This review is based on my overall experience. Tattoo experience: I recently finished a back piece with BKS and the artwork is phenomenal. The tattoo experience itself would be worth 5/5 stars. He is a visionary, and I am honoured to wear his work. He has a gentle hand and despite the scale of my back piece, the first three sessions did not scar one bit. He's also really easy to talk to! I really recommend going to BKS for dragons, kois, and phoenixes. I constantly get compliments, and I really believe you get what you pay for with BKS. While this is my largest piece, it was the least painful. I had four sessions with BKS to finish my back, three of which were me filling out cancellations - props to Raymond at the front desk who was very diligent and friendly over the phone to offer cancellations and confirm appointments. Sometimes I wouldn't be in a talking mood when he called due to poor timing, but he was still kind over the phone, which I greatly appreciated. Front desk experience: Besides the amazing artwork that the shop puts out, the thing that keeps me coming back to Chronic Ink (I've been following their work since 2012 and have gotten tattooed at the Pacific Mall, Yonge, this, and I have an upcoming appointment at their soon-to-be relocated Toronto location) is their customer service. I feel like the front desk is a hit or miss depending on who you get. From experience, I remember Mikey and Raymond as the ones who I'd want to talk to at this location for consults, deposits, cashouts (though talking to Tara is fun in itself - I say this because I haven't interacted with her for any consults, or through the phone, but she was always sitting by to provide opinions in a non-snobby manner). At the Yonge location, there is Becky, CJ and Whitney, who are all so patient and kind (I have posted a review for Whitney elsewhere because dealing with her was one of the greatest customer service experiences I have EVER received). The reason this review is not a 5/5 is because of the times when I'd get people who don't seem like they'd want to help or are in a rush to get your money. I am getting something that is going to be on my body forever - I would appreciate it if they acted like they cared. I understand this is a popular tattoo shop, but how the front desk treats me is what snagged me as a customer in the past, and it will be what keeps me coming back in the future. In my opinion, having great artwork is only half of customer acquisition. The other half is customer service. Whenever I get the people who are "miss", which happens more often than I'd like, I reconsider taking my business elsewhere. If not for previous experiences with kinder front desk, and the incredible tattoos that this shop puts out, this review would be a 1/5 or 2/5 based on those "misses". I honestly think their artists would be even more booked if customers had a better experience with the front desk. read more

I just got a second lobe piercing done and the process was fine. However the guy didn't even give me the option of picking my earring he just asked if I wanted something standard and decided that he could pick for me I guess? And I paid $124 for a simple lobe piercing that I could've gotten done for $40 or less at another tattoo shop but I just went with this one because it was the closest. They told me it'd be $25 per side + jewellery cost but for the simple silver ball earring I got I did not expect the price to jump so high, which I only found out after I got pierced. I didn't feel like they were very transparent about that and that's why I'm giving a lower rating. Also he didn't go through ANY aftercare with me. read more

Very unprofessional, didn't even end up getting my piercing. Piercer didn't even allow us to pick up the jewelry and kept using foul language. Extremely unwelcoming and will not recommend to anybody. read more

I got my first tattoo (simple and small) done by Alexandra (insta: diflooo). It's completely healed now and I love it! Alexandra was great - she was incredibly patient as I asked her to re-work the design several times. She made me feel very comfortable throughout the whole thing. Chronic Ink is a bit pricey, but it's worth it for the quality work :) read more

Went to this location to book a tattoo for my friend and myself. It was a milestone birthday for us both and our first tattoo. Reception friendly and helpful. The space is beautiful. Very spacious and very clean and bright. Confirmation phone call both reassuring and friendly. Danny did our tattoos and honestly he was so gentle and skilful we did not feel any pain. We are both thrilled with our tattoos, Danny and the shop in general. My friend was actually visiting from the UK and cannot wait to show her friends and family. Thanks again Danny and the rest of the staff. PS we both chose the Mac Intosh rose in the Art Nouveau style. read more

I was very happy with my first tattoo experience. The shop is clean, friendly, and high energy. I think Joanna did great work on me

