First of all, for all you nail snobs, if you like spa chairs this place is not for you! If you are willing to give these folks a chance, you're in for a sweet treat! Walked in on a rainy Saturday with the bff. It's pretty small and looks sketch, but the ladies here are super friendly and accommodating. Had a pedi ($18). You sit in those executive business office chairs with the wheels which is comfy as your favorite sofa. They put your feet in these electric foot bath that had massaging bumps at the bottom. Let me tell you, it's much more relaxing than those stupid spa chairs. I got a super wonderful massage which lasted a pretty long time in my opinion. My lady was very friendly and she wanted to ensure me that I had a good time and that I was happy. She even did two kinds of flowers on my toes and asked me which I liked better! (To which I responded I like both, so now both toes have different designs but I love it so much I don't care!!!) I felt totally at ease and totally relaxed. My pedi has lasted sooo long and I have decided I will come back here no matter what. Thank you Essential Nails! read more

Super Sweet Staff, great price for a pedi. ($18) loved it! My hubby and I came as an impulse on Valentines Day and we will defiantly come back. They don't have massage chairs, but they give a wonderful massage by hand on your caves & feet. Lots of nail colors to choose from too! :) Hubby loved his pedi. too :) read more

Essential Nails - They came out great! - Nail Salons Near Me - San Diego, California

Amazing prices and amazing quality! I drive to PB from downtown every time because I've never had a french pedicure as good! Im a regular with Amy, but all the girls are amazing! $21 - french pedicure n amazing leg massage! :) Party Sensei Follow me pretty please - www.Twitter. com/partysensei read more

The simple fix! Price is Just right and the girls are lovely and kind. I called in for a pedicure on a Sunday as was able to be seen immediately. Not a seat was empty and people consistently call and walk in. I'm defiantly coming back to see Tammy and get monthly pedis with her. Good selection of colo, they do gel and other stuff but I'm a simple one so just a pedi with color for me. Give it a try you won't regret it! read more

Essential Nails - Just what I needed - Nail Salons Near Me - San Diego, California

The pedicure started off a bit odd and I was skeptical about the pedi buckets versus the vibrating chairs, but damn if she didn't do a great job! The calf massage was incredible and at least 5 mins spent on each. She scrubbed my feet, trimmed me up, and I am very happy. My feetsies are going to beautiful and pretty again. Could have scrubbed more on the bottoms, but I'm not complaining. The pedi was $18, not bad. I'll definitely be back. read more

I got a pedi done by Amy. She was very nice and made an actual attempt to have a conversation which was definitely a nice change. The location is very nice and central in PB, easy to find and lots of parking lots around. Expect to have to pay for parking though as street parking is sparse. The cost of the pedi was great! Very affordable. Amy gave a good massage. It was very relaxing. You don't always need the fancy massage chairs to have a good pedi! I will be coming back. :) read more

Came here because of the Yelp reviews and the low prices and I was pleased. I walked in today a little after 2 and I used their restroom and picked out polish and they started on me promptly--their 2 oclock appts hadn't shown up yet. Overall I was extremely happy with both my manicure and my pedicure. The women who did my nails and toes was very pleasant and gave an excellent massage and the polish application was flawless. Partway through my treatment the 2o'clock appts finally showed up--two blondes that were rude about having to wait because all three technicians were now busy. They were talking on their cell phones and what not too--very unpleasant to have to share the salon with them and they were making snide comments about having to wait since they were in a hurry (well ladies.. if you're in a hurry DON't BE LATE FOR YOUR APPT) Other than that unpleasant part of my service I really enjoyed my first visit to essential nails and would go back in a heart beat. I gave minus one star only because they re-use the pumices on different peoples feet (note to myself in future: bring own pumice for sanitary purposes). Otherwise quite clean and sanitary and looking forward to my next visit read more

Amy is awesome and not intrusively conversational. Nails last a long time. I go back often! read more

