Water Front Spa

I had an absolutely nightmarish experience at Water Front Spa which left me feeling sexually and physically violated. Let me preface this by saying that I had been to Water Front four times before this incident, and had generally enjoyable experiences, but due to this last encounter, I would strongly suggest: LADIES: DO NOT GO HERE.
The first thing that happen was my middle-​aged Korean masseuse named «Jackie» walked in on me as I was changing, and commented on my «beautiful, beautiful» body as I was undressing. «You so lucky,» she said as she ogled me. Once on the table, she commented how my skin was «so soft» and then DID NOT STOP TALKING THE ENTIRE 45 MINUTES. «Do you have a girlfriend?» is the first thing she asks me. «No,» I replied. «I do have a boyfriend, though.» After twenty minutes of her talking about her «homeland» and how she «doesn’t really like New York,» and how I should, «explore Japanese and Korean cultures» and I should, «open up a business in Korea» (WTF) I notice that she’s spending an exponentially long time on my butt/​upper thigh area. When I ask her to move to my back, she giggles excessively, then resumes talking about how I’m «so tight» in a faux-​sexy voice.
Finally, the massage is over and she towels me down. Here is where it gets unbearable: she didn’t leave the room. «Um, I’d like some privacy, please,» I said. «Privacy? What’s privacy?» she retorts. «I’d like to change BY MYSELF.» At this point, she knelt down my the massage table, looked straight into my eyes, cocked her said, and with a big, obscene smile said, «you have verrrry nice nipples.» Nightmare shit.
I abruptly sit up, and scream at her to get the hell out of the room.
Three days later, when I finally can contact an owner to get my money back and to complain, the owner says that she would confront «Jackie» but actually she had «already been fired for drinking on the job.» What?! Are you serious? I was at the mercy of a drunken, lesbian, USA-​hating woman who probably didn’t even have her masseuse license.
DO NOT GO HERE.

I got a kgbdeal for a seaweed wrap, which I thoroughly enjoyed. For the wrap, you spend a decent amount of time in the most amazing shower/​tub. I totally want one of those in my apartment! Add in that I got a good deal on it and I should’ve been a happy girl!
However, the service was so terrible, I would never come back here again. First, it was extremely difficult to make an appointment. I called around 4pm on a weekday afternoon and was told that I was unable to make an appointment at that time as the person who schedules appointments was not in. When I asked when I could call back, I was given a 1 hour window the following day to call back, which was completely ridiculous.
When I got to the spa, they didn’t have my appointment on the calendar, and made a fuss about accomodating me (which seemed odd as I seemed to be the only customer at the time, there aren’t a lot of people who like to go first thing in the morning on the weekend). Additionally, they told me that my voucher was expired, even though the date on the voucher was a month later than the date of my appointment. After pointing out their error, I talked them into honoring the non-​expired voucher. After all of that, I would’ve walked out if I hadn’t prepaid by buying the voucher. Save yourself the headache and don’t come here. There are lots of other spas in the city that treat customers much better than this one.

I bought a kgbdeal around October 2010 for Water Front for a seaweed wrap ($ 40, which was supposed to be 50% off their regular price for it). I had never had a body wrap before, so I was jonesing to use it. My first thought was, «Seaweed body wrap? Will they turn me into human sushi? Awesome.» Sadly, that’s not quite what they do, but it was still a great experience. Apparently, body wraps are supposed to be good for things like detoxifying skin and firming cellulite (I have no idea what that is, of course *wink*).
So I call in the middle of the day on a Sunday and get an appointment at 8:00 pm that evening. Perhaps non-​New Yorkers are skeptical about same-​day appointments, but me? Heck no! Getting a same-​day appointment for just about anything in NYC makes me feel as if I’ve got an angel on my shoulder and the Midas Touch.
The spa is on the second floor of a building. It’s not foofy; it’s above a laundromat. I think it has a cozy feel, with some overdecoration, a soft couch and smiling staff. When I arrived, I was the only customer, so I was spoiled because the three employees there had nothing else to do but pay attention to me (that’s a definite plus one million stars). I got water, tea, water, and more tea.
My wrapper/​masseuse was Jessie, and she was a doll. She led me into a big room, separated by a fabric divider, played some new age-​y Asian music, and left me alone to take a shower before I got all naked for the seaweed wrap. Maybe I don’t get out much, or maybe it’s because I have a teensy shower stall in my apartment, but the shower in my massage room blew me away. It was one of those shower stalls built for two with a radio, water jets on all sides and stocked with Tigi Bed Head hair products and some decent soap. I wanted to steal that free-​standing shower contraption.
Once I dragged myself out of the shower, I got on the massage table. Jessie came in with a bowl of seaweed paste and Saran Wrap. Yes, plastic wrap. She painted me with paste EVERYWHERE, front and back, from the neck down, covering me with plastic wrap as she went. Jessie was talkative, which I appreciated; I think complete silence as someone is painting green goo all over your tush is awkward. We talked about designer handbags, which put me at ease. When she was done, and I was all gift-​wrapped in seaweed, Jessie left the room for about thirty minutes to let me relax and do whatever people in seaweed and Saran Wrap do when they’re left alone.
Jessie returned to peel off my wrap, and I luxuriated in the shower once again. When I was put back together, I checked out, tipped well and received a bunch of coupons for $ 10 off future visits. If I weren’t such a local deal website ho who buys spa/​massage deals like they were addictive substances, I would be back at Water Front all the time.
Also, I saw the bars on the ceiling, too. They do mean business when it comes to backwalk massages.

