Coco Nailbar

So– I’m one of those people who only write reviews when I love places. I’m a supporter of great service. This review is not that!
I’ve had a pedi here before — the service was crap but I didn’t let it bother me. Came back a second time for my eyebrows and upper lip. I had 2 consultations with Ruby (the first time I visited and today). I explained I’ve been growing my eyebrows out for 2 years… Am getting married in a few weeks. People always stop and compliment my brows. I just need a clean up — no shape. She showed me what she would do. Sounded like we were aligned. She did my eyebrows… I’m now one of those people with a big block with a thin tail behind it… Just the worst brows I’ve ever had… In 20 years!!! She kept the thickness in the front half but left like 2 line thick tail. TERRIBLE!!! I was upset. The manager came in and said sorry half heartedly and walked out. I needed my upper lip waxed as well. I was clear that I have sensitive skin and that there should be no more than one pull. How many times did ruby wax the same area? 3!!! About 3 layers of skin ripped off and I have a scabbed red hurting upper lip now. Not happy at all… I have dinner plans tonight which I almost want to cancel… And am beyond angry that my eyebrow growing of 2 years went to waste… Just a few weeks before my wedding. The worst is, the manager doesn’t care at all… And one of the employees said these things are normal. Yah… Probably normal at a place with poor listening skills. Do NOT ever go here for any hair removal… Stick to the nails only.

I had a classic pedicure with a callus wrap and my boyfriend has a pedicure with a hot stone massage. The service I received was really good. The lady doing my feet was nice and took her time doing a really nice job.
Unfortunately there was a scheduling mistake which meant the lady who was meant to do my boyfriends pedicure arrived around 40 mins late. We received a wine on the house, so far so good. However then I would have expected that lady would kind of make up for it with good serves. But she rushed through it and even forgot to clip his nails (i would think that should be a given with a pedicure) in order to tend to the next customer. There was no word said, we were just left to ourselves until we decided to leave. It was a real shame for the money we left there. So overall the place is nice, but the timeliness and service he received was far from great.

Booked in for a classic manicure to prep for a wedding I will be attending tomorrow, and as Coco is a 2 minute walk from work, thought it would do the trick.
Upon arrival I wouldn’t say I got a cold greeting– more like none at all. Just a bit awkward…
The manicure itself was fine, the girl was quiet but sweet. She did nick one of my cuticles though… although she apologised profusely, it doesn’t change the fact that my cuticle post manicure is all red and irritated… not what I like to see when I pay someone else to do my nails!
Also — overwhelmed some pretty appalling customer service from the desk — a lady was trying to pay with her American Express, apparently their machine was not accepting Am-​Ex in general, but the receptionist very rudely like, shoved the machine in the lady’s face when she questioned why it wasn’t working, and didn’t offer any kind of apology. Yikes.
I’ve had better manicures at salons with better atmosphere for this price point, can’t say I’ll be rushing to book another appointment here.
**update– changing this to a terrible 1 star after my manicure lasted 2 days before chipping off! Massive fail!

I had one of the worst mani/​pedis in my life here last year and it wasn’t cheap.
I was in London for work for a couple of weeks. I found myself really jetlagged with the need of getting my nails done while touring around in Notting Hill. So I walked in this place, sat in a nice comfy chair, asked for a mani/​pedi and fell asleep. When I woke up, my nails were done and they were already closing. Not wanting to hold them up, I paid and left.
When I got back to the hotel, I found myself scratching my stockings while undressing and they were totally ruined. Then I took a closer look at my fingers and I was surprised, the cuticles weren’t even cut and some of the nails were just halfly polished?!? (My little fingers were actually ¹⁄₃ done). Maybe I’m pretty spoiled by the standards in NYC/​SF, where they actually cut your cuticles, make your skin feel nice and smooth and polish your nails evenly all for the cost of less than 20 bux. But even so, I expected at least a decent job with those price tags they have at Coco Nail Spa. (I paid £33 for a mani and £45 for a pedi!)
The next day, I called and they were nice enough to schedule a touch-​up session. I spent another 30mins on the tube to go back from work in the financial district and not till I got there, I realized, what a waste of my time. They actually have no idea how to cut cuticles and insisted if they cut any I would bleed. Yes! if you are inexperienced like their girl, Shanice, who also gave me an attitude like she was a nail expert after working in the industry for a year. Sorry, if it’s the case then I can call myself an expert on spotting a good/​bad job after getting my nails done every week for a decade!!! I decided to just walk out instead of wasting more of my time explaining to them how to do their job.
The next day, I googled a place close to the office and got a fantastic job done by a girl from Miami who’s in London studying for fashion design. It took me 3 days to get the nails that I wanted…
So, Coco Nailbar has a good location — it’s close to the metro station and the place actually looks pretty nice inside. I’m not a big fan of fish spa but if you are, this is probably one of a few places you can get it in London. It’s a nice place to hang out with friends and the bar looks pretty stocked up. But it’s like the Beauty Bar in the Mission in SF, you go there to get drinks with a bunch of friends, not for the mani./pedis!
If I could give a zero star, I would!

It’s just up the block from my flat. That’s two stars right there. AND it’s open til 11pm! That would be because they have a full bar and a huge (pricey) drinks list to accompany that late-​night mani/​pedi. Of course, if you’re like me and drop in around 11:00 on a Wednesday morning, it’s not really socially acceptable to have a Manhattan, while little fishes eat the dead skin off your feet. Well, maybe it is; this is London after all. But still…
The manicure itself was just OK. I like my place in Marylebone better, although a basic manicure is ten pounds cheaper here (twenty pounds, instead of thirty). However, they carry an array of Essie and OPI colours, which is a major plus, as I rarely paint my nails a ‘girly shade.’ There’s seemingly plenty of space during the day, but I would definitely book in advance for evening spaces. Then maybe partake in the bar. Or be a rebel and drink in the middle of the day!