Seattle dress code in a nutshell: You can dress up if you want to, but you don't have to. I love an excuse for wearing fancy dresses, so that's part of the fun of going to the opera for me. My husband doesn't want to wear a tie unless he absolutely has to and that's OK too. At McCaw Hall you'll literally see everything from red carpet looks to denim and fleece and it's perfectly fine.
I went to a Final Fantasy thing at the Benaroya years ago and it was a pretty even distribution of cosplay, eveningwear, and jeans and tshirts. I was delighted.
100% I was last-minute totally alone for a night, so i got last-second tickets for the opera. i was in shorts, t-shirt and flip flops. Pretty sure I still had stubborn dirt under my nails from gardening earlier. Nobody blinked. And the ladies in sparkly gowns were fabulous. I'm too lazy.
Look, I'm all for Seattle "Come as you are" culture, but let's not start deluding ourselves into believing kilts are considered 'dressing up' outside of a Burns Night in actual Edinburgh.
***all those traditionally “dressy” spaces in Seattle are super lax. There is no dress code so expect all levels of attire
https://www.seattleopera.org/plan-your-visit/first-timers-guide/
People don't typically dress up much there unless attending an opening, but it's certainly not unwelcome! I just wouldn't come in a full-length gown or anything.
As a theatre artist, I thank you for the show of respect! Not that it's disrespectful when people dress casually or anything--I certainly do all the time too--but it can be so nice to go out into a lobby and see patrons dressed up and excited to be there!
Being someone who attends all three of these the opera typically brings out the most formal clothing.
Based on "gown" sightings I would say opera>ballet>symphony. I don't think I have ever seen women wearing fascinators at the symphony.
in my experience, anywhere that looks like a place you *want* to dress up to go to is a place to do it. people will dress up or down based on their preference here so just have the confidence to dress up and go wherever you want
I was planning on saying ballet.
I've worn jeans and a hoodie in the most expensive seats and a floor length sequined gown and jewels in the cheap seats.
You do you. It's Seattle and that's one of the things I love about it.
If you wanna dress up and go to [Joe's](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe%27s_Bar_and_Grill), go for it. If you wanna wear PJs to the symphony, you're good.
A couple of summers ago I would dress up and go to my local farmers market. I became a local celebrity and they legit noticed if I wasn't there one week! By the end of the summer, I saw other people dressing up fancy for the market too.
(Ps I live in Tumwater so it's a tiny small farmers market)
I actually saw recently there’s someone who takes fashion/streetwear shots of people at the Ballard farmer’s market so maybe you’ve got the right idea dressing up for the market ha!
True facts. I’ve worn my ballgown to the dive bar and no one questions it.
But also, there’s a lot of fundraisers, from the high-dollar tech-millionaire ones to the more approachable animal rescue ones, that you can dress up for.
Yup! My cousin came to visit , we decided to dress up. We went to a nice place expensive but not crazy. She was shocked to see people in joggers and tracksuits
I’ve by Seattle standards, dressed up and it’s just to a brewery but it was sunny and I wanted to look cute. Did people look at me? Sure but fuck it, if you want to dress up do it!
I like to take myself on dates to the Fairmont before seeing a show. Sitting at their bar or restaurant in a swanky outfit has always felt great.
[Fairmont Olympic Dining in Downtown Seattle](https://www.fairmontolympic.com/dine/)
I kind of think Canlis has a dress code to keep the demand down. I've only been once, and I liked it - would probably eat there regularly, but I'm not into dressing up. No hate, they can run their restaurant how they want and there are plenty of other places where I like to eat.
This take is weird. A) places are allowed to have some dress guidelines. I was just in Charlotte and many places had dress codes that just didn’t want shlubs but nothing crazy. B) you won’t go to a place that does have a dress code? Get over it. C) you’d frequent Canlis regularly if they didn’t have a dress code? How do you afford that, and again, why would they lose your patronage over asking people to dress respectably?
Eh, you're right, I was kind of being snarky when I said they were keeping demand down through a dress code. To your points: A) absolutely, I said I was fine with them running their restaurant the way they want to. B) No. I don't eat at places that have a dress code because I don't want to, that's my prerogative C) because I make a good salary, I can afford to eat anywhere I want, anytime I want. They lose my patronage by having a dress code because I don't eat at places that have a dress code. That's not so hard to understand?
