U A Nails

Tina did my nails really well, i’m so pleased. I will definitely come back here to have some Tina touch :)

I hate saying this BUT this was probably the worst manicure Ive ever had!
My experience here was pure comedy though and that is why they are getting two stars and not just one star.
I came here ONLY because my regular spot is closed Mondays AND this place does gel on hands and feet. So I couldnt be too picky
At one point during my pedi a fly landed on my leg. The tech slapped my thigh and killed the fly and yelled «Got YOU!» And the kicker was the fly dropped dead in my foot bath of water below me.
I was shocked and a little in pain from the leg slap. Im pretty sure you arent supposed to hit your customers.
Then when it came time to sit under the light to let the gel dry they had the dryer machine propped on books LOL
At the end of the whole appointment I went to pay and they shorted me a dollar in change. Not a biggie but not professional either.
:sigh:
Cant say I will ever be back

No frills and definitely a little run down, but they do an ok job, it’s $ 12 and I didn’t see any other nail spots show up on Unilocal on Lakeshore. BOOM.
The spot has definitely seen finer times: It’s dark with florescent lighting. It’s a little run down. They aren’t the most friendly and inviting, but for $ 12 I got a decent manicure and didn’t have to wait.
$ 1 surcharge on credit cards.
OPI & Essie polish colors are limited.
They do waxing.

My experience at U A Nails started out okay with an eyebrow wax from a woman who appeared to be the owner. She listened to what I wanted and gave it to me. The price was also nice ($ 10).
But things went downhill as soon as my mani pedi started. I asked the nail tech to cut my fingernails about half as short as their current length (I make this request pretty much every time I get a manicure). When I said longer, she went shorter. She cut three of my fingernails down to the quick before I called time out.
The entire rest of the time I spent at U A Nails was pretty uncomfortable, with the woman who had butchered my fingernails glaring at me from across the room and the owner filing my nails and talking smack about the other woman.
Thankfully, my nails grow quickly so my manicure mishap here had no longterm effects. But I think it’s safe to say I will not be returning to U A Nails.

I’ve been to several nail shops not worthy of a review. I was stuck in traffic on the way home & realized…“Hey it’s Friday, how about a nice pampering pedicure?” And that’s when I found this perfect little gem. Parking can be a pain, but if your lucky, throw yourself on the ground and give thanks lol! (Yup I did) No appointment needed. They didn’t rush me to get in & out. I’ve been here for over 30−45min enjoying his intricate attention.
I’ll be returning.

Jenny moved here from Lisa’s nails about 6 months ago. She’s always busy, so call and book and appointment 2 days out.

Tina, Tu and their staff are always warm and friendly. You are greeted with enthusiasm. Wide variety of colors. They give the best mani and pedi’s as well. They take pride in making sure their customers love their nails afterwards. Tina also does an awesome job in brow waxing. This is the only nail shop I will come to.

Excellent shop, clean friendly and offers tea, water and soda. My new place to go, to.

Love Tina!!! I have been coming to Tina for years and whenever I have tried some where else– Its never the same. Tina has the utmost consistency and takes her time when doing your nails. I get gel nails and whenever I want a color that she doesn’t have she’ll make sure she has it the next time I am there.
They also offer me a beverage and her staff is extremely nice– not to mention whenever I call to make an apt, even if its last min– she always makes sure to get me in. :-) AGAIN, I love Tina. :-)

I came in because I had a little time before I was to head to Oakland Int’l and I don’t like to waste an hour. I told the ladies I had head to the airport to catch a flight in less than two hours and they seemed optimistic about the mani/​pedi I wanted so I went for it. One girl did my fingers while one did my toes, they were super efficient and got the whole thing done in about 30 minutes. What I really appreciated was that they were so honest about what they could do, how long it would take, etc. I had the service done yesterday before my flight and now I am far away and my nails still look good-​ok I know I know it’s less than 24 hours later, but the time before this I had a mani/​pedi on College in Berkeley. I paid more than twice as much, the operation took much longer and my nails chipped the same day!
I am definitely coming back here; it’s relatively inexpensive, the employees are delightful, and they listen to what you need.

First time experience. I’ll start from top. Got in quick for a refill. I started with the male nail technician. I had a few nails that were lifting on the sides and I told him to replace them if needed. He clipped a lot off. I was kind of hesitant about it but we’ll see. He proceeded to fill my nails. No problem. When it came to shaping my nails, I hated it. I seriously have cuts because he was so rough and careless. I have tiny fingers and the acrylic was pushing on my cuticles making it feel really heavy. When I asked him to adjust it, he got really irritated, huffed and puffed, complained to his peers and continued to shape my nails. When he would ask me how I like it, I’d tell him the same thing. The acrylic is too high around my cuticles. It feels heavy and wide. He got mad at this point and another technician came over to shape my nails and he took another customer. Without a word spoken, this woman shaped my nails perfect! No lie I love it. Continuing, another technician came over to paint my nails. At this point again I’m not happy because I felt like they were rushing me out. I know I can be picky but I know what I want and I won’t accept a half job. All in all, I like my nails but the attitude of the mail technician makes me look the other direction when it comes to this place. The work of everyone else is great. 3 stars for the facility, workers and an over a good job. Minus 2 for the male technician and being rushed.

My daughter and I had a lovely time here. Relaxing experience. Great great pedi including sugar scrub. I had my toes done a month ago and they still look perfect; no chipped polish and they carry OPI! Check em out ;) Pedicure was only $ 18! I got a gift certificate for Mother’s Day from my family so I’ll be back soon.

