MiniLuxe Hancock Village

Expensive for what you get. Opted for a gel mani ($ 45) and soothing oil hand rub ($ 5) and I wish I could say the experience is better than what you’d get anywhere else but it wasn’t! You don’t get usual nail service when you pay for a gel mani — they just cut, file and buff, and don’t clean your cuticles. Hand massage is not included, which I found strange. You have to add on a short hand massage for $ 5, which lasted as long as any hand massage you get in other nail salons. Service is super friendly and the nail tech was really nice and conversational. But that doesn’t make up for the high price tag with less service. It just doesn’t make sense. I’d recommend making an appointment as it can get crowded. I went in around lunch time and luckily was able to get an appointment for an hour later (had a very long lunch break that day). The vibe of the space is great, but overall this is not a great bang for your buck.

Came in for a wax and a pedicure. Everyone was extremely nice but I waited 30 minutes for my appointment — whats the point of making an appointment? If Im waiting that long, I can just go to the cheap place and wait my turn. Worse, the receptionist tried to help by getting me started in the foot tub– they were dirty. ALL of them. Old towels, used tools… GROSS. I had to say something and they were like «oh, yeah — i guess they need to be cleaned– hold on». This is for a $ 65 pedicure? Awful. Im giving 2 stars because the eyebrow wax and the pedicure itself were both actually very good. Unfortunately I was too agitated to enjoy it. future fancy pedis will be at bliss or bella sante.

Would love to give 5 stars, however there’s one continuous issue I have: they’re never on time. I have a standing appointment every 3 weeks for gel mani/​pedi and threading. Every single time I go in, I’m waiting at least 20 minutes to be seen. For example today I had an appointment scheduled for 11:30 and they weren’t ready for me until almost noon. I’ve been going there long enough now that I expect it and plan for it. In the beginning, I was annoyed and didn’t appreciate the inconvenience. So be prepared to wait even with an appointment

This place is a bit pricey, but it’s absolutely worth the money. I do a gel manicure when I go, and I have had it last longer than the typical 2 weeks a handful of times. There was also one experience I had where I chipped a nail on the way out, and they fixed it right there on the spot even though it was relatively busy. Overall, the experience is great and the atmosphere is very pleasant.

Jane is the only reason these stars went way up! She is very good, consistent, friendly, accommodating and experienced!!! I used to dread coming in and getting a random technician, but Jane changed that when she arrived to this location. Alleluia! I now book my appointments ahead of time to be sure to get her.

I have been coming here for a long time and the salon is immaculate. The best part is having
Adriana give you her wonderful manicure/​pedicure. She is so professional and excellent at her job. I would not go to anyone else!!! She is a great asset to this salon… Everyone can learn from her overall leadership.

Pretty subpar gel manicure. Too many coats of polish so it’s really thick at the tip of my nails my nails are short but the shape was pretty unclear and he (Loi) painted a lot of my skin… My friend and I also had to insist pretty aggressively that we wanted to sit together… Even though we booked it under one name and there was plenty of space Definitely wouldn’t go here again. The one on newbury street is much better service!

Meh, it’s fine — although I expected more for the price. Pros: mostly friendly staff; took me right away as a walk-​in; clean and well-​sanitized tools; decent pedicure all in all. Cons: foot bath water was too cold (even after I asked for it to be made warmer; it was so cold that the bath soak in it didn’t even dissolve); no massage chairs (not a necessity, but again, for the price, would be nice); not possible to put tip on a credit card (this is a nice convenience that I always appreciate). I might return, but probably only in a pinch.

I waited until I had visited this place a few times before writing a review. I’ve been once for a manicure and pedicure and three times for just a manicure. I was hesitant to visit this salon as it’s double what I normally pay for a manicure, however, on average, my manicure lasts seven to 10 days before chipping. I love how they are open late during the week, which makes it very convenient for me to go after work. The staff is super nice, with the exception of one technician. She never said hello to me, nor did she thank me when I placed her tip on the table. I believe she is the exception as everyone else has been very friendly. I recommend this salon to anyone who asks.

