Hortus Nailworks

Noël’s review from a few months ago sums it all up. Unilocal steered me wrong with this one.
1) way overpriced. Like infuriatingly overpriced. I spent 90. NINETY. Dollars here on a gel manicure and basic pedicure and neither were even good. When I first arrived I asked the girl at the front desk the prices and heard her say $ 17 and $ 40, which sounded expensive but not unheard of to me, so I agreed. The owner arrived later and was the one to ring me up, and I was SHOCKED when she said my total was $ 83. I would have asked but I had been in there for nearly two hours at that point and just wanted to get the hell out, which brings me to my next point–
2) I was here for SO long. Almost two hours on a weekday when there was only one other person in the building. There is no reason a manicure and pedicure should take this long. I did notice that once the owner arrived about halfway into my visit that a couple more employees appeared from the back and all were working a lot faster.
3) the quality of the manicure was quite poor and certainly not worth the price. No massages, gel mani has bubbled and is noticeably thinner/​lighter in several spots. I’m not sure why I was here for so long because both services were executed so minimally and it actually seemed like the technician skipped a lot of steps especially during my manicure. Very little soaking of my fingers made clipping dead cuticle skin difficult and unpleasant.
4) can’t leave tips with your card, no one tells you this until after you already pay. Luckily I had a few extra dollars in my bag, but truly didn’t care that the tip was not adequate for an $ 83 service because my experience was so poor.
5) construction outside. Not the establishments fault but it made accessing the entrance difficult– not very welcoming when there are ten construction workers and a barrier blocking the door– not to mention the unbearable noise of a jackhammer drilling into the asphalt while you are trying to enjoy getting your nails done.
Would give no stars if I could. Such a disappointing experience. Really can’t think of a single redeeming quality about this place. If all that matters to you when getting your nails done is that the setting looks like pinterest post because there are some plants in mason jars and you don’t mind throwing away your money then I guess it’s fine. If you want a quality manicure for a good price keep looking!

This place is the best! First off, it’s absolutely adorable and feels more like a cool café than a nail salon: brick walls, lots of wood and plants and jazz/​blues music piping in the background. Totally relaxing and best of all no acetone smell. They do an amazing job with gel manicures and the staff is really nice. Tips are cash only.

Patricia did my nails. Love the clean spa environment. They dont use products with any harsh or harmful ingredients. Gor an amazing manicure and design. Only drawback is not all the nail betcha there know how to do nail art. My nail lady switched mr over to Patricia when I asked for a half moon design.

I have been here twice in the past month and its a wonderful experience. Not only is the owner courteous and well educated on all the products she sells, but everything they use is all natural (minus the nail polish)! Its a small and narrow space with wooden bookshelves that are adorned with beautiful plants accent pieces. It does not look like your typical nail place and is more or less a pleasant sanctuary for relaxation. The music is also very calming. I believe its from the 20’s. The only complaint I have is that a signature manicure and pedicure is about $ 65, which is a little steep. Thats at least what my bf paid as a gift for me. The first time I went, I spent $ 43 for my mani/​pedi and I will say it lasted longer than average. I guess its true what they say…“You get what you pay for”.

This place is super super nice! I originally planned to go to the other nail salon I’m Chinatown but they were full so I searched nail salon nearby and found this place! The interior is amazing and their staffs were fife fly and skillful. I had my old color gel removed and did a new one for only $ 55, the gel polish they use are very high quality. Highly recommended!

This is the most relaxing nail salon I have been to in Manhattan. The salon has brick walls with plants on the shelves and lighted candles. The jazz music is very relaxing. When you enter the salon you could smell the tropical ocean breeze candle and the whole atmosphere is chill and laid back. All the staff are very nice and professional. I had a chipped toe nail and the girl helped me to fix it and glued it with a little thin piece of plastic. They have a great variety of nail polish for you to choose from. I chose a metallic gold color with a sparkling color on top of it. I had normal pedicure with callus removal and it is $ 40. My friends had a gel manicure at $ 40. I would say it is pretty good experience. Recommended to anyone wants a chill Sunday afternoon nail spa: D

Might just be my new go-​to pedicure place. The salon is super cute and uses eco-​friendly products. They also sell some handmade stuff (lotion, cuticle oil, jewelry). I got the signature pedicure which was super relaxing and my technician did a great job with my nail color.
Will be back soon!

Loved this little gem of a nail salon. It’s comfortable and adorably furnished. Was offered tea or water upon arrival. The nail technician was so thorough, my regular manicure is going on 2 weeks without a chip! Will definitely go back.

This place is great! Jane is so nice and Patricia does the best job! The ladies are a really good and will restart an entire nail if it’s less than perfect! The décor is very cute and there’s always relaxing jazz music playing. No shortage of colors, and the gel is done well here. If I still lived in the area I’d come way more often.

I have to say this is going to be my new pedicure place. I came in today for the luxe express and enjoyed it.
It was a really relaxing atmosphere with exposed brick & flower pots and feels very Brooklyn Heights loft to me somehow.
The pedicure area I found to be a really comfortable bench to sit on and loved that they had a ton of colors to choose from ranging from including Essie, Priti, Zoya and a few others. And I found the person who did my pedicure to be perfectly skilled and meticulous.
I am definitely coming back.

