SOMA Healing Collective

Note: I moved this review from California Chiropractic Center at their request, as the provider was Soma Healing:
i have waited several months to write this.
However, i became motivated by a massage experience at another provider that was all a massage is supposed to be.
Sadly, the massage i received at california chiropractic back in June I believe, was one of the worst sessions I have ever experienced. i used a groupon that stated: for Soothing One-​Hour Massage… it was anything but. the massage person, i hesitate to call him a therapist, certainly not a professional, was arrogant, abusive, abrasive, and one of the most unprofessional people i have run across. let me add for clarity — i have had far more bodywork sessions all over the planet than most people. i am also a former bodyworker. so. i am particular about how my body is touched, and about the whole experience.
no table side manner, jumps n and immediately digs into my back. after digging — not even so skillfully, for almost 50 minutes, i mention to him that i thought this was a full body massage. he informed me that it is a ‘medicinal sports massage’ or something like that, meant to only address specific areas and issues. And is not to be confused with a ‘spa’ massage. not quite what groupon advertised. even so, i felt pounded, and not so much therapeutically handled. at the end, when i went out front to reception, he proceeded to inform me, in front of other clients, how bad a shape my body was in, and i had severe health problems (like i was almost dead!). considering that i dance 3 — 4 times a week with professional dancers, similar to pro athletes, i wondered if my days were shortly numbered.
never again.

Same deal as most of the reviews here. I purchased the Groupon for a massage. I set up my appointment. The day of, Moe Rowland called me with 2 hours notice to cancel. I had already booked a babysitter and everything. :(He told me he would make it up with a 90-​minute massage at a later date. When I tried to contact him to set it up… crickets… I sent emails and left voicemails. What a bad way to run a business, not to mention bad karma. Who does this type of thing? I’m glad Groupon gave me some credit at least.

Worst experience ever! Beware!
It started with it taking months to book my massage appointment. When I finally went in for my visit the center was closed and they were not answering their phones. I waited outside patiently, and when the masseuse Jessica arrived, she said she had forgotten her key. I explained to her that I had already been rescheduled once and was coming from Oakland on Bart so this was very much an inconvenience for me. She was understanding and apologetic so she said she would compensate me with a 90 minute massage and another 1 hour massage for all my trouble. I never heard back from her. Next I called her boss Moe Rowland and explained what had happened. He claimed to have no knowledge of it and would call me back as soon as possible with a new date. He followed through and my new appointment was set, only to have it canceled again the day of (as I was already on my way). The reason this time was that he had to leave his current location immediately and find a new location. He would have to call me back once things were settled and would give me another 1 hour massage to compensate for this cancellation. Two weeks went by with no word, so I called again. He explained that he had forgotten but was up and running, let go of the old masseuse Jessica, and was now working with a new masseuse who would call me to schedule my appointment. I still have not heard back from them. I see this is going no where so I’ve given up and requested a refund back from Groupon.

I had an experience similar to many of the other reviewers. I was able to get through to make an appointment, although it was a challenge using my Groupon coupon. We had bought two massages so that my husband and I could both get a massage. We were told that if we came on a Saturday we could both get a massage at the same time. We made our first appointment for July 16. On the morning of July 16, someone called to say that one of the massage therapists didn’t come in so they would have to cancel our appointment. So I rebooked for July 30. On the morning of Jule 30 we experienced the same thing, They again called to say they had to cancel because a massage therapist had left. Moe, the scheduler, told me that because they had canceled twice on us that we would get a 90 minute massage rather than 60 minutes. So I rebooked for August 20. I did not get a phone call to cancel but I decided to call just as my husband and I were leaving for the Brannan St. location to confirm that they were expecting us. Fortunately I was able to speak with someone not affiliated with the SOMA Healing Collective who told me that they had moved to somewhere on California St. and gave me a phone number to call. I called and left a message and then tried again in 10 minutes. I was able to reach Moe who does the scheduling and he gave me their current address, with no apology for not telling me they had moved. By the time my husband and I got over to the Nob Hill location and found parking, we were 15 minutes late for the massage. Rather than give us the 90 minutes we had been promised, we got 45 minutes because we arrived late. Moe then said we could reschedule to get another half hour on a different day. He must be kidding. We told him there was no way we were going to try again after the frustrating experience we had just to get an initial massage.
Our massages were good but clearly not worth the aggravation.

I’ve had better massages using my other hand. The receptionist guy is rude, both on the phone and in person. I had bought a couple groupons for this place and after going once, decided to junk the 2^nd one rather than put myself or someone else through the experience. Look elsewhere for a good massage.

I have tried several times to schedule an appointment to no avail.
When I completed their online appointment inquiry, I received an email from California Chiropractic Center explaining that my request would be forwarded to the person in charge of scheduling. I waited several days, but never heard back. I called again but was told that the staff was on lunch, so I was asked to leave my name and phone number. Several days later, I still hadn’t heard back. Rinse and repeat about 6 times before I finally gave up.
I will be contacting Groupon for a refund, and using that money for a massage at a different business.