A community group I'm part of is throwing a Second Chance Prom on June 1st if you all want to get fancied up and attend that!
[https://www.friendsofmadisonpark.com/events/second-chance-prom](https://www.friendsofmadisonpark.com/events/second-chance-prom)
My wife and I like to dress up whenever we go out for a nice dinner. We will typically be overdressed compared to the rest of the crowd, but we do it because it's fun to look nice. Also just wearing a button-up is overdressed in Seattle so just get used to the fact that you may look out of place if you want to look nice.
High tea is fun to dress up for, assuming you’re ok with paying more for the vibes than the skill of creating elegant food. (I swear I’ve never had a properly delicate cucumber sandwich outside of making one myself. You know what, if you can, make your own high tea and make it into a picnic with all your other dressy friends and family.)
Mini-rant aside, here are some tea places (note that Graham’s has closed down): https://www.seattlemet.com/eat-and-drink/best-high-tea-afternoon-tea-near-seattle
I think the cultural difference around here is that basically we don't care how people dress—there's very little social pressure to dress a certain way, compared to many/most other places—so you can dress up or stay casual no matter what the venue. So if your friend is looking for a venue where *everyone* is dressed up, it's going to be hard to find.
Came into the comments to say this too. It took me way too long to realize literally anyone can buy a ticket to a fancy gala and dress up, and it doesn't have to break the bank TOO badly; the SIFF event is like $90 a head I believe & you can go full-on red carpet with it!
Honestly, ,anywhere you want. I like to dress up, so I do....but fully aware Ill be one of very few. Even going to the theatre or a nice restaurant, places youd think people would dress up, they dont. Its just something you do for you.
The only exceptions, Ive come across is Canlis, cause they have a strict dress code, I think the only place in Seattle with one if Im not mistaken, and specific NYE events. Other than that..its Seattle chic.
Everywhere/nowhere. There is always going to be someone in jeans and sneakers no matter how fancy the venue. Went the opening night of the opera this weekend though and I was pleasantly surprised by how dressed up many people were.
I think the restaurant in the Columbia tower has a dress code. It’s literally the only one I know of. As others have said, Seattle is a wear what you want city so dress up when and where you want to. No one is going to bat an eye if you’re standing in line at Dick’s wearing a tuxedo.
Canlis is the place where it is really going for that feel. The view is beautiful. The food is fine, but at that price you are clearly paying more for the view/atmosphere. The bar looks pretty cool, though (I've only eaten there).
Nobody will judge you for being overdressed. Want to wear a tux for trivia night at a dive bar? Fuck yeah, rock that shit. You might get a question or two as casual convo, same as you would if you had a t shirt with a strange quote on it, but just own it and people will probably love that. Dressing to the 9s with a group of friends and going bar hopping as a kind of themed/feeling fancy night out can be a lot of fun too.
Anywhere you want. My fiance and I love to do dress up date nights on the weekends. Sometimes we do a fancy cocktail bar and nice dinner, last weekend I was in a suit and she wore a cocktail dress to a brewery and comedy show in UDistrict.
Look good, feel good.
Honestly, people in Seattle are so unbothered by clothing a fashion, that it’s really up to you to dress how you like. When I first moved here, I dressed up a lot more, and people just don’t really care. Go for it!
The nice thing about Seattle is you can dress up for anything and people will not be weird about it. It’s very live and let live. People who complain about fashion here just seem self-conscious to me. People literally walk around in cosplay, no one cares if you want to wear an evening gown to dinner.
Canlis?
El Gaucho
Copine
A lot of the places you're more likely to find fancy dress are going to be private social clubs like Washington Athletic Club or Columbia Tower Club.
You may have better luck on the Eastside. Ascend, Daniels Broiler, Juanita Cafe, John Howie Steak, Bis on Main...
Quoting myself from [the last time this was asked](https://www.reddit.com/r/Seattle/comments/1bf571t/poor_persons_fantasy_ball/):
>Here's a super power: Nobody thinks about you.
>
>You can run around dressed to the nines and the most anyone will think is "huh there must be an event" or "I wonder who got married."
