Men's Barbershop
Reader Pick: Local Barber of Fort Worth
Who knows when Fort Worth became the go-to place for cool barbershops? But, who cares, because guys like Johnathon Razo, owner of Local Barber of Fort Worth, are making us all look good. Earlier this year, Razo took over and remodeled his grandfather's 900-square-foot barbershop in Sundance Court. Just follow the sign next to Marie Antoinette, down a discreet Sundance Square courtyard, and you'll find the traditional barbershop — furnished with ornate 1910 and 1920s barber chairs that have been refurbished into polished condition, atop a charming vintage-inspired tile floor. The chairs alone are an impressive feat. The four barber chairs took over three years to acquire from constantly looking at eBay, Craigslist and various resale shops.
115 W. 2nd St., Ste. 108, localbarberfwtx.com
Editors' Pick: Fort Worth Barber Shop
When you think “Fort Worth barbershop,” more often than not, the first one you think of is, well, the Fort Worth Barber Shop, which has become somewhat of a local icon, thanks to its old-school atmosphere, classic services and likable owner Jonathan Morris. Last year, the shop expanded with a retail store and second location called The Lathery, located at The Foundry District, north of West Seventh Street. But perhaps its greatest success is its dedication to the community — boys enrolled in the HOPE Farm program get their haircuts for free.
3529 Lovell Ave., fortworthbarbershop.com
Day Spa
Reader Pick: Daireds
2400 W. I-20 Frontage Road, daireds.com
Editors' Pick: The Woodhouse Day Spa
The Woodhouse Day Spa opened in WestBend in 2015 with a very big, but very calming bang. Fort Worthians in search of a way to relax and pamper were thrilled with the chance to get a little bit of R and R without fighting downtown traffic or parking problems to reach a spa. Between the Champagne, the quiet room and the plush robe, you'll be relaxed before your masseuse ever even comes to greet you.
1621 River Run, Ste. 161, woodhousespas.com
Homebuilding
Reader Pick: Castor Vintage Homes
Jon Castor has been building homes since 2004, and he focuses on a 2- to 3-mile radius around TCU, where he and his wife went to school and where they have a daughter in attendance. Castor does a lot of remodels and additions, even playhouses for kids.
3121 Stadium Drive, constructiononline.com
Editors' Pick: PentaVia Custom Homes
This was an easy pick for our staff. PentaVia is building the magazine's 2018 Home of Dreams, a 6,465-square-foot, five-bedroom, six-bath modern traditional hacienda in Westlake's luxury Granada development. In building its homes, PentaVia likes to follow five design “roads” — physical, social, intellectual, emotional and personal — that lead to the same place: advanced luxury. The Home of Dreams, which will be open for tours benefiting the magazine's charity, a Wish with Wings, in August, will even come with a digitally enhanced Christmas morning experience for the new buyer's family.
Massage
Reader Pick: Daireds
Daireds, the popular south Arlington salon, has been highlighted among the top American salons by ELLE Magazine, combining the feel of a salon and spa with amenities that enable it to host corporate and private events. Its massage packages run the gamut from a 25-minute spa massage for $45 to a four-hands, 50-minute massage, $180; and couples Swedish massage, 50 minutes, $180.
2400 I-20 Frontage Road, daireds.com
Editors' Pick: Massage Therapy by Lana
How will you feel after a massage from Lana Lambert, in-house massage therapist for The Salon Upstairs in the South Main Village on Fort Worth's Near Southside? “Unconscious,” one of the magazine's loyal readers and a customer of Lambert's tells us. Lambert, who has more than 600 hours in Texas education behind her craft, offers chair massages for $1 per minute, 30-minute “focus” massages for $35, 60 minutes for $70, and 90-minute “relaxation” massages for $95.
Find Massage Therapy by Lana on Facebook
Painting Company
Reader Pick: J & V Painting
J&V is a partner with Fort Worth Magazine in our Dream Home projects, so we're not surprised to find our readers like them, too. J&V, started in 1975 by brothers Jon Nappier and Vance Nappier, has grown to six painting teams. Today, Jon Nappier and his daughters, Sara Hiett and Kim Nappier, run the company, which serves the commercial and residential and faux painting segments. The company specializes in small sheetrock jobs, texture, faux finishes and tape and bed work.
Editors' Pick: Southern Painting
It's hard to find reliable painters. Southern was founded in 1989 by Mark Collins, a University of Texas at Arlington graduate. It's since grown to 27 offices nationally, including one in Fort Worth. Southern offers full-service interior and exterior service. Its painters are bonded and insured, and the service comes with a limited, three-year transferrable warranty.
