Tan. Cognac. Chocolate. Walnut. Merlot. Bourbon. We get it. Brown, in just about any shade, is the king of shoes these days. When the black suit fell out of favor, it unfairly dragged down the black dress shoe with it. And now, as hyper-light brown shoes start to recede in popularity, black is making a well deserved comeback.
Black is sharp. It’s professional. It’s no nonsense. While not quite as versatile as a dark brown, black does go with most colors of casual pants and trousers. Even navy. (Disagree? So then what would you wear with a navy tux?) Maybe you’ve blown your budget on a pair (or six) of brown shoes this year. Here’s more than a few picks that are a bit more wallet friendly, and could be none more black.
John W. Nordstrom Lido – $175.00
Italian made and sleek as all get out. A true oxford, slightly elongated cap toe, and no broguing of any kind. Perfect for black tie. Ships and returns free since it’s Nordstrom.
Giorgio Brutini Cap Toes – $69.96
Beaters. A little too sharp in the toe for some, but Sabir over at Men’s Style Pro sure makes the brown option work. Sold through DSW, so they’ll ship free with SHIPR as long as you hand over an email address.
Meermin Wholecuts – $220ish (depending on the Euro to Dollar conversion)
Goodyear welted wholecuts from the Spanish (but Chinese made?) brand. Shipping across the ocean is expensive, but those in the states don’t have to pay the European VAT. So, it sort of evens out in the end. Just a reminder to those in the New York City area; There’s a Meermin trunk show, the first ever here in the states, coming up in November.
A. Testoni Black Suede Blucher – $158.07
($475)
Here’s the thing about black suede shoes… you don’t know what you’re missing until you get them. A regular black calf lace up can often look a little too dressy with jeans. But, matte that shine with suede and you’re in business. Add a black cord blazer and a pale blue or white dress shirt and you’ve got some sort of weird smart-casual evening-wear thing going on. Longwing. Made in Italy.
Banana Republic Adrian Double Monk – $110.60 when 30% off
The keys to avoiding the pilgrim look with black monk straps are: 1. stick with silver tone buckles and stay away from gold. 2. keep the shine on those buckles down to a minimum. The Adrian from B.R. appears to fulfill both of these pointers. Fair at $110 when 30% off, and can often be had for 40% off if you’re patient. Meanwhile, if you want something a little more trusted, and can stand a chisel toe, the DSW Mercanti Fiorentini Double Monk is on sale for $124.95 with GOSHOESGO
Mercanti Firoentini Cap Toe – $129.95 w/ GOSHOESGO
One of the newer designs from the DSW exclusive Italian made brand. They do have that MF chisel toe, so, know that. Bonded, but strong and durable. Nice use of the brogue perforations and pinking, but skipping the toe medallion. Sets em’ apart. $10 off with the code, but if you can somehow find a way to get another $10 in your cart, you’ll trip the threshold to get $25 off your order.
Jack Erwin Jake Single Monk – $195.00
The in-person order has shipped, but not arrived yet. So these are still a bit of a mystery. But… on looks alone? That’s what a single monk strap should look like. Bravo to their designers. The slimness of the metal for the buckle is a nice touch. Free shipping and returns. Made in Portugal.
Aston Grey Hunter Oxford – $79.95 w/ GOSHOESGO
A great crappy-weather shoe. Decent enough leather and a grippy sole. Nice closed lacing, some broguing… might need some extra upkeep in the polish/shoe creme department, but a decent feeling shoe overall. Aston Grey’s obvious take on the $300 TBNY Aaron. Again, you need to sign up for the DSW email list to use codes, but then you can stack the free shipping code SHIPR on top of GOSHOESGO.
Allen Edmonds Fifth Ave. – $238.96 ($345)
Expensive, but worth the price. Especially when on sale. Available for the sale price through AE or for a couple cents (yes, cents) less through Nordstrom. Ships and returns free.
