After months of dealing with bad dye jobs and cuts at multiple different salons, I knew I needed help. I called Salon Joseph because of their good reviews online and asked if I could come in for a consult to see what could be done about my hair. They were able to fit me in that day with Miriam, which was great! When I arrived, I explained that in the attempt to lighten my hair back to its natural color and do bayalage on top, my previous salon had somehow managed to turn my hair orange with blond roots. No bueno. Miriam really took her time to look at my hair and determine what could be done. She strand-tested my hair to see if it could take bleach, and then we decided to start with an all-over color that matches as close as possible to my natural hair color. So far, I'm very pleased. Miriam seems like she knows what she's doing, and made me feel a lot better about my hair situation. I'm giving 4 stars right now, but if everything goes well next week with getting the bayalage done, it'll be 5! read more

I've been very happy getting my hair colored and cut by Joseph for over 10 years now (followed him from a former salon). I am not interested in spending time and effort on my hair and Joseph listens to me and provides me with a haircut that is easy care and grows out well. Over the years we've tried a lot of different styles (at my request) and his creativity is terrific. He's honest about whether or not a cut is right for your hair when you bring pictures in and can modify and shape pretty much any style into something that looks good. Here's the bottom line - I drive on I-95/395 from Dumfries all the way to Arlington, passing about a zillion salons - to get my hair cut by Joe. 'Nuf said. read more

Unfortunate terrible experience. I was excited to come in and have my hair cut into a "lob" (long bob)for my mid length hair which I told Aileen was cut only 4 weeks prior and she had cut my hair in the past and I was satisfied with but this time around she instantly started making comments about my hair being frizzy and dry then she was complaining about my widows peak on my neck and I had some hair loss this year because I have been taking care of my sick mom but all she did was kept making Insults to me and then tried to sell me a keratin treatment for over $300 which would make my hair straight and I was looking for a curly lob in addition it was way out of my budget and upon doing research I found on Groupon for only a $100. 3x's less than what she was trying to charge me. She proceeded to cut my hair and it didn't look anything like what I had asked her to do. I had told her that the next day and she said she couldn't give me the cut I wanted because of my hair being "frizzy". Even though styling products in the past have always been the solution to achieve the look I always want and I asked her about that but she ignored the question. Then she offered to only give me half of the $70 I paid to her for my cut not including my tip which I am always generous with regardless of the service. So then I told her to pair me with Joe(the owner) so he could redo my hair, in the week leading up to the appointment she kept posting pictures of the exact hair cut I wanted on line which I believed was very insensitive of her so when I came in to see Joe I asked him why they were posting the pictures and his response to me was well that is only for photo shoots and that takes over 2 hours to do so I told him it was misleading to post the cuts and pictures of his salon has no intentions of doing them. He cut my hair and told me it would be close to the photos I showed him but this cut was even worse than the first. It is literally the worse hair cut I have ever received in my entire life and I am just so disappointed at the treatment and the hair cuts. I went back to Joe a week later before posting this review and he insisted it looked good but I told him I hated it. He did t offer me a refund or anything and the worse part now is my hair is sooo short, it is just so hideous and I am now going to have pay another stylist to cut my hair once this grows a little bit and I have to go through the holidays being unhappy about my cut and I just wanted it to look nice especially since I need to be one feeling good about myself since my mom is so sick. read more

It's okay. They offer a 10 percent discount if you post a positive review on Google (they provide the link), which explains the several hundred 5 star ratings there. The hair coloring was often fantastic and I should have just stuck with that. I have naturally wavy hair and like to wear it wavy, but they always blew it out straight even when I specifically said please don't bother. I once went in for coloring and special styling of my waves for an important event -- the coloring was great, but ... the hairdresser blew my hair out straight, and then used a curling iron to give me (weird) (unnatural) waves. The last strike was when I asked for long layers; the hairdresser herself has long wavy hair with lots of long layers, I tried to convey this was what I too wanted. She didn't lift my hair once to cut in long layers -- I actually asked, "When are you going to start putting in the long layers?" and she just mumbled something I didn't understand while cutting straight across the bottom of my hair. Then she proceed to cut atrocious bangs, which I didn't ask for, that looked like something a 13 year old who has never been to a hairdresser might wear. I left nearly in tears, it's pretty much impossible to hide bangs like that for months. read more

