Nashville does not have a dress code in any meaningful sense for the majority of its bars and restaurants. The honky-tonks on Broadway, which is where most tourists spend their time, welcome whatever you show up in as long as you’re wearing shoes and a shirt. Shorts, t-shirts, sundresses, jeans, boots, baseball caps, and cowboy hats all appear in the same room without issue.
The Actual Exceptions
A small number of venues have specific requirements worth knowing:
The Twelve Thirty Club on upper Broadway is the most prominent example. It requires “cocktail or business casual attire” and asks guests to limit beachwear and sportswear. Well-kept jeans are permitted. It’s a supper club format with a different vibe from the honky-tonks, and the dress code reflects that.
Some fine dining restaurants in The Gulch and downtown (the highest-end category, like Catbird Seat) have smart-casual expectations in practice even without formal policies. Nobody gets turned away for jeans, but the room will make you feel underdressed if you show up in athletic wear.
Nudie’s Honky Tonk on Broadway has actual written rules, which can serve as a baseline for the category: no sleeveless undershirts, no cut-off shirts, no jerseys, no excessively baggy pants. Fashionable tank tops are allowed. This is a low bar, and most bars on Broadway have similar minimal requirements.
The practical rule: athletic shorts, sleeveless undershirts, and flip-flops might get pushback at some venues. Dress shorts, jeans, sneakers, and most casual clothing will not.
The Cowboy Costume Question
People wear cowboy boots and hats on Broadway because tourists do, and tourists do because Nashville has a country music reputation. Both things are fine. What doesn’t apply is any obligation to dress that way. Locals in Nashville wear sneakers, jeans, regular casual clothes. The cowboy costume signals “visitor,” and that’s neither here nor there for a trip focused on the music and food. The practical problem with cowboy boots is comfort, not culture: new boots on a day with eight miles of walking is bad planning regardless of what anyone thinks of the look.
Neighborhood Differences
Broadway and the honky-tonks: entirely casual, anything that meets the minimal bar of shoes-shirt-presentable clothing.
East Nashville: casual trending toward whatever. The bar scene here runs from dive bars to cocktail bars, all without dress codes. The neighborhood’s character is more creative-casual than western.
The Gulch: a step up in average dress without being strict. People tend to wear nicer versions of casual (a good pair of jeans, a decent top) because the area’s restaurants and hotels have a more upscale posture. No rules, but the room composition shifts the vibe.
Germantown: casual, leaning toward the neighborhood’s aesthetics (slightly more refined, given the restaurant quality), but shorts and t-shirts are seen everywhere at dinner.
Grand Ole Opry
No dress code. People show up in everything from full country western outfits to jeans and sneakers. The Ryman Auditorium similarly has no requirements. Both venues draw audiences across the spectrum of casual.
Sources:
- Nashville Todo, “Nashville Bar Scene: What to Wear,” October 2025 (nashvilletodo.com)
- TripAdvisor Nashville Forums, dress code discussions (tripadvisor.com)
- Nudie’s Honky Tonk, official FAQ and dress code (nudieshonkytonk.com)
- A Little Local Flavor, “Why Knowing What to Wear in Nashville Matters” (alittlelocalflavor.com)
- Travel With a Plan, “What to Wear in Nashville” (travelwithaplan.com)