I came here for a Brazilian that I got off of Lifebooker. The spa is serene and the staff is extremely friendly. I mean, I know that you can’t say a Brazilian isn’t painful because oh holy mother, it is, but this was noticeably less so than others I’ve had, as well as thorough. I hear the massages are amazing. that’s my next move at this little gem.

This wallet-​friendly spa met most of my expectations. While I didn’t get the «experience» one gets from a Bliss or Red Door, I also wasn’t laying down $ 400 for two treatments. I called on a Friday for a massage and facial package ($ 120) for Sunday afternoon. The location is not hard to find but not really subway friendly. Then again, why would you take the subway to go relax? I took a cab and found the artfully graffitied sign easy to find. I only saw the receptionist once to sign in and she disappeared after that… How do I know? My therapist kept leaving in the middle of my session to answer the door or to check people out/​pay. The treatments themselves were alright if not a bit hurried and the deep tissue massage was good, but not the best I’ve ever had. At the end of the day, I won’t complain about spending below nyc prices for slightly above average, slightly rushed service.

If your not happy with a massage here, you wont be happy anywhere. Make sure you ask for a backwalk massage. And dont cry like a little girl, this is chinese medical massage not american relaxation massage. There is no way im going to tell you the name of my massage therapist there, you will have to try everyone to figure it out for yourself, but there is one girl there who is the most talented therapist in NYC quite possibly all of the USA. I consider her my Doctor and probably would not be walking without her massages because i have such serious fibromaylagia. What a blessing this place is.
Place is beautiful and you can get a 50 $ massage during spa week in April. Normally its 70 $ but id pay 100 $ and upwards for a massage of this quality, if you can find one good luck.

I arrive around 15 minutes early for my appointment and the woman at the reception area comments, «Oh. You’re early.» Turns out that my masseuse wasn’t there yet and she didn’t arrive until 10 minutes after my appt so I was left sitting in the waiting area during that time. It was worth the wait cause the massage itself was fantastic! The facilities are super-​clean, I didn’t love the ambiance. Water Front Spa isn’t somewhere worth traveling for, but it’s worth it if you’re in the area and can get a deal.

The «specials» they advertise disappear once you’re on the table, she told me my neck was tight so I’d need «deep tissue” — and the price quoted was for very light massage only. I said then just do swedish, but was charged the higher amount anyway.
They also advertise Thai massage, that’s why I went, but they don’t seem to know how. She told me the mediocre massage was «just like» Thai, it was not.
Should’ve gone to Sal Anthony’s, Opal, or any place with integrity. I find the real licensed english speaking massage therapists to be much better.

Perhaps one star is unfair, since I didn’t actually GET my scheduled massage and facial, and maybe it’s doubly unfair because the day I scheduled was the time change, so who knows what happened? But for my first massage in a year, and my first facial ever, I joyfully scheduled myself at Water Front Spa. All week, I’d actually TOLD people I was going to go have a massage, and how excited I was. I looked forward to it ALL WEEK. And when I got there, the door was locked, and nobody answered the bell. Not for fifteen minutes.
ONE STAR. Dearly wish I could say something more.
Customer Service Tip of the Day: BE ON TIME. Radical, I know.

This is a decent, on-​the-​cheap place to get a long, relaxing massage. The best thing about this place is that they almost always can take a walk-​in or same-​day reservation. So if you really need a massage and want something a little more involved than the quickie tui-​na massage, this place might be it. Call 1 – 2 hours ahead and you definitely shouldn’t have a problem getting a masseuse.
I’ve gotten pretty good Swedish massages here at $ 70 for 1 hour, and the masseuses here really work hard to work out the kinks. You definitely leave relaxed. If you need to take a shower beforehand, they have a very nice neon-​lit shower that has complimentary BedHead shampoo and wraparound glass doors. But they tell you it’s only if you’re getting an hour-​long massage. Ok, whatever!
Like most run-​of-​the-​mill places, however, this place definitely has two drawbacks. One, there are no private rooms that I know of for massage, just a big room sectioned off with curtains like the tui-​na place. Anytime I’ve ever been here everyone’s been polite enough to be as quiet as possible, but you can hear people entering and leaving and doors closing and stuff like that. So no, it’s not a blissed out, serene environment. Another drawback is that there is no place to chill out and relax with a beverage after your massage. You just have to get dressed and pay and get out. I will reiterate, however, that the prices are cheap, you do get a quality massage for your money and you almost never have to make a reservation. I think these last 3 things are what has kept the Water Front Spa in business!
If you’re a true bargain lover, check out the monthly specials on their web site. They often offer a body scrub, massage and facial combo for less than $ 150.

