Let me just give you the full spelling for the gift certificate I’m sure you are going to be generous enough to provide me with as a sign of your appreciation for getting you to call!
NotJrvedivici (please note the N & J are capital and the Q is silent)
Thanks Harters & enjoy !!!
Good to get things clear up. Now we are waiting for your write on Le Gavroche soon.
Yes, that policy gives more leeway to racial, sexist, ageist (against too young or too old) and simply “lookist” discrimination. I don’t mind a dress code as much as arbitrary rulings on who looks rich or hot enough.
I think they’re just asking that their diners come in clean and neat looking, nothing fancy. No harm, no foul, IMO.
In general I agree with you, and have observed some of those horrid upper-class twits decried by Monty Python who’d be beautifully turned out and dress and act like pigs (there was an infamous case of a young British MP - think he may have been a Cabinet Minister or undersecretary) who not only got utterly shitfaced with his friends but also made Hitler salutes (some of them were in Nazi costumes). But for my parents an evening out was a rare treat and required dressing up. That is or was the case for many working-class people.
I’m more concerned with arbitrary rules about race, sex, age, cut of suit or other elements to pick out the desirable élite.
C’est vrai. But we know how to spot someone who is wearing overly loud or uncouth wear. And the truly chic, at least the younger generations, tend to wear dark wash jeans, often but not always jackets with tieless shirts, and the female equivalent.
I’d agree with that, based on my experience as a teenager and young man in the 60s and 70s. I think it was about dressing differently when going out to how you dressed when at work. Most working class young men I knew would go out, usually in a suit, whilst me and the other middle class men would dress much more casually and wouldnt have considered wearing thew workclothes, a suit, for a date or whatever.
A well known “event” was the Queen and her mother giving what appears to be a Nazi salute.
And Prince Harry was famously photographed going to a party in Nazi uniform.
And let’s not forget that King Edward VIII (later the Duke fo Windsor) was quite a supporter of the Nazis in the 1930s.
Wow. I cannot fathom how you got so much hate out of a dress code policy.
I’m reminded of an article that I read in Los Angeles Magazine way back in the early 1980s. A man was dressed for dinner at a very expensive, long-established restaurant. I forget the restaurant’s name but the man was denied entry for not complying with the dress policy, which I guess was standard-issue jacket and tie. He was wearing Giorgio Armani’s “deconstructed” suit which was the new fashion and very expensive, but obviously not known to the restaurant staff. There was a photo of course and pretty soon everyone who could afford the look bought into it.
Sometimes things change, and sometimes they don’t.
Nothing worse than backward wearing had guy in a tee shirt, shorts, and flip flops. Please do not post again if this is you.
A related story. I see that Qantas has now introduced a (pretty innocuous) dress code for their airline lounges. Apparently the standards of dress had got so bad they felt compelled to do something to rectify it.
I speculate it reflects the view of the majority of customers that if they are in a nice lounge relaxing before a flight they don’t want to be surrounded by people dressed for the beach or the sports field.
Maybe an example of society evolving away from the overly casual.
I’m sorry but I find sweats a pretty reasonable apparel option for a 15 hour flight from LA to Sydney. You mean I can’t wear them in the lounge? Have to change on the plane?? 
Pretty pathetic that Qantas had to explicitly say pajamas and bare feet are unacceptable.
I still just don’t fully understand why how other people look has such a huge impact on your experience. If I’m enjoying my food and the people I’m with i don’t think I could even tell you who else was in the dining room once we leave.
I believe it’s for Domestic lounges at the moment. Not aware of any code for international - I will find out next month.
I don’t think the OP is concerned at all about how other people look. His issue is that he’s not happy with being told what to wear, unless I’m missing the point?
Agree - but it is a good illustration of why restaurants may feel the need to use a dress code.
I suspect those of us who are against dress codes are not likely to be troubled by them. Apart from those codes that are maybe a little draconian. As I said up-tread I see dress codes more as a signal by the restaurant rather than an absolute. Its unfortunate its necessary but if it wasn’t they probably wouldn’t.
I suspect it does more than you think. Good dining experiences depend on lots of things coming together: the food, drinks, service, ambiance, decor, music, noise etc etc.
If you are looking forward to a nice relaxed long lunch being surrounded by people in suits and ties or their best frocks can detract as much as going out for a big night out and being surrounded by people in ripped clothes or sports kit.
If any element of the restaurant experience jars with the context it can be off-putting.