Cute, pretty and moderately priced. If it weren’t for Unilocal,I would have never found this quaint spot in the East Village. The workers are super attentive and very meticulous with their work, which I really appreciate and is so lacking in other nail salons.
Love that they give you complementary tea and water upon request and play super relaxing, jazzy tunes. The lavender healing pedicure was very nice, though I could have used more soak time.

I’ve only had a handful of manicures (ba dum tiss) because my wife gets bored when she goes to get them alone and she occasionally asks me to accompany her. This is the only time I’ve ever found a manicure to be relaxing.
The atmosphere is super chill and the owner, Jane is amazingly genuine and friendly. The jazz music she plays brings the atmosphere together. The manicure itself was the best one I’ve ever received.
In response to the one glaringly negative review I have to question whether Noël was at the correct place. The owner is super friendly — perhaps the individual was getting what they give in return.
They also list prices on the website and they have menus with the prices printed in store. The individual could have asked the price before hand. That complaint is ridiculous.
This person is also very misleading when describing the pedicure area. This leads me to wonder if they were in the correct place or if they have a secret agenda or vendetta against this business.

I came in last-​minute with super messed up feet and hands for the manipedi happy hour. I only get nail services done every few years or so, but this place was awesome! A bit on the expensive side, the the attention to detail was superb and my technician fixed two of my toenails with patience and probably a bit of magic.
Even though I don’t often get my nails done, I will certainly be back! Awesome to see a nice nail salon in the Lower East Side!

This review is for their nail services only.
In the past few months, I’ve been trying to incorporate more natural and organic products into my life. So as part of my routine of pampering myself for my birthday, I treated myself to a pedicure at this place.
I loved the atmosphere in this place — it’s a mix of minimalism and rustic with lots of green plants everywhere. I like that when you walk in, you’re not overwhelmed by the smell of nail polish and chemicals like other nail salons. I also like that they carry Zoya — which is one of my preferred nail polish line — and that they used organic nail products during my treatment. Jane, the owner, greeted me as soon as I walked in and she was friendly and attentive during my whole visit.
I got the signature pedicure ($ 40), which is way more than I usually spend on a pedicure, but worth it! My nail technician was also meticulous — something I appreciate after way too many visits at cheaper nail salons that seems to just work on my nails as quickly (and sometimes roughly) as they can. My pedicure came out looking clean and perfect and the soles of my feet were free of any calluses.
Getting a mani & pedi at a nail salon should feel like a treat. It’s great to finally find a nail salon that can deliver on that experience. Yes this place is expensive, but the quality of service is worth it. I will definitely be back!

How in the WORLD does this place have 5 stars?
So incredibly disappointed after my experience at Hortus. I read about it on a blog featuring hot new spots to get a mani pedi and had also heard about it through a friend and decided to try it. I have never felt so ripped off in my entire life. Allow me to explain and hopefully convince you to not make the same mistake as I just did by wasting an hour and 45 minutes of my afternoon for $ 85.
1. They don’t even provide a list of prices for each of their services. I assume that is because it probably looks even more ridiculous to see their prices written out than it did to hear the damage as I was paying. My jaw hit the floor when I was rung up at $ 85 (!!!) for a gel mani and regular pedi. COMPLETELY outrageous!!! I proceeded to ask the owner to justify the price and she couldn’t even come up with a legitimate answer. She told me that all of the products were organic and made in house, so that is why clients pay a premium price. At which point I wondered, what products are you even talking about? The commercialized Essie nail polish that you used (that I chose from an extremely limited selection) or that one stingy dollop of lotion that I had to ASK to be applied when my manicure was over? She wasn’t even able to justify the price by any respectable means.
2. The service was WELL below average. I was not even offered a glass of water upon waking into the salon clearly panting after escaping the 95 degree heat and humidity of this particularly hot day. The staff, especially the owner, were not welcoming in any way. I felt as though I was interrupting her day by walking into that salon to offer her business. Am I mistaken or is level of customer service of the utmost importance when you are overpaying for a mani pedi?
3. The color selection was very limited. They did not even have samples of what the gel colors look like once they are cured! The nail polish was the exact same brands used at any other salon except Hortus had about ¹⁄₃ of the variety of colors compared to anywhere else.
4. There was no massage during the mani or the pedi and the chairs were extremely uncomfortable (I assume this was to make use of such a tiny, claustrophobic space; there weren’t even individual chairs for the pedis– just one long hard backed bench). I’m pretty sure that the massage is the BEST PART of getting a mani pedi– isn’t that why we all do it?
5. I was in that place for an hour and 45 minutes for a less than mediocre job and, I must reiterate, no massage. Could this experience possibly be more disappointing?
6. Believe it or not, yes. It gets worse. After getting home and examining the quality of my pedicure, I have very apparent calluses and patches of dry skin on my feet.
I think it is pretty apparent that I will never set foot into this place again, but I still am so annoyed at the fact that I just paid double the amount of money that I pay at any other nail salon in Manhattan that is an infinitely better experience than Hortus. If you want to portray your tiny overpriced salon with a few potted plants in the windows to be posh and a «get what you pay for» experience, at least know about the products and services you provide enough to speak about them to justify the price. Or at least give me a glass of champagne to forget about the fact that I am being completely ripped off…

