Highly recommend. I came here in August looking to get my nails done on my birthday. I had previously gotten acrylics somewhere else & needed a fill. I showed an example picture of what i wanted (light pink square). They came out perfect & I left very very happy! I came back a second time yesterday to get those acrylics removed, a new gelx set, and a pedicure. I made an appt via Yelp but could have just walked in as well. When I came in, I was helped right away. I chose the $55 deluxe pedicure. I showed a picture for my gelx set & my nail tech showed me different nail colors that would match the style I wanted. 10/10 experience and outcome. Happy to have found my new nail spot here in Berkeley. They take Venmo, but maybe prefer cash (: read more

Berkeley Pinkies - gelx set with cat eye polish & black polka dot design ; almond shape - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

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Im honestly upset because I've been here before but it was different people that did my nails this time. Both of the women that did my nails were rushing the entire process, weren't even putting on the nail polish correctly. I'm sad and upset as it was literally $80 for a set that looks like i did them myself. Didn't even file the bottom of the nails and its just so scraped. read more

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I walked in on a weekday afternoon on a whim and liked the look and cleanliness of the place, so I decided to give it a try. The quality of their service is excellent. I love how my nails look. They lasted a long time and didn't chip/peel at all. Friendly and chatty staff who spent a good hour with me- and even would have gone longer had I not needed to leave for an appointment. I would recommend confirming the cost of services and the type of polish you get before they get started because you really can't see the prices from the pedicure seats since the poster is on the other side of the room and has tiny print. I may have been overcharged- I got a deluxe mani/pedi for almost $100 (not including 20% tip), but I'd asked for normal polish. It wasn't a big deal at the time for me, but the next time I come I'll get the details right when I come in. read more

Berkeley Pinkies - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

So I really wanted to like this place and Im still not incredibly upset, they treated me well and gave us mimosas. That said I got a full set of gelx and had a very interesting time. I made an appointment for 2 mani pedis, one with a set of acrylics for the manicure. They prepped my nails and got ready to start but they really insisted on a gelx set instead of the acrylic which I typically get. I agreed because I had never tried it before, but I suspect it was to speed the process up and take care of a walk in gel set. My fingers got cut on the side in the process of filing and my hangnails got filed down with the electric tool. Very interesting. Then I had to hold the UV light onto each nail after application. After all this I got charged 65$ and two of my nails fell off less than 24 hours later. I haven't been doing anything crazy either. Happy Halloween tho no shade read more

Berkeley Pinkies - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

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I walked in on a weekend afternoon and asked about builder gel and gel-x, Gigi recommended I get gel-x since my natural nails are really short. My nails came out so beautiful and they're exactly what I asked for. 10/10 recommend! read more

Berkeley Pinkies - Gel-x, short almond - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

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Amazing experience with both of the two ladies working there!! They removed my previous set of gel extensions (which I'd stained with hair-dye ) and were able to get all the dye stains off my nails! And then did builder gel and a pretty pink color, as shown in the photo! Very very sweet and such attention to detail and so careful! Super reasonable price too! Definitely will be back :) read more

Berkeley Pinkies - Builder gel + color - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

Tried this place after walking by a few times - the worst decision I could have made! I went in for a simple eyebrow waxing. I knew something wasn't right when the tech had me lay down? The roughness of the wax was felt a few hours after. There were scab marks under my eyebrow and between my eyelid?? It burned so bad when I washed my face and even more when I put Vaseline on them to soothe the pain. Do not go here for eyebrow waxing! read more

Berkeley Pinkies - Scars from eyebrow waxing - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

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In love with my nails! I told Gigi I wanted to keep my natural nails so she has been doing dip powder for the past month and my natural nails are super long and healthy. 10/10 recommend read more

Berkeley Pinkies - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

I recently moved to the area and have been looking for a trusty nail salon. I decided to try Pinkies because it looked clean and the Yelp reviews were overall positive. I'm happy I tried it! I booked an appointment day-of and requested a dip manicure. As soon as I arrived, Tom greeted me and directed me to the selection of colors so I could choose the one I wanted while he finished up with the client he was working on. After about 15 minutes, it was my turn. Tom gave me a complimentary mimosa (a very heavy pour!) and chatted with me about life while he did my nails. The whole process was quick, but thorough. Tom was sweet and friendly; he loves to joke around! While I was there, a few people came in who seemed to be regulars. It was clear they knew Tom well and had been to Pinkies many times. I was happy to see that people trust Tom's work! I'm very happy with the results of my manicure. Tom understood exactly what I wanted in terms of the nail shape, and he delivered. My dip manicure came out to be $55 including removal of my previous nail color. It seemed like the pricing situation wasn't very intuitive; Tom mentioned it depends on various factors, including nail length, so I'd be interested to see what price I'm quoted next time. Overall, I'm very happy with Pinkies and will be returning! read more

Berkeley Pinkies - Dip manicure - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

Gigi is my FAVORITE nail tech. Her pedis are the best!! She's always very accommodating as well.

