A neighbourhood shop that never made you book
Six chairs on Grand Avenue, four barbers, and one rule that has not changed since the doors opened: nobody leaves this shop with a haircut we would not want on our own head.
Nine years on Fourth Street, then this
Rafael Ortega cut hair out of a two-chair shop on Fourth Street for nine years before he opened this place. The plan was never complicated. He wanted a shop you could walk into without an appointment, sit down with someone who knew what they were doing, and leave with a cut that still looked right two weeks later.
That is still the whole plan. Six chairs now instead of two, four barbers instead of one, and a great deal more people through the door on a Saturday. Nothing about how a haircut actually gets done here has changed. Consultation first. Scissors or clippers, whichever the hair in front of us actually needs. Neckline finished properly. Hot towel before you stand up.
Most of the people in these chairs live within a few miles of the shop. Some have been coming since the Fourth Street days and have watched their sons get their first haircut in the same room. Some walked in for the first time last week because a friend told them to. Both get exactly the same cut and exactly the same amount of time.
Our mission
Give every person in this chair the same thing: an honest conversation about their hair, a cut that suits their head rather than a trend, and enough time to do it properly.
That is the entire standard, and it is the one thing we will not compromise on when the shop is busy. If we cannot do your cut properly today, we will tell you when we can rather than rush it.
From the moment you sit down
Whether you booked ahead or walked in off Grand Avenue, the visit runs the same way.
- 01
You get asked first
Before anything is switched on we talk through what you want, what you had last time and how it grew out. If what you are asking for will not sit right on your hair, we will say so and offer you the closest thing that will.
- 02
You get the whole chair
Nobody is squeezed in on top of someone else. Your barber stays with your cut from the consultation through to the styling, and the chair is cleaned down between every client.
- 03
You get it finished
Necklines detailed, ears cleaned up, hot towel across the back of the neck and product worked in if you want it. You see the back of your head in the mirror before you stand up.
- 04
You get told the truth
How long the wait is, how long the cut will hold, and when you should come back. If two weeks is too soon for what you have asked for, we will tell you that rather than take the booking.
Four barbers, four sets of hands
Ask for whoever you like when you request a visit. If they are not in that day we will tell you before you travel.
Rafael Ortega
Owner, master barber
Fades, classic scissor work, straight razor shaves
Marcus Bell
Senior barber
Textured crops, beard sculpting, long scissor work
Deandre Wallace
Barber
Skin fades, razored line-ups, kids cuts
Tomas Ruiz
Barber
Pompadours, side parts, hot towel shaves
Walk in, or hold a chair for a time that suits you.
Send an appointment request and we will confirm it by phone or email, usually the same day. If you would rather just turn up, the door is open six days a week and there is no penalty for changing your mind.