KODA Salon

I’m a new client and went 3 months without a haircut prior to seeing Cheng today. I LOVE my hair again after a great cut from Cheng. She gives her opinion and really follows through with great skill. She’s a great communicator and really listens. Also, though very professional Cheng was easy to talk to and very funny. The Salon is immaculate and staff are friendly. I arrived a little early and was offered a drink. I enjoyed a fancy latte while waiting. Overall, I really had a great experience.
The Salon is in a great location on the second floor of the building. Parking is easy on Girard Avenue but had to drive around the block once to get a prime spot. Most parking is 90 minutes. Lots of great shopping in the area.

I think most women can relate to the struggle of finding that perfect hair stylist and the horrific stories that come with the search. After many disastrous cuts from Edward Scissorhands and expensive colors that my mother didn’t even notice, I’m happy to say my search is finally over now that I have found Cheng. I regularly get a balayage and cut from her and couldn’t be happier with my hair!
I have dark dark dark brown/​black hair and wanted an ashy light brown/​blonde balayage that would grow out looking natural between appointments and not turn orange or make me look like an AzN Bb GurL, you know nothing too crazy or demanding. Cheng made it happen. I really appreciated that she was upfront and honest that black to blonde is a process and about how light I can expect my hair to get in one session without compromising the health of my hair.
I am very very picky about my hair (if you couldn’t tell by now) and was never 100% satisfied with any haircut, sometimes even leaving in tears. Now I confidently jump in her chair (complimentary wine in hand) and let her do her thing. If you ask for a trim and to keep the length, she will actually do just that and NOT cut off 4 inches like a lot of stylists do.
Needless to say, I will definitely be back and would recommend her and Koda Salon to anyone. Thank you Cheng for always making my hair look amazing!

From the interior to the personalities of the stylists, the salon is fantastic. My son and I are clients of Franco; he is pure magic, every time. My son has super straight, extremely thick hair with multiple ‘cow licks’. Franco nails it. As for myself, I wouldn’t hesitate to close my eyes and let him do whatever he wanted to my hair, i’m confident i’d be satisfied. His assistant, Danielle, is charming! It’s always a great time when I visit the salon.

Everyone is wonderful. However Jessica is my colorist & she is sweet as they come. Besides a great personality, she is an awesome colorist. She also does my keratin treatments and trimmings. LOVE JESSICA

TL;DR: KIRSTEN IS THE REAL MVP.
Koda was the most luxurious salon experience I’ve had thus far. I have never been more in love with my hair. I came in for a cut and balayage today and got exactly what I wanted. Kirsten told me step-​by-​step what she was going to do with my hair so I felt completely at peace. She was super knowledgeable, friendly, and attentive. I’ve had some of the worst haircuts and I’m so glad this time was different. I cannot wait to come back to Koda!

Staff was awesome and accommodating with three hair cuts at the last minute. Kirsten did a great job. So friendly too.

I have dark brown hair, and had never gotten it colored before. I wanted to try a big change and I’m so glad I was recommended to see Kirsten at Koda! She was super friendly and made sure that I was comfortable all along the way. She really listened to what I wanted, and she also helped by advising me as to what would look the most flattering for my skin tone/​face shape/​etc.
I LOVED the outcome!
I wanted a natural look, so we decided to balayage my hair. It really did look natural and my maintenance (a major concern of mine) has been amazing! Every time I visit my family in San Diego I make a point to book an appointment with Kirsten because she is not only great at what she does, she is also a joy to be around! She has a client for life!

Everybody here is excellent. This Salon is a breath of fresh air for La Jolla. They use the newest techniques and keep things fresh. I love this place.

Went in with auburn hair and brassy highlights, hoping Cheng could lift some of the color out as I wanted to go blonde! What she came up with was amazing, she spent a lot of time with highlighting and balayaging and the color lifted beautifully to a light/​soft strawberry blonde with lots of dimension. It came out better than I thought it would.
I was treated so wonderfully while I was there, everyone asked me if I wanted something to drink, they were all incredibly friendly. The salon itself is chic and cozy. In a beautiful location in La Jolla. I am now a permanent client of Cheng’s and cannot wait to go back!

Jessica is nothing but amazing! I’m a simple gal and have never really done anything special with my hair. Its basically layers every time, but hairstylists still struggle with that. Not Jessica.
My boyfriend surprised me with a new hairdo, color and all! I was so excited! Jessica glazed my hair, added color and highlights, then cut and styled it. It was like a TV show makeover!!! I felt so special. Everything came out beautifully! I have never had my hair look so good. It’s been about 4 months since my makeover and I still get compliments on my hair! I know… who waits this long to get another haircut. but I will be returning to Jessica for my future do’s!!! Thank you Jessica for making me feel and look fabulous!
P. S. It’s true. She has worked on the Charger girls hair, travels around the world for training’s, and more. That lady knows what she is doing!

Just want to give the best review to Cheng, Rachel and the rest of the Koda Team!!! They made my birthday extremely special by repairing my hair and making me feel gorgeous and smiling again! Koda Salon made room for me during their busy schedules and took extra special care of my hair. I can only say that I will NEVER step foot in another salon again!!! Koda Salon is the best salon with the best environment and the best stylist ever!!!

