Albany Nail Salon

I rarely go to nail salons, so when I do I hope the experience is worth it. And I can say I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of service and easy scheduling. COVID precautions were also clearly taken (large partitions, gloves, masks, and hand sanitizer). Will visit again.

The women [Ngoc and Tina] incessantly insulted prior customers of course in Vietnamese. The mani and pedi were rough, massages was about 20 seconds per hand and basically pressureless. Greetings - I made the call at 3 Pm, Sunday. I noted the high ratings on Google and called to make my appointment. I regularly receive my services near home but they were closed on Sundays. Tina was happy to receive the call. I asked her preferred method of payment in which she indicated credit cards or debit cards were accepted. Many nail salons prefers cash to avoid reporting the revenue to the IRS. She asked if I can come in at 5:30 pm. I arrived exactly at 5:28 pm, brought all of my polish, base coat, nail colors for feet and hands. I was greeted in English as she yelled to another Manicurist and referred to me rudely. In Vietnamese, “Ba” with the downward sound is reserved for women who looks like basically grannies 70+ and I’m half of this age group. It’s basically an insult. The service - I decided to knit as Ngoc worked on my feet. The women then spoke about how hideous the last two customers feet were. She then went on rant about me even though I remained silent. Tina warned that I look Asian. Ngoc continued insulting and bragged that she would care less if I were Vietnamese and understood her. I felt conflicted, felt badly for these women, unhappy with their jobs but I needed the pedicure as I have limited time during the week to juggle personal appointments. The work was sloppy, I get pedis and manis every two weeks and this is sloppy work, barely massaged for 3 mins, cuticle bits leftover, polish left over on my feet. We then moved to the station for my mani, I had to walk across the floor in my bare feet. These women would toss customers nails bits on the floor so it was super gross to walk over. Prior to receiving the service, I asked if she would have me pay so as to avoid fumbling my wallet with wet nails. Ngoc raised her voice and called me “Dien” as she walked off to the back room to retrieve supplies. “Dien” or “Khung” mean crazy, rude remarks. She was rough with my nails, a small skin fragment was torn and she filed over the bed at a reckless speed. I paid the $40 that was asked and tipped $8 which was laughable. I should have tipped them $0 but then they don’t deserve any honest feedback to improve. I generally pay $85 for mani and pedis and tipped generously. We all work hard for our money and should reward it to people who are nice in the least. Please don’t be fooled and come here as these ladies while smiling, insults you grotesquely. There are certain Vietnamese words that customers should know: Quy - evil female ghost, Map - fat, ngu - stupid, Xau - ugly, Con - rudely refers to someone if they’re an adult, Ba - rudely refers to someone if they’re young. “May” and “‘Tau” are used between people who lack any form of self respect, the uneducated, or informal use of pronouns between young children which is the only acceptable exception.

I absolutely loved this place. I went in yesterday after calling ahead in order to see if I could acquire an appointment. I needed a full set of acrylics done and a pedicure. Lan was my technician and she was beyond friendly and carried natural and genuine conversations with me. she took her time and never rushed like other places sometimes tend to. She began my pedicure and did an amazing job. Tina had to take over for the polishing since Lan had an appointment arrive. Tina took her time helping show me a few nail polish combinations since I wanted glitter on my toes. She was also very friendly and helpful. I am very happy that I happened to find this shop on Google. I am happy to report that I finally found my new nail salon, as I am not from the area, and moved here recently. Definitely an unsung and underrated salon. Thank you, Tina and Lan! :)

It was my first time at Albany Nail Salon and I was very impressed with the very thorough job they did on my pedicure. I got a French gel and I would say it was the best I've ever had. Will definitely be going back.

Amazing place to get my nails done. The owner, Tina, is super friendly and kind. My favorite place in nail place in the bay!