I moved this review from California Chiropractic to SOMA Healing– Groupon issued the groupon to the wrong company (landlord of SOMA Healing)…very confusing because there are reviews (positive ones) for Moe on the California Chiropractic page and I wanted to provide a review for my experience, which was very different from others…
Original Review:
Massage experiences are largely personal, but I thought it was important to provide my perspective/​view on this place… it was probably one of the worst massages I have had in the last couple of years. Massages are one of my indulgences. Anyways, I am going to try to contact Groupon to get a return and also a refund for the second massage I already bought.
Unlike Vivian, I didn’t get the same flexibility/​understanding re: getting there late, and it took a while to get the intake form/​fill it out, etc. It is OK — this courtesy would have been appreciated, but certainly not expected. However, I was actually looking forward to the end of the massage. I wish I had the nerves to just end it early and let the masseur know that it is not for me, etc.
It was just overall a bad massage experience for me. The part that I thought was really bizarre was when the masseur spent a loooong time on my forearms — but never massaged my hands/​fingers, and barely did the upper arms. Blah– hated it — again, maybe it’s just me.
Two stars only because they love dogs.

I had an excellent deep tissue massage here. I was having lower back pain and my neck and back muscles were all knotted up, and the massage was exactly what I needed. I would definitely go back again for the quality of the massage.
As for service, I really appreciated their flexibility. I was 20 minutes late because it was hard to find parking in the area during a baseball game (and ended up parking in a lot), but because I was the last appointment of the day, the masseur kept going for the full hour. That is extremely unusual and much appreciated.
It took months for me to get the massage scheduled as I bought my Groupon based on the fine print which said Saturdays were available by appt. Turns out that was a mistake by Groupon so the clinic had trouble accommodating all the Groupon customers who of course wanted Saturday appointments. Hopefully they add more slots on Sat since it’s clearly a popular day.
Finally, it’s a bit bare bones so don’t expect a spa environment — in fact, you can hear everything being said in the reception area and hallway from the room I was in, but for the quality of the massage given the price (regularly $ 80 – 90 but I think repeat customers might get a discount) I give it 4.5 stars.

Terrible customer service. After purchasing a Groupon, I tried for months to make an appointment. Although I left multiple messages, they never returned my calls. Finally, someone answered the phone when I called and was extremely rude! Thank goodness Groupon gave me a refund for this mistake.

Some months ago I purchased a groupon towards massage. I recently booked an appointment about 2 weeks in advance. When I arrived, I was informed by the massage therapist that he was officially on vacation, and that my appointment was scheduled by mistake — I was fine with this, as it seemed to be an honest mistake. They asked if I could come back the following evening at 6 pm. Mind you, this will be the 2^nd time I’ve driven across town in traffic, and paid to park… When I arrived a few minutes before 6 pm the following night I was told that my massage therapist would be right out, and to wait in the waiting area. Everyone disappeared, and I proceeded to wait another 30 minutes… I left a note along with my groupon with all of my contact information on their desk — they couldn’t even be bothered to contact me to apologize… Cudo’s to groupon for promptly refunding my $, but shame on this rude, unprofessional, inconsiderate practice. They clearly place no value on customer service, nor have the ethics to step up to the place & do the right thing. I wouldn’t recommend anyone to waste their valuable time with this place. Ps… I’ve rarely found the occasion to write a negative Unilocal review…

I bought a Groupon (incorrectly under California Chiropractic) for massages for my husband and myself and had a terrible time scheduling. Charmaine is it? Why are you so rude on the phone and would you have been if I hadn’t started out by saying I had a groupon?
Note to everyone: If you pre-​pay for your services here I think you should expect your appointment on the first of never.
I will not be scheduling an appointment here and Groupon has offered to give me my money back for this. I can’t imaging enjoying a massage here after being treated so poorly and then being hounded after writing a bad Unilocal review. Stop calling me. Just get a new receptionist.

I am never been treated so poorly in trying to make an appointment for anything. I bought 2 certificates for massages for my husband’s birthday. He works long hours M-​F so needed a Saturday appt. The receptionist I spoke with was so incredibly rude, I was practically in tears. When I asked that the masseuse be a female, she said I couldn’t have an appt until 2011. She said my requests were completely inflexible. She talked over me, berated me for asking for both a Saturday appointment and a female masseuse (as if these were unusual requests) and was just so unpleasant to talk to. I had already paid for the certificates, so I really wanted an appointment. I have no idea if the services are good-​I couldn’t get past the receptionist to make the appointment unless I wanted to wait until next year. When I asked if I could speak with a manager, she would not allow me to talk to anyone else. I have no interest in trying again, as the thought of having to talk to her again is too upsetting.

I’m not a client of California Chiropractic Center so I cant really comment on their chiropractic work. However, I was glad to hear that my favorite massage therapist, Moe, works there. I feel comfortable with Moe and like his technique. His prenatal massages are great. When I feel tension in my back, I need a good massage, not someone to to rub me down like I’m getting ready to tan on the beach.