Is it OK to wear flip-flops to a restaurant or club?

«Those are for the pool. You can’t wear them in here,» I was recently reprimanded in Madrid. The guy telling me this was wearing an ill-fitting suit, a clipboard and a headset. As the bouncer of the club, he had made up his mind with those two sentences: my flip-flops wouldn’t be let in. Righto.

How could he know that my black Havaianas have been carrying me more on land than through water. They’re my loyal summer shoes, after all. That same evening, we went to a very nice restaurant and two equally nice bars. Not a pool or beach in sight.

That bouncer probably also isn’t aware that flip-flops have been sent down the catwalk for years by brands such as Coperni, Chanel, Burberry and Jacquemus. Provided they’re made from the right material, they’re both waterproof (and immune against any other liquids that may be spilled on your feet in a club), and wonderfully simple, casual and comfortable.

Maybe he didn’t realise nobody else in the club he was guarding would have cared about my footwear. That nobody would’ve said: «Did you see that person over there wearing flip-flops?! I’m never coming here again.»

But hey. Instead of the club with the bouncer, we ended up going to another bar. The money we saved on admission was spent on cold drinks. Maybe I should thank him? But if you don’t know the first thing about fashion, please keep your opinion to yourself. After all, everyone’s wearing Birkenstocks on the daily, and Crocs have become socially acceptable. So I think it’s okay to go out to eat and party in flip-flops. Thank you.