Kristen K. did an amazing job on my hair and listened very well to what I wanted. I LOVE how she blended the color of my original dye with a sombre look. Definitely going back to her again.
Environment:
Very beautiful setting and a bright welcoming/​relaxing environment.
Parking:
La Jolla Downtown is it is either 60 min./ 90min/​2hour parking if you want free parking or paid parking for $ 5

Rachel did an amazing job highlighting my hair! I’ll be coming back for sure.

I have been coming to see Jessica to keep my hair healthy and update the color as time goes on for several months now. I am always left with confidence that she will never overprocess my hair and that she knows what she’s doing. More than that, Jessica makes the effort to schedule me late to accommodate my work schedule, which means a lot!
Jessica has almost a decade of experience, goes to conferences nationwide among top stylists, does hair for weddings, and even works on the hair of the Chargers girls!!!
You couldn’t ask more a more competent, talented, and honest stylist.
It is hard to trust anyone else!

This review is for Heather. Wow. What a great stylist. I cheated on my regular girl of 10 years cause I was «this» close to going to CVS and buying a do it yourself «frost n Tip» I thought twice, and looked on Unilocal for a nearby salon. I called and Heather had a cancellation and I was booked with her.
AWESOME COLOR. She knew exactly what kind of blonde I wanted. She understood my lame way of explaining how I wanted my bangs to be long and cut off mat my cheeks. She was really easy to talk to, and better yet she zipped through my full head of highlights in ½ the time my other girl takes. It was so awesome to see the color at the end. It is natural looking. (no stripes) and she has me almost convinced to get extensions after Xmas…
Thank you so much. I will def. will be coming back!

I have started going to this salon about a Year ago and have enjoyed it so much! The stylist are so friendly and always give you little treats or wine! I always see Kirsten and she does my hair exactly how I want it :) she seems to know just how I picture it and describe it !!! Amazing and classy place and recommend it for everyone!

I was very hesitant to do anything with my hair ever again because I had a horrible color experience at the last salon I went too but I knew I wanted a change. One of my friends came in to see Rachel and said nothing but good things about her so I figured I would give it a shot. I told her I was really nervous because at the other salon they made me a horrible blonde color. I told Rachel I wanted something more natural and low maintenance. She recommended balayage to add dimension and shine. I didn’t know what color to chose but she picked the perfect tone for my skin color! I am so glad my friend recommended me to her because she really listened to what I wanted and what I didn’t want. I am no longer afraid to color my hair! and I will definitely be back :)

I came to this place for the first time and Rachel was my stylist. She was amazing ! We had a really good consultation and She was able to create the exact look that I wanted! I am for sure going back to see her I was so very pleased with the results ! She really knows her stuff! I highly recommend her if you stop by!
Xoxo

This review is for Heather.
Man, she did an absolutely wonderful job. I came in with my long untamed mane that had a bunch of split ends, told Heather exactly what I wanted, and came out feeling fabulous.
First she gave me a fabulous head massage. Then she took me to the chair to cut my hair. She listened to exactly what I wanted and pretty much talked me through the whole process so that I am aware of what is going on. She made my hair have fluidity.
Overall I would definitely recommend Heather. She’s friendly, and definitely knows how to use those scissors to make your hair feel like art.

AMAZEBALLS. need I say more?
I have been going to Jessica for exactly a year and have had the most positive — best looking hair — color achieved — healthy — AMAZING– experience yet! I have been coloring my hair for 9 years now and lets just say. I don’t let just anyone touch my hair. I am super persnickety when it comes to my hair. I have had my fair share of horrible stylist and amazing top notch stylist but Jessica nails my desires every time. (it’s always a new surprise– so thank you Jessica for always dealing with my indecisiveness)
When I first met Jessica she was super sweet and just by our first consultation I knew I was in good hands just by how educated she was. I was in the process of returning back to my blonde hair from being super brunette & it was EXTREMELY uneven. I had brown on the bottom and bleach on the top it was HORRIBLE! Jessica managed to take all of my miseries away by putting a settle high light and low light into my hair. I absolutely fell in love and it was a humungous make over. I knew from then on out Jessica was destined to be my hair stylist forever & EVER! She brought wonders to my hair!
Now I just get blonde balyage highlights that I am in love with. We achieved a settle honey natural blonde with a little bit of platinum and my growth is never bad!
My haircuts are always impeccable as well. Although I’m super simple… (Always asking for trims and long layers because I want to grow out my hair) … Jessica nails a perfect hair-​do every time! She never cuts off more then desired too. (WHICH is super rare to find nowadays!!) My hair has grown over 4 – 5 inches in one year. This girl definitely knows what she is doing!
Jessica is extremely talented at what she does, hair gifted from the hair gods, and 100% hair educated. Something I also LOVE about Koda is that they are always continuing with their hair education. Always keeping up with the new hair trends and teaching each other innovative ways of coloring, cutting, blowdrying, etc!
The atmosphere is overall relaxing and soothing. (Not a million blowdryers going off kinda thing— which I LOVE) Parking is super simple! (I always park underground a block away for $ 2.00) Staff are always so friendly. & they are always fully stocked with the best and latest hair products.
Thank you so much Jessica for bringing my hair back to life & for never disappointing me :) I couldn’t ask for anyone better!
& Thank you Koda Salon for always being amazing too! :)