WORST EXPERIENCE EVER! I was so excited to get my tattoo done yesterday, but came out not getting one and also losing my deposit. I went in showing my tattoo on my phone and advised the artist I want this on my back. He advised the tattoo should be larger and I should tatt my whole back. I advised I don't want my whole back to be tattoo and he states " I don't do small tattoos". Which was never stated when I was making arrangements with Chronic ink. So I got convinced from the artist to get a full sleeve on my left arm , which I agreed. He later advised he cannot draw the sword shown on the phone . I'm like okay so you cannot do this for me and he stated "no". I got escorted to the front desk and was advised because he sketched out a picture I would lose my deposit. Also the artist did not make any effort to contact me during the 3 months I was waiting to get my tattoo done. I only received one phone call by an unknown number 3 days before my tattoo without any voice message. I assumed the artist could draw the tattoo while I was there, so I can give feedback, but apparently not. I was going to spent a lot of money there, so maybe it's meant to be. Found another place that charges 1/3 the price. read more

I got my first tattoos today and they were done by Danny who was extremely gentle and nice. He was able to give recommendation when asked. The space was super clean, sterile and if you want they have curtains that can be closed because you are uncomfortable with tattooing in public with your shirt or pants off. They clean the chairs as well once the session is completed for the next customer. Touch ups are free within 90 days. There was a slight hiccup with the quote provided to me which I was a bit shocked about it, considering it was a popular tattoo parlour, you would assume that new staff might have been trained a bit better before providing an incorrect quote. Anyways, it was resolved and hopefully something they would improve on. Otherwise, definitely will go back to get future tattoos and will recommend. read more

I was not satisfied with my experience at all. My tattoo faded away after a few months even though I did the aftercare they suggested. They charge 80$ at minimum for a touch up which is just ridiculous. read more

Best Tattoo shop in the city. World class artists from around the world line up to do guest spots here with a stable of all young talented artists in house. Also, top notch piercing studio as well. read more

I've had a number of tattoos done at various locations in and around the city and my experience at Chronic Ink in Markham was exceptional!!! From when I first contacted them to consult on the style of artwork I wanted, to pairing me with the perfect artist-Zeke is amazingly talented-to the end result, the service was professional, relaxed, and top shelf! The Markham space is huge and open with tons of chairs filled with clients getting various styles of tattoo-the variety and scope of talent and energy here is awesome. These artist are very passionate and proud and have every right to be so! My tattoo came out even more beautiful than I imagined, and Zeke was helpful in her recommendations and was gentle and worked quickly and efficiently. The vibe in the shop is incredible. I highly recommend this place, will definitely be returning for future work, and specifically give big ups to Zeke's watercolour work. Phenomenal. read more

After months of research and looking around the city, I scheduled my first tattoo session with Chronic Ink after walking in for a brief consultation and arranging a time 8-10 weeks out. I am very satisfied with the results and hope readers that choose to try Chronic Ink will have the same experience or better. The artist was thorough and took his time understanding what I wanted to get done, explaining the possible options and styles, minimum size to get the most detail, and spent over half an hour ensuring the image (that was photographed) was to his and my satisfaction. Being a noob, and self-admittedly a control freak, this was one of those Come to Jesus moments in my life where I decided not to ask questions about "what are you doing?" "what is this?" "why are you doing that?" and just let the artist do his thing. I already did enough research to figure out what I wanted, what does infection prevention look like, where to go and get this tattoo done...at this point there should be no doubt in my mind anymore. The (long-winded) reason I cannot give this review a full 5 stars but only 4 stars is the lack of aftercare instructions provided by their front desk representative that day. Slight awkwardness when the artist had to go to the front desk and advise the person he must provide aftercare instructions to all customers, whether or not he perceived me to be a first time client or a person with experience. That makes sense and makes good business sense too. The rep then sold me two products for aftercare and instructed me on when to apply them the next couple days and weeks; he did not tell me how to deal with the wrap when I returned home, or what to do before sleep. Yes, I went with my gut and decided not to ask him questions either because I didn't think he would be meticulous enough to give me confidence. So I went home and consulted with friends and Google on what steps to take the next 12-24 hours. read more