Magnanni Cap Toe – $209.30
The Nordstrom Lido’s Spanish cousin. Slicker than snot. A little pointy for some, and noticeably elongated compared to the conservative Allen Edmonds 5th. Now an extra 30% off through lastcall.com through 10/15. Ships free with LC75OCT.
The “I’m on my feet all day” special: Rockport Dialed In – $71.97
($140)
If they just could have styled the sole differently, these could be a sneaky good winner for everyone. Mega cheap, sold through Amazon, and squishy comfortable. More on these from Michael, our official bartender, over here.
The awesomely odd duck: Allen Edmonds Weybridge – $209.95
($345)
Where the hell have these been? Thought they were extinct. Showed back up in the Allen Edmonds Clearance section, and thanks to the Rediscover America Sale, they’re an extra 15% off once you dump them in your cart. Terrific shape. Just different enough. Also shown at the top of the page after a year or two of use. Built like a tank but sleek enough to be sexy. Black tie worthy.
BONUS: The un-dress shoe: PF Flyers Sandlot Special – $44.00
$59.95 if you want the true “Secret Weapon” with the throwback ankle patch. RUN BENNY!
Your turn. What’s your go-to pair of black dress shoes? Do you think black dress shoes are underrated? Got a pair you’ve seen but don’t own that are worth a mention. To the comments…
Speaking of black suede, I just picked up the Peal & Co chukkas in black suede that you had featured earlier this year. They look and feel great. I’ll get a review up of them in the forums in the next week or so.
http://dappered.com/2013/04/what-would-you-pay-the-peal-co-suede-chukka/
Grabbed a pair of AE Brooks Fifth Ave’s from the shoebank for $150. Not a single noticeable flaw to my eyes. (truth be told, contemplating returning because i kind of want the leather sole).
I’m gonna have to get those PF flyers in a glass case with the words ” smash to access Secret weapon” emblazoned on a red hammer.
Thank you for this Joe. Thank you.
and thank you James Earl Jones.
Holy crap. Those black suede longwings make me want a pair of black shoes!
Black suede is so seriously underrated. People think the informality of the material rules out a formal color like black but they’re nerds and wrong.
I have an old pair of black cap-toe Rockport Dressports that I have had resoled. I’ve had them for years, and took them off my dad who wore them before that. They are showing their age now, but not nearly as bad as you might think, and they are amazingly comfortable. I still wear them on a weekly basis for my business casual+ work. Allows me to save my Park Ave’s for special occasions.
I picked up a pair of the JCP Stafford Alexander cap-toe in store this weekend on sale for $35. Talk about a deal!
Screw black. Screw light brown. Screw brown generally. Burgundy goes with everything except black. All you need is one pair of black shoes for a tuxedo. Otherwise, burgundy goes with everything and looks great.
I’ve always thought the idea that black doesn’t match with navy to be ridiculous. If anyone knows what goes with navy, it’s the Navy, and they wear black dress shoes (and black boots with the working uniforms).
I wish I could’ve grabbed a pair of black Brooks fifth aves, (if my wife would’ve have killed me)! I prefer the leather/rubber soled versions of the shoes, as they fare better in the new england climate.
Greg – I’ll have a review of the black suede Peal & Co chukkas up in the forums in about a week or so. I would have had it earlier but my usual size was too large so I had to send them back for a .5 size smaller.
I’d like to add the AE Vernon to the list, but it probably could simply be lumped in with the Weybridge in the awesomely odd duck category. I don’t wear them very often, but they’re there when I need/want them. They are very sleek and very classy, IMO, as well as being *just* different enough from every other dude’s black dress shoes.
The huge amount of used black AEs on ebay make it tough not to go that direction. The brown versions always gets a bump but there are tons of black AEs at serious discounts and in fine condition.
Oh that sounds quite intriguing as well! Thanks for letting me know, Farhan.
Looking forward to the Jack Erwin review…their styles look legit but that price point makes it a fairly precarious plunge into uncharted shoe territory. Chart on, Dappered.
