Sakura Nail & Spa

I was redeeming a gift certificate that ended the day of the appt. I was a first time customer, had a great experience — Dawa the nail tech was really nice and her nail art was pretty. When I was leaving the receptionist told me I had $ 26 left on the gift card. She called me hours later saying her manager said since it was the expectation date they weren’t putting the $ 26 — since it was the expiration date. I laughed! I told her that was really poor customer service and tacky — for a measly $ 26 lol. That’s one way to never get a repeat customer. Wow. Very short sighted since I probably would have spent hundreds of dollars there in the years to come and referred a ton of people and bought gift certificates there. Not now!

Sakura really is the best when it comes to gel manicures and nail art in New York. The first time I came here I was in the neighborhood and needed a quick polish change. I remember coming in and seeing the amazing gel designs being done on other customers’ nails — and from then on I was hooked! Anything you want on your nails — gradation, glitter, 3D stones, handpainted designs — they can do it for you!
Just make sure to call in advance to make your appointments as they do fill up. I usually try to call at least two weeks in advance. Also be sure to mention what kind of design you want when you call. More intricate designs take more time so if you don’t specify what you want, your appointment time might not be long enough to accommodate it.

Great experience! Glad I came here for my wedding manicure! Everyone was very kind and professional. Will definitely be back!

I had a great experience here on my birthday. After stuffing myself at Russ & Daughters I decided I needed a birthday mani/​pedi. I was paired with Dolma, who was wonderful. I enjoyed my experience here & the price seems about what a lower east side mani/​pedi would cost (about $ 48). If I happened to be back in town & in that neighborhood, I’d definitely go again.

I wanted to like Sakura but the only positive comment I can make is that they’re nice. I love nail art and my friend gave a gift certificate here for my bday. Unfortunately it expired (Why do gift certificates still expire in 2015?!) which is clearly my fault – I was traveling a lot after my birthday. Anyway, I called to inquire about the expired gift certificate and they weren’t going to accept it at all, not even a part of it. I had to talk to 2 people including the owner to let them honor $ 35 of the gift certificate.
They said I had to make an apt soon so I booked a pedicure this week as it cost $ 35. When I got to the salon I upgraded to the $ 50 to pamper myself but it was not worth it. It was not above and beyond a regular pedicure. In the middle of the pedicure the lady asked me if I brought my own flipflops as it’s $ 3 to leave the salon with flipflops. I said no (I had no idea?!) and I’ll just dry my feet at the salon. By the time my pedi was done I had that feeling that they were waiting for me to dry my feet so they could close so I felt pressured to buy a pair of flipflops when I already have so many.
It’s just lame they didn’t honor the gift certificate, gave me a basic pedi for $ 50 and made me pay for flimsy flipflops. I felt like I was being nickeled and dimed. There are so many better (and more spacious) nail salons like Paintbox Nails that wouldn’t balk over things that make a customer feel uncomfortable. Didn’t begin with a good experience and didn’t end with it.

I had a wonderful gel manicure experience at Sakura — in fact, I am so happy with the manicure I got this week that I have already booked my next appointment 3 weeks ahead of time so I can go back!
I had a gel manicure at another place in the neighborhood for about the same price, and I can already tell that the quality of Sakura’s is superior.
Truth be told, now that my nails are on fleek, I’m a bit obsessed.

I had a really good first experience here. I will come back. The salon is cosy, clean, most importantly the nail techs are pleasant. I think if you are into nail art and Gels the bottom line is that it is going to be pricy. But if they do a good job and I am able to keep the gel on for weeks then I feel that I have gotten my monies worth. I did not find it super hard to get an appointment here, and I only booked a few days in advance.

