The Cutting Experience

Great old school barbershop. An awesome gentleman named Frank took care of me and I couldn’t be happier.

There’s not much to say about it, since the bottom line is simple: they give a good haircut at a very reasonable price. However, I did want to make sure they got some love here on Unilocal!and that people in the Denver downtown area get the 411 on a great place to get a trim.
It’s a definite «old school» barbershop, with no frills or fancy salon décor. It’s manned by older men and I suspect the services offered are very guy oriented.
My barber was able to follow my requests exactly, and was meticulous in ensuring that every detail was right. Also, they offer a hot towel and straight-​razor shave which — if you’ve never gotten one — is an experience every man should have at least once.
Also, my barber regaled me with stories of when Denver was a tiny town in his youth, and provided a veritable yellowpages of information when I asked about where to get shoes, omelettes et. all.
Highly recommended. Stop in and say hi!

So first of all… all of the previous reviewers are correct, this is an old-​school barbershop and they do know how to cut hair. They do the hot-​shaving-​cream and straight-​razor shave and that’s pretty awesome. The barber also used that electric shoulder massage thing too.
However, these are the things I didn’t like:
1. I don’t like the smell of cigar. Just not for me and I didn’t like the smell of cigar when I was in getting a cut. (I also don’t like scotch, probably not a coincidence…)
2. I really wasn’t impressed by the assortment of «gentleman’s» publications on display in the magazine rack. Maybe others appreciate that sort of thing as a part of their barbershop. I once thought that sort of thing was cool, too… when I was 22. I’m an adult now (allegedly), give me something better to read.
3. When I go to the barbershop, I look for conversation with the barber that involves: the fishing report, the local sports teams, whatever home repair is being a pain in the @#$, vacation plans, etc… just the light barbershop stuff. Maybe it was an off day, but what I got here was soul-​crushing conversation on family members who died, were sick, or were family miscreants. Yes, I know conversation is a two-​way street and I had my part in directing the tone of the conversation. But lets face it, once you go down the negative-​family-​conversation road with someone, its tough to turn them around. In this case, I couldn’t wait to be done with the haircut and escape the conversation black hole I was in.
By the way, this place isn’t that unique. There are other places in town that do the straight-​razor trim and hot-​shaving-​cream treatment. Do your research.

Great place to get a real haircut. Professional, old school barber shop. Tom and his team do a great job. There is a shoeshine stand in the barbershop so your shoes will look as good as your hair when you walk out. Been going to this place for over 25 years and never been disappointed.

Have you ever gotten a 45 minute complete face shave with a straight razor? Well neither has 99.5% of the male population by my estimates and I’ll bet you’re curious as I was. I can’t imagine any other place in the city still even offers a service like this.
The Cutting Experience is a non-​pretentious oasis in a sea of trendy barbershops where they will never remember your name, much less your haircut.
This place has a fantastic crew of barbers with decades of experience and is a really good value. If you want a great mens haircut without all the fuzz ;), give the Cutting Experience a try.

Classic barber shop with friendly stories and great customer service.

Old school and awesome. Been going here for 3 years, wouldn’t be caught dead elsewhere.

Tom Simone owns the Cutting Experience. He is an excellent barber. If you like a traditional men’s hair style either long or short, Tom will do a great job for a very reasonable price. His shop is conveniently located in downtown just off 16^th street.
I have never tried the other barbers who work in Tom’s barber shop.
After coming to Denver from Chicago, I tried several places before I happened to walk past Tom’s barber shop and notice he kept Saturday hours starting at 7am then gave it a try the following week. His shop may seem a bit unpolished at first, but after you get a great haircut it becomes part of the charm.
Tom cuts your hair with a scissors then finishes the side and back hairline with a straight razor and warm shaving cream.
Let him know what you want and he will do it right.