I signed up for the premium monthly membership at Simply Massage Burke Williams because a friend of…read moremine is a massage therapist there, and I was genuinely excited about the value--$135/month for an 80-minute massage with a "complimentary upgrade" like deep tissue or sports massage sounded like a great deal.
Unfortunately, my recent experience was really disappointing.
Since my friend wasn't available, I booked with a different therapist and asked for the deep tissue upgrade. Before we started, I clearly explained that I'm a distance runner and was looking for something between a sports massage and deep tissue: focused work, but not the kind of super intense pressure that leaves you sore for days. The massage therapist was so nice and I really thought we were aligned.
But pretty quickly, something felt off. It took me a while to realize what it was, but there was no music playing at the start of the session. The therapist didn't turn it on until 20-30 minutes in, which made the whole beginning feel awkward and not very relaxing.
There were also some basic details that were missed. I had forgotten to put my hair up, and instead of helping manage it (like placing a towel over it, which most therapists do) my hair kept getting caught and falling onto my neck. Rather than addressing it, the therapist just avoided working on my neck altogether which is an area that really needed attention.
As for the massage itself, the technique just didn't meet expectations. At times it felt like the therapist was attempting pressure point work, but without enough pressure to actually be effective. I did mention that I could handle more pressure, but there wasn't much adjustment. Overall, it didn't feel like a deep tissue or sports massage, more like a very light, unfocused session that didn't address what I had communicated beforehand.
I left feeling frustrated and honestly pretty upset that I had used my monthly massage on an experience that didn't meet my needs. I typically tip 20-30%, but this time I only tipped 15% because of how disappointed I was. I ended up sitting in my car afterward and crying because I was so frustrated--both that the massage didn't help when I really needed it, and that I hadn't been more assertive in the moment.
To their credit, when I reached out afterward, a manager named Jamal was kind and responsive. However, he said he wasn't local to the Marina del Rey location and would pass my concerns along. That was a week ago, and I haven't heard anything since.
The lack of follow-up only adds to the frustration.
Since I'm locked into a 6-month membership, I'll have to give it another try, but moving forward I'll likely only book with my friend and won't continue after my contract ends.
Overall, this experience didn't match the level of quality or professionalism I expected from a place with Burke Williams' reputation.