Jon Hamm (
Mad Men) and Michael Pitt (
Boardwalk Empire) clones who strut around the Mission can now have their grooming done in a scene as retro-trendy as their haircuts.
Sam Buffa, founder of New York City's barbershop-to-the-hippest F.S.C. Barber, and his brother, Mission local Jonah Buffa, have finally opened a West Coast outpost, on the corner of 18th and Valencia. Inside, five antique swivel chairs face 1890s mahogany and marble barbershop stations that Sam unearthed on Craigslist(!), and the services are as classic as the decor: straight-razor shaves, shoeshines, and walk-in-only appointments. The Buffas stock an apothecary with accoutrements from Odin and Edwin Jagger, and a door leads into a partner business, Freemans Sporting Club, which carries a curated selection of handmade F.S.C.-label menswear. The barbershop's no-appointment policy means you'll likely hang out awhile (just as you would at any hot new Mission restaurant), but shooting the breeze on the 1920s-style train station bench is an essential part of the vintage experience. Sounds as if we should expect to see even more slicked-back high sidewalls swaggering down Valencia this summer.
696 Valencia St., S.F., 415-621-9000, fscbarber.com