Awful! I went back twice and the second time was even worse than the first. My color was supposed to be matching. Everything chipped within a day. The shaved my nails down so thin SIX of my nails broke within the first three days. Not to mention rude and takes way too long to do the service. Two hours for a mani pedi is ridiculous. Especially when you mess up SO BAD. read more

Berkeley Pinkies - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

Oh my God, Gigi did SO GOOD!!!! She got me in same day, was super friendly, and it came out literally exactly the way I wanted. Everything from the color to the shape to the design was executed flawlessly. Highly highly recommend. read more

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Gigi is amazing! I can bring in any reference photo for complicated nail designs and she always delivers! Amazing, best nail tech for designs read more

Berkeley Pinkies - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

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Gigi & Helen is the best! Super sweet & pleasant. Gigi does my nails perfect every time! Helen too. No complaints at all whatsoever I always leave satisfied. read more

Friend came in for a pedicure and I decided to join her. A nice small salon with friendly staff and relaxing amenities (water bottle, massage chairs, a place for your friends to sit) They offer all the usual services at a rate affordable to the local college students & Berkeley residents. A place without too many frills so they can focus on getting the job done Would recommend read more

Berkeley Pinkies - Indoors - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

Definitely a 5 stars! I love the reshape and the color is perfect! I was surprised how they removed and redo the whole thing after they think it's not perfect enough, even though all ten nails are done and they could just let me pay and go (Cuz even I thought it was perfect, wasn't thinking need a redo). I didn't feel any pain during the removal process too. Will definitely come back again! read more

Berkeley Pinkies - Basic manicure - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

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I love how friendly the staff is and how skilled Gigi is. She remembers me coming into her store even though I've only been a few times with my friend. I will definitely make this a regular nail spot and continue to explore other nail designs Gigi can do for me! (: read more

Berkeley Pinkies - Stiletto gel nails on my natural nails. It's with builder to make it last longer - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

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First off, this place is in a corner, sometimes it's hard to spot. It's a small pace with a few ppl that can get their nails done at a time. I will recommend this place as the first time I went my dip nails were amazing. They lasted 7 weeks and she did such a great job. The second time I went. My dip nails kept getting caught in my hair and it was really irritating me and I couldn't stand it anymore I had to go to another salon to remove and redo a week later I wasn't in town for them to redo them themselves so I will give them the benefit of doubt and come back to do my nails again next time. I'd recommend LiN. She was amazing. read more

Berkeley Pinkies - Dipped nails - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

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Was kind of shocked how bad the experience was here. Strange vibe, skipped critical steps in the manicure, at one point during the pedicure I asked the technician to stop doing something because it was hurting my toe and he just said "no" and kept going. I did a dip manicure with red polish, and my whole tip of my finger was dyed red at the end. When I asked if they were going to remove it or wash it off, they insisted that was just the color of my skin. It was bizarre. I walked out of there with 10 red fingers and bleeding toes. read more

Omg!!! Amazing!!! Gigi did a killer job on my nails!!! I feel bad I didn't get the name of the sweet lady who did my pedicure but she also did amazingly!!! Gigi is quite a talent ! She did exactly what I asked for and read more

Berkeley Pinkies - Pretty cool, right!!!!??? - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

Extremely dirty. Would not recommend. The health department needs to get involved because of how unsanitary this place is. Even know someone who got a whole sickening infection from dirty tools read more

I came to this salon yesterday. When I arrived at 3:00pm; it was not busy at all for a Saturday. I was immediately serviced. I got a pedicure, acrylic fill and my middle finger nail repaired. The pedicure was amazing. They even gave me a mimosa; which was delicious by the way. This goes above and beyond my experience in nail salons. So overall service was wonderful & I would go back again for future nail appointments. The vibe was very good. I truly enjoyed the ambiance of being in a salon feeling relaxed. Part of self-care! For payment: they take Zelle, Cash and card payments. I didn't have Zelle so I had to go the ATM: US BANK which is a block away from the salon. read more

Berkeley Pinkies - Nail Polish 243. Emerald dark green. Forgot the brand name. - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

My pedicure was great as always by Steven- felt relaxed and refreshed! Definitely recommend read more

