Ada Salon

I love Ada! She has been doing my hair for the last 5 years and has always done a fantastic job! I am very picky with my hair and no one can do a better job than Ada! She knows exactly what I want. My husband and my daughter also go to her and like her work too.

Nicky is great — her cuts are perfect and she really listens to the preferences of her clients. Highly recommend her!

I have been going to Ben ever since he started at Ada Salon. He’s the best. He listens and isn’t scared to give advice that might be opposite from what I ask for. I always leave feeling and looking great. If you need a haircut or anything else, call and ask for Ben!

I found ADA SALON on Unilocal years ago! I have never ever looked back at my old over priced snobby salon! Ada is amazing and brilliantly talented. She cuts my hair and my 5 year old daughter. I feel more beautiful than ever give it a shot! You will see…

Ben is one of the best stylists I’ve ever been to (which is quite a lot). He encompasses everything you love from a good barber (nice fades, touchups, etc.), but his scissor work and styling ups the ante. If you come here, only ask for Ben. He really is phenomenal.
The only downside is, walk-​ins can be a bit tough. Having to book my haircut a week in advance may make it difficult when I have last minute engagements.

Would choose no stars but Unilocal makes me put one. Worst haircut and worst owner (and I am normally very easy to please when it comes to cutting hair)
Previously I have been very happy with Ada salon.
Today was a different story. Ada the owner, used thinning scissors on my already fine to begin with hair. As soon as I realised this, it was too late and half my hair had been thinned. These scissors are a great tool for adding texture to thicker hair, but with fine hair it causes the hair to be flyaway.
As soon as I realised I would be leaving with thinned out hair I stood up to complain to the cashier who spoke better English. I was seated on the side where I was made to wait an extra hour before my hair was ‘fixed’
Unfortunately the hair was beyond fixable. Terrible customer service from Ada — arguing rather than listening and being empathetic to me, her customer.
I was given no compensation for waiting an extra hour and was made to pay $ 32 for a wash and style (including haircut would have been $ 42). I did not want to take the styling following the terrible haircut so I paid $ 32 for just a wash. Needless to say I won’t be coming back and urge you not to either.
Happy to pay for ok customer service and and ok haircut, especially at the prices Ada offers. Paying $ 32 for a terrible haircut I now have to wait 6 weeks to grow out then fix and terrible customer service is unacceptable.

I’ve been going here for a while for cuts and a bit of coloring and I’ve always been happy with the results (my current cut is the best I’ve had!). The staff is very friendly, helpful, and most importantly, they want you to leave loving your hair. The prices are great — especially for NY — and the quality is great.
Recently, Ada saved my hair! I stupidly thought I could cover up my highlights with a box dye and ended up with a head of orange hair. I immediately called Ada and they got me in immediately to bring me back to normal hue. Unfortunately, it ended up a bit darker than I’m used to thanks to my damaged hair — but again, I went back and Ada masterfully gave me fresh highlights. I LOVE it! I can’t thank her enough for correcting my mistake. Highly recommend!

Came in for a men’s haircut. 3 star review because I don’t think the service or cut were really worth the price. I should have just gone to a barber and gotten my hair cut for half the cost and better conversation. The stylist that I had was very quiet to where the only thing we said to each other was how I wanted my hair cut. Didn’t even catch his name. There seemed to be a lot of regulars so people must enjoy coming here. My haircut turned out fine so in a pinch I guess I could drop back in.

