Galaxy Nail Salon

Clean, professional, nice vibes, and low cost ($ 30 mani/​pedi). The manicures I’ve had have all been precise and long lasting. No, they do not put rose petals in your shit. But they will give you an extra long massage, and I make sure to tip accordingly. PLEASE OVER-​TIP YOUR MANICURIST! (Cash or check only)

I LOVE this place. I’m a cal student and the prices are great, the women who work here are sooo sweet and it’s right next to philz!

I was so excited to find a nail salon with relatively high ratings with a pretty good price. I checked out Galaxy Nail when I first moved to the Rockridge area and found it to be great. However, after my most recent visit, I found myself thinking about the time I had here and was a little disappointed.
Pros:
+ the ladies are incredibly nice and greet you when you come in. I listened in on some conversations that were going on around the shop and you could tell that they had many regular customers.
+ both manicures and pedicures include a massage! Huge plus!
+ there’s a good variety of colors and brands to choose from — Essie, OPI, Zoya
+ the paint job turned out great and was only $ 10!
Cons:
— unfortunately, I felt like I was moved around from place to place. The lady who was working with me didn’t say hi and right when I was finished with my manicure, I was whisked off to another chair to sit while my nails dried, even though no one was waiting.
— when I say down at the table, I picked off three nails (from someone else) off the towel. Later on, when I say by the windows, I noticed more nail clippings hanging out on the pedicure chair and along the edge of the foot sink.
— my massage consisted of hand and wrist massages, a neck rub, some pinches along my shoulder blades. I was fine with that since it’s an extra plus anyways, but when I sat down for my nails to dry, I watched as another beautician gave her client almost a 15 minute massage including her back, forearm, and shoulder blades. I must say that I was a little jealous.
— my nails were not even
— they only take cash BUT there aren’t any signs saying that! It’s a good thing there’s a Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and Safeway nearby (where you can get cash back).
Moral of the story: loved the convenience of the shop and the massages included, but wasn’t as impressed this time with the service and cleanliness of the shop.

$ 30 mani/​pedi with SUPER long massage. And everyone is super nice. My favorite nail salon in a long time.

Best service in the Bay Area! Kim and her team do an amazing job. I often bring in designs I see on Pinterest and they replicate them with ease (see photo). Not to mention that the pedicures come with extra long massages. The shop might not be fancy, but it is truly the best!

I loved Galaxy Nail Salon already, to be clear. My cousin and I wandered in for manicures on a Sunday, and even though they were full, we were welcomed right in and were out within an hour.
I love them even more now that I’ve been on a quiet weekday afternoon and had the full pamper mani/​pedi treatment. These women are friendly, attentive and do such a good job. I am very hard on a manicure, and each time I’ve been here my manicure has lasted for a week. Top that off with reasonable prices, and Galaxy Nails is top in my book!

Excellent mani pedis and the best accompanying massages I’ve ever had as part of a nail service. Also, they are super sweet aaaand open on Sundays.

Went there today very fast but it feels like an assembly line. Old antique nail dryers very dirty. Stayed for twent five minutes, when I got home the nails were smudged. Had too polish them again .Won’t go back. A waste of money!

Think that if you’re a poor grad student that you can’t enjoy the luxuries of life, like professional pampering? THINK AGAIN. You can have it ALL at Galaxy Nails…
This place is very affordable and they give a nice long massage with a mani or pedi. I got a normal polish manicure for $ 10 and it looked great! The staff was very friendly and accommodating. The woman helping me patiently fixed my polish when I messed it up 5 minutes after she finished. Sigh. This is why I can’t have nice things.
My friend got a gel mani for $ 25 and she was happy with her service as well.
Décor leaves a little to be desired. But let me reiterate: manicures are $ 10.
We walked in on a Sunday afternoon and had to wait about 15 min but no big deal because Cream is across the street. Google it.
Disclaimer: I don’t get my nails done very often so I have minimal experience with these types of things.

The ladies here are soooo sweet, and the massages are amazing! It’s small but comfortable, and I loved my mani/​pedi. Will be back.

Amy did a great job cleaning and polishing up my toes and also hooked up an awesome foot massage just when I really needed it :) thank you!

Me and a friend wondered into this place after the original place we wanted to go to messed up our appointments, they had room and good prices so we figured we’d check it out.
The good: They were clean and friendly and my actual mani padi’s turned out pretty good.
The bad: And why I gave two stars, she cut me in two different places and this is a BIG pet peeve of mine and why I won’t ever be going back. She also didn’t do the best job on evening out my nails.

They do the best massages here! Lynn massaged my shoulders and neck as a part of the manicure. The pedicure massage was also long with great pressure. My pedicure is so beautiful and I got a great starburst design on my big toes, all for a great price! I’ll be back.