I came in for a gel-X removal due to my workplace "strongly suggesting" I shorten or remove my nails because of the dress code. This was a horrible experience. The salon itself was dirty. Just looking at the pillows at the pedicure stations and the manicure station where I sat at, I felt uncomfortable. My nail tech was also sick and even though she was wearing a mask she was coughing aggressively from all the gel and nail dust exploding every where. She did not have a nail dust collector so as she was e-filing she kept coughing due to said debris. Speaking of aggressive, the removal was extremely aggressive. I will say that I had a lot of 3D nail art but it was painful to get it removed. I mentioned that I wanted her to not file down too far because I'm trying to protect my nails. I'm growing them out and they have been weak. It did not matter that I mentioned this. When she brought out a bowl lined with a plastic bag filled with acetone I knew she was going to mess up my nails. The gel extensions that my nail tech did for me were ON there --she did a thick layer of gel so they stay. That said, I had to soak my nails in that plastic bag lined bowl with acetone on and off for almost 20 minutes. She had cut into my cuticles 3 times with her e-file and even though I gave an audible "Ow!" each time she said "Sorry" and proceeded to be tough with the E-file. She did not contain the bowl of acetone so as I was soaking my hand one by one nail debris was falling into my acetone bowl. I now have 4 fingers that have rings of fire because of her bowl of acetone soaking method and her aggressively filing down my nail beds. I honestly don't understand why some nail techs still do this! First off, it's SO damaging to nails. My regular nail tech uses the foil method and it's so much gentler! And she uses the e-file minimally. Second, from a purely business standpoint point the acetone bowl soaking method is so wasteful! The service was $20 and I gave her a $5 tip because I felt sorry for her and I know my nails were a bit tough to get off. That said, if you are looking for nail techs who prioritize nail health and hygiene/sanitation DO NOT COME HERE. Most of nail beds are destroyed and some of my cuticles are torn from her not being mindful of where she was e-filing. The skin on my fingers was so peeling from having to soak them in acetone. I am legit worried about my nails (and health) due to the poor hygiene of the space. read more

Love my nails! Gigi is excellent for design. The nail tech who did my pedicure also did an excellent job! read more

Berkeley Pinkies - Holiday nails - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

Went here with a friend for grad nails. Service was quick and staff were friendly. Haven't gotten my nails done in years but the nail tech helped me choose the size and color by showing me what they'd look like on a nail. They recommended a color and tested it to show me but I wanted a whiter shade and it was really easy for them to pivot and use another. Took less than an hour for a gel x full set and came out to $65 plus more for tip read more

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Offered to fix my nails free of charge when two fell off. They have good customer service. Designs and charms always pretty

I got my nails done for graduation/bday and they came out so cute! I got color 110 and they were able to do a fill on my existing dip powder. Didn't take too long and staff were super nice! Highly recommend coming here! read more

Berkeley Pinkies - color 110 - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

they are amazing at french tips and they're super quick! i was out of that chair after a mani pedi in about 1.5 hrs. the retention was around 3 weeks, i had to go back read more

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Good nail art but forget about them respecting your appointment time. Even with an appointment expect to wait 30min- 1hour. This is not the best customer experience and it's happened multiple times. Sometimes the nail technician is rude. I'll be going somewhere else read more

I came here for a gel removal and the nail tech was extremely rough with my nails, filing them down past what was necessary to remove the gel. My nails are now very flimsy, to the point where it is painful to do basic tasks. There are even specks of blood visible under the nail!! Do not recommend. read more

Berkeley Pinkies - Damaged nails after gel removal - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

I love the service and work quality here. I came in for a French tip and got an amazing job done. I would recommend it to anyone.

I get trying to fit everyone in, but it's really disappointing when you have an appointment and have to sit and wait half an hour. I would understand if I was a walk in, but this was not the case unfortunately read more

I made an appointment yesterday and came to my appointment time today to find that the whole establishment was closed. An hour after this facility claims to open for the day. read more

Berkeley Pinkies - The salon name and address along with the closed sign. - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