I am very protective of my hair and particular about who cuts it. I have thick hair, a lot of it, with slight waves and curls, and get it cut 1 or 2 times per year. I have been getting my hair cut by Ada for a few years now, always get compliments afterwards, and will no longer to to anyone else.
I’ve been to different salons and stylists throughout the tri-​state area, and Ada cuts my hair to properly frame my face and in a way which allows the style to grow out very nicely (I’ve been to stylists who cut hair which it looks fine, but you have to go back 3 weeks later to maintain the style — which isn’t practical for me).
I believe Ada’s prices are very fair for the quality of her work, have been told from the very beginning about extra fees for the Senior Stylists — and I have no problem with this policy. I must add that every time I called for an appointment, one time I walked in, and was always quickly accommodated — every time they are able to work with my schedule, and even able to book me the same day if I wanted.
I went in Friday April 10^th for a cut and full head of highlights. I showed up about 15 minutes early to have time to go through different colors, but Ada took me right away. She listened entirely to what I want before she even talked to me about options. I did show her photos of the kind of hair style I wanted and explained that I wanted highlights that would blend in with my natural hair color. Ada took her time, went through all the options, and explained which colors would show up in my dark hair without having to bleach it first. After I chose my color she first cut my hair to desired length and worked on the dye; She did have another employee help with getting the dye in my hair, but I noticed Ada gave her specific instructions and had her observe what she was doing first.
Overall I got EXACTLY what I wanted! I couldn’t be happier with both the cut and highlights. I highly recommend Ada and her salon. I cannot comment on the work of other stylists, but the salon is consistently busy and I never have seen anyone leave unhappy.

Summary: The extra charge is for more experienced stylist. You should choose one of these people. Chinese style head massage and cutting techniques. Not for people that might use to more traditional stylists.
I noticed a few different types of reviews. The first is anger for the extra charges. The second is people who went to other stylists that then criticized this salon’s work. The third is for people that appear to potentially have had legit bad experiences.
I have been going to this salon since it opened, primarily because I did not feel like trekking it to Chinatown to get my hair needs met. Chinese or Eastern salons in general do use a variety of techniques that differ from New York and in particular any where outside of NYC.
The Wash: This is Asian style. If your water is not warm, you should ask them to turn up the heat on it. They mostly are just trying not to burn you and start the temperature low. They do the standard Asian head massage while cleaning the living daylights out of your hair.
Hot Oil: You can do this. It helps. It depends on how much time you have and how much damage you have to your hair.
Cut: I go to Ada because her layers are incredible and she doesn’t over cut Asian Hair, which tends to be slippery. As relates to layers, her technique will allow you hair to not look so thin and to hold that layered look while your hair grows for the next few months. I use to go to other salons and while you’d walk out it would be fine, after a month it looked terrible. Asia folks also have longer hair growth. If you have short hair growth, I personally can’t comment. If you’re looking for a slightly longer men’s hair style or something funky, they are probably a reasonable good place for you to go.
Highlights/​Color: I’m really amazed that some of the color comments are poor. I actually think her highlights are some of the best. I do think there is some way that color is done by Hong Kong hair stylists that must differ, because when I got this done in Florida at a great salon, they seemed to not understand what she’d done and unable to match the chunks so that they could properly touch up the roots. I have had her match the highlights of other stylist 2x and she has done so expertly without using something extremely harsh which a lot of the salons tend to do. Additionally she manages to cover my grey without any trouble. Something that most other salons screw up every time.
Consultation: I consult with her first before we do anything. I trust Ada now and give her free reign of my hair. Still, we talk about what I want done and what I definitely don’t want, before I start. A little surprised at the experience of others.
Blow-​outs: I always have a great experience with the blow outs. She somehow talks me into it every single time. It always look stunning afterwards on my walk home.
Cost: Her prices are reasonable for NYC. I am surprised at the negativity toward the $ 5 or $ 10 issue. It’s actually pretty obvious when you go in the store that the extra charge is similar to paying for a Junior level vs. a Senior level hair stylist.
I’d love to see Ada buy the next door space at some point. I always see her place full and I think she’s identified, trained, and built up several stylists. It’s harder to walk-​in than it use to be.

PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS UNETHICAL SALON KEEPS FIGHTING ME ON THESE CHARGES WITH MY BANK STATING THAT ‘THEY DID THE COLOR THEY THOUGHT WAS ACCEPTABLE AND CLOSE ENOUGH TO THE COLOR i WANTED (THIS IS A DIRECT QUOTE).’ I HAD TO PAY ANOTHER SALON TO FIX THE MESS THEY MADE AND THEY WANT ME TO PAY THEM TOO! WTF?
PLEASE SEE HOW FAR THEY WERE FROM MY NORMAL COLOR IN THE PHOTOS!
I, too, just moved to NYC and was looking for a salon with a great reputation mainly just to do my weekly blowouts. I’ve never had a problem in the city finding this and this salon was no exception — they DO do blowouts exceptionally well. Go further than that and you’re dealing with people you do not want using chemicals around you.
First let me say that the language barrier is immense. For a place that deals with the public right in the the middle of NY you would think they’d have a better grasp of the native language. Not true. It became especially problematic when trying to get the salon to understand color conversion (which I have never had a problem with ever before).
I don’t want to write a long review, I’ll let the photos speak for themselves, but suffice it to say that they colored, re-​colored and then RE-​colored my hair again due to the language barrier, the inability to convert colors from one brand to another and their gross lack of knowledge of the effects of chemicals on hair. It was a disaster that they not only did NOT fix, but charged me for and then forced me to another salon to correct their deficient color job anyway. Just bad.
I have been to a lot of salons (as noted in my many reviews) and I have excellent relationships with my past stylists. I’ve also lived in various cities and have always kept my hair the same color, etc. This wasn’t my first time doing this, but this WAS my first time having my hair completely botched by a salon without an apology or refund, but I was told that if I didn’t pay (by the owner who actually DID this) that the police would be called even as I almost started crying over the way my hair looked. I even got another salon to write a letter to my bank telling them the damage that was done and how much they had to do to fix it.
This place is irresponsible, unprofessional and untrustworthy. They do NOT know what they’re doing. Please see photos for proof.

First time at Ada today. went for a wash and blow out, I have naturally curly, long hair. Walked in last week and made the appt (also wanted in person to be sure they stuck to the price they quoted).
Appt. was at 12.30p, I showed up on time and was promptly directed to wash chairs. I will agree with the others the chairs are massive and über-​comfy! The hair wash/​massage was good. I was then directed to Julia for the blow out. She asked if I wanted pin straight or with body — i figured lets go for body — i can do pin straight with my flat iron. She worked diligently and quickly and in less than half an hour I was done. With the right amount of body and all my coworkers asked if i even got a cut — it looks that good. I also received a stamp card for future appts.
All in all a great experience. And the total price was $ 35 plus tip. I will happily go back to Ada should I ever need a blow out (I have my queens spot for cut/​color). Nice people, great service. what more can you ask for?!

Being fairly new to the Hell’s Kitchen area, I googled hair salons in the zip code and found Ada Salon on 9^th Avenue. I was looking for a place to get my hair blown out on my lunch hour that was reasonably priced. I am happy to say that Ada fit the bill perfectly!
I made an appointment for 2:00 and when I got there they took me right away. My hair was washed and I sat down in Rick’s chair. He took the time to thoroughly brush out my hair as he asked me what I would like to have done. I told him I wanted a blow out, with the ends flipped up with the brush. And he did just that. Within 30 minutes my hair was blown out, flipped, sprayed and I was walking out the door a happy woman.
A nice surprise at the end — they gave me a discount card since I work in the area. Once I spend a certain amount of money, I’m eligible to get some discounts on their services.
It was my first trip today, but not my last

This place is great. The receptionist Joyce is really kind and always remembers my name. I can only speak to mens haircuts but I will say Ben is probably the best hair stylist I’ve ever had. The best part is he is consistent. I’ve never had a bad cut from him before. (And I’m very picky).
It took me a few months after moving here to find a good place for a haircut and this is it. Definitely recommend!!!

I live right around the corner so I decided to try this place out as I am paying $ 20 for a barbershop. I think it’s worth it to pay an extra 8 for the service so I stopped by the other day. The lady up front is friendly and def made me feel welcome. I didn’t have to wait more than 10 minutes, which was nice, even though it was packed. In regards to the haircut itself, it was my first time so I didn’t say much, just to see what they could do. I’ll be more vocal next time I go but I will be returning and had a good experience for my first trip.