Essential Nails - Nail Salons Near Me - San Diego, California

I'm a regular here :) they do fast and beautiful ! They Always follow your own style and can customize almost everything :) haven't been here for a while but they all remember me :) so nice atmosphere really friendly and warm! read more

Essential Nails - awesome - Nail Salons Near Me - San Diego, California

I was staying in Pacific Beach for the weekend and wanted to get my nails done. Im not familiar with the area so I counted on yelp to find a good salon with low prices. Im glad I trusted the reviews I read because I loved the way my nails were done! My manicurist was Amy and she was so attentive and definitely cares about the way she does your nails. She took her time and the polish application was done beautifully. Usually the polish on my nails only last a couple of days before it starts chipping, but it definitely lasted longer. Ask for Amy and get a mani/pedi combo! Definitely worth the price! read more

originally from hawai'i and It was my first time at this location. I wasn't feeling my best so I walked in this morning asked if they had any appointments they asked me to come back at five and the lady wrote me in. I got here literally thirty minutes early and As I walked in the woman was confirming my time she asked me to come in with another woman while I was standing there. I could've made an appointment anywhere else this morning And then asked me to come back another day said this morning I was on vacation for one more day. Highly unrecommended. read more

This was my first visit to this nail salon. I am very glad I went. Everyone was friendly and polite. They are not too chatty or talking all around you in another language just as another Yelp reviewer stated. I had an mani/pedi done for $26 plus $1 since I paid with a credit card. I waited about 10-15 minutes as a walk in. It's not a fancy place. No spa chair, but I had a nice chair massage. Amy did my pedicure. She was very meticulous. She spent at least 40 minutes on the pedicure. Great nail polish application. I don't remember the name of the lady that did my manicure, but she also did a great job. I hope my pedicure lasts 4 weeks as it has for other clients. While I was in the salon, I saw 4 ladies that were apparently return customers since they were addressed by their names as soon as they entered the salon. That says something about the place. No strong chemical odors noted here which I've had to deal with at other salons. I will definitely return for another manicure and pedicure. They're open 7 days a week which is great. read more

You definitely can't beat the price for the length of the massage you get and how friendly the staff is. However, I'm afraid that if you're easily skeeved off by cleanliness and sanitation, I'd have to give this place like 2 stars instead of the 4 I'm giving it. I'm just not sure that anything is sterilized, and I would LOVE it if they'd expand, put in pedicure chairs, and get more staff since it's always busy. :) I got the gel manicure with a regular pedicure for $36 and that is a STEAL tho! read more

Amy does an amazing job!!! All the girls here are so nice and care about the customers definitely recommend this place! read more

Essential Nails - Nice red for holidays - Nail Salons Near Me - San Diego, California

If you're looking for an unfriendly, fancy shmamcy place then don't come here. Essential has such friendly ladies and they play chick flick movies on the weekend. They don't have those big chairs but the environment is pleasant and they do a great job!! This is my usual nail spot- they know my name & colors & everything! read more

Finally a place with good service, good quality job, friendly staff and good prices. After looking for a place around La Jolla I found this that is close to that area. Jessica did my acrylic refill with french polish and hard gel for $25.00 dollars and did a beautiful job, listened to what I requested and was very good at getting it done. A great place to become a regular customer. I will recommend to make an appointment, but they do they walk-ins when possible. They do such a great job for a great price that they keep that schedule pretty busy. read more

Essential Nails - Acrylic refill with white french polish and hard gel done by Jessica $25.00 - Nail Salons Near Me - San Diego, California

Best nail salon I've ever been too! I'm extremely particular (OCD) about my nails (if they're even, how close the paint comes to my cuticle, etc.) and I have NEVER been disappointed. My go to gal is Jessica but the other ladies do a wonderful job as well! They all take their time and have great attention to detail and are so kind. You'll never feel rushed or leave disappointed and the prices are very reasonable. read more

Essential Nails - Nail Salons Near Me - San Diego, California

I didn't plan on trying this salon out but they had taken me in at last moment even through they were closing in a half hour.. I am glad that I had stopped by. They did an amazing job, were very nice and stayed past their closing time to finish my nails. Thank you guys. I forsure recommend this place to get your nails done. read more