4455 Camp Bowie Blvd., Ste.114-116, southernpainting.com
Cleaners
Reader Pick: Kite's Custom Cleaners
Sixty years after Sam Kite launched his cleaning business on Fort Worth's West Side, it's still under family control, run today by Kite's son, Gary. Kite's Custom Cleaners today offers a full range of services, including wardrobe; household items like bedsheets; specialty like leather, suede, fur, shoes, handbags and disaster remediation; care of your finest wardrobe items; and tailoring and repair.
4839 Camp Bowie Blvd.,
Editors' Pick: Twin Kell Cleaners
Twin brothers Kent and Kevin Kell, third-generation Fort Worth cleaners, founded Twin Kell in 1989. Kevin Kell is a certified garment care professional, having earned all three of Drycleaning and Laundry Institute's professional certificates: certified environmental dry cleaner, certified professional dry cleaner, and certified professional wet cleaner.
4011 Camp Bowie Blvd., twinkellcleaners.com
Landscape Design
Reader Pick: Mean Green Lawn & Landscape
Mean Green, sister company to Magnolia Fence & Patio, another 2018 Best Of winner, is run by Michael Whittaker, brother of Magnolia's Robert Whittaker. Mean Green sells residential lawn maintenance, landscape design, installation and accent lighting. Like his brother's hands-on operation at Magnolia, Michael Whittaker is involved in Mean Green's operations, including sales, employee relations and accounts payable.
Editors' Pick: Proscapes
Lawn & Tree Care
Fencing Company
Reader Pick: Magnolia Fence & Patio
Editors' Pick: Gladiator Fence
4388 W. Vickery Blvd., Ste. 205, gladiatorfence.com
Flooring
Reader Pick:
Bottega Design Gallery
Even if you've never remodeled or built a home in Fort Worth, chances are you've heard of Bottega Design Gallery or seen its products in a home. A favorite for local interior designers, the showroom is filled with eye candy. Hexagon marble here, Spanish-inspired tile there, we suggest you make up an excuse to find yourself in this west Fort Worth showroom tucked well off the beaten path near Alta Mere Drive and Interstate 30.
2824 Marquita Drive, bottegadesigngallery.com
Editors' Pick: Vintage Floors
When P.S. The Letter left its home in a historic building off of Camp Bowie Boulevard in 2017, we were left wondering what retail jaunt or dining establishment would move in. Turns out, neither. Bryan Page and his company, Vintage Floors, took over the space, erecting a neon sign out front that had us immediately begging to see inside. Its space in the de facto designers' row, surrounded by framing shops, rug stores and antiques shops, is right at home.
5136 Camp Bowie Blvd., Find Vintage Floors on Facebook
Insurance/Repair
Reader Pick: Higginbotham
Higginbotham was formed in 1948 as a small insurance agency in Fort Worth. Today, it's one of the nation's 100 largest independent brokers and continues to expand into new geographic markets and lines of business. The company, run today by CEO Rusty Reid, a longtime Higginbotham employee, sells business insurance, employee benefits, personal coverage, benefits service and risk management services. 500 W. 13th St.,
Editors' Pick: Gus Bates
Insurance & Investments
Founded in 1966 by entrepreneur Gus Bates, the Fort Worth agency today remains under family control, headed by son Gus S. Bates. Its full-service offerings include commercial property and casualty, employee benefits, financial services, personal property and casualty, retirement plan services, and individual health care.
3221 Collinsworth St., gusbates.com
Child Care
Reader Pick: Bright Horizons Montessori
201 Jones St., schools.brighthorizons.com
Editors' Pick: The Playhouse Academy
4900 Briarhaven Road, playhouseacademy.com
Hair Salon
Reader Pick: Salon Dexterity
6108 Bryant Irvin Road, salondexterity.com
Editors' Pick: Charlie + Co
It's hard to know which is better: Charlie Price's hair or the hair of the women he styles. The Dallas-based stylist, known for creating the perfect low-maintenance blonde for clients, opened his Fort Worth location in 2016. His team of stylists, who train under him personally before taking to the floor for their own clients, keeps Fort Worthians' hair looking good. And, Charlie takes on his own clients in the salon every Thursday.
