Spent $36 here (before tip) and not a single person - not friends, co-workers, even family - complimented or even acknowledged my haircut same day or in the days after. Sorry, whenever I've gotten a ... Read More
Spent $36 here (before tip) and not a single person - not friends, co-workers, even family - complimented or even acknowledged my haircut same day or in the days after. Sorry, whenever I've gotten a good haircut (and I've gotten them before... at places less pretentious, less expensive), I'm sure to hear about it repeatedly all day long. Over the years I've learned that if you get a really awesome hair cut, people will tell you so incessantly. If your haircut isn't so great (or simply really bad), your friends and colleagues typically won't mention the slightest word or acknowledgment about you getting a hair cut! Public feedback is the beat way of judging the stylist's work. OK, the basics first...According to the staff, Dino Palmieri Salon has been around for about 11 years at their location in the mall on Kruse Drive between Mustard Seed and Hibachi Japanese Restaurant. The salon itself is clean, upscale, and feminine and the staff friendly but in that plastic sort of way. Obviously geared for women, I felt out of place... or maybe it was their "OMG... it's a male" looks on their faces that made me feel the fish out of water. OK, now let's set the stage...I admit - I don't know the first thing to ask for when it comes to getting a haircut. I guess I'm more "average guy" than "GQ" so I have no idea what's in, what's out, what's trendy (nor do I care, really). That's why I hire people who know better than I to figure it all out. As for JUDGING hair cuts, I'm also the same way - I listen to what people tell me (or don't) about my new do to know whether my haircut was nice or not.All this should make me the ideal haircut candidate right? I'm not picky nor demanding and, other than basic things like desired hair length, side burns, etc. I always ask for the same thing of the stylist: you're free to be creative, "express" yourself, but bottom line just make it look good.And now the Tragedy of Haircut..My wife had convinced me to try out Studio 247 in Chagrin Falls because of a stylist she really liked there. Unfortunately, I waited till the last minute and found she wasn't working that day. Since I had a special occasion the next day, I decided to stick with my wife's salon idea but at another salon nearby. An internet search and voila! I find Dino Palmieri just down the road.I called and asked if they had any openings that day for a BASIC haircut. (This little tidbit becomes important later.) The receptionist said there were two openings that afternoon so I picked one of the options and went in.Got there, was seated promptly, and the shampoo and cut was uneventful and took about 20 minutes. All the while she pontificated about how experienced she was and how lucky I was to get her since her slew of regulars normally schedules weeks in advance just to see her and not another stylist there.Pleasantly parted company only to be hit with a $36 bill at the register. Damn, I thought to myself, I'd better have the ladies falling at my feet on mere account of this apparent coup de grâce for a haircut. I didn't realize - an overt detail the appointment taker over the phone failed to mention - that they sat me with a "master" designer - or whatever internal pricing scheme, high-ranking, super-soaker, hair club flag officer title she claimed as her own - thus jumping the cost to $36... and that's before tip!So, bottom line: physically pleasant salon, fast service, and 36 smackers for a haircut nobody noticed! Read Less