I have been working with Ilene for years and love the work she does! I have thick wavy hair which is hard to work with and she always does a great job. I highly recommend her for a long layered haircut. read more

I seldom ever rate anything/anyone max ratings, but this is as close to 5 as I will get! 1. My appts. are pretty much on time, never a long wait after my scheduled time. 2. Everyone is friendly and helpful. 3. Most importantly, after just over a year of coming to the salon, I've yet to have a disappointing experience. Joe has cut my hair when it was long and most recently into a short style. I usually get nervous when I ask someone to cut my hair short b/c it's very think, course, and a bit unruly in some spots. 4. cost is on-par with what you'd expect to pay out here - less than some, more than others, but certainly not cheap. I always leave feeling sharp and polished, and a bit sassy. read more

I moved to the area about a year ago. I tried several salons in Arlington and wasn't thrilled with the results. I have thin to nonexisting hair and wear my hair very short because it is so fine it is impossible to do anything with if it gets long. I can't recall why I picked Salon Joseph for my third try at getting a haircut but I am glad that I did. I had my hair cut by Sue whom I now see regularly. She does a great job with short hair and it is consistently great. I get my hair cut often because it is so short and I really appreciate having a stylist that is friendly, open and knows how to work with thin, fine and short hair. I get asked often who does my hair because short hair cuts are hard to find and women will approach me and ask where I get it done and comment on how good it looks (even when it is 100 degrees out). That is why I keep coming back. One note, the salon is in a strip mall so don't judge it by its outward appearance. Also if you make a later evening appointment in the winter you will need to be aware that the sign out front does not light up in the dark and you will have a hard time finding the right turn off Lee Hwy. That happened on my first visit. read more

Great job, Daniel! I am very particular about my hair cuts and for almost 2 years was actually driving over 2 hours to where I used to live to get my hair cut! I couldn't make the trip any more. A friend recommended Daniel at Salon Joseph, so I thought I would take the risk. He did an amazing job! Great cut, and the color was perfect!! Thank you! read more

Love my color! Daniel is great. I highly recommend. :) This was my first time at Salon Joseph and I will def be going back.

We've been coming to Salon Joseph for our kids for a few years now. Their haircuts are always beautiful, and the staff do a good job of finding appointments for us too. Highly recommend them. read more

Made an appointment for my wife on Saturday, as a mothers day gift. I called the Tuesday before to schedule it and informed them that she would need her hair straightened, cut, and highlighted. The lady I spoke to on the phone informed me that a straighten, cut, and highlight would take several hours. I told her that was fine, we scheduled it for 9:45am on Saturday, and I gave her my wife's name and phone number. Fast forward to Saturday. My wife shows up at 9:45 and is told she can only have her hair cut because the stylist has only 30 minutes. I made my original decision to go with this salon because it had many positive reviews on Google. Now I'm guessing they are mainly fake reviews. In case you are wondering, you can easily pay Chinese "companies" to give you fake reviews for a nominal fee. I am assuming that was what was done here. My wife walked out. We will not be going back or recommending this salon to anyone. read more

I came to visit my sister and she took me to this place for haircut. I was trying to grow my hair and wanted a 1inch u shape cut and with nice bangs. When I was trying to explain how I want my bangs and he didn't even listen to me and said " not possible" to what ever I have to say. He cut more than 5 inches and my bangs were as straight as a palm tree. That guy doesn't even give you time to speak and simply does what he wants. I cried when I came home. Not good! read more

I am so glad that I discovered Joseph and am pleased with both the coloring and cut that I get from him. I usually don't stay with a stylist for long since I soon become uphappy with my hair, but have been going to Joseph for quite awhile and have no plans to change. read more

Joseph does a good job of cutting hair but for my fine, thin, straight hair, he is very overpriced. After going here twice, I switched to Eli at Miracles in Rosyln and essentially get the same cut for 1/3 the price. read more

