As I was driving I saw Escape Nail Spa. I looked them up on Google and perused their prices and services on their website. I decided to give them a try because they charged less than their competitor. Upon entering the establishment, I was greeted right away. I stated what services I wanted. The nail tech who was rendering services to a client prompted me to sign in. Within a minute, a gentleman presented himself to do my nails. First, I had to go to the restroom.
The restroom was okay. I have definitely seen worse. There was liquid soap, toilet paper, and clean hand towels. No offensive odors detected. On the flip side, there was dried up pee on the toilet seat. There was a rust ring around the inside of the toilet bowl. They need to periodically check and clean the restrooms. There weren't a lot of customers, so they definitely could have cleaned the restroom. In fact, one employee was lounging in the front entrance area watching videos on her phone in between customers. She could have made herself useful and tidied up in the restroom.
After using the restroom, I returned to the nail station to get a manicure. The nail tech removed the powdered polish, trimmed and shaped my real nails, and cut my cuticles. Finally, he added the gel polish and top coat. I liked that he used the designated tools for trimming my nails and pushing back my cuticles so that he could trim them. Some nail spas have resorted to using the drill solely to remove polish and and overgrown skin (cuticles). The nail tech actually took the time to break the surface of the powder polish with the drill and then soak the remaining polish off. He finished removing the polish with a drill once the polish was softened by the acetone and easy to remove. There were a few times when he had to turn down the speed of the drill because my nails were sensitive and began to burn under the pressure of the drill. He cut my nails with the nail clipper, used a cuticle pusher to push my cuticles back after soaking them, removed the excess skin with a cuticle remover, and filed my nails.
Although he removed the tools that he used from plastic, it was a façade. I don't think they were sanitized. Because my nail tech had such a humble and gentle demeanor, and because the manicure was only $25 , I overlooked the unsanitary looking tools thinking that I was getting what I paid for. When it was time to polish my nails, the nail tech exercised a great deal of care although he struggled a bit and had to overcompensate for his limitations.
My nail techs wrists and hands and fingers were severely swollen from what appeared to be overuse or arthritis. I'm not a doctor though. He could not hold the nail brush normally and had to blot on the polish. The first coat looked blotchy/ streaky. The next coat covered up some of the flaws of the first coat but still had some air bubbles. The third coat adequately hid the blemishes in the first two coats. I understood that the nail tech was just trying to make an honest living despite his limitations. He was trying to work around them. Honestly, he was the best part of my experience because of his demeanor ( until it was time to pay). The owner needs to do better.
The UV light cut off while he was trying to do my nails, and he had to get a new light. The nail tools weren't disinfected and sanitized probably because they didn't have any disinfectant. One of the sinks had a low flow of water making it tedious to wash and rinse my hands. Then there was the bait and switch prices listed on the website. The website said that gel manicures were $25 and soak off (nail removal services) were $14. That's $39. I walked away paying $50+. I asked the nail tech what was my price breakdown, he said he would tell me after I paid. The payment page had a list of statements that read (paraphrasing)
All services are nonrefundable.
I'm happy with the services rendered.
I will not refute the charges with my financial institution.
The nail tech noticed that I hadn't signed the payment page. He urged me to sign. I said not before reading what I was signing. I decided not to make a scene and paid, but I wrote I do not agree on the signature line. My receipt read custom services. I still did not understand the price breakdown down or why I was paying $11+ more than expected. I did not receive a price menu nor were the prices posted in a visible place other than on the website. I assumed they would honor the prices listed on the website. I could have gone to a reputable establishment with a clean bathroom, sanitized tools and properly working equipment for the price that I paid. You can't be in violation of health practices and want to charge normal rates. I didn't press the issue because I empathized with the nail tech who was working hard having swollen hands and wrists. He was following company policy to keep his job. However, I will not be returning. read more