Zebra Tattoo & Body Piercing

I pretty much closed the shop down and I was treated extremely well and not as if I showed up ten minutes before they closed. But most importantly, I got a piercing done by Rosey AND HOLY SMOKES I HAVE NEVER HAD A BETTER PIERCER IN MY LIFE. I never want to go to anyone else and I have had over a dozen professionally done piercings. I can not give a stronger recommendation.

I went in about a week ago to get 3 piercings on my right ear. Every one was helpful. When I 1^st came in a talked to a guy he originally told me that the piercing was not going to be able to be done in the ear that I wanted so I was a bit disappointed. But was still going to go through it. The price was a bit expensive and that’s why I give it 4 stars. $ 22 for each pierce plus $ 35 for each jewelry. Spent almost $ 200. I didn’t wait much, which was good. The girl who pierced me was really good. And when she looked at my ears and told me that she could do it on the ear I wanted originally. Woo Hoo!!! I am happy with the overall experience. I would go back.

Went to have an emerald stone piercing added around the eye. Steve was my piercer — he was a nice, caring professional. who explained my piercing and care of my piercing. He just made you feel relaxed and cared for. I would highly recommend Zebra and its staff. I’ve had 2 piercings prior and service is excellent. I will be bank, I think this time I will get a tattoo!

Got a cartilage piercing about 3 months ago and it still hurts and i have to go get the jewelry removed because its way too tight

Zebra is amazing! It’s not just hype. I have countless coworkers, friends, and family who have been there who recommended Zebra. It’s located in a cute little niche in Berkeley near Cal with tons of fun shops and restaurants. There are many jewelry options and the staff is super friendly and will thoughoughly explain the process, all the healing instructions, and make recommendations based on not only the general suitability but also tailoring it to you and your unique body. Sam was at the counter and helped me, as did Diana. I love how they didn’t automatically push the most expensive jewelry, but rather what was practical. I was very indecisive, and they were quite patient, despite being busy. Magic, the owner was super cool. He offered us water and sodas. He also shaved a few bucks off the listed price and gave us coupons for our next visit. Nice! They also have cute stickers such as «My honors student gets pierced at Zebra,» beyond adorable! The other staff made the wait very easy as they were all quite personable and had firsthand piercing and tattoo knowledge. Amanda, who was also in the piercing room, answered all additional questions in the waiting area. Rosey, our piercer was fabulous! Super conversational and wonderful and talking us through the piercing. I ended up getting an industrial with a simple barbell. No pain. Very gentle. Overall, it was remarkable experience. Make sure to tip the piercer/​tattooer and front staff too, they all go above and beyond, so we’ll deserved! I cannot recommend Zebra enough!

I had a great experience here with piercing. Very knowledgeable, friendly staff. Very clean. Great selection on jewelry. Very helpful aftercare products and instructions.

My last review talked of my bad experience with a particular piercer. While this piercer had bad customer service he was good at the practical part of his job. After talking to the owner he made right with me for my bad experience. Will definitely be going back to Zebra.

I have to say everything has been great at Zebras since I have been going there for 8 years… however my mother was recently not told information about their jewelry (call em’ liars, i don’t care) but it matters. The 14k gold earrings that they sold were in fact real HOWEVER the BACKS of the jewelry weren’t real. I’m thinking why? And what is the point of having real jewelry with fake backs, it breaks sensitive skin out. They need to TELL people this. Otherwise, my mother would not have purchased half fake and half real jewelry. JUST FYI

This review is for child/​infant/​toddler ear piercing at Zebra. We just had my two year old’s ears pierced that and it went faaaaaar better than I envisioned. I recommend asking for Kellen– he is awesome, very friendly, and was wonderful with my daughter as well as another little girl who came in after us. They provide stickers, lollipops, and even a certificate, all in a fun little goodie bag. They make the process quick and as painless as possible.
The idea of taking your baby to a tattoo place is, I know, a little unconventional. But Zebra came up in recommendations a few times on Berkeley Parents Network, and I figured if we were really going to get my little one’s ears pierced, I wanted people who were extremely experienced. And experienced at piercing small children specifically. Zebra’s website has a page dedicated to infant/​child ear piercing, so you can find more info there. All the zebras and painting of animals on the wall actually make it more child-​friendly that you might imagine, too. Other pros– it’s a regulated, sterile environment, and they use a needle, which I’ve read is less scary for little ones than the guns used in the malls, and heals better. My sister had her ears pierced at our pediatrician, and it was an awful experience– very poor placement that ended up not healing properly and had to be re-​pierced later. My opinion– people are specialists for a reason. Want good, professional piercings? Go to a piercer.
I also really, really appreciate that they did both ears at the same time. When I’d called ahead to ask, the girl on the phone said they did one at a time, which I was really worried about. Kellen decided after watching my daughter with the numbing cream application that it’d be best for him to do the other ear at the same time, and that was 100% the right call. It was over quickly, both piercers were calm and positive with her and she actually sat still for the ~1minute it took. And she only cried for ~1 minute after. After that, she was stoked to get a lollipop and some Frozen stickers from Kellen! 5 minutes after the piercing, she was running around like nothing had happened, happy and excited to play.
Only minor points– it seemed a bit pricey — but I’m willing to pay for experience & quality. Also, the other piercer (guy with glasses) was a little kurt when I asked about the placement on one ear (which seemed a little too high to me and then ended up bleeding… but it was just a little and didn’t continue to bleed). That said, I think the experience of the team at Zebra makes this a really good place for child ear piercing. We have our certificate up and my daughter is happy!

