Dressing for dinner in France

We're just home from a trip to Paris, the Loire Valley and Burgundy. Everybody was casually dressed everywhere. One weekend was a holiday and many families traveling with children brought them to nice restaurants. Don't worry about any of it - you will be fine and accepted everywhere. French folks love and dote on kids.

At a restaurant like that you'd be fine in button up shirt and slacks/nice jeans, I think. Unless dress codes for Burgundy and Loire are significantly different than Alsace and Brittany, which I doubt. Generally in France, the fanciest expectation of dress is always going to be Paris, right? Branching out into the countryside, things will get less formal, not more. That said, I don't think it hurts to have a sport coat/jacket while traveling. You never know. Sometimes it's just nice for layering.

If it has any Michelin stars, a collared shirt and tie are likely required. If not, what you described is probably sufficient.

Sarah's hit the nail on the head. Most of the time, particularly during the day, a button-down shirt and slacks or even jeans are fine. Agree with her that you might be glad you brought along a sports jacket. Just roll it up to pack it. You can lose the tie, but it's so small. We eat in these types of restaurants a lot, and my husband usually puts on a jacket, but we're kind of older and he's French. Remember, Francois Hollande was the only head of state to show up in a tie for dinner at Camp David. Clamecy, not a destination that comes up on this board often. Enjoy.

Thank you all for the replies. We're traveling with our well-behaved (for a 7-year-old) son. In Paris, cafe's will be more of our speed, but in Burgundy, we wanted to eat in a good, country restaurant. We'll be doing the same in Loire. There, though, we'll probably eat at our hotel, which I assume will be a little more forgiving should we not have jackets and ties.

I stopped bringing a sport coat to France years ago when I realized it was unnecessary and I could save space. And never a tie. I usually have a pair of blue jeans and a pair of khaki pants, and haven't been refused anywhere (even the only Michelin starred restaurant, in the Beaujolais area, I've ever eaten at). One week we rented a house in a village that had a restaurant that everyone raved about. All week long we saw immaculately dressed people going into the place for lunch. We decided to have dinner there our last night, and I thought I'd stand out like a sore thumb, since I only had jeans and an ordinary casual shirt. We were the first one in that night, and were greeted by the friendly, exquisitely-dressed maitre d'. Then as the rest of the diners arrived throughout the night, I saw that virtually every man was wearing jeans. And the meal? One of the best restaurant meals I've ever had. So don't worry.

Sounds as though you don't "need" a jacket or tie for where you are going, but maybe you'd like to bring one anyway. A tie lets you spiff things up a little without taking up a lot of room, and I've found a sport coat to be a genuinely useful garment (then I usually go in the shoulder season when another layer is nice to have).

I've been into all sorts of restaurants throughout France, and I usually don't take a jacket. I always throw in a tie, however, since it takes up very little space. Now that I travel with infants and toddlers, though, my tie days are on hold for a bit...

Hi Andrew, Just thought I'd mention a good restaurant in Amboise,
L'Alliance. My husband wore shorts and a nice shirt. Wonderful food and service.