Nail Today

I work across the street and came in here on my lunch hour, assuming that I could get a gel manicure and be back to work in time since no one else was in the place. Wrong!
The technician was incredibly slow. It was almost as if she was moving slow on purpose to keep me in there as long as possible. I still don’t understand how one manicure took over an hour.
As some one else noted in their review, she ran the emory board over my cuticles twice, causing a cut that would be sore the next day.
Worst of all, the manicure started to come off within days! I keep my nails manicured with gel color all the time, usually the paint lasts 3 – 5 weeks. 2.5 weeks at the very least. This one was peeled by 1.5 weeks.
Let the buyer beware.

This is my favorite place of the many salons around. Prices are good, everyone is nice and they do a great job. I get gel nails and theirs last longer without peeling than any place I’ve been, often 3 to 4 weeks or more. Good massages with mani and pedi and even hot stones with pedi. Also a really calm, chill place. Highly recommended!

Came in for a basic mani-​pedi… And boy was the experience a disappointment after reading all of the high Unilocal ratings!
I pick my color, go upstairs to have a seat and stick my feet into the water, which was waaaay too hot. After adjusting the water, the 3 nail techs couldn’t even let me get into a comfortable position before they began speaking to each other in their native language and laughing almost uncontrollably…
Now I’m not going to assume that they were talking about me, however, based on their behavior it is an easy assumption to make.
Whether they were or not, it’s so unprofessional to continue speaking in a language that your customers don’t understand especially while you’re providing a service to them… It’s annoying and makes me feel uncomfortable. What made it even more awkward was that I was the only person in the shop with them.
After I shook my head in disappointment they continued their conversation and giggling, so I just closed my eyes and out my head back, trying to make the best of the situation.
They did a nice job with my nails, however, I probably won’t be returning any time soon. The awkward conversations that lead you to believe that you are being talked about in your face is a huge pet peeve for me. Nonetheless I paid and left a generous tip.

When you tell me it will be a 5 min wait, and it turns into 45 minutes, you get a 2 star review.

First and last time here. The woman was nice but I was so incredibly disappointed with the experience. First off, when my friend and I walked in, the atmosphere was unfriendly. This woman kept trying to push us to get a pedi but we both said mani’s only. We get asked if it’s our first time and it was so as she was speaking with Susan (my friend had her and she was great to her btw) I expected that we would have a good first impression but boy was I wrong. I asked the lady to make my nails square with rounded edges, she made them rounded. Whatever. I’m honestly not that picky when people make mistakes because it was a confusing request and I try to be sensitive to language barriers as I am also not a native English speaker. Okay, so… I ask for a gel mani in a light grey polish and she tried giving me a glitter polish so I show her which one I originally wanted and she came back with a dark grey. Whatever. Again, I’m not picky and I figured she didn’t have the exact color so I just nodded and agreed to it. She proceeded to do my nails and I think her eyes were tired because it seemed like she was having a hard time focusing. (She left some polish on my skin but that’s not a big deal for me) The work was overall okay. I thought the experience was going well after all of the mistakes because she ended up massaging my back and oiling my arms and hand. It was relaxing! Then we get to the cash register and she informs us that it’ll be a $ 1 charge to use our debit instead of cash… Okay, sure. Then she informs us that our total will be $ 31 for a gel mani? (I’m reading some of the comments here now and they averaged around 23 or so, so it was definitely too much)
When I was waiting to get over-​charged, I notice the prices and saw that a «oil, massage, and hot towel treatment» is around $ 7 (to be honest I don’t remember the exact prices) so I’m pretty sure we got scammed into paying more than we should have.
Long story short: This lady tried pressuring us with an unnecessary pedi, forced me to get a color I didn’t want, in a shape I didn’t want, and pay for a service I didn’t ask for?! I’m assuming she did this because we were first timers so we wouldn’t know what the prices were going to be and wouldn’t expect us to be so vigilant. I still paid the stupid 36 (including the tip… you verbally have to tell her how much you want to tip her if you’re using your debit so of course I wasn’t going to be like «no tip» to her face) and I just wanted to get out of there and never come back so that’s what I’m doing. Such a shame!