I have lived in Grand Lake area since 1995 so have seen business come and go. One are is the nail shops. I have tried all nail shops on Grand (all 12 of them) and UA Nails on Lakeshore. I have to say that this place stands out as the best for many reasons.
For one they have an open large space so don’t feel cramped.
They are clean.
The staff are very kind. They don’t all speak English well but they know enough to understand what you need. Good for me.
They have a lot of returning clients and I am one of them.
Lastly, they do a great job.
Oh and the frequent card is such a good idea too :-)
I recommend UA Nails highly among the many salons that are around them.

I love this spot! I have been coming here for at least 6 years, maybe more. There is no one in the Bay that waxes better than Jenny (some people call her Tina). Lip, chin, brow and everything from the neck down, best bikini wax!
It is also the only place that will do gels on your feet. For $ 30 my pedicures last for a month. Amazing! Tina is also the best for this too. Not everyone in there can do gels so be very clear when you book.
All the women (not girls!!) are always friendly and helpful and seem to do whatever they can to help me. I have been here late and seen several times how they will keep their doors open for women who walk in all hella late.
What’s sad is how I have seen the people in my community treat these women. So often very rude, like these women are their servants and condescending like because these women may be immigrants that they are less than or unintelligent. It is embarrassing and sad. I give the salon 5 stars and I would give many of the customers 1 star.

DO NOT GO HERE!!!
Used to be my spot for pedis but a couple weeks ago, I was desperate for a pedi and couldn’t get down to San Bruno so I decided to go back after a 6 month hiatus.
The girl who did my pedi was alright. I told her I had an ingrown problem and to be careful of my big toe (I hit it against something in January) as it was bruised. She kept pressing against my toe and TRIED to take out the ingrown.
It’s been 2 weeks, both of my big toes have been hurting since. I went down to my usual spot today and they notified me that I had an infection in one of my big toes, my nails weren’t filed straight and the work my girl in San Bruno did had me crying!!!
This used to be my go to spot since I live right up the street but I won’t be going here anymore. I’d rather go down to grand or make the trip San Bruno.

No longer the same. Keep changing technicians on me. Ill be with one girl and another girl will take over right in the middle of it and the shaping would be all off and paint job horrible. They are constantly rushing and are no longer worried about customer care. I stayed with them as long as possible and gave them several chances but once Ann left it was never the same again

I’ve been coming to this salon for about 4 months and I will say that Tina does an excellent job with acrylic nails. I’ve tried a couple of the other girls here, but I stick with Tina. When she does my nails they last 2 plus weeks.

I’ve never reviewed this place? Strange…
Anyway, UA Nails gets 2 stars from me, why you ask? Luckily for you I’ve made a handy list:
1. They take a long time, which is strange because this isn’t a spa… so I’m not here for the «experience» if ya know what I mean?
2. They will turn you away in a heartbeat… this is the ONLY nail salon I have ever been to (and I’ve been to ALOT) who will tell a customer to come back, what?
3. The only positive on my list? I like one girl who works there… let me be honest, my feed need a er…“firm” hand and she gets it. I like her.
4. Neutral… it’s close to my house, I live in suburgatory (but with exorbitant property tax rates) and I can’t always make the trip to the far spots that I like, so when I’m in a bind… they’ll do.
I give them a «C» hey, people get college degrees on «C’s» people…

I called my usual place (Nail Spa) on College at 4p yesterday and was told the soonest appointment was 5:30p. Since I had a 6p event, that wasn’t going to work. Decided to return to UA Nails though the massage chairs are older and the atmosphere is less «spa» than Nail Spa (but the price. Walked in sans appointment around 4:30p and by good fortune, got Jackie. Jackie who spent 75 minutes on my feet and hands. Jackie who did NOT chastise me for neglecting to come in sooner or for biting my nails, picking at my calluses on my feet, for cutting my toe nails unevenly — they were a horror story. Jackie who meticulously pushed and trimmed cuticles, who gave me a terrific leg and neck and shoulder massage, who meticulously applied polish and was vigilant about making sure the polish didn’t bleed into my skin. Jackie who make my heels SMOOTH. I examined the soles of my feet afterwards — it was like getting new feet!
Truthfully, I don’t expect that my polish will last beyond 2 weeks versus Nail Spa — whose polish last 4 weeks (yes, that’s why I usually go there). However, given the ragged state of my hands and feet, I needed Jackie.
I paid $ 25 for a mani/​pedi and gave her a $ 10 tip. She deserved it. I would have paid that much or more for Nail Spa.
Nail spa has better quality nail polish and massage chairs, but the nail techs at UA nails work harder and longer on your hands and feet.
Cash only. I usually park in the inside of the Trader Joe’s lot on Lakeshore (2 hour free parking). If you park outside it is only 1 hour. There is a street called Longridge Road opposite the salon with 2 hour street parking and no time limit street parking.
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When I walked into Lin Jia next door to pick up food for the 6p party, a woman sitting at a table near the entrance immediately noticed my mani/​pedi and complimented them. The owner of Lin Jia, Marcia, noticed as well. :)
***
Update: 1 week later, I removed my nail polish, but 3 weeks later, toe polish still going strong. :)

The last time I walked in here, no one even looked up. I asked for a simple wax. The lead woman mumbled something that I could not hear. I said, «I’m sorry?,» and she barely looked up and responded, «We’re busy. Can you come back later.»
In case you are wondering, I know punctuation — there is no missing «?» in that last sentence and that is because it was more of a statement than a question. I appreciate people knowing their limits but it was 3-​something in the afternoon — i.e., not anywhere close to closing — and that window of the day was my only free time, so NO, I could not come back later.
I got the message loud and clear — they didn’t need my business that day. Chances are, now they won’t be getting it at all.
P. S. I went to a new place that was totally busy and was able to take me within 5 mins… check my other review!