Salon 5th Avenue Hair & Spa

My old stylist left to become a stay at home mommy, so I figured I’d gamble on someone new. I found this place through a Living Social deal; $ 39 for a haircut, but I had an extra 20% off. What a deal!
I called to make the appointment before I bought the voucher since I’ve had experiences where once the company found out I had a voucher, they made it a hassle to book an appointment, etc. Not at all at this place. I was able to make a convenient appointment a few days away and the receptionist was super nice and friendly.
I was told they actually sell the Groupons right at the salon for $ 36 for a haircut. I believe that Groupon takes a portion of the proceeds, so I guess by selling their own the salon gets to keep more? Either way, its a win for the customer.
I received a Text message within ½ an hours of booking the appointment to confirm it. I also got a reminder call the day before and another Text the morning of.
The parking situation at the salon sucks. Its in Hillcrest and although not in the super busy area (its in a multi use building with a coffee shop just down the street from the smaller Extraordinary Desserts without a ton of other retail shops around), the street parking close by wasn’t to be found. I parked a couple minutes away for $ 2 for 2 metered hours.
I was a few minutes late because of the lack of parking, but the receptionist was totally nice about it, gave me a warm welcome and agreed with me that the parking does suck. She offered me something to drink and made me a fresh cup of coffee (apologizing profusely for the lack of cream). I believe they had tea and water too. I just signed in, wrote my voucher number down.
The salon is nice and bright (everything is creamy or white) with super high ceilings, a cool chandelier, and nicely appointed with comfortable chairs.
It was near empty on the Friday afternoon I had my appointment. There were maybe two other clients and a stylist doing her own hair. It was quiet in there; there here was no music playing,
They carry Kevin Murphy products, which I was unfamiliar with, but really like after they were used on me. They also have Pureology and another brand I can’t recall. The prices seemed reasonable.
I got my smock and she showed me where the restroom was and by the time I came out, my stylist Nieves was there to greet me. There were a couple of chairs by the receptionist’s desk to sit at in case you had to wait.
Nieves was really energetic, friendly and seemed to like her job. She sat me down for a consultation first and went over everything in great detail. We had differing opinions on how short I should go and she gave me feedback, but honestly I would have preferred if she was a bit more forceful with her suggestions (I kept asking her to tell me what she was thinking since she’s the pro and would know what did or didn’t work better than I would, but she was really subtle about it, so the whole decision making process was a bit frustrating and took a while. That being said, I can totally understand that she’s probably been told to back off before from those «the customer is always right» people and was hesitant to just tell me what to do. Either way, we kinda compromised and figured it out.
She shampooed my hair (the chairs/​sink were nice and comfy) and kept asking if the water temp was ok, which was nice. She cut my hair, then dried it and cut it some more, then flat ironed it. I asked her to change a part of it a bit I wasn’t totally satisfied with and she did. She then asked if she could put product in it and used a nice dry powder finishing spray (Kevin Murphy Doo Over) and a bit of shimmer spray (I was hesitant, but she showed me on her hands it wasn’t glittery). They both smelled so nice and the latter left my hair nice and shiny.
Overall, its a good cut, not the best I’ve had, but good. It was a really basic cut so I’m not sure how she would do with a more complicated one, but I would go to someone more senior if I wanted that. She did use different techniques than my old stylist, which made my cut a little more textured than I’m used to; its nice, as is the way she styled it (she did great there). She did a great job of angling the back without it being choppy which I really like. My worry is I won’t be able to recreate it… that’ll be the real test and I’ll post an update.
She was super nice, friendly and really chatty the whole time which was fun for me, although I can see not everyone enjoying that. The cut took almost an hour, which is longer than I’m used to, but I’m not sure if that’s because we were chatting or she took longer to blow dry it than most other people. Either way, it was worth the wait for the nice styling and good conversation.
She did give me a coupon for $ 20 off my next cut or a free cut with colour.
Overall, I had a really good experience. I’ll see how the cut measures up once I try to do it myself (the real test of a good cut) and with a good deal I will consider going back.

I purchased a groupon to try this place out. I’m well aware many businesses aren’t thrilled with groupon customers (I know I didn’t appreciate them when my old job ran groupon deals), and on top of that I was 15 min late for my appointment. I felt like such a jerk and fully expected any stylist to rush through and shoo me out as quickly as possible. That was not at all the experience I had.
Darius did an amazing job with my hair, adapting the style in a picture I brought in to fit my hair type. He showed me at multiple points how it was looking and gave me options to leave certain pieces or trim them off. He was efficient, but thorough and I greatly appreciated that.
The salon in general had a great atmosphere, and I definitely recommend making an appointment, groupon or not. Darius’ work is certainly worth paying full price.