Massages=AMAZING, 5 stars
Facials= GO ELSEWHERE, 0 stars
Took my mom to Water Front spa for a spur of the moment treat. $ 110 for a 60 minute massage and a 60 minute facial. Yeah, I’ll take that! I should have known what I was getting into.
For a massage, the place is fantastic. The spa itself is quite nice, relaxing and very clean. I got a 60 minute foot massage to soothe my aching feet. It was incredible! She cured my foot pain caused from a summer of running 15 – 20 miles/​wk. It was amazing. I cant’ rave enough.
The facial, on the other hand, was terrible. I knew I was in for trouble when I learned that the facialist was also the masseuse and kick myself for not walking out then. I doubt the woman was even licensed. She was very nice and meant well, but had no idea what she was doing.
As a new client, it it wrong to assume my skin would be analyzed first so the technician knew what she was dealing with, especially since the room was extremely dark? Guess not!!!
Facials are not customized… my 61 yr old mother with mature skin and 34 year old self with skin like a 16 year old (ie oily and sensitive) had the exact same facial, with the same products. First, the woman «cleaned» my face for about a minute with what smelled like Ponds. She then steamed my face for about 2 minutes, did a total of about 4 extractions without wearing gloves for another 2 minutes, THEN proceeded to massage my face for 5 minutes with shea butter. Why would anyone use massage cream AFTER extraction? It basically clogged my clean again. Well, would have clogged my skin if it was properly cleaned. Anyway, after I told her to stop with the massage since she got the product in my eyes and it stung like hell, she put a hardening pudding-​like mask on my face for about 15 minutes. That’s it. The facial did end with a wonderful neck and shoulder massage.
I floated out of the spa from the amazing massage, but with dirtier skin than when I entered. My skin is so bad, I’m now searching on Unilocal for another place to get a facial tomorrow.

This is why I love Unilocal – I discovered a place I’d never heard of before in a neighborhood I don’t know super-​well, was excited by the enthusiastic reviews, and ended up going and loving it. Good times! This is how it’s supposed to work.
The treatments here are very affordable, especially with their excellent monthly specials (this month: facial, swedish massage, and paraffin foot treatment for $ 110!).
My clinician’s name was Ivy, and though she was a little pushy trying to sell me products during my facial, she gave me hands-​down the best deep-​tissue massage I’ve ever had. Ask for her by name.

I went for a deep tissue massage during spa week in April and they ran out of massage rooms so they stuck me in the shower room where people typically get a body scrub…
so instead of a nice quiet dimly lit room where i could disappear into a deep state of relaxation, i was in a bright sun-​lit bath tiled room with an echo. since the massage table was on tiled floor (less friction than carpet), the force of the deep tissue massage pushed the table forward. I thought my head was going to smash into the bath tiles.
the bathroom in the front lobby looks nice but smells like urine. and since it was in the lobby the urine smell leaked out into the lobby area… where fresh fruit and iced water were served.

I went for a couples massage with my bf towards the end of Spa Week (random spa pick) and we were not disappointed! We needed a massage so bad after having 2 rough weeks in a row.
The spa is NOT that hard to find since their name is graffiti’d on the outside wall. Once you go upstairs, the vibe and ambiance is very «homey». I felt like I was in somebody’s living room.
The service was great. We were early for our appointment but they took us in right away (and served us some hot tea). I had the swedish massage. I felt sore the day after but it was a good kind of sore. It was quiet all throughout the massage too (big plus).
I would definitely go back there again if I’m in the area.

An American-​style, Chinese-​run spa offering facials, massages, body treatments, and waxing. I suspect they may also offer walking on backs; I saw a pair of bars on the ceiling above the massage table in the room. The ALSO had a fancy shower in the corner of my room — think, water jets on all sides, even a telephone. I don’t know what kind of treatment you have to book to get to use this!
My massage during Spa Week was relaxing and satisfying. Comfy table, faintly incensed smell, and quiet subdued music (no Yanni). There were no offers or pressures to purchase any products when I was checking out — this spa was all about service. Would definitely come back again!