This was supposed to be my daughter's 18th birthday tattoo -- something meaningful and special. Instead, it turned into weeks of stress and unprofessional behavior. We were quoted $500 for the exact flower design she sent. I paid the $100 deposit (confirmed it would go toward the total) and later sent the remaining $400. * January 31 - Original appointment canceled due to illness. We were understanding. * February 2 - Rescheduled for Saturday the 14th at 9:00am. We confirmed immediately. * February 14 at 9:00am - My daughter arrived early. The shop was closed. No message. No call. We didn't hear anything for two hours. After already rescheduling once, this was incredibly disappointing. When she was finally seen later that day, there was sudden confusion about size and placement -- despite the design already being quoted at $500. Comments were made that $500 would not cover a half sleeve. Bringing up price uncertainty the day of the appointment, after full payment, is unacceptable. When I called to address it, the response was defensive rather than accountable. We were told to "leave whatever review you want." My daughter received a refund, but it was handled in a way that felt dismissive and unprofessional. He emphasized his 35 years in business, yet also stated it's nearly impossible to keep up with who paid what or maintain scheduling because he communicates across multiple platforms. That contradiction speaks for itself. Illness happens. Mistakes happen. But confirmed appointments, clear communication, and standing by quoted pricing are basic professional standards -- especially for something permanent. This experience lacked reliability, communication, and respect. I would not recommend. Claiming "I lost my mind on the phone" is ridiculous for the treatment I received being a FULLY paid customer. If you want to risk reschedules and poor communication go ahead and deal with him. Waste of time and aura. 1star because you need it to post the review. He will be adding his non accountable comment below to prove everything I just said. Gaslight station. All aboard. read more

Ive been here four times now to get a tattoo from Joe and have not been dissapointed. The only thing that keeps me from going back and getting more, more often is the pricing. Compared to some other tattoo shops I frequent, this one is pricesit. However, I do love all of my pieces and am always planning my next tattoo. I am someone who has to put my headphones and watch TV to help keep my mind off the pain and not move so much. Joe respects my coping measures and checks in with me occasionally to ensure I am doing ok. The other artists in the shop are friendly when a walk in client arrives. I think some of the tattoos I get are outside of Joes wheelhouse, but they always turn out great! And thats what makes a great tattoo artist in general, being able to adapt to someone's request. For price reference, each tattoo I attached ranged from $350 to $400 read more

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NEVER GO THERE to add to my previous review, the artist got the wording wrong. Now I'm stuck with it. read more

Black Cat Tattoo - Tattoo Near Me - Reno, Nevada

Not a good experience, I don't recommend coming here if you want your tattoo done right. My artist was unable to do what i asked for and uncharged me. and on top of that I had to listen to the artist talk badly about other clients. very unprofessional DONT COME HERE. I wasn't required to sign anything or show my ID (if you're in to that this is the place for you, bring losts of money they'll upcharge you!) read more

You can't go wrong with anyone in this shop. Chris the owner is amazing and the one who blasted my throat. read more

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I had a wonderful experience with Sergio. He took the time to make sure I was happy with the design, and he was detailed with my tattoo. I'm thankful for his honesty, and he is trustworthy. He is a very talented tattoo artist. read more

Such an amazing experience! Last minute walk-ins for matching finger spade tattoos... Casey and Sean squeezed us in and were both so friendly and funny. They truly made the entire experience special, and on top of it the tattoos are such good quality! Casey also touched up a wobbly script tattoo and fixed it for me! Love them, will definitely go back and highly recommend these guys!! read more

I got tattooed by Casey last week and had a wonderful experience. I had a chaotic day before coming in for an appointment and didn't eat enough (please eat!). Into my tattoo I began to feel light headed and asked Casey if I could have some water. Casey didn't hesitate to run around the shop and offer me snacks. I am Vegan and was unable to have the snacks on-hand, and Casey ran out and went to a shop down the street and got me an apple juice, Gatorade, banana, and trail-mix (he didn't hesitate and I didn't even ask, he did it on his own!). He did not make me feel bad and was a great sport and we were able to knock out the rest of the tattoo! He also walked me out to my car after since the sun had gone down and the shop isn't in the safest location. Great experience I'll be back! read more

Black Cat Tattoo - My pretty lady - Tattoo Near Me - Reno, Nevada

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Casey steady hand dope fucking dude our tattoos came out crispy as fuck. Those are stencil marks read more

