Pirka Salon

I’ve been going to Ken for a couple of years and he does a great job every time. I can be picky with my haircuts and he has done a great job with my hair both when I’ve asked for something specific and when I have let him do more on his own. I have medium length straight guys hair btw.
Also he is super nice, friendly, and respectful. Totally professional. I’ve never had a bad experience.

Ken is amazing! I’ve been going to him for over 3 years now and have never had a bad experience. He has the rare ability to cut hair in a way that looks great both right after and as it’s growing out. I’m not the best with blowing out my own hair (don’t even bother during the summer months) so a versatile, easy to maintain cut it key for me.
To summarize, Ken is amazing, and the massage at the end makes it even better!

KEN IS AWESOME. Meticulous until the end. Patient, kind, overall a superb hair stylist. Its extremely difficult to leave a review of less than 5 stars. He gave me exactly what I was looking for. I’ll definitely be coming back.

Chie (pronounced Chi-​eh) has been cutting my hair for 10 years or so. She is amazingly detailed and exceptional at shaping a hair cut to make you look your best. Plus the massage at the end is wonderful.
(I have never had my haircut by Ken, but my partner did when Chie was unavailable. (He regularly goes to Chie.) It looked great too!)

Oh god, I’ve found the holy grail of haircuts. Blow the horns! Beat the drums! drink the drinks! This is it!
Takeshi is the most masterful, attentive, and kind hair stylist I have encountered. More importantly, he is a beautiful human being.
P. S. To the dude who left a one-​star review because he does not like getting massages — are you nuts?!

I love Ken. Before seeing him I was a regular at Kiwa Salon, but the wait for an appt. just got to be too much. Ken is meticulous and always gives me exactly what I want. I usually bring in a couple of photos and give him specific details on what I am looking for and have never left unhappy. He’s patient and takes the time to really look at my hair to assess its current state before he starts the cut. Plus the massage at the end is really the bomb. Go Ken! The only downside is that they’re cash only.

been getting my hair cut by Ken for about 5 years now. He cuts it in such a way that it looks like it just naturally falls in a perfect style all the time. And the neck massage!

I left crying!
Went here after a recommendation from a friend, reading through the Unilocalers, and trusting that Ken knows how to handle flat Asian hair. What a mistake!
Ken does not listen. Ken does not understand hair.
(1) I said cut 2 inches off, he ended up cutting 4 inches. Yikes — my gorgeous locks that grazed ¾ths down my back were blunted and fell awkwardly just past my shoulders.
(2) I said long romantic layers, not short stubby frays that are jagged and overworked. I walked out looking like a cross between Fabio from «I can’t believe its not butter» and a Korean boy band member with a shaggy mullet. Not my look!
(3) I said sweepy bangs that you can pull to the side. He gave me severe choppy bangs that mopped my forehead like Ringo Star… except that I couldn’t see.
I realized where he was going with my hair halfway through. It was like watching a train wreck that you simply can’t turn away from because of the giant size mirror illuminating the mutilation of your hair. it was awful… I tried to make it stop… but it was too late… I broke down. Not even him blow drying and attempting to style flat hair by making it look even flatter worked. I don’t think he understands what’s beautiful and how to frame a face.
This was a month ago. I’ve waited to write this until I had some objective perspective. I got used to wearing my hair in a pony tail. My bangs finally got long enough for the long-​coveted side sweep, and I’ll be venturing out again soon for proper layers from someone who listens and understands how hair is supposed to fall just so.
Please don’t make the same mistake I did. Look elsewhere… your hair and your mental health deserve it.

Got a great haircut from Chie! She did a great job of interpreting my vague ideas into an actual haircut. I will definitely come back.

Ken is the most respectful, patient, and detailed hair cutter I have ever been to. I signed up for Unilocal just to give him a good review.
I have very long, curly hair and I like to keep it that way. I’ve only gotten two good haircuts in my life before Ken; every other hair cutter I’ve been to chops off 5 inches when I ask for 2.
I went to Ken once before, a few months ago, to fix a haircut my friend gave me after I hadn’t gotten my hair cut in 3 years. He gave me a great, simple hair cut – layers in the front and straight across in the back.
I went back again yesterday, 6 months later, for another trim and more layers. Ken gave me the same haircut as before, and when he was done, I had a change of heart and asked for more layers in the back. He didn’t act mad at all, and quickly added more layers.
I am extremely happy with the result. He didn’t change the overall length much, but added more layers. This is a simple-​sounding request that I’ve asked for every time I get my hair cut – and until now has seemed impossible.
Thanks Ken!

Ken is absolutely fantastic! I used to get my haircut at Bergdorf – which was fabulous, truly – but, for the price, Ken is unbeatable. Thank you! Will be returning again, and again

Chie is AMAZING. She is incredibly detail oriented and listens to what you want — in fact, she seems to be able to read my mind each time I go in, adapting my bob haircut in slight ways to make it exactly the way I want it! The blow outs are fantastic and afterwards, you get a lovely massage!!! I have very thick, unruly hair and Chie is able to give me a flawless geometric bob hair cut every single time I go see her. I recommended her to friends with completely different hair textures and she also gave them fabulous hair cuts that are flattering for their style. Chie spends a lot of time on you, discussing what you want, cutting, asking you if it’s OK, blowing out the hair, double checking it once it’s dry. Very reasonable prices too!

Ken is the best hair dresser in the city, hands down!
He knows how to make customers feel comfortable. and happy. He’s really funny too.
But most importantly, i loved his haircut. $ 65 without tip is pretty pricey for me as a student, but it’s worth it. I will keep coming back.
Oh, did I also mention his amazing back massage? That was just totally unexpected… and it was just plain awesome!
I want to give more than 5 stars, if I can!

