Sharp before dinner at Giorgio Baldi

Giorgio Baldi is a family-run Italian restaurant near the beach at Santa Monica Canyon. Its small dining room is known for handmade pasta and a guest list that often includes actors and musicians.

Westside regulars often book a cut at home before a dinner reservation here. Visitors staying in Santa Monica can schedule a session at their hotel. There is no salon to find and no waiting room. Ben comes up to the room, works neatly, and is gone before the next call time.

Discretion is part of the cut.

Ben's background reads like a working biography of the craft: a teenage start, cosmetology school, four barbershops of his own, then television sets, music videos and world tours. He is licensed in barbering and cosmetology in multiple states and cuts every hair type. Expect fades blended without a visible line, tapers that grow out cleanly, line-ups drawn with a steady hand and beards shaped to the jaw. Straight hair, waves, curls and locs all get the same attention.

From 114 W Channel Rd, Santa Monica, CA 90402 it is a short trip to Will Rogers State Beach, Santa Monica Canyon and Pacific Coast Highway. Ben covers Santa Monica and the surrounding areas of Pacific Palisades, Brentwood and Malibu, meeting clients wherever they are getting ready.

There is one way to book and it is fast: a call or a text to 608-201-7717. He is available 24/7, including holidays. Haircuts start at $150, the standard daytime rate is $300, and travel distance and time of day set the final number.