Salon Essie It's been almost 20 years since Essie set off for a three-month vacation from Iran. She decided to stay here, and seven years ago, she opened her salon on Richmond. You'll still catch the enchanting lilt of Farsi fluttering through the store in between casual banter with her customers. Men's haircuts all too often become a painful exercise in forced pleasantries or chillingly apathetic silences. Salon Essie soars above all of that with gracious, swift service. We especially miss the departed Paul -- the gregarious Lebanese stylist who's quite possibly the nicest guy in Houston to snip, shave and shape our locks. Dudes might still balk at the prospect of getting trimmed up anyplace without a candy-cane barbershop pole outside; but let your inner metro open the door, and Essie will take care of the rest.

Cactus Music and Video Regulars stop by Cactus to browse used vinyl and check out the magazines, clothing and rock-music action figurines. They also show up when local or touring musicians drop by to perform. Oh, yeah, and they go to Cactus to buy CDs. During the past 12 months, general manager Quinn Bishop has brought renewed focus to the CDs sold at the store, pursuing both independent artists and national acts whose CDs were previously for sale only on the artists' Web sites. Alejandro Escovedo's live Por Vida album and a live Marcia Ball CD recorded at Waterloo Records in Austin are just a couple of these new arrivals. Best of all, at Cactus you won't find snooty clerks like Jack Black's character in High Fidelity. But the staffers do know what's up -- five of them have more than ten years' experience at the store. "They just truly love music," says Bishop. Imagine that.

The Galleria While the fashionistas burn up Daddy's credit card and waddle under the weight of their bagged purchases, you'll be the practical one. There's no guilt when it comes to window-shopping, and the Galleria is the hottest spot for it. All the names are here: Betsey Johnson, Kenneth Cole, Versace, Abercrombie. You can scope the United Colors of Benetton after perusing the nothing-but-black racks of Tom Ford. Drool at the rocks under lock and key at Cartier. Peer at the posh sweetery Dylan's Candy Bar, or the "I don't need it, but I want it" inventions of Brookstone. Then -- after you've done your out-of-reach sight-seeing -- head to the outlet mall.

Soundwaves So, yeah, the commercials are horrible and the Hummers a bit gauche, but when it comes to selling used CDs, Soundwaves reigns supreme. They offer as much as $5 for newer CDs, so it's a good place to get the albums you never listen to off your hands -- it's like a pawnshop full of music geeks. The fact that Soundwaves is independently owned helps the used-CD selection tremendously, since pressure from record company bean counters doesn't work here. Its larger locations (Montrose, South Main) have sections of used music that dwarf other stores' entire libraries. Don't want that Britney Spears at (gasp!) $16.99 just to listen to "Toxic" on repeat? Chances are you'll find it here for $10.99. You can find older artists no longer enjoying chart success (read: good ones) for as low as $5.99. Those kinds of steals are reason enough to say, "See you at Soundwaves."

French Gourmet Bakery French Gourmet Bakery serves up a bounty of goodies: warm loaves of cinnamon-apple bread, strudels, decadent chocolate cakes (great for parties) and box lunches containing buttery croissants with chicken salad. Need treats for the office or classroom? You can't beat the fresh cupcakes slathered in homemade frosting or the iced ginger star cookies. Even better, the sugar and ginger cookies will soon turn pumpkin-shaped with orange and white icing. Now, if they would just let us lick the bowl…

Adas Window Tint Pimpin' ain't easy, least of all when it comes to your ride. If you've got to score your ground effects in Pasadena, your alloys in Tomball and your LEDs and hydraulics in Katy, you might not have time to brake for lunch. That's why today's busy gangstas head down the East Freeway to Adas Window Tint, where you can get a bitchin' tint job and throw in an al pastor taco for an additional $1.25. The same folks own the Cuban taqueria that's tacked onto the corrugated tin garage, so show up early, camp out on a picnic table in the parking lot, and ponder which is gonna be hotter: your chorizo breakfast taco, or all those chicks you'll get when your ride scrapes the street.

Smoke N' Toke This place is the epitome of stoner chic. Spread out in five rooms of a converted house, the joint has an ample selection of pipes, bongs, hookahs, nargiles, dugouts, smoke stones, papers…hell, just about anything you could ever need to smoke your, um, stuff. The staff is hip-looking and just friendly enough to not be annoying, and they stick to the basics. Sure, there are some peripheral items, like stickers, postcards and tie-dyes, but for the most part it's just smoke supplies (read: no sex toys). They've even got do-it-yourself grow kits for all the budding entrepreneurs out there who want to eliminate the middleman, man.

Viet Hoa Here in Houston you can find Asian foods in most any mainstream grocery store. But if you're hankering for fish sauce, Peking duck or some restaurant-style bowls for serving pho, you're best served traveling to Viet Hoa in southwest Houston. A massive warehouse-sized temple of Chinese and Vietnamese fare, the store peddles produce, Chinese health and wellness goods, seafood, kitchenware and a $2.25 lunch combo at the deli. Flooded with Asian clientele, college students, fusion-friendly foodies and food-industry professionals, Viet Hoa is the spot where you can special-order a longan -- the consummate Thai summer fruit -- for a dinner party and boast to your guests that you "know someone in importing." Need an icebreaker for that first date? Tour the market and chat about the sights, smells and the premium dried cuttlefish.

Rice Epicurean Markets Sometimes we all need a break from chicken-fried steak and baby-back ribs smothered in mesquite barbecue sauce. And, well, some of us don't like to eat dead stuff. So when your inner hippie's stomach starts grumbling, hightail it to Rice Epicurean for Houston's widest-ranging selection of healthy, meat-free eats. Silken tofu, extrafirm tofu, faux cheese, soy ice cream, edamame, tofu lasagna, soy barbecue chips, Dr. Soy snack bars, six different kinds of soy milk -- they're all here. Plus, if you're too busy (or too lazy) to do the shopping yourself, you can place an order online for delivery or pickup.

Carriage Glass & Detail Co. Brothers Andy and Craig Deas don't just run a car wash -- they offer an "automotive cosmetic repair facility." Price-wise, this may not be where you wash your car every week, but the service is far and away the best in town. Hand-washing and -waxing will leave your wheels glistening, and Cesar and his crew will wipe away all the residue of your hectic life. No more pet hair on the seats, mud tracks on the carpet or coffee stains on the console. Trust us, your car deserves to come here. At this day spa for autos, you can drop your bucket of bolts and have windshield chips or paint chips repaired. Carriage can also handle bigger problems, from bumper repainting to windshield replacement. And who knew they could buff those scratches right off your hubcaps?