Elaine’s Nails

Easy for walk-​in appointments. Quick and efficient staff! My shellac lasted 2 weeks!

I’ve been coming to Elaine’s for 5+ years. It’s not fancy, but the ladies who work there are very sweet and do excellent work. Elaine herself is a perfectionist and cares about her customers. It’s always clean and quiet with consistently friendly service. The regulars are very loyal. On days when I couldn’t get an appointment time that worked (I always call last minute) I have tried other fancier nail salons in Lafayette and Orinda, and none of the mani/​pedis lasted nearly as long. Cash or check only, but there’s a Wells Fargo ATM around the corner next to Starbucks. Love Elaine’s! Great local business.

Although this is a busy salon, it is all about getting people in and out quickly. The owner is not always friendly and picks and chooses her appointments considering the $$$. Although they do an OK job, the place could definitely be cleaner especially the reuse of towels and other supplies. It can be dead quiet in there… somber, no music or loud with a lot of local gossip being yelled across the room.

I have been going to Elaine’s nails for years. I get pedicures there. they are always polite and quiet and do not talk with each other. they are very reasonably priced too. they also do a quick polish with a flower design on my daughters toes for $ 5 which is great.
I do call ahead but usually the same day and can almost always get an appointment.

Make appointments. They are a small salon. I had Gel, regular mani and padi so far. I like this place, they do great jobs.

Maybe I’m just overly picky or used to the two nicer places I went in Montclair (Isabella) and Rockridge (The Nail Spa) the past 7 years, but the massage chair I sat in was barely noticeable — did nothing for my back or body. The service was also silent. I’m not one for chit-​chat, but acknowledgement at the door would be appreciated. And some of the existing clientele was down right rude. Just because I’m «younger» (I’m 42!) but also own a home in Orinda does not mean I or my two guests (one, my daughter!) are deserved of a lesser experience. I will keep searching… or simply drive thru the tunnel 10 minutes for my once a month experience. After all, it did take me some time to adjust to Oakland after the City. (And no prices will EVER compare to SF.) But I will probably give this place another try solo, as anyone or any place can have an «off» day.

I needed an emergency fill on Monday and Elaine called me back and
set up an appointment for me even though she was off. Now that is customer service.
She is professional and friendly and most of all my nails look great.
Thanks Elaine.

While visiting Orinda i needed a fill and pedi. After reading the reviews i came to Elaine. She was thorough and did an excellent job. My nails look natural. Mary gave me a wonderful pedi and wasnt afraid to rub harder when I asked her too. I will be returning. Oh and did I mention? They have great prices too.

Still absolutely thrilled with the service here. The shop is clean and doesn’t smell like chemicals like a lot of other places do. My go-​to nail tech is Mei. She is AMAZING! She manages to do a perfect job with my gel manicure every time. Thank you, Mei! See you in 3 weeks! :)

So, I just left Elaine’s. I have had far better experiences in my hometown.
First, I made an appointment. I walked in and was selecting a color. They told me twice to choose my color within a minute, but obviously I hadn’t seen one I liked. That made me mad…
The awkward part– Silent, submissive, nail tech. I like to chat. But all the employees were somber and quiet and bored. I was the only client. THERE WAS NO RADIO OR ANY MUSIC. Dead silence. I didn’t like that. The wall paint job is crap.
Next, my pedicure went ok. I got a little leg massage. But they didn’t have hot towels to wipe off the lotion, I’m accustomed to hot towels. She did my French pedicure. That was done. I got down and they have a plastic mat, it was slippery since the dry towel didnt get all the lotion off!
I waddled to the manicure station. Manicure went ok. The lady was patient and tested a few colors. My hands soaked on boring soap water. But she forgot to test the color I originally liked. Anyway, then my nails were drying as the ladies cleaned up. That was annoying. Sitting there for 20 mins, the fan going, stating at the corner wall while they cleaned.
They don’t do designs. Lame! I love nail art. Plus the shellac is pricy at $ 30. Psh.
It was a cheap experience. My nails are ok so far but Im definitely never coming back. I can get a better experience elsewhere for the same price.* the nails didnt last 6 days without severe chipping

Elaine’s is the only place to go! I have been a silk client of Elaine’s for over 10 years and have learned never to stray, even in an emergency. Elaine’s shop is super clean, extremely friendly and well staffed. I actually was in her chair when the State Board of Cosmetology dropped in for a random review and she passed all aspects of the evaluation with flying colors. I always make an appointment, but she welcomes walk-in’s and tries to be very accommodating, even when she is busy. She goes above and beyond, even with regard to scheduling my appointments. Knowing I prefer a peaceful experience, she will always steer my appointment times toward a quieter timeframe. Though I live 20 minutes from Elaine’s and pass 10 nail salons on my way to her shop, it is worth the time and effort for the impeccable service and personal attention.

As far as nail places in Orinda, this one is the best. I come here mostly for pedis, but came for a shellac mani (normally I get them done in the city when I’m visiting). I asked for a french manicure with the shellac (which was how I had them done previously in SF). I ended up being very unhappy with the job that was done, taking the old shellac off, how my nails had been filed different lengths and the shellac paint was reapplied badly (only on my tips, leaving a weak nail bed instead of using a natural shellac color on my nail bed and the chosen color on the tips). all of it was really sloppy. I called Elaine the next day to express my dissatisfaction. Elaine stayed late at the shop that night and redid my nails. She was willing to learn the technique I had expected to receive the day before, saying she will do whatever I want them to be. Elaine was pleasant, and did not make me feel bad for my complaint. I was so appreciative of her willingness to fix the problem and her good attitude, that I wanted to tip her, which she repeatedly refused to accept.