I moved from Las Vegas to the DC Metro area and was not looking forward to finding a new stylist. I had an amazing stylist in Vegas, and I wasn't sure DC could compete. However, after reading reviews and doing research, Salon Joseph kept appearing. I made an appointment and ventured into Arlington just a week after the big Blizzard of 2010. Parking in the area was a NIGHTMARE and the strip mall that the salon is in is just so shady looking. BUT once inside, I was greeted with smiles and a professional atmosphere! Susan was my stylist for the day and just amazed me! I am a natural redhead, and while in Vegas decided to be rebellious and dye my entire head black before I moved. I showed Susan a photo of me with my natural red hair and asked her to dye it all back to that color. Three hours and lots of money later, she had stripped out the black and colored my hair perfectly to my natural color. Here it is 7 months later and you cannot tell my hair was ever dyed a different color. My natural colored roots are about 2 inches long and you can't even see a difference. This girl has got SKILL! Even with the big price tag, it was worth it knowing that I would have somebody doing my hair that was talented, experienced, and actually cared what my hair looked like. I will definitely be going to her again in the future for hair cuts! If I was ever to color my hair again (which I never will), I would ONLY go to her! read more

I live out of the country for years at a time and go back to Joseph whenever I am in the DC area. I go in to the salon, with most of my grey showing, long hair that has only been cut by kitchen scissors, bangs that are crooked, and I walk out feeling on top of the world. Joseph has an eye for what each person's hair will do and he won't do something that he thinks will not flatter the wearer. I enjoy his small talk and sometimes we just don't talk at all and I just sit peacefully while he works. The end result is always a big smile on my face as I am leaving the salon, swearing I won't wait that long again! read more

Salon Joseph is a gem! I have been going here almost a year and I always love my color and everyone always gives me compliments on my hair.

I went to this salon in hopes of getting highlights since it was supposed to be great regarding color. Sadly disappointed. I spent time talking and showing pictures to the stylist Sue of hair colors in the red tones. So when it was all said and done my hair is brown, not red, dark brown, the highlights I asked for you could not even see. When I mentioned this to the stylist she became a bit argumentative started flipping my hair in the back to show me my highlights. Sorry still could not tell. I asked her to please add more red and highlights to at least frame my face but received back that it was not possible as she was too busy and brushed me and my disappointment to the side. There was only one other person in the salon and no one waiting. Needless to say I was extremely disappointed especially when I was charged $200 for it read more

If I could give negative stars I would. Thanks to salon Joseph my hair is completely ruined... Not only in color but the fact that they bleached the absolute s**t out of my hair and completely ruined the integrity of my hair. I have always had extremely healthy and strong hair and this week I've had to buy every single strengthening and anti breakage product known to man, along with set up another appt with a much better salon. I went there due to the "amazing" reviews which turned out to be fake reviews and it looks like they took them down. I went in asking for a bayalage... Long story short 4 1/2 later my hair is 4 different colors with banding and brassy like no other ... They tell me I can come back so they can fix it. I do.... Another long story short, 5 hours later my hair is bleached beyond repair with 3 different colors.... My roots are a light brown, then I have a random dark brown/black patch all the way around the crown of my head, with half of my head bleached and damaged to the point where I think I may need to cut it all off which is heartbreaking to me. I'll attach pictures if it lets me... It is unacceptable, obviously these people weren't trained and they have literally no idea what they are doing. I watched client after client walk out with horrible hair.. Should've been a sign. Please don't go here... Save your hair and your money. I've learned my lesson and will go back to Muse salon and my normal stylist. read more

See all

Joseph is an artist. Hair is his medium. He understands how to texturize my hair so that it looks great between cuts.

The salon just opened yesterday, and it's not quite finished, but the haircut I got from Joe was perfect--as it always is! He's a master with scissors. My hair is very short, but there's never any awkward growth between cuts; it always looks great. Joe is fast, too, something I really appreciate. He's very nice personally, as is Rula, who gave me a wonderful shampoo. read more

Just came back from my second visit to this salon. Joe did my partial highlights and a haircut. I have to say that I am very pleased with the highlights job Joe did for me. The haircut I am fairly happy with; in all honestly I haven't been able to find ANYBODY to give me a haircut I could be ecstatic about. But compared to what I have gotten elsewhere, I am content with the haircut for now. The salon was friendly and easy going. The prices are quite high, but for the quality of the highlights, it was worth it to me. In fact, I drive in from Maryland and don't mind the commute to finally get the highlights that can put a smile on my face. Thanks Joe:) read more

