Sorry that should be day trip to Northern Portugal.

We are just back from a bit over two weeks all over Portugal. I hope to post a trip report soon, but I promised to comment on my own initial question about restaurant attire. The answer is: It is a very mixed bag. At some places, people were fairly nicely dressed (including men in ties and jackets), but even there the variety of acceptable dress was huge. Even in upscale places in Lisbon, for example, often the wait staff was wearing sneakers and jeans, as were many customers. My conclusion is that jeans are acceptable in most places, and if that makes you feel under-dressed you can wear khakis and a nice shirt (for a man) and be fine, if not in fact over-dressed.

About no logos.....?? Just had Sunday lunch with some friends here in Portugal, he an Italian businessman, she a Portuguese lawyer. Both were sporting logos as was their 3 year old son along with her LV handbag and Channel sunglasses. In fact the RL polo pony logo almost ran from the husband's shoulder half way to his waist. When did that get so huge?

Seems like some Europeans have no problem with wearing logos so why should Americans unless you are confident enough in how you dress that you do not have to broadcast a brand.

You said:

"My conclusion is that jeans are acceptable in most places, and if that makes you feel under-dressed you can wear khakis and a nice shirt (for a man) and be fine, if not in fact over-dressed."

And the VERY FIRST response to your question was:

"You might even be considered dressed up in khakis. A lot of Portuguese men wear nice jeans to good restaurants."

You must be psychic.

Maybe lowcountrycarol is psychic (or merely well-informed), but I can confirm that wisdom.

Maybe you can wear jeans in nice Portuguese restaurants - I hope so, because I will be going there next April and love to wear jeans.

Some here like them, others apparently do not. But can we all agree that travelers should please avoid the appalling "Mom jeans"?

And their invariable accompaniment, a '90s rodeo belt.

Just got back 48 hours ago from Provence and MAN, those washed-out, high-waisted, full-legged, narrow-bottomed jeans you see only on (some) N American men do look some ugly....

That's why I wear shorts. You really can't go wrong.

No one wants to see me in shorts. You must have better legs than I, cold.

@tedgale -- any thoughts yet on where you'll be going in Portugal. We r going in May/June. I've had such good luck using your trips as a blueprint for two of mine, maybe I can add Portugal to the list.

Thanks for the kind words, yestravel.

Actually, I haven't started planning yet.

We are not much interested in the big southern destinations. More likely to spend time in the north - especially in smaller historic centres.

I will probably start planning in January, which for me is VERY early for an April trip.

I want to see tedgale and cold in shorts. I promise to leave my mom jeans at home.

For the record, not psychic......I have a home in Portugal, spend a lot of time there, eat out often so I have a very good idea about what men wear in Portuguese restaurants

Nikki Tedgale is more naturally handsome. But my shorts/fannypack ensemble is tough to beat.

What about your mad trapper hat?? Surely you have one!

Dedlaw, your experiences was: http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...omment-8446662
Just above that I had written my response to your original posting: http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...omment-8419132
How about that? Just as I stated!

Why are we giving the original poster a hard time? He asked a question, received good responses, then came back (as we frequently ask posters to do) to report on how it went. Yes, there were good responses here. Yes, I am happy to hear that the original poster went and found they were accurate.

The original poster said in one of his responses that he would report back to comment on his own initial question. This doesn't make him "psychic" and it doesn't mean he didn't read the responses.

Thanks, Nikki. I try to use this site for info, and I try to reciprocate when I can.

I guess I should not have been terribly surprised, as I've seen designer jeans and upscale T-shirts in the best restaurants here (CA wine country) for years.

Mom jeans? Depends how baggy, I think. If worn nicely (nice shirt or sweater and definitely NO four-inch belt buckle), they can work for the right person. Some of us, as we age, can look silly wearing fashions aimed at the young. But maybe I'm the only one even paying attention to how others are dressed.

I don't even know the definition of mom jeans but suspect it is really more a code word for older people who are overweight and don't look good in jeans. Because I would have said it was jeans without a defined waist, the waist is just gathered elastic--but if you were size 6 and wore those, and they were not baggy, with an overshirt or long tunic/sweater so you didn't see that waist, I bet no one would blink an eye or call them mom jeans. So maybe it is baggy jeans? But if you wore designer jeans that cost $250 and they were just too big for you, I bet no one would call them mom jeans, either.

And let's face it, someone stuffed into too-small skintight jeans with a very low rise would look ridiculous if they were 75 years old.

No, not overweight re mom jeans - you are right about the elastic but also high-waisted and pleated. They are on this SNL skit:

http://www.hulu.com/#!watch/10333

One other clothing thought, based on the "ugly American" worry:

All over Portugal we saw locals wearing T-shirts and other items bearing English words -- any English words -- which are popular for whatever reason. The weirdest was a guy wearing a T-shirt that said:

FREE
SHIP
PING

So, it can be hard to top many locals for bizarre clothing choices.