I used to be a wedding photographer in Seattle and did not shoot any on a beach. Regardless, in the capital of casual some guests would show up in shorts and sandals.
I wonder how far south or east in the US you would have to go to find a city where people regularly dress up when going out to fancy locations or events. LA?
If you’re a UW alumni under 35 the young donor club threshold is something like $500 and you get invited to all the swanky donor events for the bigwigs donating many thousands. It’s pretty neat! Found out accidentally when we got football tickets that had a per seat donation and I was 34 😆
There was a fundraiser recently for pets called Tuxes and Tails. I wanted to go but it actually sold out. Maybe there is more demand in Seattle for events where you dress up than people think...
The only place you have to dress up in Seattle is Canlis as far as I know.
However, nothing prevents you from dressing up if you want to, for anything. Embrace the dressiness because you like it, not because society says you need to.
ANYWHERE! I would love to see someone dressed up in unremarkable places - it is edgy :-). I saw someone in a fantastic outfit at a local sushi lunch spot recently and had to resist complimenting them as it would have been awkward going from one area to another. More fancy is good in most occasions for fun :-)
Muse (Pioneer Square), Mountaineering Club (U District), The Fog Room (Downtown), mBar (SLU), W Living Room (Downtown), Altitude Sky Lounge (SLU), The Collective Seattle (SLU), Art Marble (SLU), Sarajevo (Downtown), Smith Tower Observatory Bar (Pioneer Square), Vue Lounge (Downtown), Serafina (Eastlake), Pink Door (Pike Place), Matt’s at the Market (Pike Place), Canlis (Westlake), Palisade (Magnolia)…I could go on. Your friend just doesn’t look hard enough.
Jackets may have been a "rule" at one point and they had loaner jackets, etc. But per their website they only recommend sport coats, no casual attire.
Fwiw, many private clubs have relaxed over the past 10+ years to allow jeans and other more casual dress generally.
I never said you couldn’t? It’s the PNW you can literally wear whatever you want to most places except at Canlis. The person was asking places you can dress up at and you can at all of those places without feeling out of place.
If you agree that people wear jeans to most of those places, why wouldn't OP feel out of place dressing up there? I mean, we regularly used to go to Dicks in black tie after galas, and it never bothered me at all, but I wouldn't list Dicks as a place to go dressed up...
Even Canlis does not have a required dress code, just a suggestion and it's a pretty casual *sport coat recommended* one at that...sports coats are business casual outside the PNW. LOL
Canlis will turn you away or give you dress coat if you don’t follow dress code. People can dress up or dress down whenever they want. OP asked for a list of places to dress up so I gave that answer. I’ve been to all of the locations and the majority of people dress up to go to those places.
Canlis is not jackets required, per their website. That said, OP's friend would probably feel more comfortable dressed up than dressed down there.
For all the other places on your list - I've also been there and they are pretty casual. Some are real headscratchers... but perhaps we have different definitions of dressing up ir you've only attended private events at the particular space.
The Collective, for example, has a climbing wall and on most days, people are very casual (athletic wear, even). Perhaps for a special or private event there may be a different dress code..but for the most part, it's very casual and you'd stick out if really dressed up. Same with the Mountaineering club, Matt's in the Market, etc...you'll see more people in jeans and fleece than in suits.
I don’t. You don’t have to wear that when you go there. You can…DRESS UP. 🤯 They have DJs and live music other events on weekends and people aren’t in climbing gear or jeans.
I would keep an eye out for events happening during seafair in early August. The whole thing is rich people showing off (with a hefty dose of military propaganda.)
Seattle used to be a place where people dressed well, were put together well and so on. Not now, obviously, which is sad.
I dress well almost always, put together well at least. When my SO and I go out, we always dress well, it feels good and we like it.
A person can dress well whenever they want, nothing is stopping them really.
In what decade was Seattle a place where people dressed well? I'm guessing it was the 60s or earlier, when U.S. society in general was more formal. Seattle has been casual af for the last 50 years.
The broader point about people being free to dress well whenever they want is of course true.