Ummmm. I thought this was like THE PLACE TO GO for nails?! It was my first experience at a miniluxe and for the price I expected MUCH MORE. The technician (man) was very nice and honest about the Miniluxe brand not being as good as OPI or Essie. Appreciated that! The seating was a little awkward I kept slouching down and having to straighten up — and my feet rested on a cushion thing that was loose. The lady next to me actually broke her foot rest! It like fell off suddenly and she gasped.
Anyway, my guy was very thorough it seemed (took an hour for regular polish), but he didn’t really CLEAN under the corners of the nails — still dirt visible when I inspected at home afterwards. The polishing job was pretty bad too. He basically went way over the edges into my cuticles and then took remover on a paint brush to clean up… Seemed pretty inexperienced there…
The whole place was FREEZING too. They have massive AC vents pumping right down on you. It was only 64 degrees out so that wasn’t cool.
I am going to stick with my cheap places — they do a much better job for half the price!!!

Waited for 15 minutes while the receptionist was on the phone. She didn’t even acknowledge my existence. Then once she finally acknowledged me she was snobby. Then there was 25 minute wait just to get my eyebrow waxed. I left frustrated with bushy eye brows. Should have been in and out in like 10 minutes.

I got a gel manicure and regular pedicure here a couple of weeks ago. Both stayed on for more than 2 weeks and it was well worth the money. Will definitely be going back! Great work!

I absolutely loved this place. Everyone that worked there was super friendly. The salon itself was very clean and their nail polish selection is vast and is even categorized by seasonal collections and brands. Kim gave me a manicure and pedicure and I couldn’t be any happier. The price was just right. I will definitely be coming back here!

I like the MiniLuxe atmosphere but the whole experience doesn’t equal the price. The techs here don’t spend nearly enough time on your service, and the time they do spend you can feel they are just going through the motions with as little effort as possible. If I’m going to spend triple the amount you can pay at another less glitzy salon, then I expect the service to be triply as good. I really wanted to like this place but after trips and four different techs… I hope the management changes it up a little in the future. The miniluxe in Hingham would be a good model to follow.

This is my splurge nail salon. It’s a little on the pricey side for gel manicures every couple of weeks but the quality is superb. The pedis are relaxing and I also add on the massage for the pedi/mani…it’s worth the extra money. The menu of services is excellent… you can always find something for whatever you’re in the mood for. The receptionist is nice. Parking lot and online scheduling is a big plus!

Adrianna is worth the 35 – 40 minute drive (I was living closer when I found her) and I book a few days in advance, longer in the summer. I’ve always gotten good pedicures from anyone else when I can’t get in w her, but she is magic. I only go to ML now b/​c of their sanitation standards, quality standards and customer service standards.

TERRIBLE, HOSTILE EXPERIENCE!
…and we didn’t even make it to the manicure table! My mom called the Chestnut Hill location on Saturday to make an appointment for Sunday morning. I witnessed my mom make the call and reserve an appointment for a gel mani/​regular pedi for me and a gel mani for her.
At 11:30 this morning, we arrived at the Chestnut Hill location. The receptionist was busy on the phone, and we waited a full 10 minutes for her to notice us. We let her know about the appointment, and she informed us that we had made a reservation for regular manicures only, and she didn’t know if the manicurists would have time to do gel. It turned out that the manicurists on duty did not do gel manicures at all, so the receptionist accused us of «reserving the wrong people…» even though we’d never been there before and hadn’t asked for anyone specific. She was completely unapologetic, said they didn’t have time for us, and simply told us to leave.
While I’m certain that the appointment mix up was on the side of MiniLuxe, that’s not what’s a big deal — these things happen. What really shocked us was how unapologetic and rude this receptionist was. She did not attempt to find a solution, she did not say sorry for the confusion (isn’t the customer always right?), but merely told us that we screwed up and should leave. I commented to the receptionist that we weren’t going to come back, and that she should work on her manners. She told me, «I’m sorry you feel that way,» without even looking up from her desk.
MiniLuxe has a reputation for being a premium experience. It’s not a run-​of-​the-​mill $ 12/​manicure salon. People go there for the experience of both luxury and sophistication, and they’re willing to pay extra for it. We were deeply disappointed by how we were treated today.
With so many luxury salons vying for our business, stick to the highly rated locations if you’d like to be treated with some semblance of respect.

