Old-School UES Barber Shop Shuts Down

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — An Upper East Side barbershop with a distinctly old-school atmosphere has shut its doors for good.

Two giant "for rent" signs adorn the storefront that was once home to Expert Barber Shop on East 88th Street and Third Avenue. The business recently closed, but a sign in the window reading "barber shop will return soon" gave some customers hope until the "for rent" advertisements showed up.

Upper East Side resident Jack Riordan said the barber shop was his go to place for a haircut.

"Not at all a fancy place, but more like a 1950's time warp: four chair Italian barber shop run by soft spoken octogenarian 'Joe' in the first chair," Riordan said in an email. "Oldies playing on the radio. Generally on older clientele, with some younger families on occasion."

Gentrification in the East 80s is pushing businesses like Expert Barber Shop out in favor of high-rise developments and trendy coffee shops, Riordan said.

The business only had 15 reviews on Yelp, but most users agreed the barber shop was a product of a past era.

"I go to this place specifically because it reminds me of the old school barber shop I went to in Brooklyn in my youth. There are no frills here, just high quality haircuts at an amazing ($12) price," a reviewer named Jason F. wrote in 2015.

It's unclear what kind of business will occupy the East 88th Street space in the future.

Photo by Brendan Krisel/Patch