Today was my first time here and I will definitely come back, most likely for special occasions because it is a little pricey, but so worth it if you’re looking for a splurge. I selected a gel extension (because my nails have gone on strike and refuse to grow) with a glitter gradation (because glitter is fun, right?)
The staff was so warm and friendly, and didn’t mind that I ran in a five minutes late and of breath because the damn F train. If I could rate the MTA on Unilocal they’d get 0 stars, but I digress. Reiho got down to work on my sorry excuses for fingernails and turned them into works of art. (Photo below.) I was there for a couple of hours and had a chance to see some of the more intricate art and damn these gals are good!
Unfortunately, (likely an error on my part) I got home and my thumbnail broke. Got on the phone and asked if it was possible to come back to fix the nail and they were once again, so welcoming and apologetic. Redid the sorry thumb and no extra charge and wouldn’t even take the extra tip I offered for squeezing me in again. Highly recommend!

I came to get my wedding nails done today, and of all the places I could have gone to, I chose Sakura Nail and Spa. I partly regret that now.
Nails look great for the most part, although for having paid more than $ 70 with tip, I am disappointed that there are multiple nails with bubbles and rough edges. (Hence at least two stars.)
But more than the nails themselves, what truly put me off was the service, especially my nail technician Lily. Now to be fair, every other technician there seemed to be incredibly friendly and helpful. But it was my awful luck to be stuck with Lily. Instead of being helpful when I asked questions about design and color, she simply seemed eager to get my nails done and over with. In the middle of the gel color application, I asked her if she thought the color was ok or too dark. Her response, well customer chose it, and left it at that.
In addition, I requested rhinestones and other items to be placed on the ring fingers of each hand. At some points, she placed the decorations too high and I asked her to place them closer to the nail bed. At that point she actually had the audacity to give me the toothpick and tell me to do it myself. Then what the eff am I paying her for?
I was already going insane with my impending wedding and last minute tasks, and on top of everything Lily’s awful attitude did not help at all. I came to Sakura Nails for an escape from wedding craziness, but instead I was met with even more stress and anxiety. Not. Happy.

Yes you might easily spend hundreds of dollars on your nails here, Sakura Nail Spa is still the best place to get gel nails. This nail salon is located on a quiet block in the East Village. It’s quite a small space and can feel a little cramped sometimes.
What puts Sakura over other nail salons is its impeccable service and its cleanliness. I’ve been to other cal gel salons where the utensils come out of a questionable box, but here at Sakura, the tools are all properly sanitized and packaged.
In terms of service, Japanese nail salons offer down-​to-​earth and meticulous service. There’s no pressuring to upgrade to any service, and the technician will complete all tasks with 100% effort.
Whether it’s a simple one color cal gel or a complex nail art design, Sakura is your pick!
Just a side note: Calgel is still the best gel I’ve tried. It’s light, odorless, and easy to take off. You don’t have to buff now and thin your nails either to apply it!

They keep upping the prices because of «an increased cost» of the supplies. Don’t know how true that is. I liked going to them because they were good but reasonably priced. Price hike has made me visit less frequently. You can find similar services for their previous prices or less elsewhere
However their services are good. Their calgel glitter combination is great. I wouldn’t go here for «complex» nail art. Stick with ombré and gradient effects.

The place is so nice and cozy. I would love to go there every time when I need to get my nails done.

What a great experience I had with Naomi and Kim C. I went here yesterday to treat myself as I normally go for the more no frills mani and pedi places but at Sakura although a bit pricey, you definitely get what you pay for. I hadn’t made an appointment but it wasn’t a problem I got a pedi and gel manicure at the same time (which I prefer to save time) but when your sitting on an elevated couch rather then a broken massage chair I’m all for it. It’s just very classy in there and tranquil, this is the sort of place you’d want to take your mom or girlfriends to as a special treat. I’ll definitely be coming back just got to make sure it’s right after pay day :)

ive been coming to sakura nail & spa for over a year now for my mani fix. the technicians here are beyond talented and they will go to all extremes to be sure you leave with the designs you want :) both downtown & uptown locations are amazing. and yes, it is pricey but your nails last up to three weeks and the designs they are capable of creating on your nails + overall experience just makes it all worth it.
just a helpful hint, always use a calgel base (its lasts the longest) and when booking an appointment be sure to specify if you want an intricate design or not (they allot time for you based on how detailed of a design you want).

