Jean-Louis David

A review in English for a Jean-​Louis David salon in Florence.
(Una recensione in Inglese per un salone Jean-​Louis David a Firenze).
I needed a haircut while staying in Florence (Firenze) and, given that the people I was staying with only knew of salons that did women’s hair and barber shops that didn’t wet your hair to cut it, name recognition won out. Granted, this has been a while, but I looked at the handful of salons on the Jean-​Louis David Italian website located in Florence and, with its unmistakable masonry façade and arched window tops, this was «the one!» And I had to get this off my chest. Actually, it’s in a great location, halfway between the main train station at Santa Maria Novella and Piazza Duomo.
I had to make an appointment. Actually, the appointment was made for me. So, I walked about 1 to 2 miles to get my haircut. I could see that they mostly do women’s hair, but they’ll definitely cut men’s hair, too. The person who would cut my hair was a guy who, cutting hair in a slightly upmarket hair salon, was sort of a toned down version of Vin Diesel who seemed smug and hip at the same time, speaking very little. What’s interesting is how, in typical Italian form, the patrons already in there, peroxided blonde ladies requiring much more expensive services, had no problem looking at people judgmentally from head to toe, especially if the person is foreign, dressed casually, and/​or not in great shape. Italy, especially its more affluent parts, is all about «la bella figura,» which means «making a good impression» and the one thing that Italian women dread is acquiring something they even have a name for — «il culo Americano.» In my case, I walked in with decent enough jeans, possibly even CK brand ones purchased at Costco, a university t-​shirt, and casual desert boot type shoes. What you see is what you get, so if you don’t like it, «vattene in quel paese.»
I explained to the guy cutting my hair what I wanted, in a combination of Italian and gesturing and pointing with my hands, the latter of which are indispensable in Italian conversation, and he went to work. When he was done, I felt all decked out for a mug shot. He had taken too much off the top and then stated that maybe we misunderstood each other. I had told him I wanted enough to remain on top so it could lay over some rather than spike. He could see that I wasn’t thrilled but I still tipped him a few Euros nonetheless, just in case those peroxided ladies were watching my every move. Why can’t so many Italian women just accept that they’re brunettes? When I arrived at the home where I was staying, they diplomatically told me that it wasn’t a very good haircut.
It’s probably best to do this review contrasting this experience for which the number 28 sticks out (28 Euros or 28 dollars, I don’t remember) with other haircuts on foreign soil.
1. On one trip, I was walking down the street in Turin (Torino) and realized I needed a haircut. I saw a barber shop. I walked in and it was a father-​son shop. I asked if they’d cut the hair wet instead of «old school» dry. The father, who cut my hair, said that he’d wet the hair. They were cool and chatty Sicilians who had moved up to northern Italy and, for about 10 Euros plus a tip, I got a haircut I was very happy with.
2. On my only trip to Germany, not counting changing planes if flying Lufthansa, I had just stumbled out of the Munich (Munchen) train station (I love their word hauptbahnhof) and realized I needed a haircut. On a street perpendicular to the station, on the right side upon exiting the station, was a barber shop run by some men from Turkey. I don’t speak German (except for some ridiculous things) and I certainly don’t speak Turkish, so it was all about talking with the hands. Some 9 Euros later, plus a tip, I again got a good haircut
3. During my first trip to Montréal, I woke up the second day and realized I needed a haircut. I was walking down a street in the center and found what looked to be primarily a men’s hair styling place. As it turned out, the guy was a Montrealer born to Neapolitan immigrants. The cost was something like $ 14 CDN before tip (about $ 11 US). Not only was he a hoot, the haircut was probably among the 10 best I’ve gotten.
So, there you have it. To the Florentine guy, you’re not Vin Diesel. You cut hair. Also, I’m not Vin Diesel, and I don’t want to look like him.
I’m giving this place 1 star for the price-​quality rapport of my haircut, as in «grazie, ma no.» However, I’m giving this place an additional star because there are surely customers, probably repeat customers, whose needs they satisfy and because I’m being generous.
Lastly, the name of your chain of salons, Jean-​Louis David, irritates me. If you take out the hyphen and apply the factorials learned in basic statistics, that makes for 9 permutations. That’s enough variants of Jean Louis David to make for an entire ensemble on «The Hollywood Squares.»