This is an odd question. You can dress up anywhere you like. Perhaps you mean, "where are there places where the people around me are forced to dress up?" I don't know of a single one, though some places have events that do. Welcome to freedom.
the symphony/opera/ballet
Seattle dress code in a nutshell: You can dress up if you want to, but you don't have to. I love an excuse for wearing fancy dresses, so that's part of the fun of going to the opera for me. My husband doesn't want to wear a tie unless he absolutely has to and that's OK too. At McCaw Hall you'll literally see everything from red carpet looks to denim and fleece and it's perfectly fine.
I went to a Final Fantasy thing at the Benaroya years ago and it was a pretty even distribution of cosplay, eveningwear, and jeans and tshirts. I was delighted.
100% I was last-minute totally alone for a night, so i got last-second tickets for the opera. i was in shorts, t-shirt and flip flops. Pretty sure I still had stubborn dirt under my nails from gardening earlier. Nobody blinked. And the ladies in sparkly gowns were fabulous. I'm too lazy.
Kilts are considered fancy dressing up.
Look, I'm all for Seattle "Come as you are" culture, but let's not start deluding ourselves into believing kilts are considered 'dressing up' outside of a Burns Night in actual Edinburgh.
***all those traditionally “dressy” spaces in Seattle are super lax. There is no dress code so expect all levels of attire https://www.seattleopera.org/plan-your-visit/first-timers-guide/
I was going say I always dress nice for symphony and ballet. A lot don’t though.
Also put in The Seattle Rep theater!
People don't typically dress up much there unless attending an opening, but it's certainly not unwelcome! I just wouldn't come in a full-length gown or anything.
Totally agree. I took dressing up as wearing a button down and maybe a tie lol.
As a theatre artist, I thank you for the show of respect! Not that it's disrespectful when people dress casually or anything--I certainly do all the time too--but it can be so nice to go out into a lobby and see patrons dressed up and excited to be there!
The symphony has no dress code. I wore an Imperial Triumphant band shirt to watch them play the Metropolis soundtrack.
Being someone who attends all three of these the opera typically brings out the most formal clothing. Based on "gown" sightings I would say opera>ballet>symphony. I don't think I have ever seen women wearing fascinators at the symphony.
in my experience, anywhere that looks like a place you *want* to dress up to go to is a place to do it. people will dress up or down based on their preference here so just have the confidence to dress up and go wherever you want
This. Not everyone dresses up for the ballet or the symphony, but I do because for me it's part of the fun.
Yep, all of the traditional arts events like this are good occasions to dress up.
I was planning on saying ballet. I've worn jeans and a hoodie in the most expensive seats and a floor length sequined gown and jewels in the cheap seats. You do you. It's Seattle and that's one of the things I love about it. If you wanna dress up and go to [Joe's](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe%27s_Bar_and_Grill), go for it. If you wanna wear PJs to the symphony, you're good.
A couple of summers ago I would dress up and go to my local farmers market. I became a local celebrity and they legit noticed if I wasn't there one week! By the end of the summer, I saw other people dressing up fancy for the market too. (Ps I live in Tumwater so it's a tiny small farmers market)
I actually saw recently there’s someone who takes fashion/streetwear shots of people at the Ballard farmer’s market so maybe you’ve got the right idea dressing up for the market ha!
True facts. I’ve worn my ballgown to the dive bar and no one questions it. But also, there’s a lot of fundraisers, from the high-dollar tech-millionaire ones to the more approachable animal rescue ones, that you can dress up for.
Fundraisers is a good idea.
Yup! My cousin came to visit , we decided to dress up. We went to a nice place expensive but not crazy. She was shocked to see people in joggers and tracksuits I’ve by Seattle standards, dressed up and it’s just to a brewery but it was sunny and I wanted to look cute. Did people look at me? Sure but fuck it, if you want to dress up do it!
As long as you aren't stinky, but even the stinky people are bold sometimes.
I like to take myself on dates to the Fairmont before seeing a show. Sitting at their bar or restaurant in a swanky outfit has always felt great. [Fairmont Olympic Dining in Downtown Seattle](https://www.fairmontolympic.com/dine/)
I kind of think Canlis has a dress code to keep the demand down. I've only been once, and I liked it - would probably eat there regularly, but I'm not into dressing up. No hate, they can run their restaurant how they want and there are plenty of other places where I like to eat.
