trousers are a very good idea Shock

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Glad that we were able to help!

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If it's in a park, park wear is definitely ok.

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dewingedpixie's picture
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ocarina wrote:
dewingedpixie wrote:
I pretty much live in sundresses at Disney. I carry a jean jacket or cardigan because as stated it gets chilly. Note I dont own shorts hence the sun dresses.

I hate my legs, so also don't own shorts! Sun dresses are a fab idea, can just dress them up a bit with some jewellery or a nice shrug in the evening. Smile

Phew, so glad its not expected to wear a proper fancy gown.

Plus the wind up your skirt on some of the rides can be pretty awesome Laughing out loud. They also tend to dry faster than denim shorts or pants after water rides.

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I agree about putting in a little extra effort for the signature restaurants, but Yak & Yeti I wouldn't worry about at all. I wore shorts and a Mickey sweatshirt (my normal park ware for the day) and didn't feel even slightly out of place.

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I've eaten/worked at several restaurants on property and normal park wear (ie. shorts/jeans, t-shirt/blouse, sundress) are perfectly fine in any non-signature restaurant.

However, my daughter and I are dining at Narcoossee's this summer for the first time and we will be dressing "pretty" for this occasion.. summer dresses and pretty shoes we would never wear in the parks Smile Can't wait!

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