evvlabs

We're traveling to Bar Harbor and NH in August and eating at some of the nicest restaurants in Bar Harbor and also in northern NH. How do women dress for dinner in these restaurants in August?

Thanks.

elberko

Pretty casually. Especially in Bar Harbor, where most people have been outside all day, so just putting on clean clothes might be the extent of it.

~Liz

Ackislander

Trousers (not jeans) with a blouse and because evenings are cool, a cardigan, would certainly be the Old Yankee look. Navy and white with a touch of red. Not Lilly.

evvlabs

Really? I am surprised at the level of casual you are suggesting. These are restaurants where a first course if $15 and a main course is $30!

dfrostnh

If you were further south, say Portland or Kport, like the White Barn, then something dressier would be preferable. At an outdoor community bbq in Bath I saw some ladies with very stylish, long cotton dresses. Dress up, if you want.

Ackislander

If you dress like Mrs. Bush (Barbara), you will be dressed up enough for anywhere in Maine. So wear what I said above and good pearls if you really want to dress up.

New England is very different from the South and West.

We once entertained business clients from the UK to dinner at what was then the best restaurant on Nantucket, Chanticleer in Sconset. When they asked what to wear, I said a blazer. They couldn't quite believe it. At the end of the evening, the more skeptical of the two said with surprise, "There were seventeen other men in this restaurant tonight, and thirteen of them had on blazers." New York and London prices and service, but a different vibe.

But if you are nervous, drop around the night before and see what the ladies are wearing.

elberko

Really...

Although I'm not a girly-girl, I DO wear make-up and like to dress up a bit, and I'm always amazed at how easy it is to be "overdressed" in Maine. Definately more so than here in the Philadelphia area.

~Liz

tracys2cents

bikini bottom, flip flops and a lobster bib.

Just kidding. No different there than any other U.S tourist city in the hot summer, as far as I could see. Upscale cool and casual. Visitors to BH are from all over the country, so they're wearing what they'd wear for the same type of dining back home.

sf7307

>>

Have you ever been in San Francisco? Noone dresses up for dinner here! The first time my husband and I went to a fancy restaurant in San Francisco (Fleur de Lys, circa 1974), we dressed for the occasion and were shocked to see men in the equivalent of chinos and without ties. And that was 38 years ago!

Mutti

I lived about 45 minutes from Bar Harbor for years. I would advise dressy casual. The long dress suggestion is good for some of the nice restaurants. Keep it simple and casual. A saying is Maine is that one can't tell how much money a person has unless looking at the fishing rods or the hunting dogs. Look at the LLBean catalog for references. Avoid showy clothes and jewels.

Acadia National Park is lovely. Enjoy yourself!

panecott

>>> Really? I am surprised at the level of casual you are suggesting. These are restaurants where a first course if $15 and a main course is $30! >>>

If you are skeptical, why not call the restaurants and ask if there is a dress code. Sometimes the website will tell you.

irishswampyankee

We are going to Bar Harbor too in a few weeks. The dressiest things I plan to bring are jeans and crops, Tshirts and sandals, a windbreaker or hoodie. Many folks will be in shorts at dinner. It is very casual. Down in Kennebunkport, if you go to the White Barn Inn, jackets are required for gentlemen and ladies wear dressy/casual like nice pants and a top. Other restaurants there much more casual.

AnnMarie_C

Glad to read this as we're going in September and I wondered the same. This is great news to me, the relaxed dress code sounds a lot like where I live on the Eastern Shore (MD). One of the many things I love about living here.

Dukey1

I was in some of those so-called "best" restaurants in Bar Harbor a couple weeks ago and there WAS NO dress code, believe me.

Deb15July

>>> Really? I am surprised at the level of casual you are suggesting. These are restaurants where a first course if $15 and a main course is $30! >>>

Unfortunately those prices aren't all that high anymore! You can't judge the dress code by the price of the menu.

nelsonian

In New Zealand those prices are normal at a mainstream restaurant.

AnnMarie_C

Dukey, any restaurant recs?

MareW

My thoughts are the same as Deb15July. This probably varies with the part of the country you're from, but for New England, those prices aren't considered high anymore.