Active discussions

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Would you expect to cover up at a pool bar?

32 replies

mittestreet · Today 07:14

We were staying in a hotel recently. 5* but dated. There was a pool bar near the pool with plastic chairs where you could order some lunch.

We sat at a table right by the pool and ordered lunch. He didn't put a t-shirt on because he didn't want to get suncream on his shirt. People regularly ordered drinks at the bar in dripping swimming outfits only.

Manager came out to politely remind us of the requirement for clothing to be worn at lunch. We had assumed this only applied to the shit down restaurant that offers a more formal lunch. Would you expect to need to wear a t shirt at a pool bar?

OP posts:
New posts on this thread. Refresh page
1983Louise · Today 16:07

DosPerros · Today 07:41

“Shit down restaurant” 😂😂

I thought that was funny 😂

Totaldramallama · Today 16:06

Yes I would if sitting down to eat. Equally those chairs really hurt when you try and peel your wet arse off them at the end so I put a towel under my bum plus a kaftan or beach cover up type thing

LocalHobo · Today 15:59

No one wants to see middle aged spread and stretch marks when they are eating lunch. Cover up.
So if it were Anthony Joshua you'd be fine about it then? I would hope clothing rules apply equally and are not dictated by ageism or fat phobia.

CarolinaInTheMorning · Today 15:51

I'm a bit surprised at some of these answers. DH and I sometimes go swimming at a somewhat snooty private club that my brother and sister-in-law belong to. There are two restaurants: one is indoors and yes, you are expected to dress accordingly. But there is a poolside snack bar (includes some cooked food and you can have the attendant order something from the restaurant as well.) There are tables set out around the snack bar. Everyone just sits and eats in their swimwear.

This is in the US so there are obvious different cultural expectations in other places. However, this is also the Deep South, which tends to be more formal than other parts of the country, yet no pearl clutching at seeing a middle aged man's bare chest beside a pool.

Ponderingwindow · Today 15:39

At the outdoor pool bar it’s not like the standards are high. All he had to do was add a shirt. You probably got away with throwing on a coverup. Swimsuits are still acceptable, it just requires a bit of decorum and signaling that you took some time to dry off.

AngelsWithSilverWings · Today 15:38

I can't stand seeing topless men in a bar or restaurant on holiday. It really puts me off my food seeing hairy sweaty bare chested men sitting down to eat. It's just polite to cover up when eating. I'd be pleased the owner was enforcing that rule.

Somersetbaker · Today 15:35

The reason men walk around topless is because they think a beer belly and shite tattoos makes them irresistible.

itsgettingweird · Today 15:20

No I wouldn’t if the bar serves the pool area and people order drinks in swimwear.

i spent years living abroad and at a plastic chair poolside bar or beachside bar I usually wore a sarong not to stick to the seat but we ate in swimwear 🤷‍♀️

Cosyblankets · Today 15:14

Yes yes and more yes

StarlightLady · Today 08:24

l am not a prude, where l can l go topless at the beach. But in general:

Going up to the pool bar to grab a drink and return directly to the pool: No

Sitting down to lunch in the bar area: Yes, cover up!

mullers1977 · Today 08:20

SnozPoz · Today 08:16

It winds me up no end that men think it's ok to walk around with their tops off... and at ANY bar or restaurant they should cover up. I don't care how old or young or how toned or otherwise. If it's not appropriate for a woman to have her tits out, it's not appropriate for a bloke to be bare chested either. It's basic etiquette and respect for others.

Me tool, it’s disgusting and imo only a certain type of person does it, I can’t stand people eating at pool bars without clothing…

Thesnowglobe · Today 08:19

Yes I would. Seeing a woman in a minuscule thong sat on a bar stool made me…not want to sit on it when she left. How hard is it to put a cover up or t shirt on?

cartagenagina · Today 08:17

I would expect men to wear a t shirt and women a beach cover/sarong maybe.

Monty36 · Today 08:17

I don’t know which country you were in but certainly in some parts of the Med they are actually very formal and especially around food. They would think it immodest and improper to eat at a table without a top on. Poolside or not.

They will know people do it, but not admire them for it.
The manager was trying to uphold standards for his hotel and the common cultural ones I suspect.
Too many people forget they are not in their own country. Yes, the hotel is built for guests. But the hotel will have rules about how those guests should behave.

Drinkupletsgoforawalk · Today 08:17

Yes - all pool restaurants I’ve been to insisted on it

‘no shirt, no shoes, no service’

not hard to throw on a tshirt and flip flops. That’s all they want!

SnozPoz · Today 08:16

It winds me up no end that men think it's ok to walk around with their tops off... and at ANY bar or restaurant they should cover up. I don't care how old or young or how toned or otherwise. If it's not appropriate for a woman to have her tits out, it's not appropriate for a bloke to be bare chested either. It's basic etiquette and respect for others.

Tinyterrier · Today 08:13

I wouldn’t be going near a shit down restaurant covered or uncovered

BadSkiingMum · Today 08:06

Yes, I have been to many similar resorts and putting a top on when eating at the pool bar is the norm.

Saying that, I suspect that appearance may make a difference. A slender and model-like young person will probably be overlooked whereas a hairy middle-aged man would be spoken to fairly quickly…

tardive · Today 08:05

HelmholtzWatson · Today 07:22

No one wants to see middle aged spread and stretch marks when they are eating lunch. Cover up.

So it depends on age then??

tardive · Today 08:04

At a pool bar no I wouldnt necessarily expect to have to get dressed. However I wouldn't mind or object if that was the rule.

Lucyintheskywithnoidea · Today 08:01

Yes. I don’t want to look at a hairy belly while eating.

Original poster
mittestreet · Today 07:51

DosPerros · Today 07:41

“Shit down restaurant” 😂😂

Oh my gosh. Talk about a typo!

OP posts:
Londonrach1 · Today 07:44

Yes. Yabu. Certainly sitting down you should have clothes on unless it's a nudist restaurant.

Delphiniumandlupins · Today 07:42

Doesn't really matter what we would expect if that's the rule at your hotel. Maybe he could have an older t-shirt that he doesn't care so much about getting suncream on, just for lunchtimes.

DelilahSong · Today 07:41

Yes it’s normally made clear at hotels that guests shouldn’t be semi naked in the eateries