Black Cat Tattoo - Initial tattoos - Tattoo Near Me - Reno, Nevada

The night out with my daughter ended with a young artist designing a beautiful tattoo for us. Upon entering, we know that it's in an older part of town. No handicapped entrance and the way it looked there was no way to put one in. No handicapped bathroom either. Since I was in a wheelchair it was a small problem that was quickly fixed by who would soon be our artist. He was not only an awesome artist but a great guy. He introduced himself as Danny. His card said Danny Hanson and he has an Instagram. When my daughter's blood sugar dropped and he ran down to the 7-Eleven to grab her a root beer and chips so that she would be alright. He had a fantastic attitude and went far beyond the call of a tattoo artist by walking us to our car since it was after closing, after midnight. I've got to say that he is the best one I've met yet! I hope that the more skilled he becomes and the more time he spends doing tattoos, that he continues to see and hear the person he is working on. We will definitely be going back for all of our future tattooing needs! I hope there are many. read more

Black Cat Tattoo - Our mother-daughter tattoos. - Tattoo Near Me - Reno, Nevada

Chris has amazing talent, he did my half sleeve and my side piece.... I get a lot of compliments on all of them...

I've been following Jayson Lynch for a few years on instagram and I finally decided to go with him for a cover up, he is so friendly and explained to me what options I had for my piece. He did such an amazing job, I will definitely be returning. The tattoo shop is clean and everyone is friendly, I've been recommending them to all my friends. read more

Black Cat Tattoo - Tattoo Near Me - Reno, Nevada

This is the tattoo shop to go to hands down. All of the artists no matter your choice has amazing talents. I had a rough outline of a sleeve from an artist at Evolution that was shit. Went to Black Cat for help and the results are speechless as you can see from the picture. Sean did an amazing job and he found clients for a lifetime. Thank you all at Black Cat. read more

Black Cat Tattoo - Tattoo Near Me - Reno, Nevada

Poor work ethic. Wanted 2 small tattoos ($300+) first Jared was gonna do it, even though he didn't have a portfolio. Then he decides to call in another artist to help; guessing two tennis ball size tattoo's were to much for the poor fella. They told us to come back an hour later; giving time for artwork (basic stuff) no biggie. Got a phone call 45 min later, saying "we don't think we can get it done". I'm pretty sure they would rather party then work...it's was only 5pm. Tattoo parlors don't open at 7am after all... I'm glad it didn't happen after all. I was flaked on, and a friend warned me after the fact that a previous (good) artist had left because of issues. BEWARE! read more

Leaving this review purely on the lack of communication with the owner Chris. My mom and I talked with Chris to book a tattoo appointment with him and once we actually found a time and date he stopped responding to any emails. Emailed him on different occasions and got no response, even when we tried calling the shop. When we showed up to the shop on day of appointment no one was there. Shop was not even open. Extremely disappointing and frustrating. read more

This was my first tattoo. I wanted to get one to memorialize my dog death on October 19th 2012. I got it done on October 19th 2013. I had to get this right. I went to several parlors in Reno, but found Blackcat was the place for me. I asked if someone can help me with my cheesy design and Jayson stepped up. I was a little nervous to have Jayson do my tattoo because he was still in training but the shop assured me he was good. Jayson explained the process, how they use new needles each time and how clean the place is. I was ready!! Jayson redesign my tattoo. the coolest part is that everyone checked on him and gave him some technical advice. Talk about a team effort. It was an very emotional day but Melissa gave me the best hug. She's a huger and a very nice person. The overall experience was great. I plan on getting more. I just want to thank everyone at the parlor. Jayson, Melissa, Dan, Jerry and Danielle for their support on this emotional day. read more

Just got my Marine Corps tattoo done by Dan and am very pleased with the final result. He took his time to create a sketch that I would be happy with and within mg budget as well. I will definitely be back for more work. read more

Black Cat Tattoo - Soldiers cross with Marine Corps emblem in background. - Tattoo Near Me - Reno, Nevada

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Melissa is my girl! I trust in her that when I bring in an idea that she will always make it better then I would've ever hoped and, guess what?! That's what she's done every single time! She is amazing with color, even though I have a little bit darker skin. She can make any tattoo full of light and my last one is almost becoming a 3D portrait from the work she is doing. She is always so professional, kind, caring and extremely focusing on making every tattoo special and unique to that person. I love Melissa's dedication and the whole communal environment that black cat tattoo has created and I make sure that I only have my detailed, colored, most difficult work done by the experts at black cat, i.e. my girl, Mel V! read more