I came here to get a hair cut, and it was amazing! Ben did a great job on my
Hair, and was a really nice guy! If you’re looking for a stylist, ask for Ben.

I’ve been coming here for 6 months and was happy with Shawn cutting my hair. Recently, they started charging me $ 5 additional if I wanted to see a specific person, even though Shawn was not busy, I couldn’t see him because it wasn’t his turn (out of rotation)!
I can understand if its during busy hours. But at 11am on a weekday?
Dear Ada:
Most people come back to your salon for a specific person. Why are you charging us to come back? This is a sad way to lose a loyal customer. Big fail!
—- in response to Ada’s comment —-
Dear Ada — appreciate your reply. Let me clarify:
Firstly, the 1 star has nothing to do with Shawn’s service. As mentioned, I was «happy» with him. The reality of a Unilocal rating is that it reflects the entire business operations (quality of product, service, etc.). As such, the quality of Shawn’s service is 5 star and the reason why I’ve been back 3 times. But the business operations is a 1 star and the reason why I won’t be returning anymore.
Secondly, regarding this «longstanding and well disclosed policy» — I’ve been coming to Shawn 3 times now and only during my 3^rd visit was I charged the $ 5 and made aware of this (in October). The receptionist also told me if I just come in and wait for Shawn (without an appointment), then I won’t be charged. I did that yesterday and she’s now telling me I’ll be charged regardless. Can you understand my surprise and confusion?
Regardless, I wish I had known about your policy the 1^st time I requested for Shawn. That would be «well disclosed». I would have decided to go somewhere else where they won’t charge me to come back. But that’s just my preference.
You can call me anytime to talk more: 917−691−0250
— update: ¹¹⁄₂₄ —
I talked to Ada over the phone and she explained the salon’s policies to me and offered an apology for any miscommunication of it. It was nice of her to reach out personally, a gesture I can appreciate from any business.
In the end, the policy is not right for me and I will find another stylist elsewhere, but if you don’t mind this policy, I would highly recommend Shawn.

Worst «salon» experience of my life. If I could go back in time and choose another place, or even cut and color my own hair I would. Julia is a butcher that attempted to turn me into a witch — and it wasn’t even Halloween. I’m not sure why covering a few grays and a trim was such a challenge for this beauty school dropout.
I called on a Friday afternoon after reading all these lovely reviews and was pleasantly surprised that they had time to take me on such short notice. They didn’t have time, they just jam in anyone that wants an appointment without dedicating the proper time to anyone. I had a date following but I barely wanted to leave my house after what they did to me.
As I waited for the hairdresser, a small boy started applying vaseline to my forehead. I asked shouldn’t I see the hairdresser before you start doing anything? He agreed and stopped. She came by and I said I just want the few grey hairs I have to be covered up. She suggested a Wella permanent color, pulled out the color book and pointed at a color which I said was darker than my natural color — are you sure? She said it was the right color.
She mixed up the dye, and applied it thickly only to my roots. I sat there for 35 minutes and then the small boy integrated the dye into the rest of my hair, naturally blondish-​brown, and let it sit for an additional few minutes. He roughly washed it out and then I sat in the chair for Julia to cut and style.
The dye had gotten all over my forehead and I had a black halo that wouldn’t fade for a week. I was horrified as my hair dried and I had blackish roots and now reddish brown hair. I looked like a witch. How anyone could give this vile color to someone bewilders me. I asked her to be gentle as my hair easily breaks and she responded «not that easily». She asked me to flip my head over and blow dried it a little, then blew out just a few pieces around my face.
And that was it — the single most horrific hair experience of my life. Stupefied, I paid for color, cut and style (what style?) and came back to request my money back within a few days. They refused to provide a refund saying they would fix it. There isn’t a chance in hell that I would let someone in this «salon» touch me ever again.
This is the place for a buzz cut or some kind of quick trim. Do not make my mistake and expect any kind of quality from such an establishment. NEVER GO HERE FOR COLOR. When someone writes a review this bad, believe it. This is a chop shop that doesn’t give a rat’s ass about their clientele or their reputation.
Parting thoughts — my hair was falling out in clumps and breaking for weeks afterwards and I had pimples along my forehead from where they applied oil trying to remove the dye. Just shoot me…