Came into Zebra a little over a month ago to get my nipples pierced and has a fantastic experience with Rosey (I think that was her name). She was patient with me when I was faint after getting the piercings and let me lay down until I was better and even brought me water and some sugar to help me recover.
I came back into the shop today to get a larger bar size for my piercings because I heard that having bars that were too small might slow down the healing process. I was a bit concerned, because I knew my bar was small and so I wanted to make sure that things were fine. I went into the piercings room and explained my situation to Tim and he was very rude to me in saying that it’s a bad idea to take advice from two different piercers and still expect my piercings to heal. I apologized and explained that I wanted to be safe because I hadn’t talked to Rosey about any issues about bar size. He kept brushing me off as I tried to ask questions because I wanted to know what would help my piercings to heal their best.
Overall, I would definitely recommend Rosey, but I know I’ll call ahead in the future and make sure I have a better experience than I did with Tim

So I came here about a month ago for my scoop piercing. This was the only shop around I found that would do it. First red flag, was when I called to ask for information and pricing about the piercing. The guy over the phone proceeds to tell me that there’s no guarantee that they could do this piercing and have it be perfectly straight. I end up deciding to go forward with the piercing anyway. I came here once before when I was 14 to get my bellybutton pierced, but normally don’t come out this way since it’s about a 40 minute drive from my house.
I get there select my jewelry, and was seated. They get me in there pretty quickly, which was nice. My piercer was awesome, I don’t remember her name. She was a taller girl with blonde short wavy hair. A week after getting pierced my tongue was still a bit swollen, so I came back in to get the bar a little bit longer so it wasn’t as uncomfortable. So I come in to the shop, and the girl at the front says that the girl who pierced me wasn’t there right now that they would have to charge me five more dollars to get upsized then they would normally since it’s a different piercer. I agreed to pay the five extra dollars, and also bought different colored studs than I originally had.
So I go in the room, the guy switches out my piercing, and I noticed the studs were bigger than what I had chosen at the front. The piercer proceeds to tell me that they don’t have the small size and the color that I chose. I also noticed he gave me back my studs, but took the original bar I got pierced with. Thought it was weird, considering every time I get pierced my normal piercer always gives me back my jewelry.
So I come back a week later because my tongue swelling has completely gone down. I asked the girl at the front if they had the studs in the color I wanted that were smaller, and she told me yes. I know I should have asked for my money back, but I didn’t want to argue over $ 12, so I purchased another set of the same studs in the correct size AND pay again to be downsized. I go in the room, and it’s the same male piercer who I had a week prior. He changes out my piercing and proceeds to take my old bar away again. I asked him if I could keep it just in case my tongue got swollen again, and he told me they would have to charge me $ 12. WTF? I don’t understand why they would want to keep my used jewelry, unless they are reusing and sterilizing old stuff? I have no idea.
One more thing. When he downsize my bar, he asked if it felt too tight. I told him no it felt fine. I know I was dumb, by not looking in the mirror before I left. But when I got in the car I looked at my tongue and the studs were sinking into my tongue. I was so frustrated I just left. How could he clearly look at my piercing and think that that’s OK?!
I eventually went to another piercing shop in San Jose who was able to give me the correct size bar.
The one star is for the original female piercer who did a great job. But other then her, everything else was a disaster. Definitely will not be back.

Got my nose pierced, Came out to $ 43 w/​piercing (cheapest jewelry you can get) w/​o tip.
Healed nice. When it got really irritated i put motrin paste on my nose and it did the trick. They never recommended this to me this is my VERY OWN RECOMMENDATION.
Hurts lightweight. First week it gets a bit itchy and sore but after that it’s all gucci
thanks zebra :)

Things that do not belong together: oil and water, fire and ice, visible septum rings and job interviews. I got my septum done in August at another shop in SF with an infinity ring that I just could not get open. I went to Zebra to see if they had a retainer that I would be able to flip up. The piercer on duty was able to get me in and out. She informed me that I should be able to flip the retainer up with no problem. Well… fast forward to about an hour later… no luck.
I called several days later (work was utter chaos so I didn’t get a chance to go back the following day or the day after that). I spoke with Kellan who informed me that if the septum did not work with my anatomy they would replace it free of charge. He was kind enough to ask when I was coming in and I told him that evening. He said he would tell the shop manager Magic about me since he’d be off by then. When I arrived I was greeted by pleasant Magic. He informed the piercer about me (his name was Tim). Tim was incredibly professional and instantly realized that I had been set up with the wrong type of retainer for my small nose. He walked me through the entire jewelry process and set me up with a horseshoe. He installed it for me AND we made sure it could easily flip up.
Huge thanks to Kellan, Magic, and Tim; my interview went incredibly well and I’m in the final phase of a lengthly interview process. Woohoo. I’ll probably treat myself to a new piece of jewelry once I do get the job from Zebra.
The only reason I knocked off 1 star is because of the first experience I had here with the wrong jewelry.