Gerardo is AMAZINGGGGGG. He definitely cares and wants to listen to you. He wants you to be comfortable and is great at holding conversations with you while getting your hair done. ALSO. HIS WORK IS AMAZING. I had dark dark dark hair and he was able to make me blonde in one sitting. Super talented and super nice. Love this place. Will forever be coming back.

Just okay. I found this place with a GroupOn and thought that even with the discount it was pretty pricey. I had wanted «just the ends, the dry stuff» trimmed off before I went on a business trip. While I greatly appreciate that my stylist did just trim off the ends, I would have appreciated the recommendation, or heads up on what should be removed to give my hair a healthy look, since it still looked pretty cooked on the ends when I was done. I did however get plenty of recommendations on how great my hair would look with layers even after I explained that I didn’t like what it did with my curls. I enjoyed chatting with my stylist but also felt like at time he was pushing products or referrals. Other staff sat in the hair washing stations next to me and ate lunch, which made me feel like I was keeping them at the salon longer. When I first got there I was given a smock to put on which I felt was kinda funny considering I was just getting my hair cut. Finally what was really annoying was the fancy chairs that were painful and uncomfortable to sit it. I kept sipping around which I know is not ideal when trying to get a straight cut.
For what I needed (just a freshening up before a business trip) it was fine but the service and quality didn’t match the fancy interior. I wouldn’t rush back here.

I have blonde straight hair, and it shows everything so I am super selective when it comes to picking a stylist. Karen does a lot of my friends’ hair and has a super wide range of talents (she is great at all shades of color, highlights, corrective, etc) and I am super stoked to have found her! She has a booth at this salon and is absolutely amazing! She’s very accommodating and not only listened to what it was that I wanted, she went above and beyond to make it happen and matched my color exactly. I could not have asked for a better experience! She is fun, outgoing, and very talented.
A handful of people I know swear by Karen as well, and what’s interesting is what an amazing job she does on all of us even though we have vastly different hair: straight to curly, long to short, dark to light and every shade in between. Karen is a keeper! Tell her Katie sent you ;)

Yesterday I went to Groupon Now and ended up deciding on Salon 5^th Ave. I had hair down past my shoulders and wanted to do a pixie cut with highlights. Here’s to pros and cons (for the record the pros outweigh the cons)
Pros —
Rachel takes an incredible amount of pride in her work.
She took time to talk to me about my style and gave good ideas but still STUCK TO WHAT I ASKED FOR, which is completely awesome since a couple of hair salons ago I had to go back three times to have the «stylist» unF what she did to my hair.
She spent over two hours on my hair.
Rachel was very courteous and offered me drinks (soda/​water/​tea) several times.
The salon was very clean.
The rest of the staff was friendly and complementary (I think I made everyone a little nervous with my pile of hair mounting up on the floor… I’m sure they have seen many freak outs before. so the receptionist kept looking over and tossing me complements/​reassurances)
Cons —
Get there early — parrallel parking only. But don’t get there too early since all the parking in the area is two hours only and bring quarters.
I had to pause after the hair cut to go move my car before coming back for highlights… not cool.
Rachel was still working on another client when I got there so my noon appointment ended up being closer to a 12:30 apt. I didn’t mind though because I know I wouldn’t want my hair rushed either.
Not cheap… part of what delayed my appointment was the lady before me freaking out about the cost ($ 140 partial highlights/cut.she was expecting $ 70.not sure where the mix up was but sounds like bad gauge from a friend that had a Groupon before) To be honest the cut and color are awesome but not sure that I will come back and pay $ 140 the next time. The $ 85 I spent on the Groupon was about my limit.

I had an appt with Carmen last week, I absolutely love what she did with my hair! I’ve had long hair since I could remember but I had gone to her wanting a change. She gave me the best hair cut and she fixed my color! I love it! Best experience.

I might be slightly biased because I’ve known Santiago for years but I LOVE my monthly visits there. Their staff is a family — they function like a family and they are so much fun to hang out with and talk to. In addition, Santiago is incredibly talented. I give him difficult tasks (like one day I’ll walk in and say I want ombré but I want it a specific color) and he will come back with something that is flattering and perfect. It’s not often you meet/​work with someone who just gets it and makes you feel beautiful when you leave. I highly recommend him and his salon!

