Craig’s Como Barber Shop

Absolutely fantastic experience every time I’ve been there.
On top of an amazing haircut, you get great conversation, a barber who is clearly passionate about his work, and an old-​school community barbershop feel. He spends the time necessary (about 40 minutes) to give you a good looking haircut, so the wait can be a bit long.
What I like best is that Craig knows what his clients like, remembers you, and has been willing to stay well past closing time to satisfy each client. I can’t say enough good things about this place, and I VERY highly recommend it.

This place is top-​notch. Be mindful of the weekends and during busy times, get there early. A haircut here is an experience, it’s like a living museum of a bygone era. You will hear a story or two from an old-​timer while getting a nice cut the way they used to. This is a true barbershop. I was recommended by a dear friend, and I keep coming back.

I’ve been going to this place for at least 7 years. Both Craig and Pete are great. If you have some time to kill hanging out just show up and relax, enjoy the conversation.
I used to live in the neighborhood (when I started going there), a couple of years ago I moved further away, totally worth the trip back
If you don’t have much time to wait their website will give you an idea of how busy they are, they keep it updated. If you aren’t into“websites” you can always call and they’ll tell you what the wait is like.
It may seem like they’re always busy, but that’s just because they’re good.
Word to wise, if you can make it there on a day with bad weather (lots of snow or rain or it’s just really cold) they usually aren’t as busy on those days.
This place is old school in that they are closed on Sundays AND Mondays. I’ve been burned by that before.

I would gladly give this place 5 out of 5 stars if not only for the fact of two things. 1) the wait time with no allowed reservations is insane I have waited over 2 hours before. 2) In a country with more people struggling to get by they have now just raised their prices beyond what is worth the actual experience of a barber however good they might be.

3 stars, so it’s alright. My cut was a little conservative, which I understand because you can’t cut hair longer. But my biggest beef was that it’s one of those barber shops where you’re facing away from the mirror, that’s unnerving. If you’re old and you just want a crew cut or something else old-​fashioned, this will work for you though!

Stumbled in here years ago when I was a student in the neighborhood. I’ve been coming back here for a decade plus. Craig took over for Pete and the quality has not suffered. The shop is a classic sportsmen’s barber shop with Taxidermy animals, old men hanging out and hot barbasol with a straight razor.

I enjoyed my haircut here today. Usually there are two barbers in, Craig and Pete, and they are both friendly and personable, and they spend about twenty minutes trimming and tapering the hair, and laughing at your jokes.
Free WiFi network for when your waiting, but don’t reserve a spot, going to Craig’s website shows how long the wait is. Not open Mondays

Pete and Craig are the best neighborhood barbers you could ask for, and have the experience, humor, conversational skills, and hunting trophies to match. This place has been in business for over a hundred years, and their craft has been perfected in that time.
Pete has been here for around forty years, and Craig has been at his side for a while. Stop in for a cut, and you’ll surely come back once you realize the attention to detail these guys give their craft.
Fantastic place. Highly recommended.

I have been a customer for about 1 year, and I believe that Pete’s Como Barber Shop is the essence of what a good barber shop should be. I spent about 3 years attempting to find a barber that delivered consistently high quality cuts, and I have finally found one. No more have I had to drive home only to find out that a spot was missed, or my side burns were uneven.
First and foremost the two barbers are very skilled and take pride in their work. For an $ 18 regular cut (no cards) you get a level of service and 35 – 40 minutes worth of attention that result in an amazing hair cut. The level of attention they show when cutting is excellent and really explains why this place has so many loyal life-​long customers. Often, people stop in off the street just to say hi, and the sense of community is great.
I frequently travel, and this is by far the best barber I have come across. If you give it a try — and prefer the adult atmosphere a barber shop brings over a place like Great Clips — you are most likely going to be a life-​long customer, and singing its praises.

It’s pathetic.

I first came to the states 3 days ago and I brought my frizzy out-​of-​control hair with me. I searched up a good barber shop and headed to Pete’s. To make a long story short, I’ve had the best haircut of my life.
This is a man who enjoys what he’s doing. You can’t be really sure if he’s taking his time cutting your hair so that he gets it just perfect or so that he could become your best friend, because he does both.
It cost me 18 $ for a haircut, shave, aftershave gel, seeing dozens of Pete’s hunts on the walls, and having an amazing 45 minutes of interesting conversation.
Best barbershop in town? Most definitely.

This place is awesome! Hands down best barber shop in Minneapolis. Both Pete and Craig know how to cut hair and to top it off there’s a hot shave included at the end. Top notch!