I really like this salon! I have come twice and both times I called at the last minute and they fit me in right before closing, and stayed late to finish my nails. Diane gave me a lovely pedi with hot stones, scrubs and a heel polish and did a really great job on my cuticles for only $ 25, which is more than some places but I felt was a fair price for the quality of the service. Susan does my acrylics and after I told her about the terrible experience I had had at another nail salon she took extra time to make sure my nails were what I wanted, and that my rhinestones were extra secure. The last time I came here my acrylics had regular polish and not gel and lasted me about 2 – 2.5 weeks which for regular polish I think is quite good! I would definitely recommend them, but come to your appointment a little early because street parking is a little tough!

went in for an acrylic fill. My nails were poorly shaped. My cuticles are red and raw. Had to have them repaint my nails. Which they were very cranky about. Then ended up painting them myself at home.

I own a business myself and I love the way Susan make sure everyone is comfortable and getting what they want/​need, her ladies are great too. If you don’t know what color you want Susan (owner) with her staff will help you choose. Thanks ladies bunch.

I’m really confused by all the 5-​star reviews. I feel like I’m being generous with 3…
Nothing super egregious happened with my nails, but definitely some sloppy oversights. Nail tech didn’t ask what shape I wanted, the gel was applied too thick which caused a burning sensation under the light and small wrinkles in the finished product, and some of the top coat got cured on my skin! Overall my nails look ok. Definitely better than when I walked in, but not freshly manicured.

Not impressed!
No communication besides sit down and what color & of course Can you pay now?
Weren’t really friendly or helpful.
They have an okay color selection that was a plus but other than that this is my first & LAST time coming here.

I’m not sure why I come back. The first time I tried this place for a pedi, my polish wasn’t even on correctly where there were lighter spots on my big toes. Then I came in for an apt, where they were a half hour late getting to me, and they overlapped my gel with my cuticles so it started to lift the second they started to feel. Today I went in for gel mani and pedi. My nails were filed to a pulp and my cuticles cut. I don’t know if I can go back.

These ladies are the best and the shop feels like home! It was super important for me to find women i could trust to do my nails in Oakland since I just moved here from SF– I tried a place across the street at first and they destroyed my nails…
THESE LADIES ARE DETAIL ORIENTED, the real deal! No steps are skipped, they don’t try to rush you out. Pedicures also include a sugar scrub and a hot stone massage! Dreamy~
And my pink and white set turned out simply beautiful (just wanted to add that pink and white sets are time consuming and pretty difficult, especially since i like them long) but my girl finished them with ease!!! She even called me a princess and told me I deserved beautiful nails because i am beautiful~~*
I’ve found my new home, I love this place!

Sometimes I really hate nice people! Sure, they’re great when you have one item in the checkout aisle of the grocery store and they’re ahead of you but tell you, «No, you go ahead!» Or when you want to get over in traffic and everyone else is being absolute jerks but that sweet, docile angel waves you along. But nice people can make penning an honest review an absolute pain. Trust me, I know because I’ve been avoiding writing this review for almost two weeks all because Susan, who did a bad job on my nails, was NICE. So damn nice that even though I know others benefit from authentic feedback (we all «needz da feedz» sometimes y’all) I just kept imagining us running into each other later and her giving me the coldest ice princess stare imaginable. But I have to speak my truth! Give us free!
I scheduled an appointment for a full set and pedi on a Sunday and prepared for a relaxing experience. These dogs were whooped, my friends. I can’t remember the last time I put acrylics on my nails (faja forgive me) but I was feeling the need for coffin nails and nothing could stop my desire – not even the memories of how much I hate what acrylics do to my real nails. Susan was all folks talked about in other Unilocal reviews so I was delighted when she started working on my mani’, but my joy quickly subsided. At every point she was just plain ol’ sloppy, even as I was asking her to slow down and telling her that she had been recommended by friends and that she came highly recommended by Unilocal. (That was my gentle reminder that she had a reputation to live up to but I don’t think she got it.) In the end, I had uneven nails that were partially painted and cuticles that were in pain and bleeding from being clipped to death. Except for the massage, everything was done halfheartedly and even when I protested or tried to explain what I wanted her to do differently, Susan ignored me and spoke over me to other clients or employees. It wasn’t that she was rude, because she did engage with me too! It’s just that the job itself was pretty shoddy. Within 3 days, the acrylic around the edges of almost all of my nails was flaking off and chipping.
The pedicure (which was done by a different woman) felt great but within 8 days, was showing ridic signs of wear! I was shocked, since pedi’s always last a billion times longer than mani’s in my experience. I don’t think the polish is to blame either… I got the same OPI color I’ve been getting for years (…sadly! How old am I, 93,027?!)
Definitely will not be coming back here again.