I’ve had a ton of bad experiences with other stylists and so finding Darius was nothing short of a miracle for me. My sister-​in-​law turned me on to him and I couldn’t be happier. He always pays special attention to the consultation to make sure I’m getting what I want. Sometimes he takes creative liberties with the styling process, which sometimes is too much for me but still fun. My only complaint is how expensive it can be, but the salon is good about sending out periodic coupons which definitely helps! Despite the horrible parking situation, I’m committed to sticking with him.

Getting my Brazilian blow out. Love coming to see Santiago. He is a true hair artist. Best cokor, style and blow outs.

Updating my review after the haircut. The salon was clean and nice, fancy if i may say. Carmen did a nice job with my hair and I am loving my new haircut. Its a little shorter than what I wanted but looks good nonetheless. Not sure if i would go back due to the high prices.

Darius is awesome! He did miracles with my extremely dry, damaged hair. I will definitely recommend Darius. The salon its self is great, really cute décor and the customer service is outstanding. I’ve been here twice, the first time I purchased a groupon, I loved it so much I came back. Before seeing Darius my hair looked horrible it was fried and dry since a previous hair salon had completely messed up my hair. I came to Darius, and he fixed my hair little by little and I’m so pleased with the results. This salon is a MUST, ask for Darius.(:

Carmen Flores did the most amazing updo for a wedding I recently attended. She is a true professional artist. The updo was classy and elegant. I received dozens of compliments throughout the evening. Not to mention the updo maintained its structure for over 24 hours. To boot, the price was quite reasonable compared to other salons in the area. I am looking forward to going to Carmen again for my next big event.

TERRIBLE CUSTOMER SERVICE!
The first time I went to Salon 5^th Ave. I was super happy with Santiago. However, in every time I have gone since, I have noticed that the pricing always seems to change. I then simply got into the habit of calling and asking what the price would be for partial highlights and haircut. It seemed to change every time, so when the price quoted worked for me, I went and if it was too costly, I didn’t. My sister also used to go to Salon 5^th Ave. and last time she popped in to get her bangs trimmed she was charged $ 20! The previous 3 times she had gone for a bang trim, Santiago charged nothing. She called the next day to ask the cost of a bang trim and they said $ 7. There was even a time I went and wrote down the price they gave over the phone and they STILL tried to charge me an extra $ 20.00.
My final straw just came when they sent me a coupon for 50% off services. When I went to confirm the price, they admitted they accidentally sent me the coupon and that they would only give me 40% off. Listen, 40% off is a killer deal! If that had been the original deal I was sent, I without a doubt would have gone. However, when I asked them to honor the 50% they gave me so much attitude and sass. I explained it wasn’t the money but the principal but they refused to budge.
Needless to say, if you want a good haircut and color but dont mind never knowing how much it will cost and being subject to their bait-​and-​switch game, this is the pace for you.

Came to the salon because I got a Living Social deal, plus needed a new hairstylist as I just recently moved to San Diego.
I’ll start off by saying the good things. The cut was great and the color was good however not as blonde as I wanted.
Now to the reason why I will never come back.
I spent $ 69 dollars for a living social deal that included cut, color, scalp and neck massage and blowout. Thinking great deal, Sweet.
Got to the salon and because I wanted highlights they immediately wanted to charge me more. $ 70 to be exact which turns out I only saved 17 bucks. Big whoop.
They then sat me in a dirty station, hair from the previous client on the floor and in the corners of my chair.
Then the nightmare experience began.
Rachel
She began my consultation by insulting me with how bad my split ends were and how bad my previous hairstylist did.
«Why did you wait so long.» I can see white balls at the end of your hair. If the person before knew what she was doing… blah blah blah
Yeah not really making a good first impression.
After taking nearly 25 minutes to get started a spent an hour an half, (yeah it took that long to put on the foils) hunching because she said I was too tall and couldn’t reach my roots and then pretty much manhandled my head.
Not even acknowledging the fact that I kept saying oww! and when I had my head in the wrong position would literally just push it hard in the direction it needed to be.
In addition she was just getting over a cold so in between foils she kept coughing over my head, several times I actually saw her not cover her mouth. REALLY.
Mind you got there at three this is now 4:30 by the time that I went under the dryer.
Then after being in the dryer, i went to the washing station. Ouch!
She ripped the foils out of my head like the feels of a rubber band, my eyes were full on watering by the end. Then she put a base on, grabbing and pulling apart my head again hurting me.
After sitting for 20 minutes she proceeded to give me what was supposed to be a relaxing scalp massage instead felt like I was getting it ripped out and didnt even bother with the neck massage.
Then it was cutting and blow drying time. Thankfully not painful, but when all was said and done I was there for a little over 3 hours. For a partial highlight and cut. OMG Let me say this once. NEVER GOING BACK. and my hairstylist name should be changed to Rough Rachel proceed with caution, pain awaiting.
Oh and did I mentioned she said the word like so much that i thought she might be from the «like» valley.