1057 Foch St., Ste. 1057, charlieandco.com
Boarder/Groomer
Reader Pick: Your Pet Staff
Editors' Pick: Glamour Paws
2412 Forest Park Blvd., glamourpawsonline.com
Boot Camp
Reader Pick: Camp Gladiator
2300 W. 7th St., campgladiator.com
Editors' Pick: Fort Worth Fit Body Boot Camp
6489 Southwest Blvd., fitbodybootcamp.com
Car Repair
Reader Pick: Ichiban Autos
1901 W. Berry St., ichibanautos.com
Editors' Pick: J&N Auto Service
1600 Park Place Ave., Find J&N Auto Service on Facebook
Dance Studio
Reader Pick: Dance Concept
4809 Bryant Irvin Road, dance-concept.com
Editors' Pick: To The Pointe Dance Academy
1700 S. Cherry Lane, tothepointe-fw.com
Event Planner
Reader Pick: Cloud Creative Events
Editors' Pick: Grit + Gold
2060 Kenley St., gritandgoldweddings.com
Real Estate Firm/Group
Reader Pick: Williams Trew Real Estate
3707 Camp Bowie Blvd., Ste. 300, williamstrew.com
Editors' Pick: John Zimmerman-Briggs Freeman Sotheby's International Realty
Zimmerman, a superstar agent for Briggs Freeman in Fort Worth, is getting a lot of air time lately. He'll also appear in August in The 400, Fort Worth INC. magazine's inaugural issue identifying 400 of the most influential people in Fort Worth. In 2016, Zimmerman closed and put under agreement $150 million in sales. Zimmerman's spent more than two decades selling luxury properties and likes to say he's built his business on two principles – connections and commitment.
3131 W. 7th St., briggsfreeman.com
Extermination Company
Reader Pick: Alamo Termite & Pest Control
1901 W. Berry St., alamopest.com
Editors' Pick: Ideal Partners
6913 Camp Bowie Blvd., Ste. 181, idealpartners.com
Facial
Reader Pick: Spavia Day Spa
4801 Overton Ridge Blvd., Ste. 144, spaviadayspa.com
Editors' Pick: Shelton's Salon and Spa
2731 S. Hulen St., sheltonssalon.com
Fitness Program
Reader Pick: CrossFit 817
12803 Harmon Road, crossfit817.com
Editors' Pick: Goss Fitness
6445 Southwest Blvd., gossfitness.com
Florist
Reader Pick: Lilium Floral
This Colleyville floral studio is no stranger to awards as they've been racking up accolades around the area since 2010 (when it first won Reader Pick for Best Florist). Its trademark style, organic with an elegant twist, is on display at weddings, corporate events and pop-up studios around town. The Colleyville Boulevard studio is as pleasing to the eye as the creations that come out of it — thanks to wallpaper and shop dog, named Winston.
4800 Colleyville Blvd., liliumflorals.com
Editors' Pick: Gordon Boswell Flowers
Gordon Boswell opened his namesake floral shop in downtown Fort Worth in 1919 — yes, almost 100 years ago. The storied shop has two locations — one on Pennsylvania Avenue near the hospital district and another off of Camp Bowie Boulevard in Ridglea Hills. It's the go-to flower spot for those that embrace old Fort Worth.
6204 Camp Bowie Blvd., gordonboswell.com
Holistic Health & Wellness
Reader Pick: The Cryo Spa
1011 Foch St., thecryospafortworth.com
Editors' Pick: HydroPros IV
5501 Thelin St., Ste. 107, ivhydropros.com
Home Repair
Reader Pick: Hearn's Residential & Commercial Services
Manicure and Pedicure
Reader Pick: Chandelier Nail and Brow Bar
2713 W. Berry St., Find Chandelier Nail and Brow Bar on Facebook
Editors' Pick: European Nail Spa
5242 S. Hulen St., europeannailspafortworth.com
Moving Service
Reader Pick: The Moving Factor
2410 Minnis Drive, Ste. 166, Haltom City, themovingfactor.com
Editors' Pick: Grace Movers
Plumbing Company
Reader Pick: Hawk Plumbing, Heating & Air Conditioning Inc.
8506 Spring St., hawkphac.com
Editors' Pick: Baker Brothers Plumbing & Air Conditioning
2406 Gravel Drive, bakerbrothersplumbing.com
Roofing Company
Reader Pick: Tarrant Roofing
4101 Airport Fwy., Ste. 209, tarrantroofing.com
Editors' Pick: City Roofing
Sunless Tanning
Reader Pick: Gorgeous Glow Mobile
Start asking around town for spray tan recommendations, and you'll hear the words, Gorgeous Glow Mobile, a lot. The business is owned by Liz Nelson, a certified airbrush tan consultant and, get this, registered nurse. Book an appointment on the Gorgeous Glow Mobile Facebook page or keep an eye out for pop-up shops around town.