Just came in today based on all the reviews and all I can say is this place is LOVELY.
I’m coming off of 6 months in a surgical boot so my feet were in a rough place. So, I figured I’d spend a few dollars more and get a real pedicure… And was it worth it!
— My tech spent probably a half hour on my cuticles/​hangnails making sure they were actually fixed.
— included massage was a good 5 minutes
— absolutely no a la carte upsell garbage
— atmosphere was calming, music was good, everyone was incredibly polite
— Polish looks impeccable
Note: if you’re used to dime a dozen salons, it might seem like there isn’t a lot of polish to choose from here. That’s why there’s mixed reviews on that front– I would say there’s about 50 to choose from.

If Anthropologie had a nail salon this would be it! I was looking for a place that was relaxing, low key and quite to get a pedicure and Lushlife was perfect!
I got a lavender pedicure which lasted about 45 min for $ 55. Lavender scented creams and lemon sugar scrub oh yeah! Best pedicure ever :) The woman who gave me the pedicure was nice and didn’t feel the need to talk to me all the time which I appreciated. She was very attentive and got my feet nice and soft while being very gentle. Wish I remembered her name since I would def ask for her again.

It’s been well over 10 years since I got a manicure from anyone other than myself (or my mom). I’ve heard high praises sung for gel nails, and while I rarely paint my nails anyway, curiosity eventually won over. Polish that doesn’t chip for two weeks? I’ll believe it when I see it.
The salon is pretty small — the pictures actually make it look more spacious than it is in real life. There are maybe four pedicure stations and five manicure stations, though their capacity is actually less than that because there aren’t that many nail techs working at any given time (or at least there weren’t when I came in around 6:30 on a Friday, which I would guess is a pretty high traffic time).
They have a full wall of nail polishes — I would guess at least 50 or 60 colors — so I’m beyond confused by the other reviewers who have been disappointed by the number of options. I’m so baffled that I wonder if maybe I imagined the wall of nail polishes. Even their website says they only offer 3 – 5 colors of gel? BUT THERE’S AN ENTIRE WALL OF THEM? I don’t know, man. Maybe I’m going crazy. Others have also noted that it doesn’t smell like chemicals in the salon, which… isn’t totally true. I agree that it doesn’t smell unpleasant/​like acetone, but you can very much tell that the aroma you do get in the salon is one that’s covering up a chemical smell.
I had a 6:30pm appointment on a Friday night, and when I came in (slightly early), there were maybe four other people getting their nails done. Long story short, they were running pretty behind, so I wasn’t actually seated until 7:00pm. This was a disappointment and part of the reason why they’re getting four stars instead of five — I wasn’t in a hurry per se, but it was still inconvenient.
Once I was actually in the chair, everything went pretty smoothly. I don’t have anything to compare it to since this was my first gel manicure, but today marks 5 days since I had it done and my nails still look perfect. Other than the blip at the beginning of them running behind, things went efficiently. They also asked me for my feedback throughout the process — painting two nails and asking me if I was happy with the color, how many coats/​how opaque I wanted it to be, etc., which I appreciated.
I doubt I’ll be a regular customer because having nice nails just isn’t high enough on my priority list (it’s probably not on the list at all, actually), but if I want to get them done again for a special occasion, I’d come back.

This is by far the best nail salon I’ve ever visited. You will find a clean, relaxing environment with incredible service and flawless work.
At most nail salons, you’re there to get your nails done and get out. This is not that kind of place. First of all, when you walk in it does not smell like chemicals. The wall of plants are a real treat on the eyes after battling the concrete jungle outside. The nail polish selection is well-​maintained. They have Zoya polishes which are free of 5 chemicals and they also dry very fast.
And though they do have an express mani/​pedi option, you should just skip that and do the signature one (or one of their specialty offerings) because it’s worth it. These ladies are meticulous, which reminds me why I don’t bother trying to do it myself!
Make an appointment, or be flexible if you walk in. They do their best to accommodate but the salon is small. Sometimes quality overrules speed. And when it comes to your nails, you want it done right!

This place is amazing. I wandered in here about a month ago after doing a quick search on Unilocal for a place to get a pedicure done. Yes, I still need to get a pedicure done even if it was in the middle of February at the time. Don’t judge me.
Once inside, I was handed a menu to choose from one of their selections. I opted for their luxe express option. I was also asked what kind of tea I would like to have (mint), which was then served to me in a mason jar on a bamboo tray. Oh, and most of the fixtures were done in the «rustic Americana» style. Yes, I know how ridiculously pretentious this all sounds, but the service was amazing and everything about this place made me feel posh for a change. I definitely plan on coming back here for some more pampering, but here are are a couple of tips for other newcomers:
–tips are paid to your nail technician in cash only, though cards are accepted for the services themselves
–appointments aren’t necessary but are recommended