I've been to Essential Nails about 5 times now for spa pedicures, and compared to the other salons in PB Essential Nails gives the BEST foot massage. To me, that's what makes my pedicure. They also let me know multiple times that if I accidently chip a nail (which I tend to do), I can come back in the next day and they'll fix it for free. So great. My only complaint is that multiple times I've walked in and been told I would have a 10-15 minute wait, and every time it ends up being closer to 45 minutes. Other than that, the ladies are super friendly and definitely know what they're doing. read more

Best nail place in PB. First off I can only think of one con for this nail salon which is there is no "spa chair" and inside is very basic (only reason I didn't give them 5 stars ).but still a great great, warm bubbly pedicure.. this is still the only place in PB I will go. Great customer service...they are all very meticulous, friendly and most of all they have the best prices..only 26 for a mani/pedi and only 11 for a manicure! They are very customer oriented...I have been there multiple times and I have never been dissapointed! read more

Services I had done: regular mani & pedi Pros: GREAT massage. Cons: very minimal hand drawn designs, gelish mani WAY too expensive. Comments: mani/pedi were basic. they did a good job shaping my nails. I was planning on having a gelish mani but said HELL no when i found out it was $30. WTF. for that price you better throw in some bangin nail designs in! Oh yeah that's right, you guys don't really have any :((( I was referred to this shop by a friend, and after seeing all the raves on Yelp I decided to give it a try. Honestly, I've been to places (in the Bay Area) with more affordable prices and more of a selection on polish/gelish colors and hand painted nail designs and/or airbrush designs. Come here if you want a basic mani pedi, or if you feel like $30 is worth a real basic gelish manicure. Don't come if you're expecting amazing one-of-a-kind nails. Maybe it's just that people in San Diego don't really have nail game, or maybe it's that their nail service standards are low. I'm disappointed. read more

It's busy and crowded, parking is a bitch, and it's a little ghetto.. but I'd still come back here because they're good at what they do. I got the mani/pedi, but had to skip the massage because I had no time. They only charged me $22. It's been a week now and my manicure looks just as it did on Day 1. I don't know how they do it. It's the same OPI polish and top coat as the other salons but the manicure here seems to last much longer. The ladies here are very nice and friendly. I messed up my 3 of my nails on my way out and they gladly offered to fix it for me. Tip: Definitely make an appointment and allow yourself some extra time. Expect to spend at least 1hr~1hr30min here. Manicures are the worst when rushed. read more

I decided to try this place based on their reviews and I'm glad I did. The staff is very friendly but you don't have to talk if you just feel like relaxing. Pedicure: they give wonderful long messages and the color last a long time I had mine about a month Shellac mani: they do a good job and my nails look great for about a week. I've tried it twice. I'm not sure if it's them or how hard I am on my hands (washing them and having them in cleaning chemicals all the time) but after a week they begin to peel off which completely strips my nails. Acrylic gel: this was my first time doing it here. They take their time and go through all the steps to make them look nice; however, I thought 2 of my nails looked a little uneven (but I am a really OCD). This lasts much longer especially with the gel on top. I will still go back and get this again. Overall it's good considering the price read more

I had a manicure from Tammy and a pedicure with Amy. Both were exceptional especially the massage. I highly recommend!

My sisters have been raving about this place, so finally I am in town to visit my sister here in San Diego and try the place out. The place is pretty basic - there is no massage chair with the attached foot massager unit. Basically, the set up is sitting in office chairs and they have a separate foot massage units. We walked in and they were a bit busy so we scheduled an appointment to come back in a couple of hours. The ladies are very friendly, and they do give really great leg massages here. They spend about a good 10 minutes are so on each leg. This would be a great spot to come to after any leg work out or run. The polish lasts for a while and they paint job is very good. She even glued a partial ripped nail for me. The prices seem to be a good deal here, so overall a great quality experience. I'm sure that if I'm back for a visit I'll be coming here. read more