Let me start out by saying that on average, I tend to go for a «blow-​out» once a week. So I may be a bit of a snob. haha. But think about it $ 40+ a week = $ 200 a month with tips. So the place better be reliable and do a fantastic job.
The first two times at the salon– my blow out came out great. I do agree that the scalp massages are amazing, although they need to use warm water. no fun or relaxation if its cold and hands are rough.
My third experience was on the 3^rd of July. I wanted a nice sexy blowout for the holiday weekend. Being that this was my third time at the shop, I trusted that I was in good hands.
They had me go with one of the male stylists. I noticed the attitude on him and dismissive behavior right off the bat. I tried to start telling him how I like my hair parted and the style. I like it with a lot of FULL volume. (he just nodded away). I could tell he really wasn’t listening to a word. He seemed very dismissive.
Final product– hair was still very frizzy. Literally, blow drying my own hair would have looked better. It looked like I took a shower and didn’t even blow it — nonetheless paid someone $ 35.
I complained about it and the receptionist had a woman (possibly the owner) come over to fix the blowout. I liked that they tried to fix it — but her attitude was also very short and dismissive. no apology– and it seemed like I was inconveniencing her.
She did basically a 3 minute repair by drying and styling it over a bit. and then just walked away. It was really rude.
I called when I got home and told the receptionist that I would not be back. She implied that the male stylist didn’t know how to style my kind of hair. I said yeah I knew as much as he wasn’t even using the correct brush. My hair needs to be blown dry and styled with a big round brush. The stylist was using a tiny curling brush to blow dry my hair?
why would you put me with such a duntz when other good stylists were open? {There is a Russian woman stylist who is very good for blowout}.
I won’t come back because of that experience. I need a place I can rely on for a good consistent blowout. This was 4^th of July and I had to REDO my hair for the evening. I had specifically traveled into the city from queens (was off of work that day) to what I thought was «my» place and would hook me up.
Females. I would not use the male stylists for blowout.

I was in desperate need of a color correction yesterday, and am so glad that I decided on Ada Salon.
I’ve had ombré hair, with dark roots, going into a subtle honey blonde for quite a few months, and wanted a change with my usual stylist at another salon. I guess when some certain stylists get too comfortable with their own clients, they choose not to listen anymore. To make a long story short, he didn’t listen to my wants, and I walked out with zebra hair — spots all over, light roots, dark mid-​shaft, light ends. basically worse than an at home dye job.
I stormed into Ada’s like a mad-​woman crying for help, and was calmly seated, and had a thorough consultation with Ada before she proceeded to fix my not-​so-​hot mess. TBH, I was a tad worried because I originally wanted Ben, as he cut my hair in the past, but unfortunately he was booked for the day. Well. those worries went away quite quickly. The whole process took 3 hours with Ada herself, but she took her time and fixed everything from my roots to my ends. In addition to just making me look normal again, she gave me the exact highlights I wanted along with my original ombré that sadly, my own hair stylist uptown couldn’t do for me. I wanted a balayage blended into ombré look, with an asher blonde than my original, and Ada delivered.
Luckily, by the time my color was done with, Ben finally became available and I waited a few quick minutes for him to do my cut. My ends were somewhat damaged at certain parts, but that’s expected when I’m bleaching my hair 3x in one night. He managed to remove most of the fried ends without taking much off my hair’s length, AND the cut looks great as well! My usual guy uptown had my hair too layered, too textured, and the old cut just had my full head (I have lots and lots of hair) look like it was thinning at the end. Ben straightened out my cut, and although I left with 1″ shorter hair, my hair looks longer and fuller than it did before I stepped into Ada’s.
Thank you Ada, and Ben!