Chicago: The Perfect Place For Dudes To Get Gimmicky Haircuts
By Ben Schuman Stoler in Miscellaneous on Jul 29, 2010 6:30PM
Just-for-men salons are proliferating across trendier areas of the city like the seepage from last week’s flooding. Surely you’ve seen them: it’s hard not to, as you walk down, say, Division street between Damen and Ashland and some artifact of masculinity catches your eye. You think: A pool table! Motorcycles! Flat screens! Whee!
The first moment of hesitation comes from the signs on the front. Discordant promises jump out at you. Whiskey AND facial toner? Really? Then you see the prices of the place and you realize you’ve been caught in some kind of scam.
But all that’s not to say that getting a massage or paying attention to your hair is anti-masculine. That’s not the point. The point is how these places are presenting what it means to be a man. It’s insulting, really. As our own Anthony Todd says, the names of the packages - see: “The Pimp,” “The Rockstar,” or “The Non-Commitment-Commitment Package” - are only meant to affirm your heterosexuality. It’s O.K., they’re saying, you’re not gay for wanting to get a manicure and a sweet new haircut.
Which is all too bad, because these salons - besides that it costs some $50 to get a basic haircut - are actually a great idea. It’s no secret that this generation of men cares more about the way they look than previous ones. Whether it’s because of the recession and the wish to consistently look imminently employable, or because of the resurgence of the J. Crew/Monocle/Classic American steeze, these salons have tapped into a real cultural phenomenon. The problem is that they’ve taken a nascent, positive stylistic consciousness and cheapened it into a giant gimmick.
If you too are tired of the gimmicks, after the jump check out some of the Chicaogist staff recommendations for places in the city in which a dude can get a solid haircut.
Rob Christopher: I've been going to Milio's on Belmont for the past few months. It's plenty "masculine" without being absurd, and more importantly the stylists know what they're doing. It's not just some ESPN Zone-type facade where, in reality, you're getting Supercuts-quality but paying $15 more for the testosterone display.
Michele Lenni: Ace of Fades dude, Ace of Fades
Benjy Lipsman: I tried the State Street Barbershop on Webster & Southport a couple times a few years back. Not so over-the-top trying to be masculine as some of thse newer places. But I didn't see the need to spend twice as much as the chain place around the corner from home. A guy's haircut is a chore that should be as cheap, quick and convenient as (reasonable) possible...
Tony Peregrin: I dig Floyd's '99. Not a spa, but not friggin Haircuttery either. I dig the cool rocker vibe up in thar.
Alex Haugh: Strange Beauty Show or Twisted Scissors.
Chuck Sudo: Joe's Barber Shop at 26th and Wallace.
Jake Guidry: Hair Mechanic on North Ave, just past Damen. No frills, not even any signs indicating packages or deals.
Tankboy: Flowbee, duh.