I came in to get my septum pierced, and had Rosey as my piercer. She was super informative, quick, and skilled.
I was unaware that for septum piercings you have less choice in aesthetic placement of the piercing, it’s more that there is an ideal spot and it differs slightly between people. Rosey was really helpful in explaining this, and answered all my questions patiently, and encouraged me not to rush if I felt unsure. I went outside to think it over and in the end I decided to go for it, but I felt NO pressure to make a decision quickly.
Having had my nostril pierced before, I also felt like she was really great, in comparison, at minimizing discomfort while she secured the piercing with the little ball that holds it on.
Super polite, helpful and lovely. She was great!

Zebra Piercing is the best. I brought my daughter here when she was six to get her ears pierced. They did a really great job on the piercing. I believe it was Chris, the blonde guy. Then about 6 months later, she decided that she didn’t want ear piercings so she took them out. Then at 10 she wanted them pierced again. So we went back to Zebra. Same staff and same guy pierced her ears. Another great job!
When my daughter turned 12 she wanted to get a second piercing on her ears. We went to Zebra and the same guy pierced her ears again. She felt so comfortable having the same person now for the third time. I’m convinced that he has a bed in the closet off the piercing room or something.
Now my daughter is 15 and just got her nose pierced. Yup! Same guy still doing a great job. I’m South Indian and can say that the placement was perfect for the nose ring. Same as all the other placements have been thus far!
What a great spot and how ironic that we have the same great guy for the piercing over a decade span. The shop is doing something right to keep their customers coming back AND their employees loyal.

Unprofessional, poor service for the cusromer, and in accommodating.
When in with a friend to get her belly button peireced. It all went fine until 6 months later when it did not heal right. Contacted the owner and he informwd us to take out our piercings and let it heal for 2 weeks. We asked if it would seal the piercing and he reaponded no. Went in to the shop to get new jewlery to fix the irritation and there was horrible communication between the owner and the staff. Then the piercer tells us that the piercing is sealed so we have to pay to get it repiercied. Then the staff tells us «i dont know why the owner would tell you to take it out». The owner then does not give us any credit or waive a few for the repiercing. Waste of money.

Brought my 6 month old baby girl in to get her ears pierced today. From the moment we stepped into the shop, we were greeted and helped right away.
The lady showed us their earring section and answered all of our questions. We appreciate that she gave us her honest opinion on which size to get.
The man ringing us up was very nice as well. He threw in a couple of cleaning supplies.
The piercer, Chris made us feel very comfortable. He marked her ears several times before he was satisfied. It was done before we knew it.
Clean, professional, and friendly shop! Def recommend bringing your infants here!

My friend and I came here for double piercings. After waiting for about ten minutes, we went into the back and were greeted by Rosie, who was super friendly and very reassuring.
The only experience I can compare this to is my first piercings at Claire’s, which, needless to say, was a terrible experience. The piercing gun malfunctioned and I didn’t receive a discount and I think that’s all that needs to be said. My experience at Zebras in comparisons was quite exemplary. Rosie is clearly an experienced piercer and after having me confirm my satisfaction with the location of the piercings, pierced me quickly and skillfully. It was quicker than the gun at Claire’s, which was a pleasant surprise for me. Within a minute I had my double piercings all good to go!
My friend said she had a good experience too. I didn’t realize you’re supposed to tip, and I didn’t have any change on me. Sorry Rosie :(I’ll be back for a cartilage hopefully though, and if I get you again I promise to make it up.
Anyway, zebras is a great place for piercings. All the staff are super friendly and welcoming, and I can vouch for Rosie’s skills. I wouldn’t hesitate to come back!

This review is for getting my six year old girl’s ears pierced.
5 stars for kid friendly process: stickers and certificate and clean needles
3 stars for price /​$ 75 include piecing 2 lobes with 14k gold and cleaning solution. Ouch.
2 stars for the piercer who told my kid to stop whining. She barely cried and he clearly was an adult with issues.
I told the manager and nice staffer Solange about him and told him to coach the dude. No need for traumatizing my kid. If they are gonna be kid friendly then the piercer should be too.

I love Zebra’s! I’ve gotten multiple piercings (lip, tongue, top and bottom belly button, conch), repierced (top and bottom of my belly button) and even came in to get help unscrewing a lip ring… I seriously tried pliers and couldn’t get it off!
But anyways the service has always been FANTASTIC. The workers are chill and extremely helpful and informative. They are super clean and even make sure their jewelry is tested free of any toxins!
I’ve never gotten rude or condescending behavior here like I’ve seen at other shops. They sell super dope jewelry too. makes me want to stretch my ears again… but anyways, I highly recommend this place for a piercing! In a cool area too so you can make a trip out of it (=