I really wanted to like and support this place. The facility is beautiful, the location is great, their services are reasonably priced, and they have an excellent array of color choices. However, a few things happened at the appointments I had with a friend for her birthday that made me want to warn others and hopefully encourage the business to reevaluate their practices and customer service. I had a regular gel pedicure booked because I find deluxe services not worth the extra money, but my tech asked me a couple of times if I wanted to upgrade so my friend who was getting the deluxe would be finished on time. I politely declined the first couple of times but ended up getting an extra 10 minute massage since felt I needed it towards the end. My friend had a previous fungal infection from a different shop but was developing an ingrown toenail on the same toe. The technician proceeded to poke and prod her to "get rid" of dead tissue, and didn't stop even though my friend expressed her pain. Then she proceeded to dramatically round the corners of my friend's toenail which any person with common sense knows encourages ingrown toenails more than anything. Guess who has puffy, painful, and probably infected toes now? Both of us, actually. My tech literally peeled pieces of skin around some of my toes with cuticle nippers and seemed ignorant of my flinching. She also got a bunch of gel polish on my skin although she tried to take some off. I ended up having to do some serious cleanup at home when I could take a closer look. I get my hands done regularly (elsewhere) and would hate to develop a gel allergy due to product left on my skin. There is a sign in the shop that says they prefer debit to avoid credit card fees. I wanted to pay for my friend's service on top of mine and was presented with a wireless card reader with a QR code. Oh, I'll do Venmo then, I thought to myself, thinking they preferred that and opened my app to pay. We got ready to hand our cash tips over when my friend's tech exclaimed, "Wait, you paid the old owner!" I guess there was an ownership change recently and she thought the old QR code for the previous owner was presented to me instead of the new one?? She offered to call them for a refund but they didn't pick up (naturally) even after repeated attempts. So I started a Venmo dispute to get my money back because ain't no way I'm paying double for crappy services no one enjoyed. After way too long, my tech called the current owner and was able to confirm that I paid the correct person. We got a half-hearted apology followed by the ol' language barrier excuse and finally got to leave. Look, my family is comprised of multigenerational immigrants. I do all I can to support small business owned especially by women of color. But nail chop shops have seriously gotten out of hand in terms of hygiene problems, real customer service, and inept, poorly trained employees. I don't care if you talk crap about me in your language (lord knows I do this too, kono kusoyarou!) but do your frickin' job I am paying (and tipping) you for. There is a reason I go to indie techs exclusively for my manis and I only wish more in the area did pedis too. I like having pretty feet but it is just not worth the heartache anymore as every place I have been to in the past year or so has been incredibly substandard, Pinkies included. read more

Basic gel manicure with so many issues. I came here for gel manicure, brought inspirations and ended up with hotch potch paint where I had to specify adding multiple quotes as the color wasn't coming through and I could see my nails after two coats and then the mail paint is on my skin as well which the manicurist did not fix. When I pointed out, he was upset and used a cuticle remover to just pull away that part of my skin. I had to stop him and just be okay with it and leave. Horrible experience when I was looking forward to this so much. read more

Berkeley Pinkies - Bubbles on them too. - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California

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Good service, they offer free alc! They work kind of strong handed but will ease up if you ask him too. Chatty workers with good customer service. Just put headphones on if it's not your thing. read more

The owners are very sweet and funny! Very chill and humble salon, looks like a mom and pop run business. You might miss it but there's a glass sign that directs you inside Pretty accommodating considering there were multiple walk ins when I came in and they called for back up- so I gotta respect that. It's apparent they want you to leave happy and satisfied. My nails were busted, short, and chipped, etc and even then they got my cuticles and hangnails back to healthy/kempt Regarding the reviews saying they were rude, they are obviously joking, if not being a little brash (with love ofc) so don't get it twisted. maybe I'm being biased since I come from a similar background but it's not that deep and you're here for a mani or pedi Bring a photo and just be straightforward with your request if you're worried about how a design might turn out. They were able to replicate a cat eye look (with the color of the shimmer and all) from a photo for my tag along, so just trust the process and ask about what they plan on doing next if you're unsure if you're all on the same page. English is hard to understand, give em the benefit of the doubt and that they're not trying to leave you with something you hate. read more

The service is excellent here. Tom and his team are some of the sweetest nail techs that you'll meet. I had a rocky first visit, but Tom reached out to make things right, and it's been great ever since. I've been here a few times now, and I really like this nail salon. It located in downtown Berkeley off of Shattuck. Parking can be tough, but I usually stop in during the evening and have managed to snag a space. Their shop is very clean and cozy. I love that they offer their guests wine (and the good stuff too!). It's never been super busy but it's always nice to meet and chat with the other clients who are there. During my first visit, the ladies who did my mani and pedi were super sweet but not the most efficient. The pedi was a bit rough with the cuticle cutting yet weak with the massage. The gel mani took a while, and at first it appeared to be fine. But once I made it back to the car to take pictures, I noticed how sloppily done it was. There was nail polish all over my cuticles and noticeable paint streaks. After I posted pictures of the job on Yelp, the owner Tom reached out to me and offered to fix it. I stopped back by a few weeks later and what a world of a difference! Tom did my nails himself and they came out beautifully! My pedicure was also much better and the massage was very thorough this time around. Tom and his staff are so accommodating and even stayed a bit later for a client who walked in last minute. Their prices are also some of the most reasonable that you'll find in the area! If you pay with cash, they'll give you a 10% discount. They have lots of colors available here too. I'm so grateful that Tom reached out, and I'm happy that I gave them another chance. This is a great neighborhood nail salon with a super inviting staff and atmosphere. read more

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very lasting manicure. I do have aggressive cuticles so I encouraged her to press them back and she took the time to get them how I wanted them. the manicure is still lasting 14 days later, no lifting or peeling or chipping. my one improvement would be to leave less breathing room at the polish/cuticle line because they looked grown-out faster. only a small issue though, I would go back if I'm in the area!! read more

Berkeley Pinkies - glitter pink french tip on nude with gold accents - Nail Salons Near Me - Berkeley, California