I've lived in the DC area for about 5 years, having lived in France & Germany beforehand. I only mention living abroad because I think that some of the best-trained stylists and cutting-edge styles come from there. That said, since living in DC, the absolute best stylist I've found is Joe Awad, who is the owner of Salon Joseph. Before finding Joe, I'd been to salons in Bethesda, Dupont Circle, and Silver Spring. At those places I received the standard DC "wash, 'professional' layered cut, round brush blowout" one-size-fits-all, and hefty price. Stylists didn't seem to listen to me and what I wanted, rather giving me a standard cut, hi-lights and blowout. The reasons I go to Joe are that: 1- he listens and takes time with me; 2- he tells me the truth--about what's in style, and which cuts would work for my face shape and colors for my complexion--and it's never one "right" answer: he always gives me options--if I say I want to go blonde, he tells me which blondes would work for me, same if I say I want to go auburn or darker brown. if I say I want to keep it longer, he'll actually NOT cut it too short (shock)--he'll advise me on options for layers to give movement to the length, instead of just cutting it in some standard way--bottom line: the advice and goal are the same--to suit me, individually; 3-he keeps up -to-date with hair shows to learn the latest cuts and styles, and cuts the hair to suit the individual and is really talented at several different cuts that I've seen on his different clients while I've been there--oval, round, square-shaped faces. older and younger women. high and low maintenance -type women, ranging from more edgy, funky styles to K street lawyer and gov professional styles---it always seems to suit them (that said, although I'm a gov professional, I always get a sexy cut/style--still young and fun at heart) ;) ; 4-he's generous. you get a spa-like atmosphere, scalp massage, and he's not stingy with using good products, and applies a great moroccan oil product (LOVE it!!!). when I was there, I told him I loved the smell of a hair volumizer he was applying and he just gave it to me, told me to try it at home, how to apply it/style with it and then to tell him how I liked it; 5-at his salon you feel like you're in a SALON. meaning very calming, clean, new fixtures, flat screen TVs tuned into fashion TV with the latest products and fashionable, but friendly stylists; 6-he's funny. if you're more of an introvert, there's no pressure to maintain an awkward conversation, if you're not in the mood. if you're "en salon" mode, Joe is really flirty, funny and cool. just a great guy. sincere and unpretentious. 7-you're not there to get a "service," rather as part of a "relationship" meaning that he's not going to see your visit as a one-time event, cutting/coloring/whatever for the one time visit. instead, it's a holistic approach to the look you want, overall (he's even told me before that certain cuts and styles work well with different body types)! and can advise on gradual hair coloring/cutting towards an eventual style. 8-when he styles my hair, I feel like a model at a fashion show :) he asks me if I'm going out that night and adjusts the volume accordingly =) I get the full treatment, a REAL hairstyle 9- when fashion magazines advise on hair products, styles, styling tricks, you're usually left to improvise at home. not at Salon Joseph. he knows the tricks to great hair and all the styles that can be achieved with a certain cut, and will gladly share them with you and share his advice on which products work in the real world, as well as tricks for achieving a great style. in addition, he'll teach you the basics of maintaining your style, and on his website you can find a step-by-step process for doing a professional blow out at home; 10-for all I've mentioned, it's still a GREAT value-- so reasonable and worth the visit! Joe is always busy, but so long as I always get an appointment, I'm willing to share him :) ~LH read more

Had a foil and color with Sue. She went extremely fast (part of the time she had another client waiting for her with wet hair) I thought she was just efficient - but she didn't do thin foils. I couldn't tell in the salon light how wide my foils were! my hair is not natural looking - it is stripe-y. I have had foils done by many, many people over the past 15 years and never had them as wide as this! 1/4-1/2 in places. And I paid TOP dollar! read more

I have been going to Joe for about 7 years and have always been very pleased. He cuts and colors my hair every 12 weeks, with a cut only in between around the 6 week mark. He has always given good advice about cuts and colors, even telling me when (and why) something was not a good idea. I am picky about my hair and would not be going back if I had any problems. I would highly recommend. read more

Sue is just amazing at color/highlights, even though the salon was a little expensive, she was worth it. I won't go to anyone else, and when I just called to make my appointment with her, they said she left!!! AH! Does anyone know where Sue went?!! The salon said they didn't know of course. I just can't imagine letting anyone else touch my hair, it was just so stress free, I asked for a new look every time and was always happy! That is some serious trust, please post if you know where she is now! read more

I am VERY picky about my hair and have been coloring it for years in many different cities. Sue is one of the best hair colorist's I've ever been to. She has a perfect sense of finding colors that complement your skin tone and produces really natural results. She even fixed a super brassy color I had from somewhere else and made it perfect. I'm just sad that I moved from the area and now have to start the search all over! I'm not sure about the other stylists, but Sue is top-notch! read more