No wingtips or longwings? I really want a pair of black longwings in pebbled calfskin.
I must take issue with the Weybridge. Nice shoes, no doubt… but they are not black tie worthy. Brogueing on shoes with a tuxedo honestly does not look good.
Also, I know you’ve recommended the J&M Meltons before… but they definitely belong here.
Did it this past weekend. The weybridge w/black tie. I agree that a regular half-brogue or full wingtip doesn’t look that great with black tie, but I think that’s mainly due to the pinked edges. The weybridge is super sleek. Fell into the “just different enough” wheelhouse for me. But we can agree to disagree.
Love the black!! They look so much sleeker than the same models in other colors. I just recently got the black AE Brooks Fifths for $150 that others were mentioning, and I’m loving them. I’m working them in a bit more than I expected to already.
“If anyone knows what goes with navy, it’s the Navy” A million percent YES.
“If anyone knows what goes with navy, it’s the Navy” A million percent YES.
The Melton was an oversight for sure.
I wasn’t aware anybody said that black didn’t match with navy, I always thought black oxfords were de rigueur for navy suits.
My go-to black shoes are AE McAllisters.
I have the BR Adrian in brown and I like them a lot for the price (I got them with a coupon for ~$100). I would rate them a 7 out of 10, but would still buy them again. Why the rating?
– The style and color are killer. They look best with a narrower fit trouser in damn near any color except black.
– The fit is comfortable but some have reported that they are narrow. My foot is usually a 9-9.5D and I ended up with the 9 and they are fine.
– The leather creases easily. I think that this is a downfall of many BR shoes: Great style, thin leather. Even using shoe trees religiously (which helps), they broke in within two wearings and now look well-loved (but not overly so). I wonder how they will wear over time.
– They tend to scuff easily. Mostly superficial stuff but once again I wonder how they will wear.
– If you are looking for a decent pair of stylish double monks I don’t think you can do better for the price. I am drooling over the dark pair of double monks at Suit Supply but at $345 it is hard to justify.
The Adrians are new this year so I think that 40% off is the best that the deal will get for a while to come.
Hope this helps.
Meltons are two rigid and the polish is too shinny, not a fan
So Meermin produces in China? That’s a letdown.
I missed that amazon deal for $80 :[
yeah cant wait
the price seems right but how is that pebbled leather? thats putting me off
when i tried them on in store the soles seemed really uncomfortable
Not anymore; everyone suggests brown with blue these days, which honestly does work well, but shouldn’t be your only option.
You know, the pebbled leather isn’t really my favorite either but it’s not too bad in person. For the normal price of $60? Heck no… For $35? Yeah I can live with them for a while.
I recently was in the market for an ~100 black cap toe shoe and I found buying used AE Park Aves off ebay was the best choice. I was really close to buying the Johnston and Murphy Melton since it’s easily available around $80 on amazon but no matter how I sliced it $20 more for lightly used park avenues made sense to me.
Sartorial neophyte here, a bit confused: seems to me I heard somebody say, sometime, somewhere, NO @#$%ING SQUARE TOES EVER EVER EVER EVER JUST DON’T DO IT EVER. EVER. I load this post and half the shoes have square toes. Explain.
These are considered “chisel” toes not full square toes
What Pierrot said. There’s really not much to explain. This is a square toe: http://www1.macys.com/shop/product/unlisted-a-kenneth-cole-production-shoes-t-flex-lace-up-shoes?ID=803121&CategoryID=65&cm_sp=us_catsplash_men-shoes-%26-accessories-shoes-_-row8-_-product_pool_shop-2-day-specials&panel=men-shoes+%26+accessories-shoes_8_product-pool%3A%20shop%202-day%20specials
There’s a pretty big difference, visually, between a square and a chisel. Now, some purists hate the chisel toe. And that’s TOTALLY fine. We all have our preferences. But to say an easy chisel (one that’s still rounded at the edges but does have a chisel shape) is the same as a Frankenstein-shoe square toe, frankly, is silly.