Jayson is absolutely fantastic. I received my first ever tattoo a week ago and I couldn't be happier with it! I met with Jayson for a consultation 2 or 3 months ago. He was brutally honest when I brought a design that he didn't not think would look good later down the road (I wanted lots of little designs in a small space). I appreciated his honesty and his help! He helped me throughout the whole process on the day of the tattoo. I highly recommend Jayson!! I even have my next design. I will definitely return to him! read more

Black Cat Tattoo - Tattoo Near Me - Reno, Nevada

Black cat tattoo, is the best place to go. You want quality and a great price, book your appointment. Clean, respectful, great artist's, I will definitely be back. read more

Black Cat Tattoo - Tattoo Near Me - Reno, Nevada

I made an appointment with Chris on a Sunday (his choice of day). When we got there, the shop was closed for the day and he never showed up. No email, no phone call, no communication of any sort. Luckily, I hadn't put down a deposit. read more

My sister and I had our tattoos done by Sean and he was amazing. Super funny and cool guy and does great work. We both love our tattoos. The atmosphere of the shop was great too. Definitely will be back. read more

Sean did a wonderful job on my tattoo. All the colors and to the exact detail. Very glad I went with him

Found the very talented Mr Jason Lynch On instagram and followed him to this little Shop. The shop itself is aesthetically pleasing clean , comfortable and professional . Checked out the other artist portfolios that worked at this shop and they all seemed to have experience to back them that could fit many different styles . Jason did a beautiful job on my first tattoo and every day I look at it I love it more. I'm so glad I did my research and found a perfect artist who was kind personable and sensitive to my situation and does amazing beautiful artwork . read more

The new management contacted me, expressed their concern, and is willing to do their best to fix my tattoo. I'm glad that they reached out to an old customer to right a wrong. That's important to me. read more

I made and appointment for my tattoo in August of 2019 for March of 2020. As we all know what kind of year it's been and I've definitely taken that into consideration before writing this post. I had two sessions with my artist and we were able to complete most of it on the first session and it looks amazing! it now just needs shading work done to finish it up. I really like my artist and I had a lot of trust in him so I paid in full for my tattoo. The shop was deemed unessential so it shut down. It reopened in May and I was told that when the shop would reopen that I would get a reschedule appointment date. It is now a little over a week from OCTOBER and I have not been contacted by the shop or by my artist for a reschedule date to finish the tattoo I paid in full for. I think it's very unprofessional to have a client who's paid for their tattoo and instead of finishing it going on to the next clients. I don't feel valued as a customer. I will now most likely just go to another shop and have them finish it. I think that's a total pain since I paid over a thousand for this piece and for me now having to go to someone else to complete it, but with a lack of trust that I feel now it doesn't feel right on returning there. I believe this shop could've had handled the situation better by communicating with me and explain the situation they're in. When I constantly see "We have openings today" or a new tattoo being posted it sucks because why couldn't an appointment have been made for the completion of my already paid for tattoo. read more

After other plans in town got derailed due to weather my mom and i dropped in to get matching tattoos on our road trip. We were greeted by daper and tattooed Jared who said he had time for us. He took our idea and 40 minutes later we were permanently inked! He took precise care with each tattoo. I would definitely go back! read more

I hit this place up on Friday the 13th for some sweet deals, since where I was originally going to go was too swamped. I lucked out because Daniel only had one spot open that I could squeeze into! The process went super smoothly and his lines are extremely clean. The tattoo is mostly healed now with no blow outs or fading. I'd happily come back for a full price tattoo! read more

I came here on a mission - to get a butt tat. Sean and i quickly became best friends as he helped me figure out placement and everything (first tattoo ever). Went with the left butt cheek. i've seen a lot of tattoo tv shows and from what i can tell this place was 10/10 - super clean, friendly, cared about each customers needs - so fun. These guys let all my friends crowd around my bare butt cheeks. Such a good time - thank you sean and the boys! Butt tat forever -- read more

Rob at Black Cat Tattoo is probably thee best artist in town if you are into traditional tattoos. Great lines, great colors.