I came here for a cartilage piercing about a month ago, and it was honestly a terrible experience. The people were rude and the layout of the shop is very bizarre. There is no privacy at all. The girl who did my piercing did not listen to what I asked, and instead of letting me choose where I wanted it, she chose for me and resisted when I said I wanted it a bit higher/lower. They honestly seemed like they were annoyed I was there. I've been to other piercing shops where the people are very helpful and go out of their way to make you feel as comfortable as possible. I would never go to this place, unless you're as 'hardcore' as the people that work there are. Also, my piercing got seriously infected one week after I got it and I had to take it out, so it was a waste of $50. read more

First session with Sebastian at the Eglington location. He was over an hour and a half late starting the tattoo, and had even admitted he just got home from a long flight and was feeling jet lagged. Not going to lie it made me a bit nervous. Despite that, once we finally got started everything went well. It all looked good, fast forward to the second session. I arrive 10 minutes past my appointment time, and the reception informs me that Sebastian is running behind. No problem I say, do you know how long by any chance? They let me know he was basically right there and would start setting up his station... over half our goes by and I am still waiting. I have seen 3 people come in for walkins and already get to go and discuss and get tattooed with an artist. I look over to see if I can spot him, and sure enough I see him at the station sitting and talking with someone... watched this for over 10 minutes before I decided to I ask the reception again, they explain he is getting the stencil ready. I explain there isn't a stencil because this is my second session and it's already on my body. They go over to talk to him and he comes to me to say "sorry it takes a while to clean"...I'm thinking but you are already late and I just saw you talking? Anyway, he finally cleans the station. By this point it's been 45 minutes, and I am frustrated with the way the first appointment went, his comment, and now this. So I let him know I will be going elsewhere to get it finished. He gives me excuses and said things are never on time. Then maybe you shutouts tell people to come an hour later to their scheduled appointment, or not take appointments? Needless to say this was such a disappointing and frustrating experience and I will be advising people heavily against this artist and shop. read more

I'm getting my first tattoo at one of these locations very soon and am booking my second one already at chronic ink as well! I'll be excited to leave a review about my experience then as I'm sure it'll be a great one. However I am just writing a review on my experience with them as of right now - emailing. When you first contact them through the website, they reply back almost immediately, after that, not so much. They are a very busy shop, but it does have me worried that I chose a date to book a time with a guest artist and no confirmation email has been sent back for a number of days, and now I'm scared I won't have a chance at my dream tattoo! If you're going to book, call or walk in, it's much more efficient than emailing (you would think it would be the other way around these days)! When you call, they are very accommodating and nice and get everything done for you, but when it comes to emailing they could improve a bit! read more

Came here to get my HORRENDOUS industrial piercing removed that I got done from Diamond Eye Tattoo and I cannot be more satisfied with their service. My ear instantly got better! They cleaned the area and made sure to carefully and smoothly remove the bar in a way that would be as pain free as possible. Their environment was very clean and welcoming and they are very happy to answer any questions you have. I was provided with further aftercare and info that was not given to me by the previous piercers. What's best about them is probably the fact that they tell you if your anatomy is suitable for your desired piercing rather than lie to you in order for them to make business. I was told my ear wouldn't be suitable for the industrial, which infuriated me as the previous piercers said without hesitation I would do fine with it. I came to this place unaware of how bad my ear actually was. My ear had basically swallowed up the bar and staff were beyond shocked. Another plus was that they have very cute, high quality titanium jewelry that's very affordable (paid $50 with taxes). Had to get a belly ring as their options were the prettiest I've seen any tattoo shop carry. Definitely coming back for more very soon! read more

I waited almost 3 months for Christine P to do a small tattoo for me because I liked the online samples of her work. While I don't dislike the tattoo, it doesn't blow me away either. For the the size it was very expensive. I have a large shoulder piece done by Lemur at seveneighttattoo that is stunning - approximately 9 inches long and 5 inches wide full colour that I get compliments on all the time. Yes - I'm asking myself why I didn't go back to him. The cost was $570.00 and it took 6 hours in one sitting two years ago - that included his sketch. The tattoo I just got by Christine is tiny and I was charged $400.00. I was told it would be between $300-$400 when I booked based on the sketch which I was forwarded just a few days before the appointment and had already paid my deposit. I was honestly really surprised when I was charged the high end of the price. It's NOT a $400 piece. I arrived early and she started late. I was left sitting for almost 1/2 hour. Disappointed overall. Won't be back. read more