Wondering what to wear at one of Disney World’s restaurants? For the most part, dress at the Walt Disney World restaurants is extremely casual. At Counter Service restaurants and the vast majority of Table Service restaurants (with exceptions that we’ll discuss below), guests may wear whatever they would wear to tour the theme parks.

The official Disney parks ruling on attire states:

“Proper attire, including shoes and shirts, must be worn at all times. The parks are a casual, family-oriented environment.“

Typical theme park attire might include shorts, jeans, t-shirts, tank tops, sweatshirts, sneakers, sandals, or flip-flops. If your clothing meets these requirements, then you are welcome to eat at most Disney dining establishments.

Also as stated on the Walt Disney World website, the following is considered Inappropriate Attire:

“Attire that is not appropriate for the parks—and which may result in refusal of admittance—includes but is not limited to:

• Clothing with objectionable material, including obscene language or graphics
• Excessively torn clothing
• Clothing which, by nature, exposes excessive portions of the skin that may be viewed as inappropriate for a family environment
• Clothing that touches or drags on the ground
• Clothing with multiple layers is subject to search upon entry
• Objectionable tattoos”

Signature Dining Dress Code

There are a few restaurants that have slightly more stringent dress requirements.

These are the Signature (Fine) Dining restaurants that are located outside of the theme parks including several Deluxe Disney Resort hotels and the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin, including*:

California Grill, Contemporary Resort
Citricos, Grand Floridian Resort
Flying Fish, Boardwalk Inn
Il Mulino New York Trattoria, Walt Disney World Swan Hotel
Jiko, Animal Kingdom Resort
Narcoossee’s, Grand Floridian Resort
Shula’s Steakhouse, Walt Disney World Dolphin Hotel
Todd English’s bluezoo, Walt Disney World Dolphin Hotel
Topolino’s Terrace — Flavors of the Riviera, Riviera Resort
Yachtsman Steakhouse, Yacht Club Resort

The official dress code for these restaurants states:

“Guests are asked to adhere to the minimum dress code requirements at this Signature Dining experience. Dressier attire is also welcome. Please explore the minimum dress code requirements: Men must wear khakis, slacks or dress shorts and collared shirts. Jeans may be worn if in good condition. Sport coats are optional. Women must wear Capri pants, skirts, dresses or dress shorts. Jeans may be worn if in good condition. Not permitted are tank tops, flip-flops, swimsuits, swimsuit cover-ups, hats for gentlemen, cut-offs, torn clothing and t-shirts with offensive language and/or graphics.”

In practice, this means that guests are dressed just one step up from what they would wear to the parks. Although some guests choose to wear business casual or cocktail attire to signature restaurants, you will often see at these venues wearing khaki shorts, a t-shirt and sneakers. Men should avoid tank-style or muscle shirts. Women may wear sleeveless tops or sundresses as long as they not overly revealing. There are no prescribed footwear requirements, other than that you must be wearing shoes. Specifics of the dress code are not strongly enforced. As long as you are neat and presentable, you will be seated.

*Note that we chat about a certain dining experience, Victoria & Albert’s, which is located at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort further down on this page, as this location has its own specific — and enforced — dress code. 

Signature Dining in Theme Parks

The Signature Restaurants located within the theme parks — with two exceptions — have no specific dress code other than standard park touring attire.

These include Le Cellier Steakhouse in EPCOT, Tiffins in Animal Kingdom, The Hollywood Brown Derby in Hollywood Studios, and Be Our Guest Restaurant and Cinderella’s Royal Table in Magic Kingdom.

The two exceptions to this general rule are Takumi-Tei in EPCOT’s Japan pavilion, and Monsieur Paul in EPCOT’s France pavilion. Guests are asked to adhere to the same dress code as for the Signature Restaurants in Resort hotels listed above.

Signature Dining in Disney Springs

There are also several Signature Dining Restaurants in Disney Springs.

While these also tend to be more casual in regards to dress (especially for lunch times when guests may more easily happen upon walk-up availability), many guests make a night of Disney Springs, and enjoy the experience of dressing up a bit for these fantastic dining locations! These include:

The BOATHOUSE
Jaleo
Morimoto Asia
Paddlefish
STK Orlando
Wine Bar George

Victoria & Albert’s

The Walt Disney World restaurant with the most stringent dress requirement is the AAA Five-Diamond rated Victoria & Albert’s Restaurant at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa.

The official dress policy, which is enforced, is:

“Guests must wear proper attire. Men must wear dinner jackets with dress pants or slacks and shoes. Ties are optional. Women may wear a cocktail dress, nice dress, dressy pant suit or a skirt with a blouse. Jeans, shorts, capri pants, sandals, flip-flops or tennis shoes are not permitted.”

In practice, you will see men wearing suits or sport jackets. Many, but not all, will be wearing a tie. Most women will be wearing some form of formal business attire such as a skirt suit or pants suit (if they are dining as part of a business function) or some form of cocktail attire such as an evening suit or knee-length dress (if they are dining on a social occasion). Either form of female dress is equally acceptable. You may encounter guests wearing black tie or floor-length gowns, but this is much less common.

Temperature Considerations

The air-conditioning at Walt Disney World restaurants tends to be quite good. If you are prone to an indoor chill, you may want to keep a light sweater with you.

Princess Meals

There are several dining venues at Walt Disney World which feature Disney Princesses and leading lady characters during Character Meals!

These include Cinderella’s Royal Table in Magic Kingdom, Akershus Royal Banquet Hall — Princess Storybook Restaurant in EPCOT, Storybook Dining at Artist Point in Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, Bon Voyage Adventure Breakfast at Trattoria al Forno on Disney’s BoardWalk, and the character meals at 1900 Park Fare in Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort. There are no special dress requirements for these meals. However, many children choose to wear costume attire to these meals (making for some especially fun photographs, to boot)! While the experience will vary on any given day, you can expect that about half of the girls under the age of ten will be wearing princess-style costumes. A handful of boys under the age of ten will also be wearing costumes. Adults are not allowed to wear costumes to these venues.

If you choose to have your child wear a costume to a character meal, be aware that there is no specific requirement that the costume be an official Disney Parks costume. Homemade costumes are welcome as are those purchased at discount stores or online.

Find out our top picks for Signature Dining locations in Walt Disney World in our DFB YouTube Video below!