So-Hair

DAVE has been cutting my hair for 10+ years — followed the salon from both their SOHO locations to their resting ground in the East Village. Awesome stylist and outstanding color. Ask for DAVE.

So-​Good:
I just got the best haircut I’ve had probably had in 10 years.
I had Mimi– she had done an AMAZING job with my sister, who totally changed her look from always long to a chin-​length bob. It helped to know that I could trust Mimi before going there. I told her what I was looking for, showed her a picture of a previous haircut of mine that I really liked, but asked her to make it shorter.
I think I got pretty much exactly what I wanted, but Mimi did it in such a way that was beyond any haircut I’ve had. I’ve had long, layered hair for at least 10 years, and this haircut is just amazing. Sorry, it just is. I’ve not felt this good about my hair in forever.
I used to shlep up to White Plains for my haircut because when you’ve got long thick red hair you don’t leave a good hairstylist when you find one. Happily, I now just have to shlep to the east village. Oh yeah. It’s $ 75, Mimi is prompt, and doesn’t waste your time. (Was in and out within 1hr 15 min). Oh yeah! She’s super friendly.

Great little salon that takes walk-​ins, has a local following, and turns out beautiful hair at affordable prices! Just what every New York girl needs! This is my go-​to spot for beautiful blonde highlights and a great blow out that lasts 2 – 3 days!

David is the man! A buddy recommended him to me about 18 months ago, and I’ve never been anywhere else since. You just tell him what you want done and he works his magic. Make an appointment with him — you won’t regret it.

I live right across the street so perhaps I am biased, but this place is great. I have gotten my hair cut by Mimi 3 – 4 times and she always spends 1 hour+ and strikes the ideal balance between listening to what I want and adding her thoughts. I told her I wanted to learn how to curl the ends of my hair and she spent a lot of time showing me the best technique.
I also had my hair cut by another one of the stylists– a tall, black woman whose name I forget, but she also did a nice job.
Prices are reasonable for NYC, I pay $ 75 — think the different stylists have different rates.

Mimi at So-​Hair has been cutting my hair for nearly five years now, through three separate location changes and including one in-​home haircut when they were between addresses.
Through my life I’ve always been deeply loyal to my hairdressers (stylists? is that the right word?) when I’ve found ones who do my thick unruly hair justice. It’s particularly important to me given that I tend to let my hair grow long before getting it cut again.
Mimi does an excellent job with my hair and I’m always happy to let her do what she wants to with it; she also knows me well at this point and she threatens to text or call when I’ve gone too long between visits.
The rest of the So-​Hair experience is remarkable only for being unremarkable — I’ve never had trouble getting last minute appointments, either on weeknights or weekends, the newest space is bright and airy and conveniently located (even if it’s no longer right around the corner from my apartment), and the always-​classic-​rock background music is good enough ear candy.
Oh, and at $ 50 for a men’s cut, while it costs more than some of the cheap barbers who’ve butchered my head in the past, it’s in the same ballpark as other similar «salons» I’ve checked out — not that I’d ever think of shopping around.

This review is for David. He is a rockstar and I HIGHLY recommend going to see him for your color and cuts needs! David truly could not be any sweeter and takes your satisfaction with his work very seriously. He talks to you every step of the way and has such an obvious desire to give you the look you have in mind. I had a slight hair accident and was left with hair that was much darker than I wanted. David gave me a thorough consultation and talked me though our plan over the months ahead to get to the desired lighter color. I just went to see him again and we are well on our way! He even calls to check up on your hair post-​appointment! David really goes above and beyond and I could be more grateful. He is an absolute gem. :)
So-​Hair also uses the finest most natural coloring ingredients so your hair won’t feel all plastic and gross afterwards. It’ll feel soft, healthy, and undamaged.

So-​Horrible:
So, I tried this place when I first moved to NYC 4 years ago… I went in and asked for a very minor trim. I had long hair at the time and was clear that I intended to keep it that way… after I took off my glasses, I felt more and more hair being cut, finally to realize the stylist/​owner of the place had made a mistake and was cutting off my 3 years worth of locks.
I was so surprised, I didn’t even really react when I put my glasses back on to look in the mirror. Needless to say, I was in shock and later got terribly angry… I did not go back… until recently.
I’ve had the same problem as most New Yorkers… no shortage of good stylists, just a shortage that give a s*** about your hair. So, I went through a variety of scenarios, even tried a few neighborhood barbers (big mistake). Finally, I settled on the Aveda salon around the corner from my apartment, but I only ever found their style to be generic and hard to get a consistent cut. Right at the start of summer, I came across a pic from that first short hair style I had in NY and remembered it was So-​Hair… so I decided to give them another try.
Mimi gave me 2 cuts recently, the first was spectacular, the second was about as good as the Aveda salon, which is to say not as good as the first, but not horrible. After this, I decided I’d consider growing long again as I never found a short hair stylist I liked, no matter how much I spent. Well, I got through about 2 months and had to go to a business meeting where I had to look a bit more conservative, so I had to get a cut… Mimi was off until after my meeting, so I made a random appointment.
Once again, I found myself in the owner/stylist’s chair, once again he did not listen to what I asked for, once again he was more interested in the catty /​campy banter going around between his friends who were hanging in the salon rather than working on my hair… even stopped midway through my cut to sweep his front stoop when he noticed some leaves after yet another friend showed up to chat.
After feeling him hit the comb into my scalp repeatedly as he butchered my hair with thinning shears, he ingenuously offered to re-​cut my hair when I said I was unhappy with the cut, but I had about as much patience as I could stomach for the ongoing Perez Hilton conversation and if he didn’t care about my hair the first time, I didn’t think he’d care the second either and I certainly didn’t care for his attitude.
I even tipped him 10%, which is a lot less than I’d normally do, but if he only wanted to give me the bare minimum that was at all acceptable, I felt inclined to do the same. I’d NEVER go back again and would suggest others avoid, but you never know, if the owner David or his son Josh like you, the place seems to be serviceable. I will say, It’s certainly a moderate price, perhaps get what you pay for?