Absolutely amazing! I’m a first time customer, got a mani/​pedi and ready to go back (only problem is my toes are still perfect)
Pedicure: relaxing, pleasant conversation with the woman doing my toes (which I find rare as most of the time the people doing my nails only ever talk to co workers) it’s only been a week but they still look great.
Manicure was perfect until I walked next door to starbucks and messed up a nail. I ran back very quickly and not only did she fix my nail at no charge but she checked to make sure I hadn’t messed up any others.
I’ll be back :)

I’m not your usual «pedicure type of gal» so this review is quite different than many that you may have read. I am a complete novice in this regard, only having experienced one (horrible!) pedicure. You can imagine that my self-​serviced feet aren’t the nicest on the block. With surgery scheduled, I knew that I wasn’t going to be reaching the old digits for quite some time and should get a pedicure. After the last horrid one in Lafayette, I was filled with trepidation. The Unilocal reviews lured me to Elaine’s and I couldn’t be more pleased. What delightful staff members! Seeing that was in the hobble mode, the ladies were so helpful, from the moment I entered to that when I walked out the door.
And the treatment; be still my heart! I’m a hardcore gardener and didn’t think it possible to have nice looking feet without a great deal of angst and pain. Wrong. From the slow and systematic reshaping of my nails and cuticles to the incredible leg and foot massage, I couldn’t have been more pleased. The pedicurist was incredibly sensitive to my injured leg, always gentle and slow with her movement of it. And the ladies even encouraged me to try a bit of pretty color on those now-​attractive nails.
I’ll be back. In addition, my husband will be going the next time with me for his own personal pedicure.
Thank you, Elaine and staff.

Love this place! Got a great pedicure along with a nice calf massage and callus scrubbing treatment for $ 23. My young daughter came with me too and for her pedicure (color & design only), it was $ 5. The massage chairs were great and worked out my lower back nicely! Their polish selection is decent with many Essie bottles.
I called a few hours before to see what time they close and I took my chances walking in around 6pm on a Friday night. There was a customer at the fingernail desk and another customer at the massage chair getting a pedicure. I think there were 3 – 4 women working so we were served right away.
If you’re going to be around here (around the corner from Starbucks, across the street from Safeway), do stop in! I’ll be coming back!
Remember to bring cash. They don’t take credit cards.

I’ve now been going 8 years. I gave Elaine 5 stars 3 years ago, when I’d been seeing her for 5 years. She still gets 5 stars! Elaine is by far the best manicurist for acrylic nails I’ve been to in Lamorinda, Walnut Creek, Oakland or Danville. I’ve been getting acrylic nails for 12 years. Since I found Elaine I never looked back. Never any pain when removing old nails, even though she’s the fastest. AND most importantly my nails have never looked more beautiful or natural! I’ve had wonderful pedicures from ALL the ladies there. I’ve never experienced or witnessed anything but friendly, courteous and professional behavior from anybody working there.

Came here for a pedicure. Called in advance to check the wait, and immediately received a call back with the following message: «Do NOT come now. Come in an hour and we can take you.»
Walked in on time. At first glance, the place looked a bit bare. No music, no frills. Unfortunately all the chairs were full, so despite my making an appointment, I had to wait 15ish minutes. That was kind of a bummer, since they didn’t ask anyone entering the door whether they had an appointment. I think it’s first come, first serve. Anyway, no biggie since I had lots o’ time to spare. Took the time to pick out my color and catch up on trashy celeb gossip!
The pedicure itself took longer than I thought, and the toes turned out excellent. I think the $ 23 cost (cash/​check only, plus tip) was well worth it. I will be back and try to beat the afternoon momma rush.

This place does not look like much, and its kind of hidden behind Starbucks but I have NEVER had a pedicure last as long in all of my life. I thought the first time was a fluke, not a single chip in 3 months. So, I went back before a trip to Hawaii and hiked, snorkeled, walked in the sand, went barefoot and almost a month later, no chips and they look perfect. The women at Elaine’s nails know what they are doing and do it well. It is quiet, and peaceful and an excellent salon!

First time trying out this place because I got tired of driving to Lavande Spa in Lafayette, which was super pricey for a French pedicure and manicure ($ 59 after tip). My manicure cost me $ 18 today. Definitely will be coming here more often since it’s only 2 minutes away from home. Good price and friendly service. What more can a girl ask for?

I don’t get my nails done often but when I do, I get them done at Elaine’s Nails. I really only get the spa pedi ($ 23) and the reason I keep coming back is because they always give a long foot and leg massage.
I started coming here when I was hugely pregnant, because I live about 2 minutes from the shop, and they were always very sweet and gave me extra long leg massages. Now I come when I can (about 1x a month) and I always enjoy it. For me it’s more about the massage than the nail color. I just get my toes done and always keep my fingers unpainted. HOwever I sometimes get a broken nail from gardening and Elaine will fix it for me herself (with what seems like a magical process involving silk and powder and glue). It takes her about 5 minutes and she does it for free, and the fix lasts until my nail grows out.
Call in advance, I almost always get in when I want to but it’s good to check.