This would have been 3 – 4 stars if it wasn’t for our second experience.
First, this place is always busy! No matter what time of the day & even if you call them for reservation, they would say yes but you’ll still end up waiting 20 – 30 minutes.
Second, they ONLY take cash and the worse part is there are no signs anywhere in the store that they only do cash.
Third, don’t come in an hour before they close, you won’t get the same service. They would rush their job, won’t even clean your nails like the usual, your polish will end up having bubbles on them. My mom even went back the next day to have it redone just because she can’t stand her nails and was very unhappy. They still asked her to pay an additional $ 10 even if it was their fault.
I’m so sad to write this review because they were all very nice, but the service isn’t consistent. My gel nails started chipping off and it’s barely the 2^nd week. The first time I went to them, my gel lasted almost a month w/​out chipping. Anyway, I’m not sure if I would still want to come back. Might try other places for now.

The nail salon was quaint and quiet. The staff wears a cute uniform with name tags that makes it easier to communicate. I went in at 5pm on a Friday and they were pretty busy but made it obvious that because it was my first time, they wanted me to come back. They really took their time. Massages to both legs and arms. The gel nail colors were a plenty! For once I’d seen colors I’d never seen. Not sure if I’ll be back, but it was a nice experience.

Outstanding service with a smile. I’ve had 3 pedis and 2 mani so far since i arrived in the area a few months ago and could not be happier. The massage is the best. They remember me each time I return.

this review is for my first and last visit to galaxy nails on claremont avenue. this would have been a five star review but unfortunately my bill-​paying experience left such a foul taste in my mouth. my technicians were friendly, the place was tiny but clean, and the service was fast and super efficient. i get gels and over the years i’ve found that not all gel applications are the same. i’ve found that the thinner you apply the gel the more natural it looks and it tends to last longer as well. galaxy nails has got this down.
after i sat down for my mani/​pedi the place started filling up. i had called and made an appointment over the phone, but during my hour session women were beginning to drop in like flies. by the time i was done there were at least 6 women waiting and the place was exploding at the seams with people. i was told my gel mani & pedi would be $ 50 — which is a great price. I handed the technician my debit card but then showed her the $ 12 in cash i was going to tip. a woman from the very back stood up and walked towards me and said «sorry, cash only». i was confused — why wouldn’t they have told me that before i sat down? i said, «don’t you take cards?» and she said «yes, but cash only». huh. she pointed to a bank of america across the street and said i should go get money there. the problem is that bank of america isn’t my bank.
at this point our back and forth is beginning to catch the interest of the half dozen other women in the joint. so i’m standing there with my wallet in my hands trying to explain to this woman that i was not told this was a cash only establishment, that there is no sign anywhere saying cash only, and that bank of america is not my bank. this is the best part. the lady then looks down at my wallet, COUNTS from afar how much money i have in there (it was $ 35) and says, «give me that $ 35, go to the bank, and then come back with more cash». wow.
i traipse across the oh-​so fun intersection of college and claremont to bank of america and take out cash where i was charged a $ 3 service fee from bank of america. great. i also know that my bank, wells fargo, is going to charge a $ 2.50 fee for a non-​WF ATM. super
i was embarrassed that i had to have that conversation in front of all of those other patrons. i was embarrassed that this woman was scolding me like a child. i will not return to be treated this way.

This is my go-​to nail shop and has been for many years. I travel a lot so I sometimes end up visiting nail shops in other cities, and all that ever does for me is make me realize how good I have it at Galaxy. I’m not a huge fan of the massage — that’s just me, I don’t like massage in general — but everything else is great. My nail polish always looks absolutely perfect and my cuticles look clean and well groomed. Kim and her team are all so friendly. They always remember me and ask about my daughter, even when I haven’t been in for months.
Only drawback is that it can be quite busy and crowded on weekends.

I love the women here! They are all super nice every time I come in and you get a great massage no matter what nails you are getting. The manicure massage goes as far as a back shoulder and neck massage. If you get a pedicure I recommend putting the massage chair on the lower back setting, it is amazing! It can get a little busy on holidays or weekends but usually they have space very quickly if so.

I love this place so much!
Everyone who works here is so friendly! I also really appreciate their honesty — other salons I’ve been to in the area make you wait forever (while soaking your feet so you can’t leave), but here they always let me know if they can take me. And even if they’re busy I still feel like I get the complete, relaxing, mani/​pedi experience.
Also, as so many other reviewers mentioned, the massage here is amazing! I always leave so refreshed and relaxed. They go all out with the treatment, and their massage is part of the reason I keep going back. Again, even if they’re totally packed, they still don’t cut the massage short.
They have a great selection of quality nail polishes and my manicures/​pedicures always last a long time without chipping (I feel like I’m guaranteed at least a week of my fingernails still looking flawless, and way longer for my toes).
Briefly…
Spa-​chair manicure/​pedicure:
-$ 30 plus tip
–Takes a little over an hour (they really don’t want you to leave without drying your nails completely)
–Super friendly service
–Great massage
–Easy access via 51B (I’ve only driven there a few times and I’ve been able to park in front, but that might have just been luck)
–CASH ONLY (but there’s a Bank of America right across the street)
Highly recommend this place!