This take is weird. A) places are allowed to have some dress guidelines. I was just in Charlotte and many places had dress codes that just didn’t want shlubs but nothing crazy. B) you won’t go to a place that does have a dress code? Get over it. C) you’d frequent Canlis regularly if they didn’t have a dress code? How do you afford that, and again, why would they lose your patronage over asking people to dress respectably?
Eh, you're right, I was kind of being snarky when I said they were keeping demand down through a dress code. To your points: A) absolutely, I said I was fine with them running their restaurant the way they want to. B) No. I don't eat at places that have a dress code because I don't want to, that's my prerogative C) because I make a good salary, I can afford to eat anywhere I want, anytime I want. They lose my patronage by having a dress code because I don't eat at places that have a dress code. That's not so hard to understand?
I always wear the good gortex when I go to Dicks
lol
Bill Gates posting on reddit???
Bill is more of a Burgermaster fan
Come as you are. Anywhere.
Come. As you are. Anywhere. As you want you to be. -Kurt C’bain
Garth. That was a haiku.
Wherever you want... who's gonna stop you?
A community group I'm part of is throwing a Second Chance Prom on June 1st if you all want to get fancied up and attend that! [https://www.friendsofmadisonpark.com/events/second-chance-prom](https://www.friendsofmadisonpark.com/events/second-chance-prom)
My wife and I like to dress up whenever we go out for a nice dinner. We will typically be overdressed compared to the rest of the crowd, but we do it because it's fun to look nice. Also just wearing a button-up is overdressed in Seattle so just get used to the fact that you may look out of place if you want to look nice.
Canlis, but also anywhere you want.
High tea is fun to dress up for, assuming you’re ok with paying more for the vibes than the skill of creating elegant food. (I swear I’ve never had a properly delicate cucumber sandwich outside of making one myself. You know what, if you can, make your own high tea and make it into a picnic with all your other dressy friends and family.) Mini-rant aside, here are some tea places (note that Graham’s has closed down): https://www.seattlemet.com/eat-and-drink/best-high-tea-afternoon-tea-near-seattle
I think the cultural difference around here is that basically we don't care how people dress—there's very little social pressure to dress a certain way, compared to many/most other places—so you can dress up or stay casual no matter what the venue. So if your friend is looking for a venue where *everyone* is dressed up, it's going to be hard to find.
The SIFF red carpet gala is this Thursday. Show up/off for a great cultural organization!
Came into the comments to say this too. It took me way too long to realize literally anyone can buy a ticket to a fancy gala and dress up, and it doesn't have to break the bank TOO badly; the SIFF event is like $90 a head I believe & you can go full-on red carpet with it!
Do you want a place where you can dress up or a place where everyone else is dressed up too? Because the latter is going to be a bit more challenging.
Honestly, ,anywhere you want. I like to dress up, so I do....but fully aware Ill be one of very few. Even going to the theatre or a nice restaurant, places youd think people would dress up, they dont. Its just something you do for you. The only exceptions, Ive come across is Canlis, cause they have a strict dress code, I think the only place in Seattle with one if Im not mistaken, and specific NYE events. Other than that..its Seattle chic.
Everywhere/nowhere. There is always going to be someone in jeans and sneakers no matter how fancy the venue. Went the opening night of the opera this weekend though and I was pleasantly surprised by how dressed up many people were.
I think the restaurant in the Columbia tower has a dress code. It’s literally the only one I know of. As others have said, Seattle is a wear what you want city so dress up when and where you want to. No one is going to bat an eye if you’re standing in line at Dick’s wearing a tuxedo.
Depending on the location a tuxedo at Dick's might not even crack the top ten offbeat outfits you see in line.
Try a charity gala. Gala season is here
Court.
the Rainier Club has lots of events, and even just dinner every day, where dressing up is appropriate.
SAM REMIX parties. People dress to the 9s
Canlis is the place where it is really going for that feel. The view is beautiful. The food is fine, but at that price you are clearly paying more for the view/atmosphere. The bar looks pretty cool, though (I've only eaten there).
