[rating:4]

For some time now I have been meaning to get to the Art of Shaving. I’ve called a few times on a whim and had no luck in booking a spot, but I finally managed to get here for my professional spa shave.

I have to say that this place has a very upscale feel to it; the ambiance definitely feels like you stepped back in time. The wooden furniture is a nice touch, and the old-style big band music playing in the background further accentuates the feeling of stepping into something refined and classic. It’s pretty cool.

My shave specialist was an older gentleman named Boris. I sat down and admired the classic setup, though I’ll admit there’s something that makes you think twice when someone is about to put a straight-edged razor blade to your neck. Even my wife laughed about that before I headed down to the city.

Boris said he recognized me and asked if I had been there before. I said yes, probably over a decade ago, and he said that’s why he remembered me. Boris has been working there for seventeen years and mentioned that he is the company’s first employee. Pretty cool, Boris, just please be careful around my neck.

The spa has two options: the regular shave for $35 and the royal shave for $55, which includes a facial treatment. Since this is something I do every other decade, I decided to go all in and got the royal.

The overall experience is pretty cool. Who doesn’t enjoy being pampered every once in a while?

We started with a hot towel on the face to open up the pores. Then came some special lotion, followed by the shaving lather. All products used are their brand, by the way. After perfectly and evenly lathering you up, you get that super close shave. This is followed by another two applications of lather and shaving. Then some more lotion, another hot towel, and more lotion. Eventually, you get a cold towel and a spritz of cooling mist.

Let the record show you should not quote me on the exact steps because I was relaxing and could easily mix things up. But this is an overall idea of the process.

At the end, as I ran my fingers across my face, almost all of it felt super smooth. Only the area below my bottom lip felt a little rougher, and a bit on the neck. These are hard areas to get, and he did try. I felt it. My neck did sting a little from the lotions, but it wasn’t unbearable and passed pretty quickly. I didn’t see any bleeding, but I have two or so little nicks on my face. Though at times the blade didn’t glide perfectly smoothly, overall it did.

This was a cool thing to do, a nice experience with a nice gentleman. If you want to treat yourself and have the budget for it, why not? Try it out. I think you’ll enjoy it.

They also do haircuts here, but judging by the look on Boris’s face when I said “a fade,” your best bet is sticking to your regular barber for that kind of cut. I learned long ago that a proper fade can’t be done by just anyone. There’s a reason I’m heading over to Filthy Rich Barbershop back in Queens. My man Rich, Kazz, 360, and everyone there knows how to do that proper fade!