Proper Attire for Restaurants in France?

No shorts, no flip flops, I prefer black pants and a nice top, or a casual dress or skirt( I like them).Many ladies wear nice jeans ( fashionalbe type) .
Men wear pants and a shirt. T shirts not nice for dinner. Jackets will not be required at that price level. Even more expensive places rarely require jackets, but then the starred ones who have menus that can end up with you and a four digit bill, well, they might like a tie, but I wouldn't know from any personal experience there! LOL

You say no nice slacks, well you will have some slacks right, I mean you can't just wear shorts all the time right?

Nice black pants and a fancy shirt. I don't believe a collar shirt would be welcomed in a European restaurant.
A nice pair of jeans, black or dark blue, with a nice jacket would be appropriate as well.

Michelle & Bill: No more rants from me on this subject, I'm tired of it, I resign my position as fashion police officer, we've got a few promising candidates for that job slot. We're probably always going to be the "worst dressed tourists", so what--we as tourists have many endearing qualities. Jona had good advice on what to wear when going to a table cloth restaurant in Paris (the French dress up) but I can't find it. Wear what you want, you gotta be yourself--just lower your voice, do something not to stick out and give the rest of us a bad name. And I still wonder how we can have 937 posts on shoes and still be ranked worst dressed tourists in Europe? Maybe the Brits really are #1 in the worst dressed category after all, that's what I think?

Wait til Kent reads this...LOL!

JB, I always take one (or two) pair of nice slacks to Europe...1st because they look good anywhere, 2nd because the Europeans dress in a similar fashion, 3rd because they can be very practical. I have Brooks Brothers tropical weight dark gray wool slacks that I can wear with a nice shirt or sweater and literally go anywhere. They hold their crease and are fairly wrinkle resistant. My walking shoes are very comfortable lightweight ecco slip ons (they look like dress shoes but wear like walking shoes). I pack very light (less than 20 lbs) and we always go for at least 3 weeks...I think you will regret not having at least one decent set of clothes for the times when khakis just won't cut it.

A tie? It's a low-weight way to look a little snazzy.

Maybe the question is, what will make YOU feel appropriately dressed up for a nice meal.

I pack very light but find that a simple sportcoat is one of the most functional and versatile layers to have. Then, I don't travel in the summer and the extra warmth is genuinely useful.

For a man, in warm weather, I would wear a nice pair of dark or black jeans, or nice khakis -- not cargo or zip-off-leg pants. A long-sleeved shirt or nice polo shirt -- no T-shirts. Dark shoes. Dress at least as good as Rick Steves does.

LOL.. yes, where IS Kent??

JB, unless the place states "Coat & Tie" you can dress with nice pants (not jeans), a button/collared shirt (sorry, no "led zepplin" t shirt here) and shoes.

For 270 Euros I would think a jacket is appropriate.
I always bring 1 nice outfit... just in case.

thanks for the tips.

i'm a pretty well dressed person, I always wear nice jeans and a polo or button down when I go out and if I dress up here in town I almost always wear a suit without a tie. I just don't want to pack nice slacks, like linen etc. - when I go out to eat here I almost always wear nice jeans, a polo, and either loafers or some more casual shoes.

I think i'll be fine with nicer jeans and some polos and a button down or two.

JB, would dockers or some sort of casual but non denium pants be something you'd consider?? Jeans, while acceptable in many casual restaurants and cafes, are considered "too" casual for higher end restaurants.

Your polo shirts will be fine, but I'd compliment it with a non-jean material.

Yup, what Michelle is saying is what Jona (a Parisienne regular here) said in a previous post, if I recall correctly. But whatever--just please help your group to keep their voices low in the restaurant and try to order in French, if you can do that, probably nobody will even notice your jeans.

Kent...I really try to order in French...and my accent is not too bad..in fact it gets me in trouble, because the waiters assume I know what I'm doing and they respond in French (and of course you know how fast the words seem to come).

Does anyone really read the OP's full post on these topics?? A tie, dress slacks, a sports jacket,, all this for a basic 20 to 40 euro meal.. poster did NOT say they were interested in paying for the " 270 euro" meal.

Jeans are fine , as long as they are not cowboy casuals. So are khakis or dockers, especially if paired with a nice shirt, no t shirts at dinner unless one is at a very casual cafe.

Shoes as oppposed to runners or sandals.

Now, if he WAS going for a 270 euros meal I would upgrade that to include a sports jacket.

Kent - Absolutely! I've taken 3 years of French, but it's still a little rusty, however ordering in French is what I can do without problems :)

I'll bring some khaki-esque pants, definitely non denim to wear for dinner for sure, I just didn't want to take dress pants.

As far as volume - being a restauranteur (spelled wrong i'm sure) there is nothing more tacky then loud people, regardless of where you are. I work in a fine dining Bistro in the states and I cannot stand when people come in and 'hoot and hollar' - be classy.

JB: Excellent! You'll be way ahead of most of us. Being able to order dinner in French in a Paris table cloth type restaurant is a really good thing--it puts those Paris waiters in a better mood.

But the most important thing- no matter what you wear, talk in a low volume and draw the waiter to your table with eye contact or a slight gesture, rather than a loud "EXCUSE ME..." or even "Excusez-moi". If you don't want to make a bad impression, your mannerisms are more important than your attire.

Pat, I know JB wasn't planning on eating in the 270Euro restaurants, but he commented about the cheap end to the high high end. We were giving our 2 cents about what we felt was appropriate, even for a 20-40 euro restaurant.

JB: I came across this old post from Eli, and thought this was helpful

click here to see a glimpse of paris fashion.