Let me start by saying that I had book marked this place for a pedicure because of the high reviews, and then forgot a main difference in this and other nail places. So I was a bit taken back when I asked for a pedicure and they told me to sit in an office chair. Then brought out a plug in foot bath. It wasn't very comfortable because they had me put my legs up on the stool that they were sitting on. (it had a little table thing on the front) But the weight of my legs, kept moving the wheeled stool and it was super annoying. Anyhoo...on to the pedicure. The girl who started, did the leg massage first (again, never had that before) My feet didn't even soak. Then she put my feet in the bath, and left. Another girl came over to finish. They barely even scrubbed my feet, or did any clean up of dry skin, etc. She cut my nails, painted them and that was it. She let me dry with my bare feet on their carpet and stuck a little dryer on the floor to blow on my toes. VERY ODD!! And I was totally creeped out that they didn't put the paper/plastic flip flops on me and had my bare clean feet on the filthy looking floor. But the GOOD thing about the place were the people. Both girls were very friendly and efficient. And that's why I'm adding a star. But quite frankly, the cheap price of $18 was not worth it. I'd rather pay a "normal" price and sit in a regular chair, with comfortable legs up, and someone who actually scrubs my feet. read more

If the place you go to when you do acrylic nails give you thick nail appearance, then you need to go to this place! Jessica is the owner and she is fabulous as well as the rest of the staff there! I get compliments daily from my nails. read more

Very good service for gel nails, staff is very friendly and caring. Nails lasted entire festival and more! Tested and verified :) will come again! Thank you :) read more

I've been going to Essential Nails for 5+ years now. I'm a little embarrassed I haven't written a review yet... I absolutely love this place. They may not have fancy massage chairs and expensive salon like decor but they definitely take care of their customers beyond what you can receive at a conventional Nail Salon. Tammy & Jessica are so accommodating with my requests. I've chipped nails & they immediately make time to fix them.. They make you feel like family and that's what I love the most. read more

Essential Nails - Tammy did an amazing job! - Nail Salons Near Me - San Diego, California

Their service is honestly second to none. I called at about 6:30, desperate for a mani/pedi, and even though they close at 7, they told me to come on in! They were so friendly (they asked my name and introduced themselves - Amy did my pedicure), and were just the sweetest people! They weren't forced in their friendliness, and I can see why people have rated them so high on Yelp! The foot/lower leg massage made me almost pass out in pleasure (I ran the half marathon several days ago so my feet are still kinda sore!), and they told me to just sit back and relax and enjoy it, which was amazing. My feet have never looked nor felt this good! It's not a spa experience by any means, and I was initially hesitant when I walked in, but the service and quality of my manicure and pedicure (for only $27! Complete with an amazing massage for my hands and feet!), made me a definite fan! I promised to come back should I ever be in the neighborhood again... and you know I will! read more

This is definitely my go to place! It's small and you need to make an appointment but they are all very good. Super recommended!

I called in to check if they had any available appointments and I was able to get in within the hour. The staff is super friendly and it was such a reasonable price! Tammy did my nails and she did such a good job. I stayed right up until they close and she still took her time :) I'll be coming back soon, love supporting smaller mom and pop shops!! read more

Essential Nails - Nail Salons Near Me - San Diego, California

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Been going here for years now. The CS is great here (they always remember me), fun location, great price and good job!

This place is awesome! The ladies are a little older and really do a great job... Quality is definitely here. They did amazing with my cuticles and did exactly what I wanted. I liked that they payed attention to the little details and verified that the color I chose was really how it would turn out. With the amount of attention they gave my nails, I have no doubt that they'll last for a really long time. read more