Check out my picture! That’s all need to be said! So cuteeeee~

Only go to Michelle. Everyone else is extremely rude and when anyone else does the nails they peel right now. Michelle’s last for weeks and are beautiful, but other technicians won’t use her technique and the nails peel off immediately. I got mine done Monday and are already peeling.
5 stars for Michelle
1 Star for anyone else and how poorly they treat people.

I have been going Sakura for over a year now & do my nail so a regular basis (every 3 weeks) & I have to say that each & every time I am extremely satisfied & happy with the result. Although they have slightly increased their prices, they are worth every penny! Love Sakura!!!

I understand Sakura is one of the best nail salons in the city, but I was treated with extremely poor customer service today by the technician assigned to me. I booked my appointment last week, which is most likely why I wasn’t assigned to a more experienced person. I didn’t have a particular design in mind, so I showed up early to look through their magazines. I was hesitant to agree to my technician’s previous designs, and that’s when I felt went things went downhill. She began filing my nails, and the experience felt very rushed. I asked to speak to someone, but she informed me that the receptionist had stepped out, so I said I would have to wait.
She brought out additional designs to look over, but I didn’t agree to any of them so she asks, «Is this too expensive for you?» I couldn’t believe it. Once the receptionist returned, she handled the situation professionally but even then the technician complained that I needed to pay for my filed nails. I highly recommend this place, but do NOT book an appointment with Salina.

I really owe this review for long. Therefore I decide to repay a long review. You can just go through key words if it bores you… lol A heads up. If you are looking for a regular nail polish place, it is not the best option. Especially they dont have much regular nail polish collection. BUT it is the pearl of Gel Nail Art.
I had my gel nail art done here before the wedding. It was amazing! I was super happy and satisfied. First of all, I generally don’t like gel manicure, for lots of personal reasons. Secondly, I NEVER had any nail art before, whatsoever. I was literally talked into this and booked the pedi-​mani for me and all my bridesmaids. I’d like to share the best parts of my experience here.
Quality:
1. Customized gel color. I was obsessed with mint-​turqoise-​teal colors during my wedding prep, and I happen to see a pic of my most ideal color in that zone. I had never imagine the manicurist would made the special color exactly as I saw in the pic. It was like MAGIC to me. (I know maybe I have overreacted) But how pleasant it is.
2. Huge collection of nail art accessories/​decos. I had no idea what kind of art I want. I basically started designing while browsing the website and Japanese nail art magazines in the store. I saw some golden sea-​theme nail art collection in a Japanese magazine which I fell in love with right away. They blew my mind by handing the beautiful exquisite little tiny accessories exactly like the ones in the Magazine to me. It was a HANDSDOWN.
3. It last FOUR weeks without major damage. I had to take it off for the sake of the health of my nails, otherwise, who knows how long it can last. There were some big pieces of accessories missing. But that was it. Though, fairly speaking, my nails can carry nail polish longer than most of my frds.
Service:
1. Japanese standard. They are Japanese. so you should not be surprised if they are super sweet and attentive.
2. They serve hot tea and ice water here. The place is quite, not too big, but enough for a crazy bridal party and plus some other clients.
3. Clean and comfortable. Very important.
If you go with a big group, a reservation is recommended. Otherwise, it’s walk-​in friendly.

Hmmm I’m very torn about this place. In terms of environment, this cal gel spot is the best that I’ve been to (compared to Marie, Studio L, etc). The service was friendly and relatively quick. Quality was good. I think everything was great except for the price. I felt like they really nickel and dimed me here. I don’t usually mind paying a little extra for quality, but I’m not sure it was worth the price. I would come back, but this probably will not be my go-​to spot.