So this is my third time having my hair done by Darius. I had him cut my hair into an angled bob and add blonder highlights. I can’t say enough about how awesome my hair looks, not to mention how much I enjoyed the whole salon experience. I have already gotten so many compliments from both friends and strangers. And Darius is doing an excellent job as my pseudo-​therapist (all you ladies know what I mean). He is always ready to listen to my latest life updates ;) Oh and the coffee is always super tasty!
One tip, if you park at any of the nearby meters, be sure to keep tabs on your time limit. I caught myself a ticket for being careless.

Check out Salon 5^th Ave. deals on Groupon! They’ve got haircut packages with conditioning, scalp, and neck massage, and blow dry for up to 58% off… $ 65 regular price for $ 27?! Hard to walk away from a deal like that!
What’s the catch? The deal is for new clients only so if you’re a «salon hopper» take advantage of the deal but if you’ve got a haircut like mine that needs layers, texture, and dramatic lines, take advantage of the deal and ask for Darius… he’ll hook you up and may even have you coming back!
Thanks Darius for my awesome cut! See you next month!

I went to Orlando using a Groupon and I am so happy I did!
He is personable, really listens to what you want as the client and does great hair. His techniques are tried and true as he has been cutting hair for ten years. He doesn’t pressure you into anything you may feel uncomfortable with and he explains to you what he is doing as he cuts and styles so you know in the future what to ask for and how to style your new do’.
The salon itself is clean, I love the floor to ceiling mirrors and they offer you beverages. The only potential downside is the parking but that is to be expected in this neighborhood but there is free parking to be found.

Salon 5^th Ave. gets 3.5 stars in my book. I visited Salon 5^th Ave Hair & Spa with a Groupon (please remember, to tip off the full price value. NOT the groupon amount). Daniel took good care of me even allowing me the option to add color to my hair during the same visit. He listens before cutting and coloring. All cuts and each movement seemed mindful as well. You can sense how experienced he is right off the bat. He is honest as well and doesn’t try to oversell a service or cut that you might not be happy with. Conversation while in the chair was natural as well — always makes for a great hair appointment. He blew-​dry my hair straight afterwards and I was able to see the great color and cut.
Each of the hairstylists seem to wash their client’s hair themselves (instead of having a separate staff to just wash hair) which allows you to connect and trust your hairstylist a bit faster. Backtracking a little bit, I was warmly greeted at the front desk and asked if I desired a beverage (tea, water, etc.)
All the above really great a positive things said, I have a different expectation. I get really picky over hairstylists since I’ve had terrible ones in the past and have stuck with my previous one for 6 years! Trying to find a good one in San Diego as it has been a little expensive to stay attached to my previous hairstylist — flying back to Chicago to see her for my hair. I know the search for a San Diego hairstylist will be a long one. I like when hairstylists give me the option of how I want my hair styled after a cut (blow-​dry straight, styled curly or wavy, etc.). That being said, maybe the Groupon should have specified Cut and Blow-​Dry style, but it was my fault for assuming. It was my only qualm.
Overall, Salon 5^th Ave. has great service and talented staff. Daniel was really great! Parking can be difficult, but I went during the day. Metered parking in the front. Street parking is available on the side streets as well.

Come see Riva!
I can only vouch for Riva because she is the only stylist I’ve had handle my locks at Salon 5^th Ave:
Riva is top notch! She’s been taking care of my hair for a couple years now. My sister used to rave on and on about her and I finally gave in and I haven’t looked back since.
Besides being just a generally awesome person, she really enjoys working with different types of hair and always making sure her client is happy. If you show her a picture you like she will ask you some interesting questions about it, but she has her reasons for color/​tone matching and for long term care.
I’ve had cuts & colors with her. My most recent color modification was a dark brown to violet/​red ombré. I’ve got tons of compliments on it. I always fell comfortable and welcome in her chair and feel like a million bucks when I walk out!
:D