Smitty’s Barber Shop

Very friendly. Does a great job. Been going there for over 5 years now !! Just found out that they will be forced to move sometime soon. Developers have bought the site– more apartments/condo’s for Ballard.

WORST service experience ever. Period. Cold reception when I entered. I wanted to give simple instuctions to make it an easy cut. When the barber (and owner!) asked what I wanted, I told him «just cut it like yours». When he finally handed me the mirror (the cut took too long and I kept wondering if the guy knew what he was doing) I said with a shock «What did you do to my hair?!» He told me to get out and accused me of trying to get a free hair cut. Then he proceeded to blame his rage on me, accusing me of starting it, which must have been the part where I said «What did you do to my hair!?» Which is exactly what I thought when I saw it in the mirror. He had shaved a notch in my hairline to resemble a sort of asymmetric widows peak, then proceeded to tell me that I have a receding hairline, which I don’t, which is obvious and irrefutably untrue. Can you see that widows peak in my pic? I don’t have any widows peak at all! He put it there! We went around and around. Then he told me I have a cowlick, which I do. The problem, however, is that my cowlick was (was, as in, it’s gone now) exactly where my supposed «receding hairline» was/​is. What? Did he fail to see the contradiction? The woman Barber tried to offer me solution by reminding me that my hair would grow back. That didn’t help their case. How, after all, would my «receding hairline» grow back? I thought he was going to punch me, or I him because I have a powerful dislike for manipulative bully types who presume that most folks will avoid conflict and pay up, even when they’re in the right on matters such as this. I left without paying, my hair is a botch and needs repair. This event provoked my very first Unilocal ever. Fun! I never thought I would Unilocal.Especially over a $ 20 haircut. Smitty’s should be called Sh$@&y’s. I’m shocked by how I was treated. It may appear that I’ve gone on and on here. Trust me, I’m still biting my tongue.

Not a bad haircut. Nothing fancy or anything and they’re consistent. Nice people too.

I had an excellent experience here. The Gentlemen did a fantastic job on using the straight razor to shave my head

Without a doubt the worst haircut of my life. Asked for shorter sides, longer top, take off a month’s worth. The male barber cut 3 inches off the front of my hair, cut the left side shorter than the right and didn’t trim my side burns. I was so angry with this horrible chop job that I returned later in the day to have him try and fix it. It’s still a mess. WORST HAIRCUT IN 30 YEARS. I would NEVER even consider returning here.

This is my first Unilocal review, and I felt compelled to write it because of all of the negative reviews that Smitty’s has. I went there for the first time today and had my haircut by the man with dark hair and a beard (as opposed to the woman who was working there). I’m not much for chit chat during a haircut, so this place was perfect.
He asked me what I wanted, I told him, he did a great job, and gave me my first straight razor neck shave. The haircut was $ 20. I also liked the set up of the place. It is old and small. You’re not facing the mirror, you’re facing the window, and you get to see what your hair looks like once the cut is done.
Added bonus: Mad Max was playing on the TV.

Not happy with my cut. Tired of stylists that don’t listen to you!
I said trim the sides to the top of the ears and got them practically shaved.
I said short on top and longer in the back. I got the opposite.
I will not be back. Now I have to pay again to get it fixed!
Less than pleased!

Lourdes, one of the female regular barbers is great. She has the best stylistic sensibilities, is patient, easy going and gentle around my neck area which is very tender. The price keeps creeping up ($ 16 as of 01÷10÷12) in a time when I think it should not; but, I feel like I get the personal touch when I’m there and therefore it is ultimately worth the sense of well being I experience when I leave. However, it is disappointing that they don’t do hair coloring. But then they wouldn’t be a barber shop.

I should have listened to the other reviews. Just moved to Seattle and will continue seeking a true man’s barber shop.
Haircut was OK at best. Mostly I was shocked that what appears to be an old school barber shop doesn’t even finish with a straight razor neck shave.
The only redeeming quality is that it is across the street from the Blue Dog if you are seeking a good breakfast.

Had my haircut here for the first time. Very cute place with an awesome mascot! Three chairs in this tiny shop, I had my haircut by the male barber.
Very nice guy but his chair is real close to the wall and he has trouble getting around the window and his chair. It seems uncomfortable for him and he bumped into me a lot. I thought «It can’t be easy to give a good haircut with those conditions.»
I was correct because I noticed when I was at work that one side of my hair was longer than the other and I had a line all the way across my head that was not blended.
I went back and the guy fixed his mistake and was apologetic but I don’t think I will go back.

This has been my go-​to barbershop since I moved to Ballard. It’s not a fancy place, and you do need to know what you want, but the price is right, the people are nice, and the barbers are competent.

I’ve been coming to Smitty’s for a little over a few years now on a monthly basis, just a drop in the bucket compared to the 65 years that this place has been opened for. The very first time I came here there was a very old man getting is perfectly coiffed hair cut. One of the hairdressers told me that he had been coming here for 60 years… Wow! I try to switch between the two brunnette girls that are there because they both possess very good hair cutting techniques.
True, they don’t use any products, no hair washing, no head massage but I have NEVER had a scratchy neck/​back when leaving. I love that «vacuum» they use to clean off the hairs with. I wish all salons had that. I always look damn good when I’m done there and for $ 12 bucks CASH… It doesn’t get much better than that.
Parking is a little sketch, as it’s street parking and I drive a big a$$ (fire breathing) truck so it’s tough for me to find a parking spot. But you Seattle-​ites with your Vespa’s and Smartcars shouldn’t have any trouble.
They also have a super cute, very well behaved pomeranian named Rex that lives in the shopping bag in the store that reminds me of my old pomeranian Simba…
P. s. I was just kidding about the fire-​breathing part.

I feel mixed writing this because we went here for a while to get my son’s hair cut and I really have a fondness for James. He is sweet and was very good with my son. However, my son’s hair was different every time and sometimes not looking so good…

I have been here a few times. The first time I went I received a good cut, but the two cuts I have had since have been bad ones. The last time I was there I had to tell the guy to shorten it up 3 times. He finally quit asking me how it looked and decided I was done. I left with over an inch of hair that I would have liked chopped off. I got it fixed somewhere else 4 days later.

Hubby got hair cut here today. He didn’t really have a clear vision of what he wanted so we just said «shorter.» Out came the clippers wielded by expert hands and we were out of there within 20 minutes. No fancy products, no head massage, just the basics for $ 13 plus tip. Hubby said he’d go back in a minute (though he won’t need to for a while).