Breaks my heart to write this review! I’ve been going here for years and I think nothing of dropping 55 dollars for a gel manicure– that’s how good of a job I think this place does. Thursday 1÷9÷14 I went in to have gel put back on my nails. They are very short, so I assumed this process would be about 40 minutes or less like usual. She started with my cuticles which she applied deep choppy pressure while her hands were shaking the entire time. later I noticed they are all chewed up looking. The manicurist spilled gel nail polish all over me, the table, herself, and the UV Light over and over and over again. ONE HOUR and thirty five minutes later, my hands were ready for a massage which she did with purple tinted hands from getting gel polish all over them over and over again and not being able to get the color out of her entire hand. I also had to ask more than once for nail polish remover to get the polish off the tops of my hands and fingers… Are you serious?
I gave her a crappy tip and left since I worked 15 hours that day and didn’t care to complain.
I just called and asked for a manager and the girl asked for my name and never asked for my number then hung up… I’ll write another review on Monday if the manager ever calls me back!
Do yourself a favor and drive to derby st in Hingham– the manicurists over there are way more professional and the quality is much better. :-(

I was an avid Miniluxe goer at Newton and then Chestnut Hill after I moved closer…
I loved seeing Elaine for the personal touches and care she gave me as a client. I found out last week she’s no longer there.
This chain and place has really digressed in the past year. I spent at least 150+ before a big work event and chipped a gel polish the next day before. Likely my fault who knows, however, when I stopped by Miniluxe the woman at the front desk told me I would need to book an appt. for the nail fix and that I could be fit in two and a half hours later.
With my dog in the car and niece waiting for me at home, how could I possibly wait two hours to have a large chip on one nail fixed?
The woman didn’t care and told me there was nothing she could do.
It was upsetting after being a long time customer that no one could dump some polish on my single nail…
It’s expensive, no massage chair, and the snob and lack of reality factor is simply too far gone for me to dump any more money into this place…

Yes, FIVE stars!
I don’t know where some of these horrible reviews are coming from, but my recent experience at MiniLuxe Chestnut Hill was right on par with other locations and my expectations.
As a past customer of MiniLuxe Newbury, I set an appointment using their website the night before a Sunday for 11:15 am. It was so easy using their booking site, I loved it!
I had chosen Adrianna based on a recent fellow Unilocaler’s review.
I received a call just after 10 am the day of to inform me that unfortunately, Adrianna had called out sick, but I’d be able to keep my appointment with Nicole instead. Given that I had never used any of the ladies at this location, I was totally fine with the change and appreciated their prompt notification to me.
Upon arriving, the hostess was very friendly and accommodating. I checked in, she suggested I pay first to keep my nails pretty after (thanks for the reminder!) and I was seated with Nicole within minutes.
I liked Nicole right away! She was friendly and kept up conversation without being too in my face or awkward or anything. I felt like we could be friends, she was just easy to talk to and nice to be around. I appreciated that. Some technicians don’t talk to you at all (which is also okay with me) but some are also too talky or sizing you up or too catty, and that totally turns me off. They were not at all here!
As for size, appearance and cleanliness, the salon met my high expectations with no questions asked. That is why I love MiniLuxe and pay the extra $ 9 for a manicure. It is so clean, fresh looking and relaxing. Not to mention, I’ve never gotten a bad manicure from any ML technician AND my nails are always miraculously still healthy when the polish is removed — unlike SO (or just about every!) other salon I’ve ever used. You can keep your file and buffer after if you want. And the job lasts at least 5 – 7 days for me every time, and I’m a very active girl who uses her hands all day at work.
There was literally nothing to complain about here, I’m serious. As for the service and quality issues previously reviewed, from my judgement, those must have been just angry ladies or one-​off scenarios, because I speak from experience — that is not the standard at any MiniLuxe!
PLUS: Free parking! Not getting that anywhere in Boston!
I highly suggest using any MiniLuxe location and I have already returned for repeat service, with the same results!