Ken was amazing. I was in desperate need of a haircut, and after finally breaking up with my hairstylist in NC (after 6 years of living in NYC) I called Ken because of his great reviews, and the proximity to my apartment. He was able to accommodate me the same day, and what a great experience it was. As he is now the only stylist, I had the salon to myself. I have very long hair, and am always cautious about cutting too much. Ken understood right away, and spent 2 hours cutting and styling. The result was even better than I expected. The complimentary massage was awesome. If you find it’s too intense, let him know and he will ease up on the pressure! At $ 65 for a cut, it’s almost too good to be true for the quality you receive. After trying different hairstylists around the city (in between the NC cuts), I have finally found «the one»!

My sister recently got her hair cut by Ken and raved about him every chance she got, so when I was in town I figured I might as well try it. My hair went down to the middle of my back and I wanted to chop it all off for an asymmetrical a-​line cut around my chin. He was very accommodating and went through all the different possible styles with me while recommending what he thought was best.
The head massage during the wash was glorious. I closed my eyes and just enjoyed the sensation, and felt pretty refreshed after. My hair is really thick and has waves in the most random places, but he dealt with it all stunningly. The cut turned out just about the way I imagined it, and although I wasn’t sure how I felt about it at first I love it more and more each day. My only worry is finding a salon at home that can help me trim it without ruining his work!
His back massage at the end was very very intense and a little painful, although if you don’t want it I’m sure you could just refuse. Ken is a sweet man and very talkative, joking with me and my boyfriend when he showed up. $ 65 for a great haircut in the city is a STEAL, and I would definitely recommend him!

Ken is still a crazy genius hair god meistro! He’ll make your hair look amazing for weeks and give you a neck and shoulder massage after cutting your hair.
Absolutely first rate!

I am incredibly cautious about who gets to touch my hair. But my ends were crunchy and I needed a good trim.
As a student from out of state, I usually wait until I visit home and then go to the woman I’ve trusted for over 3 years for my cut&color. But with graduation around the bend, I wanted to fix sooner.
I figured that with so many excellent reviews from fellow Unilocalers, my hair was in the best hands I could find.
Never have I been more proud of myself for listening to you guys.
I got there and Ken was finishing up giving a great haircut to a man. I was a little nervous– If he was this good with mens’ hair, was he really going to be just as good with womens’?
He was so sweet and made me feel comfortable right away. We talked for a good ten minutes about my hair and how my trusty stylist at home was actually doing a disservice to my frizzy hair by layering it 3 different ways. He told me he couldnt do exactly what I wanted because he needed to cut a little more to fix her layering. And when he showed me, I agreed.
With the scalp massage during the wash and the nice and quiet calm way he did my hair, I got to a super zenned out place. Then, when he finished the cut, he told me he’d have to blow dry it to check. I vaguely recalled blow dry costing extra but at that point, i was so relaxed, I was ready to let him do anything to my hair. He dried my hair and then gave me a good 5 – 10 minute shoulder and back massage. It was glorious. And in my head, that totally justified it if he charged me extra for the blow out.
When the time came to pay, he DIDNT charge me extra for the blow out, so i gave him a big tip! $ 65 for all that! and my hair looks great!
My only regret is that I didn’t go to him sooner, as I’m moving out of state soon. So I’m pimping him out to all of my friends.

Ken is God’s gift on this earth. My husband and I both go to him ever since we’ve moved here from California. He is so sweet, so precise, so meticulous, it’s ridiculous. The fact that he gives you the greatest shoulder/​back massage of your life afterwards deserves him 10 stars. Give him 3 Michelin Stars for the heck of it.
Also I think he hasn’t updated the website yet so for women, hair cuts are $ 65, and for men, $ 55. I highly Ken and his staff at Pirka. You’ll have the entire place to yourself! So do yourself a favor and get your nasty ass hair to Ken right away!

I absolutely adore Madoka — I followed her to Pirka from her previous salon. I’ve changed my hairstyle several times. She asks the right questions and the result is always exactly what I had envisioned. Every haircut stands the test of time — even when I’m not able to get to the salon for a few months, my cuts retain their shape.
Added bonus: She makes appointments by text or email and notifies me in advance when she’s going to be on vacation.

I love this hair salon! Thanks to the Unilocalers I’ve found my permanent hair dresser.
From the moment I made the appointment, Ken was very thoughtful and made sure I knew how to go there. Prior to the hiarcut, He spent a good amount of time understanding what I like and how I style my hair and we discussed what’s the best for my hair texture and the face shape. Start to finish, Ken spent an hour and half merticulously focusing on the hair cut. He used all different types of techniques and scissors to add more volume and movements to my very straight and flat Asian hair. He is a very sincere and modest guy who doesn’t speak too much but you can feel the only two things he cares about are giving you the best haircut ever and caring for his customers. My one hour session turned into an hour and half because he focused so much of fixing my previous problematic haircut.
At the end he gave me a very good massage and my hair looks fabulous. Now, I have volume and the mvement to my hair without a perm and depending on the day I can syle it smoothly or blow dry it with a little wax for a sexy messy look.
Thank you Ken!
p. s. The price for a Woman’s haircut is $ 60, for a man’s is $ 50. Single color is $ 80 and above, highlight I think is $ 90 and above, Perm is $ 80 and above, Straight is $ 350. Yes, I’m a little shocked of how cheap the perm was so make sure you double check before heading there but for now there will be no perm or straighting for me anymore.