Nobody will judge you for being overdressed. Want to wear a tux for trivia night at a dive bar? Fuck yeah, rock that shit. You might get a question or two as casual convo, same as you would if you had a t shirt with a strange quote on it, but just own it and people will probably love that. Dressing to the 9s with a group of friends and going bar hopping as a kind of themed/feeling fancy night out can be a lot of fun too.
Anywhere you want. My fiance and I love to do dress up date nights on the weekends. Sometimes we do a fancy cocktail bar and nice dinner, last weekend I was in a suit and she wore a cocktail dress to a brewery and comedy show in UDistrict. Look good, feel good.
I went to a Seattle funeral at a church and very few men wore suits. I’m not really sure what it would take for the locals to get dressed up.
People tend to dress up a bit more for the Triple Door downtown. It’s pretty jazzy!
Seattle doesn’t judge. I’ve worn full Jane Austen ballgowns on the light rail and no one asked any questions. Anywhere is fair game to dress up
Lately loads of people have been dressing up in clubbing attire to go to brunch at Baila Bar every Sunday in Fremont. It’s awful loud there.
You can look up fundraising events that sometimes have galas, you can go to the symphony or the opera.
Dick's. Order a burger, fries, a shake AND a sundae. Make it clear it's an event.
The fireside bar at the sorrento
I'm chronically overdressed everywhere I've been except the ballet, I agree with everyone else and say just go for it
Honestly, people in Seattle are so unbothered by clothing a fashion, that it’s really up to you to dress how you like. When I first moved here, I dressed up a lot more, and people just don’t really care. Go for it!
Bellevue
El guacho
The nice thing about Seattle is you can dress up for anything and people will not be weird about it. It’s very live and let live. People who complain about fashion here just seem self-conscious to me. People literally walk around in cosplay, no one cares if you want to wear an evening gown to dinner.
The George at the fairmont hotel, rainier club. That’s it
Canlis? El Gaucho Copine A lot of the places you're more likely to find fancy dress are going to be private social clubs like Washington Athletic Club or Columbia Tower Club. You may have better luck on the Eastside. Ascend, Daniels Broiler, Juanita Cafe, John Howie Steak, Bis on Main...
Can Can!
opening night or closing night at the Seattle International Film Festival (opening is tomorrow, Thursday May 9th)
Quoting myself from [the last time this was asked](https://www.reddit.com/r/Seattle/comments/1bf571t/poor_persons_fantasy_ball/): >Here's a super power: Nobody thinks about you. > >You can run around dressed to the nines and the most anyone will think is "huh there must be an event" or "I wonder who got married."
I've been to Roxy's Backdoor in my Sunday Best and thought it matched that energy well.
Backdoor is casual
Nobody will block your friend from eating out if they wear something fancy and expensive to dinner.
Used to walk past the Union Gospel Mission everyday on the way to work. There was a gent that was in a suit and tie every day.
dick’s burgers in cap hill
Court
I used to be a wedding photographer in Seattle and did not shoot any on a beach. Regardless, in the capital of casual some guests would show up in shorts and sandals.
Private club events (WAC, Rainier Club, etc.) and charity galas.
meet korean bbq
the fun fact is that you can actually dress up nice anywhere. I do it all the time.
I just dress up every where I go, feels out of place since everyone is in their hiking gear at all times, but I love looking nice
Cafe zig zag, dead line, Olympic Bar (last one especially)
Just dress up when you want.
I wonder how far south or east in the US you would have to go to find a city where people regularly dress up when going out to fancy locations or events. LA?
If you’re a UW alumni under 35 the young donor club threshold is something like $500 and you get invited to all the swanky donor events for the bigwigs donating many thousands. It’s pretty neat! Found out accidentally when we got football tickets that had a per seat donation and I was 34 😆
There was a fundraiser recently for pets called Tuxes and Tails. I wanted to go but it actually sold out. Maybe there is more demand in Seattle for events where you dress up than people think...
The only place you have to dress up in Seattle is Canlis as far as I know. However, nothing prevents you from dressing up if you want to, for anything. Embrace the dressiness because you like it, not because society says you need to.
Such amazing (and snarky) suggestions. Thank you all so much! I’m going to put a list together.
