Barber & Gent

I booked a haircut for Sunday days in advance on their web platform. In under 24hrs notice and the evening before my cut, I was told 1. There an extra fee of $50 for a Sunday booking and 2., there were no slots available Monday mrmg. I just arrived from a long haul flight and was flying again Monday afternoon to an event. They refunded the amount but the lack of consistent pricing, web platform transparency, late notification, lack of flexibility and disrespect for my time is not professional, courteous and they would not receive any money from me in the future. This was not acceptable. Please upgrade your professionalism, standards, communication and ways of working including pricing transparency. I had to rearrange my entire schedule and search for an alternative before my event. Not ok and not recommended.

No Call. No Care. On the Eve of My 50th. I was really looking forward to my appointment at Dapper Down Barber Lounge. I booked it two weeks in advance, hoping to kick off my very first trip to San Francisco, and the weekend of my 50th birthday — with some much-needed self-care. As someone who makes it a point to support Black-owned and local businesses whenever I travel, I was excited to treat myself to what I thought would be a high-quality experience based on their glowing reviews. What I got instead was silence and complete disregard. Leading up to my appointment, I received multiple automated emails and texts confirming and reminding me of my upcoming service, yet not a single message to let me know it had been canceled. On the day of, I called the shop to confirm the location, only to be casually informed that my appointment “should’ve been canceled.” The barber I booked with, Romeo Romero, had recently welcomed a child and decided to take the month off. While I can completely respect and celebrate the joy of a new baby, what hurt the most was the total lack of communication. No personal call. No text. No email. Nothing to say, “Hey, your appointment has been canceled.” Had I not called, I would’ve shown up to a shop that wasn’t expecting me, on a day that meant so much to me. Romeo did apologize and offered to reach out to the shop to see if someone else could take my appointment. That gave me a glimmer of hope — which was quickly extinguished when he never followed up like he said he would. I was left scrambling, frantically searching for another barber on short notice in a city I’d never been to, all in hopes of salvaging what was supposed to be a joyful, celebratory moment. It may seem like just a missed haircut to some, but for me, this was supposed to be part of a milestone — a moment of self-love and reflection after 50 years of life. Instead, I was left feeling overlooked and unimportant by a business I had been so eager to support. I write this not out of anger or spite, but in hopes that it encourages better practices in the future. Life happens, we all understand that. But communication matters. A simple message could have made all the difference.

Had a perfect skin fade today by Chris. Was visiting with my wife in SF and needed a fade clean up in between the trip. Found dapper down online and booked Chris. I'd definitely go back next time I'm in the area. Thanks Chris!