Frank “the barber” DiStasio emigrated from Italy to East Norwalk in 1955 when he was just a teenager. Following a family tradition, Frank attended several barber schools including Wright Tech in Stamford and eventually Bullard Havens in Bridgeport.
To get his Barber’s Certificate, Frank even attended the New York Barber School where he graduated in the late 1960’s. He opened his first shop in the Ludlow Shopping Center in 1967 with his wife, Elvira, who worked with him for thirty years. It became the place to go for a neighborhood haircut.
Besides delivering one of the best and economical hair cuts in the area, Frank’s Barber Shop was always a visual delight. Frank’s love for indoor plants, such as Flowering Begonias and African Violets were a mere backdrop for his colorful Paper Mache Parrots that hung from the ceiling along with one of the biggest rubber tree plants anywhere in Norwalk that ran around the perimeter of the shop’s ceiling.
This was the place for local politics and social information. Frank’s was the community Facebook before there was a Facebook. That was until an unfortunate fire destroyed Ludlow Plaza in November of 2016.
Frank’s new location is on First Street across from Partner’s Café. He has been here for eight months and is still offering the same economy and quality of service that the original Frank’s Barber Shop was noted for. Stop in for your next haircut.