I will never go back to Black Cat,I found a new artist who I'm absolutely happy with. He is working on my sleeve that my old artist started,he now has to fix his mistakes which pisses me off. I paid for him to make it amazing and now I have something that has to be fixed. He was so busy flirting and so distracted that he messed up. Shaded the wrong areas. I will never go back,and if I ever see him I will be brutally honest! He needs to either stop tattooing and just get his sex fix or focus...I feel bad for his girlfriend...hopefully she'll find out what he's doing. I am happy with my new artist,that's all that matters. read more

My mom and I came here for Friday the 13th tattoos. We waited in line for over 4 hours, but it was so worth it! The flash available was gorgeous, the shop was very clean, and all the artists were very professional. My artist was Chris, he was very nice and my tattoos came out beautifully. It was my mother's very first tattoo. She had Jared, he was so nice to her and I appreciate all the hard work he put out to make it a great experience for her. We may have come only for Friday the 13th tattoos, but we will be returning for custom work in the future! Thank you Black Cat! read more

This review is specifically about one of the artists, Melissa! She and the crew trekked out to Fresno for the tattoo convention here, and after walking the floor a few times I decided that she was the artist for me. I honestly had researched another artist that went to the tattoo convention and thought I was going to get it done by her, but once I saw pictures of Melissa's work, a change had to be made! I was a little nervous because I usually get a little woozy when I get tattoos, but she was amazing. She was chatty, and yet focused. She was super nice and made me feel totally at ease. This was my 4th tattoo and by far the best experience I've ever had. And it came out SO good! Thank you so much, Melissa! read more

Love, Love, Love Black Cat Tattoo. Would not go any where else to get my ink. Chris, the owner has done 4 tattoos for me & each one is perfection. He always steps up to make sure I am getting exactly the tattoo I have in mind. Giving suggestions to make my idea better. He has even come in on his day off to do my birthday tattoo on my birthday! read more

I have never walked into a tattoo parlor and been welcomed.. Except black cat. I work at the salon next door and I had several people tel me to try this place. One of my clients highly recommended Dan. I went over to talk to him about an appt and he scheduled me right away. When it came the day to actually get tattooed, Dan was very nice and easy to work with. I had a couple ideas of covering a tattoo I had and he also finished another one of my tattoos. I highly recommend Dan Paul. He did an AMAZING job and of course I can't wait to get more ;). read more

This shop is AMAZING! My husband and I both will not go anywhere else, I was just in there Thursday night getting my 3rd tattoo...and already ready for more. I highly recommend anyone in this shop. read more

Black Cat Tattoo - Done by Melissa Varney - Tattoo Near Me - Reno, Nevada

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I wanted my first tattoo and, of course, heard that they could be painful. I also wanted something done well that I wouldn't regret. Chris came highly recommended for his "light hand". It turned out, I had nothing to worry about. The artwork was beautiful and the experience was great. I could feel Chris working on the back of my shoulder, but it wasn't painful at all (to me). I've since gotten my second tattoo from him. He is the best, and especially perfect for anyone with low pain tolerance or for first timers ... read more

I am super picky about who I allow to tattoo me... Was very happy with Jayson's work! Absolutely obsessed with my new tattoo . The whole shop had a clean, professional, and friendly vibe to it. Will be back for more! read more

On Sunday got a tattoo by Daniel and I must say awesome Tattoo experience. Awesome atmosphere .The tattoo turned out amazing. He did a bad ass crown. he just killed it. The whole tattoo experience was comfortable Would definitely go back to see Daniel soon. read more

I had two different appointments with Danny. The first appointment went very well. Very satisfied with the work, one part couldve been darker because now that its healed I cannot tell what it is, but the initial appointment was good. The second appointment scheduled ended up being a disaster. We had a 6 hour scheduled, did not have access to photoshop so I ended up waiting three hours until it was ready to go. He gave me an unfinished "barely a piece" where he left me with a huge blank space of skin. I was supposed to have writing that went all around my wrist for both appointments. I did not realize until the second appt that the first writing "humboldt" was off centered by one letter so once the second appt arrived he off centered the second word "county" even more so now it looks horrible. We had a third appt scheduled to come up but I asked him if we could black out the lettering since it did not look good and I told him I was not trying to be disrespectful about it. He blew it way out of proportion and said I was insulting him and that he did not want to work with me because of it. Then changed his mind a week later and said now he couldn't get me in for a few extra months so I asked for my deposit back since it never went into our final piece and he said "I hope you know I dont have to give this back to you, I am doing it because I am a nice guy". He is not a nice guy. He is very arrogant and now I have to have it covered up by another artist. And on top of all of this, after the crappy second appt he changed his pricing on me last minute saying "I decided I am undercharging and need to charge more for hourly rates" So we agreed on a price beforehand that he would not honor after telling me differently after the tattoo session was over. DO NOT RECCOMEND HIM. read more