I have gone there a couple times and have only ever used Daniel, while he did great with major color changes, he doesn't always listen to the right kind of cut. The last time I went was AWFUL...he was coloring my hair while trying to cut another woman's hair! Someone else had to go out of their way to wash my hair b/c he was too busy blow drying out this other woman's hair! It's like he completely forgot about me and then when my highlights were done, you couldn't even see a difference! This place charges WAY to much for their services, especially considering the fact that I get ignored and my hair doesn't even look different. read more

The shady strip mall is definitely a challenge to get over but parking is generally available (again don't look at the shady stores further down, just park and walk quickly to Salon Joseph) and it is close to my house which is a bonus. I love Eileen and find that not only do I walk out of the salon with a great cut, it grows in really well which to me is the "proof in the pudding". I agree that the prices are similar to downtown salons but I don't mind paying for a good cut, regardless of location. Most of the staff seem to be friendly and personable and it is always busy so appointments are definitely necessary! read more

I have gone to this salon 4 times and have not had a good experience since my first visit. On my first visit I got good highlights but for some reason the stylist did not dry my hair. I found out later that you have to request your hair to be blown out and styled when you book your appointment or they don't do it...typically this service is included in the price of color & cut at most salons. After several trips to this salon to get cut and highlights, I found my results to be average but the prices to be expensive as an upscale salon @ $200+. On each occasion that I received highlights the roots showed within 2 weeks. They also do not listen to what you want to do to your hair and on two occasions I was told that the stylist could not do what I was requesting color-wise. I just got the feeling the stylist was not willing to do the work to highlight my brown hair blond. If you are going to charge $200+ you better give your customers what they want. Lots of other salons to choose from and this one won't get any more of my money. read more

I WILL NEVER GO BACK!!! This place was recommended to me by a coworker/friend... I had Joe cut my hair and I don't know if he was just in a hurry or didn't understand what I wanted, but holy hell... my hair is a nightmare!!! I asked for lowlights... instead I got streaks of a brassy red color throughout my hair (which is blonde by the way, so it's definitely noticeable). The cut turned out fine I thought, long layers with swoopy hollywood style bangs... yeah, well the bangs look like someone cut them with a steak knife, and they don't swoop. They're also SUPER short, which sucks and is NOT what I asked for. In fact, they look so bad that I have to wear a headband to keep them controlled until they grow out. I straightened my hair this morning and looked with a mirror at the layers and I am no longer pleased with any of the cut!!! The layers are NOT EVEN. If I had wanted a choppy, rugged look I would have asked for it, THIS IS NOT WHAT I HAD IN MIND! Needless to say, I didn't pay for the color that was done and I don't intend to let him try to "fix" it. I paid for the cut to be nice, but I'd advise you to just spare yourself and IF you must go here... DO NOT LET JOE CUT YOUR HAIR! read more

I never usually write reviews but I feel compelled to report this huge negative in customer service and perhaps company policy midst all these raving reviews about Salon Joseph! I move interstate and worldwide a lot, I am new to the Northern VA area and have never come across this problem before! As most would agree, choosing a new hairdresser is a tedious yet very important task, thus after a lot of research and after careful selection, I am usually WILLINGLY granted a face-to-face consultation with the selected/recommended hairdresser, usually 10min consultations. However, today 09/05/2013 at 1315, I was informed by the perceived cold, matter-of-fact attitude, female receptionist that they do not provide consultations but just book appointments! I expressed my amazement on how they would expect me to confirm an appointment with a hairdresser that I had never met or had a consultation with before, all this to no avail as her reply was that I can have a consultation as part of my hair appointment! Now there's the problem, you can see from their website that if you don't cancel your appointment with 24 hour notice you are liable to pay for the service that you made an appointment for but what if I am not comfortable with the hairdresser when I get there....?? The appointment that I can now not get out off!! Well I don't know about you but I can tell a lot about a person's personality once you meet them, you can tell how professional, passionate and knowledgeable they are about the service you require and if you are comfortable with them highlighting and cutting your hair! I do understand that they need to have cancellation polices in most instances but for a new customer who is asking for a consultation prior to deciding whether she wants to avail of your services or not.......I really don't think so! Can't help but get a cold, robotic business-like feel about this place verses the warm, personal, inviting, reassuring, energetic atmosphere that one would expect from a professional hair salon - maybe they don't need the business!! read more