- "No Traditional Watering Hole": The Cafe Prohibits Casual Pant Wear
Following Negative Encounters with Jogging Pants Wearers, a Pforzheim Restaurant Owner Now Turns Away Sloppily Dressed Customers and Warns Them with a Sign. Men in Jogging Pants Have Disrespected and Even Soiled His Property, Lamros Petrou of the Art Cafe Explained. "We're Not a Bar, Not a Dive, We're a Cafe," He Reiterated. Previously, When He'd Confront Customers About Their Attire, They'd Often Challenge Him, Asking, "Where Does It Say That?"
For Several Weeks, a Sign Has Been Placed Near the Entrance Door, Prohibiting Both Dogs and Entry in Jogging Pants - Marked with a Red-Circled Strike-Through. Petrou Maintains It's Not About a Snobby Dress Code, But About Maintaining a Clean Appearance. "The Jogging Pants Aren't the Issue," He Said - It's the Individuals Who Wear Them. He Often Observes People Wearing the Same Pants for Days. That's Sloppy. The "Pforzheimer Zeitung" Initially Reported This.
Gastronomers Have the Right to Refuse Service
Especially, It's About Grey Jogging Pants. "Those Types of Pants and Those Jogging Pants Wearers, They'll Mess Up My Place if I Let Them In," Petrou Said. He Can Afford toturn Away Their Customers. The Signs Are Already Making an Impact, Particularly Making Young Women Feel More at Ease. He Has No Issue with Wide, Comfortable Pants or Even Modern, Stylish Jogging Pants. Jogging Pants Can Be Appropriate Today.
Such Rules Are Legal, According to a Spokesperson from the Dehoga Restaurant Association of Baden-Württemberg. "Within Their House Rights, Gastronomers Can Establish a Dress Code for Their Establishment, That's No Problem," Daniel Ohl Told the German Press Agency. The Key Is to Adhere to the Rules of the General Equal Treatment Act - So, for Example, No One Is Discriminated Against Because of Their Ethnic Origin.
Origin or Religion Did Not Factor into Petrou's Decision. His Clientele Spans from 18-Year-Olds to 80-Year-Olds, Students, Workers, Regulars, and Occasional Visitors. "I Have a Little Bit of Everything," He Said (Colloquial for 'I Have a Little Bit of Everything'). "But I Don't Have Any Scum." The Important Thing Is That "People Behave Decently."
His Verdict After the First Weeks: "Everyone Feels Comfortable, That's How It Should Stay." He Even Plans to Display a Larger Version of the Sign.
Clean Appearance vs. Sloppy Attire
The People of Pforzheim Generally Agree. Many Passersby Expressed Understanding in a Survey. Johannes Engeln Called it a Successful Experiment. Most Supporters Cite "Decorum" and that Jeans Look More Clean. A Messy Jogging Pants Look Is All Right for Home. Only One Man Labeled Petrou's Ban "Distasteful." Everyone Has the Right to Live as They Choose.
One Must View Clothing Rules in a Broader Context, Ohl from Dehoga Said: "A Gastronomic Experience Also Involves a Certain Atmosphere. And the Guests Help Determine the Atmosphere to a Great Extent." Even Swimwear Is Sometimes Forbidden.
Petrou Isn't the First Innkeeper to Ban Jogging Pants. Colleagues Have Taken Such Actions in Stuttgart and Mülheim an der Ruhr in North Rhine-Westphalia in Recent Years.
The sign at The Pforzheim's Art Cafe, owned by Lamros Petrou, specifically prohibits entry in jogging pants, as mentioned in the dress code rules. Petrou's decision to implement this rule is not based on a snobby dress code, but rather on maintaining a clean appearance in his establishment.