Synopsis: Consistently great.
Dets.: After taking a break to save duckets, I returned to the ladies of A Nail Today a few weeks ago. And boy am I glad I did! The service is just as good as it always is — in fact it’s gotten better if you can believe that: I was just treated to a hot stone massage of my lower legs during my pedicure! My nails (and toes) are always primped to perfection and I can always count on a hug from Susan, A Nail Today’s gracious owner.
I truly love this place

Had a lovely time getting my nails done here yesterday! My fellow Unilocalers did not let me down.
Seeking a before dinner relaxing activity, I made reservations for two pedicures. The shop is two stories. This was my first time selecting a Zoya polish and I’m impressed with how opaque it applied, even after one coat.
Pedicure is $ 20, Mani/​pedi combo is $ 30. Cash preferred.
The pedicure included a scrub, hot stones, and soak. The hot stones felt fabulous.
The woman who did my nails was very sweet and friendly! The atmosphere of the shop has lively music and when we left both women genuinely told us goodbye and see you next time. Even though they had other customers I didn’t feel rushed. I’m pleased with the outcome of my nails.
Cons: pedicure soak was not heated, it was room temperature. Also, it was hard to find a polish color I liked.
Will most definitely return when I’m in the area!

I wasn’t even going to review this place because I had nothing good to say about my experience… but I could tell the woman who was doing my nails was truly trying her best and I respect and appreciate that. However, I woke up with an infection in my nail today as a result of my manicure so, here goes:
I came here for the first time out of convenience, and the reviews were good so I figured it would be worth a shot. I always get my nails almond shaped but the woman didn’t know what shape that was. I’m used to that because it’s an uncommon shape, so I showed her a picture. What she proceeded to do next was so horrifying I shudder just thinking about it.
She began clipping and filing my nails in the most crooked way ever! None of them were the same length or shape, three of them had little snags, and then there’s the infected one now. Awesome.
She kept showing me my hand asking how it was, so I kept trying to guide her but after a while I gave up and just let it happen. I’d been growing my nails out for a few weeks and she destroyed then in a few minutes.
Plus, the woman gave me a massage that left me with an awful crick in my neck! It still hurts a few days after the fact. She didn’t even ask… I really don’t like to be touched so that just wasn’t okay.
So​.no, I don’t recommend this place. I’ve never been more disappointed with a manicure than I am with this one :(

My cousin and I were in search high and low for a nail salon that was still open passed 6pm in the Oakland area and didn’t require reservations on a Saturday night, and thanks to Unilocal we found this lovely place. The lady who picked up when I called to inquire about prices was very frienldy and told us to «come on in!», so in we went.
When we arrived at about 6:45pm (they close at 7:30p), we were greeted with smiles and seated immediately and offered hot tea/​water. We both got pedis ($ 21 per), and our toesies were treated real special with the callous removing equipment (a rod with a sandpaper circle thing on top) and an exfoliating scrub followed by hot towels. My feet now feel as smooth as a newborn bebe’s behind! (I run a lot, so this is quite a feat!)
The ladies were sweet and easy to talk to, and paid a lot of detail to perfecting our toes. They worked through closing time until about 8pm to make sure our toes were beautiful and dry. (Even used small brushes to clean up any discreet mispaintings!).
All in all, great customer service and wonderful pedis ! This will now be my go to spot next time in the Oakland/​Piedmont area!
PS: they do take card, but cash is preferred!
PPS: the ladies recommended I use vaseline on my callous area at night; never got that recommendation before and I really appreciate it. Thank you!

I LOVE this place. They do an amazing job of gels, pedicures are great, too. Everyone who works here is lovely and kind. Susan is really exceptional and somehow remembers all of her customers’ names. She goes out of her way to make everyone comfortable and has fit me in last minute on many occasions. I really don’t want to ever go to another nail salon because they all seem inferior.

First of all: I’ve been here three times before writing a review.
Second: I’ve had three different things done to my nails.
Third: I’ve been waxed two different times.
Today they stayed open an extra hour and a half just for me. They saved my nails, which had been destroyed by a place I went to in Anaheim — never again. The owner then did a great wax after salvaging my nails (and now they match Amy’s from «Doctor Who»).
So, gels, silk wraps, tips, pedicures with matching gels (or matching non-​gels), all have turned out better than hoped for.
Also — men are welcome and will receive excellent care. My male friends who have gone with me have been quite happy with their mani-​pedis, clear polish or none.
Highly recommended, basically. And also the owner is very sweet and communicative.

Susan has been doing my nails lately and they are always amazing. I do gel with her and they’ve never been longer or healthier. My last gel lasted 3−4weeks before it even chipped. I bring all my friends here and they love it too.
Stopped going here because the customer service kept getting worse and worse.