CONTRIBUTED BY ANGI BRZYCKI

Charm Exterior
Charm Exterior

This is slightly embarrassing to admit -but one of the first things I noticed about the friends I made within the JET Programme community of Assistant Language Teachers here in Okinawa was how cute everyone’s hair was. I thought it was sweet too when I asked everyone where they cut their hair and they would all answer the same person, ‘Tomoko.’

Tomoko Pantry has had her hair salon, Charm Hair Studio for over 7 years in the trendy area off of Ukishima street near Kokusai Dori in Naha. Her husband, Paul Pantry, may be familiar to some of you.  He’s the owner of restaurant, Rize (temporarily closed) and the Canadian bars, The Eager Beaver and Rehab.

Charm Interior
Charm Interior

Going to see Tomoko is always a treat. It’s more than just a haircut. She really takes the time to create a style that works for you and she also massages your head and shoulders in the process. Not to worry about trying to explain what you want in Japanese either- Tomoko’s English is great. My personal favorite thing about Tomoko is the permanent smile on her face as she cuts my hair. She really loves her job and the proof is how great you will look when you leave her shop.

Charm Chair
Charm Chair

The prices are very reasonable too. Cuts are 3,500 Yen, Color treatments are 4000 Yen, and Straight/Curly Perms are 7,000 Yen.

Directions:  Getting there is fairly easy if you know how to get to Kokusai Dori. The most recognizable location would be the Lawsons on Kokusai dori. The only problem is that Ukishima street is a one way street. You can’t drive into it, only out. It’s best to find parking on/around Kokusai, walk and turn on that street… take a right if the Lawsons (on Ukishima street) is north / left if it is south. It’s a great narrow street with little shops and boutiques. As you walk there will be a little 4 way intersection. At the intersection make a left. Charm is located on the left side. It is about a block away from Ukishima Garden.

Address: 2-5-24 Matsuo Naha City

Phone: 098-868-3003

Hours: Tuesday – Sunday 11- 8 (last appointment), Closed Mondays

Payment:  Yen and Credit Cards Accepted.

16 COMMENTS

  1. I made an appointment with Tomoko for a haircut. Confirmed the date/time with her. When I arrived for my appointment, the store was closed and no one was answering the phone. I waited 30 minutes before leaving. Tomoko never showed up. Despite calling several times, she never returned my call. I wasted 1.5hrs driving there, parking, waiting and driving home. Total disappointment!

  2. I visited Charm today and would compare my experience there to being at an Aveda salon stateside, but for a fraction of the price. Tomoko took her time to carefully perfect my very damaged long hair. The shampoo and massage are added perks. She was very friendly and welcoming to me and worked around the need for me to hold my baby in my lap a lot of the time. I recommend her to anyone that wants a nice, relaxing experience in a neat part of the city. She is a great stylist.

  3. Hey everyone! Thanks for the wonderful review! I’m excited to meet Tomoko! I’m new to the island and although getting lost is fun, I’d really like to find this salon! Any help with how to get there from Kadena? Any gate would do! Thanks!

  5. Sorry for the double post above on my bad experience. I didn’t see my original post go up right away and I wanted to make sure people heard my experience. I’m still pretty upset as my hair still is not the right color even with color correction. It was not a relaxing experience for me because I felt the whole time she was not listening to me. She was literally brushing loads of color in to my hair. I stressed to her two times that I like many thin highlights. She charged me double for color- I guess she considered the low lights another color treatment?? I’ve never been charged for two separate color treatments when I had lowlights and highlights in the past. She had folils in every piece of my hair, which was something I’ve never seen a stylist do.

  6. I’ve gone to Tomoko for the past four years. She is without a doubt the best hair stylist I’ve ever been to. Not only is she super sweet, she truly enjoys doing hair, which shows in the finished product. She always has great ideas and suggestions, and takes great care to make your hair perfect. She’s done highlights and lowlights for me countless times, and each time has been absolutely perfect. She’s done corn rows for me, helped me try out new styles, new colors, etc. I have complete trust in her and have never in my life given her so much freedom with my hair – she’s just that good. Add to that her lovely massages and refreshments and you have quite a relaxing few hours. She is well worth the price.

  7. I am sorry that someone had a bad experience with Tomoko but I never found the prices to be different from what was advertised. Having returned home now, I miss how cheap it was to have my hair done and all the “extras” Tomoko did for my hair. I was always satisfied with the result and I have never heard of anyone having a bad experience at Charm before this. I often took in pictures as well and was happy with the results. She did blonde for me, brown, bright bright pink… I hope that readers will take into account all of the positive feedback and not be swayed by one negative experience.

  8. DO NOT GO TO THIS SALON FOR HIGHLIGHTS AND LOWLIGHTS! I asked for blonde and some natural brown highlights. Tomoko put about five different colors in my hair including bright red and orange. I had no low lights put into my hair despite being really clear about what i wanted. I even look pictures of what hair looked like with highlights and lowlights. Tomoko didn’t even get close to the roots with the orange color. They charge a lot more than advertised too. I had to pay for color correction on top of the high price I already paid. I was very surprised given the reviews on here. I will be very careful in trusting okinawa hai after this!

  9. I had a NOT so good experience with Tomoko. I was really unhappy, especially after seeing the good reviews on here. I asked for natural looking blonde highlights and low lights. I took pictures of what wanted and have been getting for years. It was only a root touch up and some low lights to help break up the blonde, that I asked for. I ended up with no low lights and bright orange/ reddish chunks of color in my hair. She didn’t even dye my roots in some parts of my head. I made sure to advise her to get close to my scalp. I asked her half way through my appt if she was really putting hightlights in bc something did not seem right with her technique . I liked my hair cut, but that’s not even good anymore bc I had to get color correction, so my hair is fried fried fried:( Also, the salon is way more expensive than what is advertised. When I called to tell Tomoko I was unhappy, she was kind of hesitant to offer to fix it. Needless to say I didn’t get her to fixed bc I decided I didn’t trust her. I do not recommend this salon!

  11. Is Tomoko good with naturally curly hair? A lot of places off base like to straighten it before cutting curly hair, which of course doesn’t leave you with a great cut after you wash it out. I love to try her out, but I’m always nervous about trying a new stylist.

    • I have VERY naturally curly hair and Tomoko did a great job with me! She knows how to layer and work with the natural curls. She also speaks amazing English and will listen to any concerns or requests you have! I’d trust her with my curls!! 🙂 Hope that helps!