I was checking out The Sartorialist blog this morning and was delighted to see a very familiar face. Let me introduce you to my barber, Robby. He is a native New Yorker and is of the coolest dudes I’ve met since I moved here. Whenever I need a cut, or whenever I need info on a hotspot in the City, he puts me on. He’s a barber and a walking NYC almanac.
The relationship between a man and his barber is a special one. You have to like them (Robby gets my hard-earned cash almost every week, so I had better) and you have to trust them (I wouldn’t feel comfortable with just anyone holding a sharp razor to my face). I liken getting a haircut to going on a roadtrip with a friend—there are moments when you want to talk and then there are moments when you just want to be quiet and fade off into the hum of the engine (or in this case, the buzz of the clippers). A good barber can tell the difference. Conversations can range from “what is my purpose in life?” deep to “did you see that girl who just passed by?” shallow. A good barber can sense when each type is appropriate.
I’m actually going to see him this afternoon and after he daps me up he’ll undoubtedly ask me the same question he does everytime I climb into his chair: “What are you getting done today?” And everytime my answer is the same: “The regular.” And then, without any further direction, he gets to work. Because he knows his client, a good barber will already know the answer to this type of question. But out of courtesy and for the sake of professionalism, he asks it anyway. Robby is a good barber.
You can catch Robby at Changing Faces Barber Salon at 692 Fulton St. in Brooklyn.
—TRAVERS