My brother is a regular here and brought me for a haircut when I was in town from NYC. This was hands down the best haircut I have ever received!!! I am pretty picky and have been to many of New York’s «best» but this was the real deal. $ 18 may be more than some men want to pay for a haircut but believe me when I say it is well worth it. Definitely coming back next time I’m visiting my brother!!!

Came in for my pre-​wedding haircut this past August. Exceptional experience. Didn’t want to jinx it, so didn’t review it right away (also, was kind of busy with the whole GETTING MARRIED thing). Knew I’d come back again, but have always been low-​maintenance about my hair. Sometimes I’ll go three or four months into a Michael Landon-​esque mane before getting it trimmed. This is not an aversion on my part to haircuts, just sheer (no pun intended) laziness. Having said that, Craig makes me want to come in monthly. Getting your hair cut at Pete’s is not an errand, but a luxury. All three times I’ve been in there’s been some salty old regular there shooting the shit with the scissor-​jockeys while I chuckle in the chair and try to get a jab in edgewise. When you have to wait you can quietly read the paper, or toss some sports commentary into the mix, or both. It is true that the walls are full of trophy birds (last time I was in I heard the origin story of the spotted owl above the #2 chair — spoiler alert, it was obtained legally), but that’s not even the homiest part of this place’s hospitality. Any time I walk into an establishment and am offered free brownies before I get my coat off, I’m calling it five stars. Thanks, guys, and I look forward to many years of cuts and banter!

Up until three months ago, I was a regular at the nearest Cost Cutters/​Fantastic Sams/​Great Clips franchise. I took whoever was available and was usually not completely disappointed at best and very pissed off at lack of service, customer satisfaction and quality at worst.
I came onto Unilocal specifically to look for a barber after I became completely fed up with the cookie cutter (pun not intended) hair cut places. I give @Justin P. a lot of credit for his thorough review that convinced me to give this place a try. Apparently he is a regular there since Craig and Pete both know him well.
Read Justin’s review on the amenities of the place. There is no exaggeration in his details. This place really is old school and Pete does hunt a lot, but his associate Craig seems to always be there. If there are two or three people waiting and one in the chair and there is only one guy cutting hair, plan on being there for a couple hours minimum. Sit back and grab a magazine or just chat up the old timer sitting next to you.
If you’re looking to get in and out, don’t bother coming. You might as well wait until you have an hour or two, depending on how many customers are already waiting when you get there. Neither of these guys are very quick. I specifically told Craig that is one of the reasons I come here. I thoroughly enjoy getting my haircut. There must be a lot of nerve endings in my scalp or something because I become completely relaxed after about ten seconds into the haircut, so the longer it takes, the better.
I asked about getting my face shaved. Their chairs don’t recline so that is one service they do not currently offer. I would probably go in more often if they did. They will give you a straight edge neckline shave though and that is an experience all on its own.
Come and check these guys out. The business is locally owned. Get yourself a little history lesson or gossip while you’re there. No credit cards, bring a cash or check.

For men, there are few things more important than a good barber.
I am not talking about Great Clips here, I am talking about a real barber that’ll shave your the back of your neck with a straight-​edge blade while telling you a dirty joke.
Peter Kish at Como Barber’s fits this mold as well as any barber in America. I go to one-​chair shop near the U of M every three weeks, without fail.
But every once and a while, Pete will go decide to go turkey hunting for a week and my life will be thrown into chaos. I always flirt with the idea of going to Fantastic Sam’s, but that temptation quickly passes and I just live with frizzy hair for a few more days.
Sorry ladies, men only at this shop. The walls are adorned with bowling trophies and things that Pete has killed over the years– fish, moose, deer…
He always the most recent version of those R-​rated men’s magazines that pretend to have good writing in them (but, let’s be honest guys, it’s the pictures that keep you turning the pages). I never mind waiting for a trim.
Cloaked in a blue smock and chewing on a toothpick, the lifelong barber is an expert on just about everything important – sports, booze, movies and politics. But, as the political season cranks into high-​gear, he deftly avoids revealing anything close to an opinion (‘It’s bad for business to take sides,’ he tells me after a political blabbermouth leaves the shop).
One of my favorite parts of the shop is Pete’s phone; it makes the sound of a duck decoy when it rings and is shaped like a loon.
As long as Pete’s in business, I will not get my hair cut elsewhere. He has hundreds of customers who will make the same bold statement.
So, if you see legions of men with hairy necks walking around Minneapolis looking a bit confused, it just means that Pete has decided to go turkey hunting.