Whenever I've been to a higher-end restaurant in London I can't say I've seen any of these sartorial disasters that you're all banging on about. Everyone either dresses "appropriately" anyway, or at least has made an effort. Not necessarily jacket and tie, but dressed at some sort of level that's vaguely compatible with the general atmosphere of the place.
There are very few restaurants in London that really impose any sort of dress code beyond the nebulous. Some might say no jeans or trainers, but that's the extent of it. The only real hold-outs are the likes of the Ritz who apparently have a rack of old jackets and ties they'll foist upon you if you haven't got one.
On a similar issue, I'm going to a wedding in a couple of weeks. Reception is at the Connaught but there's no dinner and a long gap between the end of the service and the start of the reception to (1) get changed into dinner jacket, and (2) have dinner. So it'll be an early dinner at a restaurant for me and the wife in black tie. It is tempting to reverse the trend by turning up to McDonalds in black tie but I can't quite bring myself to do it.
There are very few restaurants in London that really impose any sort of dress code beyond the nebulous. Some might say no jeans or trainers, but that's the extent of it. The only real hold-outs are the likes of the Ritz who apparently have a rack of old jackets and ties they'll foist upon you if you haven't got one.
On a similar issue, I'm going to a wedding in a couple of weeks. Reception is at the Connaught but there's no dinner and a long gap between the end of the service and the start of the reception to (1) get changed into dinner jacket, and (2) have dinner. So it'll be an early dinner at a restaurant for me and the wife in black tie. It is tempting to reverse the trend by turning up to McDonalds in black tie but I can't quite bring myself to do it.