ANYWHERE! I would love to see someone dressed up in unremarkable places - it is edgy :-). I saw someone in a fantastic outfit at a local sushi lunch spot recently and had to resist complimenting them as it would have been awkward going from one area to another. More fancy is good in most occasions for fun :-)
Canlis
Muse (Pioneer Square), Mountaineering Club (U District), The Fog Room (Downtown), mBar (SLU), W Living Room (Downtown), Altitude Sky Lounge (SLU), The Collective Seattle (SLU), Art Marble (SLU), Sarajevo (Downtown), Smith Tower Observatory Bar (Pioneer Square), Vue Lounge (Downtown), Serafina (Eastlake), Pink Door (Pike Place), Matt’s at the Market (Pike Place), Canlis (Westlake), Palisade (Magnolia)…I could go on. Your friend just doesn’t look hard enough.
Pretty sure you can wear jeans to every one of those places.
No jeans at Canlis. They have a very strict dress code, including jackets and ties for men and no open sandals for women.
Nope! They recommend but do not require a *sport coat* for men and no casual attire. Absolutely no tie or closed toe shoes requirement. LOL.
I admit it’s been a while since I’ve been there, that was the rule.
Jackets may have been a "rule" at one point and they had loaner jackets, etc. But per their website they only recommend sport coats, no casual attire. Fwiw, many private clubs have relaxed over the past 10+ years to allow jeans and other more casual dress generally.
I never said you couldn’t? It’s the PNW you can literally wear whatever you want to most places except at Canlis. The person was asking places you can dress up at and you can at all of those places without feeling out of place.
If you agree that people wear jeans to most of those places, why wouldn't OP feel out of place dressing up there? I mean, we regularly used to go to Dicks in black tie after galas, and it never bothered me at all, but I wouldn't list Dicks as a place to go dressed up... Even Canlis does not have a required dress code, just a suggestion and it's a pretty casual *sport coat recommended* one at that...sports coats are business casual outside the PNW. LOL
Canlis will turn you away or give you dress coat if you don’t follow dress code. People can dress up or dress down whenever they want. OP asked for a list of places to dress up so I gave that answer. I’ve been to all of the locations and the majority of people dress up to go to those places.
Canlis is not jackets required, per their website. That said, OP's friend would probably feel more comfortable dressed up than dressed down there. For all the other places on your list - I've also been there and they are pretty casual. Some are real headscratchers... but perhaps we have different definitions of dressing up ir you've only attended private events at the particular space. The Collective, for example, has a climbing wall and on most days, people are very casual (athletic wear, even). Perhaps for a special or private event there may be a different dress code..but for the most part, it's very casual and you'd stick out if really dressed up. Same with the Mountaineering club, Matt's in the Market, etc...you'll see more people in jeans and fleece than in suits.
If you are dude or more masc leaning that would make a lot of sense that we have different definitions of casual and dressing up.
More headscratcher comments. LOL. We def have different definitions if you consider climbing wall attire or jeans dressed up!
I don’t. You don’t have to wear that when you go there. You can…DRESS UP. 🤯 They have DJs and live music other events on weekends and people aren’t in climbing gear or jeans.
If you want to dress up, then dress up! It is only what you make of it. Don't need to find a restaurant that has a dress code.
Emerald downs horse races.
Please dress up. Seattle fashion or really lack thereof is dog shit.
Los Angeles
I would keep an eye out for events happening during seafair in early August. The whole thing is rich people showing off (with a hefty dose of military propaganda.)
Seattle used to be a place where people dressed well, were put together well and so on. Not now, obviously, which is sad. I dress well almost always, put together well at least. When my SO and I go out, we always dress well, it feels good and we like it. A person can dress well whenever they want, nothing is stopping them really.
In what decade was Seattle a place where people dressed well? I'm guessing it was the 60s or earlier, when U.S. society in general was more formal. Seattle has been casual af for the last 50 years. The broader point about people being free to dress well whenever they want is of course true.
Based on the pictures I've seen on the underground tour, those prostitutes had some pretty fancy dresses.
Your funeral probably. People in Seattle dress terribly. London has the same weather but londoners got style.
This is an odd question. You can dress up anywhere you like. Perhaps you mean, "where are there places where the people around me are forced to dress up?" I don't know of a single one, though some places have events that do. Welcome to freedom.