Find Gorgeous Glow Mobile on Facebook
Editors' Pick: Tan 2 Glow
3501 Blue Bonnet Circle, tan2glow.com
Car Wash
Reader Pick: University Car Wash
Fort Worth's University Car Wash, under the direction of new owner Karim Jamal, a Fort Worth physician who bought the place a few years ago, has been aggressively working on improving the customer experience. Jamal restructured the compensation system to take pressure off the front-line ticket takers to sell you more wash and lube jobs than you want. And every day in the afternoon, his managers send an employee into the waiting room to randomly check the ticket of one customer to see how long they've been waiting.
3124 Collinsworth St., washology.com
Editors' Pick:
Red Carpet Car Wash
5829 Camp Bowie Blvd., redcarpetftw.com
Interior Design Firm
Reader Pick: Paxton Place Design
“Traditional with a Twist,” “Eclectic Haven,” “Artistic Farmhouse” – Paxton Place owner Stacie McCans' design eye is wide-ranging. Follow the design studio on Instagram for inspirations like Otomi floor lamps, wallpapered ceilings and hand-painted kitchen tiles.
3620 Hamilton Ave., paxtonplacedesign.com
Editors' Pick:
Beckley Design Studio
3508 Lovell Ave., beckleyds.com
Dental Care
Reader Pick: Art District Dental
3609 W. 7th St., artdistrictdental.com
Editors' Pick: Brown Family Dentistry
4004 White Settlement Road, brownfd.com
Pool Company
Reader Pick: J. Caldwell Custom Pools
5744 Boat Club Road, jcaldwellcustompools.com
Editors' Pick: Claffey Pools
1625 Brumlow Ave., claffeypools.com
Pool Service and Repair
Reader Pick: Puryear Custom Pools
2200 Cantrell Sansom Road, puryearpools.com
Editors' Pick: Pulliam Pools
2725 Altamesa Blvd., pulliam.com
Tailor
Reader Pick: Tailoring by Rios
6717 Calmont Ave., tailoringbyrios.com
Editors' Pick: Harper & Jones
2814 Main St., Ste. 101, harperandjones.com
Travel Agency
Reader Pick: Gulliver's Travel Service
2800 S. Hulen St., Ste. 110, gullivers.com
Editors' Pick: Sanders Travel Centre
3550 Hulen St., sanderstravel.com
Veterinary Clinic
Reader Pick: Arlington Heights Animal Hospital
Our readers have loved on Arlington Heights Animal Hospital for years and followed it when the father-son team of Drs. Billy and Jimmy Davis moved the practice from a small house off of Camp Bowie Boulevard to new quarters they built and opened in 2013 on Montgomery Street. Dr. Billy retired in 2017 and handed the leash to Dr. Jimmy. The practice has two other vets. Known for compassionate care, the new building allowed the practice to expand its range of services. Those include day care and boarding at The Retreat, which include grooming, “play care” and stays in its “cottages and rooms.”
1712 Montgomery St., cowtownvet.com
Editors' Pick: Hulen Hills Animal Hospital
A lot is happening at Hulen Hills, which is getting ready to move this fall to a new facility. For pet owners who need grooming, day care and boarding services, Hulen Hills has its Grand Pet Resort & Salon. Nervous about leaving your furry baby? The Grand streams public video from its PlayCare areas and pool and password-protected video from the DogCams and CatCams in its “individual suites,” rooms and “townhomes.”
3201 Hulen St., hulenhills.com
Yoga Studio
Reader Pick: Indigo Yoga
The magazine's readers heaped the votes on Indigo Yoga, a 12-year-old studio run by Brooke Hamblet that opened in 2006 off of Camp Bowie Boulevard. The initial studio was large enough for 20 students per class. Indigo expanded twice; then, in 2016, it created a new studio nearby with locker rooms, showers, staff lounge and meditation room. Indigo is a Baptiste Affiliate Studio. Based on the Baron Baptiste Power Vinyasa Yoga Method, this practice combines different traditions of yoga, including Ashtanga, and Iyengar for a mix that promises to tone your body and “open energetic channels to a calmer, peaceful spirit ignited with confidence.”
5111 Pershing Ave., indigoyoga.net
Editors' Pick: The Sanctuary Yoga Room
5808 Edwards Ranch Road, thesanctuaryyogaroom.com
