Tokuyama Salon — Local services in New York

I was unfortunately very disappointed/frustrated by my experience at this salon. My partner and I went together to get haircuts before the holiday season, as we have numerous events to attend. We arrived about five minutes early, however unfortunately the stylist (we booked the owner) arrived 15 minutes late. While we were waiting for him, his assistant kept trying to convince me to get a "treatment," even though I kept saying I didn't want to risk putting any unknown products in my hair before all my events.

When the stylist finally arrived, he too started telling me I needed a "treatment," commenting on how damaged by hair looks. This very much rubbed me the wrong way, as it 1. felt quite pushy and 2. made me feel bad about my hair.

When he finally asked me what kind of haircut I wanted, I specifically relayed that I was hoping to get lots of bouncy layers for dimension, as well as face framing pieces. He quickly trimmed an inch or so off the bottom, then left his assistant to blow dry my hair, stating he would complete the cut after it was dry. Although sweet, the assistant did not quite seem to know what he was doing, leaving me with a frizzy blowout that the actual stylist then had to fix. The assistant also commented on how "challenging" it was to blow out my hair, since I have curly hair. This again made me feel quite bad about my hair, in particular making me feel like it was somehow my fault the blowout turned out frizzy.

When the stylist returned to complete the cut, he decided he didn't want to honor what I had asked for, and instead said he "wanted to keep it simple." Instead of giving me the shape I had asked for (bouncy long layers and face framing pieces), he instead gave me a simple trim and what essentially amounted to a blunt cut. He then commented that he was only giving me "70%" of what I had asked for, and would give me "100%" at a later time. This particular comment was very frustrating/upsetting to me - with the amount I was expected to pay, I expected "100%" of what I had asked for in return. In retrospect, I suspect he might have been rushing as it looked like his next client had already arrived and we didn't have as much time as we should have, given he was 15 minutes late to the appointment.

When it came time to pay, I was surprised that I was quoted $100 more than what I was quoted online. They explained it didn't matter that I was a new client at this salon, I did not qualify for the new client discount since I had been to their sister salon on the upper east side. That's all fine and good, but should have been specified online so there would be no surprises in person. Furthermore, they also made my partner pay full price (even though he hadn't been to either salon before), since he was accompanying me. Charging him full price when he was genuinely a new client felt very dishonest/scammy and again left a bad taste in my mouth.

All in all, I was very disappointed with my experience here. I expected much better, given the glowing online reviews and my relatively good experiences at the ues location. Please take my cautionary tale into consideration when booking your next haircut - I'm now going to have to find another stylist to actually give me...

I booked this salon to do a wash and style for my five bridesmaids on the day of my wedding. The entire process was a nightmare, to say the least:

(1) Before booking my appointment, I spoke to a staff on the phone who quoted me one price (upon which basis I made my booking); however, when I spoke to them later to confirm the final amount before making payment, they told me it was a different, higher price. When I pointed out the difference, they just said the first staff who gave me the initial price was wrong. Fine – I didn’t want to create more headaches for my wedding and paid the higher price, but was unhappy about it. Their staff should be trained better to know the prices for their services so they’re not giving wrong information to potential customers.

(2) A week before the wedding, they called me to tell me that my bridesmaids will only be able to have their hair curled – no half up-dos or full up-dos – because there isn’t enough time allotted in the appointments I made. This was news to me, because I thought my girls can choose whatever style they wanted, and if timing was an issue, then they should have told me before I made my booking. But I said fine, and told my bridesmaids that they can only do simple curls. Again, wedding planning is stressful and I did not want this to be another issue to fight about.

(3) Then on the day before the wedding, in the middle of my bridal shower, I received calls and texts from the salon asking me to change the appointment times I made for some of my bridesmaids, even though I made the bookings a month in advance and had already prepaid. They said they needed me to confirm the new slots ASAP, so instead of enjoying my bridal shower events, I was stressing about coordinating new schedules with my bridesmaids based on their availability.

(4) On the day of the wedding, my maid of honor came to my apartment after getting her hair done at the salon, and her hair was an absolute mess. It was frizzy, messy, and does not look professionally done at all (honestly it looked like I could’ve done a better job, and I’m no hair expert) – to the point where I had to ask my own bridal hair stylist to fix it (which I ended up paying extra for). Another one of my bridesmaids told me that her stylist messed up her style and asked her to go buy some flowers so she can put it in to hide where he messed up (WHAT?!)

All in all, this salon was absolutely terrible to work with, from the initial booking to the final execution of the hairstyles. A wedding is already stressful enough to plan, and their services were so subpar that it became a source of added stress, which was the last thing I needed. I’ve never gone to get any other hair services from them, and will not be doing so in the future. Maybe they are fine with general salon services, but I would advise anyone to stay away for any type of styling/booking...

TL;DR: The stylist was professional and gave me a nice haircut, but the customer service at the front desk was so bad it ruined the whole experience. I even brought this up with friends during brunch afterwards, and they shared similar bad experiences at the salon’s Upper East Side location — a pattern of staff treating clients poorly, almost as if they’re “above” the customer.

I rarely leave negative reviews, but I feel compelled to share my experience so others are aware.

I originally booked a coloring appointment in person on September 21, right after my haircut. The front desk confirmed “next Saturday at 9:30.” I arrived on time the following Saturday only to find the salon closed. Later I was told the appointment had actually been scheduled for the following Saturday. This was frustrating, but I decided to give them the benefit of the doubt and kept the rescheduled appointment.

On the actual appointment day, my Uber had difficulty locating my address. While I was only about six minutes away, I called the salon to let them know I was running late. The front desk person (possibly Sophie) informed me that since I was already 15 minutes behind, they would not blow-dry my hair. I asked for clarification — does this mean I would leave the salon with wet hair after a coloring service? The answer was “yes.” There was no effort to problem-solve, no compassion, and no flexibility offered.

When I asked if there were other times available that week, I was simply told they were fully booked that day, with no attempt to check the week ahead. When I explained that I could not attend brunch with wet hair and preferred to reschedule, I was told I would be charged a cancellation fee. Even then, the staff member couldn’t clearly state what the fee would be.

At that point I felt cornered: either accept a very poor experience (leaving with wet hair after paying for color service), or pay an unclear penalty fee. Neither option felt fair or professional.

Overall, what disappointed me most was the lack of empathy, communication, and customer service. Mistakes and delays happen, but the unwillingness to accommodate or work with clients leaves a very negative impression. Unfortunately, I cannot...