Ralph's Hair Salon

"Ralph is amazing! My husband’s hair looks great! Professional, reasonable and fast!"

"I don't go to barbers because I have a lot of hair that I wear full. Not long, ponytail tail style, or anything. But long-ish and over the ears. Anything but the style of the 5-minute buzz saw that is synonymous with "haircuts" and "barbers". Also, because I work a long workweek, I like to book standing appointments so I schedule my time better and not have to wait. Over many years this has typically meant have gone to large womens' hair salons. I will search, finally find and then go to the same "stylist" until they leave and I have to start the weary search to find a replacement person who can cut men's hair properly. Well this time around, I went with Ralph's, a one-man operation based, on a tip from a friend and then my wife. Ralph has operated this tiny salon in Catalina for about 20 years now. I think the term unisex applies, though I'm guessing he won't like this term. You see, Ralph is sort of a straight-ahead cowboy type, who happens to also be an exceptional men's "hair stylist". By that, I mean a person who works on men's and women's hair equally well, and is not a barber. If this is what you're looking for then do try Ralph. His tiny shop is in the alley beside Ace Hardware, adjacent to Licks Ice Cream. But if you blink you'll walk by and not notice, or think it's closed. Ralph is a bit crusty, doesn't advertise or even have the proper signage. But like I say, he's been busy for 20 years and doesn't need that. The best part is that his pricing reflects this. That is, sans the overhead cost associated with advertising and promotion. Be forewarned though. 1. Ralph is a poorly kept secret. So do book in advance. He's always very busy and he doesn't work much past 4, or on weekends. 2. He doesn't accept credit credit cards and provides your next appointment on a small yellow sticky note. And if you misplace that note don't bother calling. Mine and my wife's experience is that calls are not returned. 3. He's extremely independent minded, and can be quite standoffish. Even rude, depending on your pain threshold. My druthers is an excellent haircut at a reasonable price. Why I rate for 4 stars. Your ranking could be different."

"Very unprofessional, claims he does not "clean up the mess people make with their hair". Denied to take our service, not to mention it was very hard to even get in touch with Ralph. Not worth the time and effort and has Poor professional skills for running a business"

"Both of us always enjoy seeing Ralph for our haircuts. I ask him to do rather crazy things with my hair styles, and he always complies with a chuckle and an amazing feel for the idea. He's a genius! He's not ever allowed to retire!"

"Ralph is one of the BEST hairdressers I've known. He scolds me when I mess up my bangs but he's always there to fix them. After a little over 10 years, I say without hesitation I will never go to another hair dresser as long as Ralph is in business."