Essential Nails - #5 shellac - Nail Salons Near Me - San Diego, California

If you need powder, dipping, or SNS nails- DO NOT COME HERE! My daughter already had SNS nails on and the tech filed them a bit and then I though she would soak them instead started ripping them off of her nail beds?!?!! What??? I inquired and she said that it didn't hurt her. We were concerned about her nail beds and how she was wrecking them!!! My girlfriend jumped in and asked her to soak them. I ended up getting behind the table and filing off the powder myself to ensure there wouldn't be any more damage. My daughter ended up getting plain polish- seemed like the safest way to go and get out as quick as possible. Headed back to Phoenix to get them done where they know how to use the dipping powder. Such a huge waste of time and money. read more

I came here three weeks ago for a gel mani/basic pedi and couldn't be happier. My gel manicure looked great and lasted weeks without any peeling off. Best foot massage I've had with a pedicure ever, and my toes still look great. They made sure I got the exact colors I was looking for and were so attentive and kind. I found my new go-to spot in San Diego! read more

This is the only place I go to get my nails done. I get a pink and white fill and french pedicure about every 3 weeks. Pros: - The girls are extremely friendly - TV to watch while you wait or get your nails done - it's nice to zone out :) - Amy gives an AMAZING leg massage with your pedicure. Like, falling-asleep good. I don't think she does it too hard, it's perfect! - Attention-to-detail, which is important with acrylics. Mine last a solid 3 weeks and I work with animals and am pretty hard on my nails. Only con is the parking... sometimes its hard to find and I just give up and park in the paid lot, which is like $1/hour I think.. not a big deal but kind of annoying. Also it'd be nice if they had spa chairs, but for the price (~$40-something for a fill and pedicure) I don't expect it. Just remember to MAKE AN APPOINTMENT, especially on weekends, because they're always busy! read more

Reading all the great reviews, I decided to give this place a shot. I had seen it on my way to Cafe 976 a few times and was intrigued. I ended up stopping by on a warm Friday afternoon. I figured there would be a wait by the amount of people milling around PB, so Jessica told me to come back in about an hour. That was fine- the beach is only a 5 minute walk away and I stopped by Cafe 976 to get a iced coffee and made a grand old time of it. I came back at my appointed time and still ended up waiting an extra 15 minutes. That's fine- the entire place was busy and I'd hate to rush someone else's mani/pedi job. And they were playing The Ugly Truth, so that was entertaining enough. When I finally got to the table, I asked her for french tip set. Jessica looked at my small hands and short, nubby nails and told me she was going to use regular tips and paint on the white tips at the end because she didn't want the white tips to overwhelm my small nails. I was a bit dubious at first- usually whenever I ask for my nails a certain way, I get the technician's (expensive) take on what I want. Regardless, I was open for suggestions and I had never had that suggestion before. The entire procedure took about an hour. Jessica was the greeter, so she dealt with phone calls and walk-ins, making appointments immediately and setting up the next customer with nail polish choices, etc. We did talk a little and it didn't feel uncomfortable at all. She was VERY attentive to each step of the process- from making sure each tip was on straight and fitted well to each nail, to making sure no ugly acrylic was left sticking out under the nail or on the sides at the end. There were some techniques she used that I had never seen in my ten years of getting my nails done and I was particularly pleased with the after-gel she used. Anyways, I was SO over the moon with the end results. She painted on the white tip with such precision, it doesn't make my nails look chunky at all. My nails look classy and perfectly shiny and proportional. It did cost $33 with a $1 card charge (not including tip) but hot diggity, I feel so pretty when I look at my nails. On other notes, the place itself could use some update in decor, but I really wasn't bothered. They also started playing Mr. Popper's Penguins right after, so there wasn't any lull in entertainment. The other technicians were always hard at work. I didn't see much customer in-and-out, so I feel they're really putting forth some good quality. I gave it 4 stars just because she didn't exactly explain the end pricing and it didn't match anything posted on the pricing board. Overall, it's a bit pricey, but worth feeling like a million bucks. I'd definitely make an appointment for a fill in the future. read more

I walked in 10 minutes to closing in desperate need of a pedicure. Not only did they accomodate me they didn't rush me at all. Great pedicure, great price, great people. It is not a fancy, high end spa like nail salon.... but if you want a great mani/pedi at a great price.... this it. read more

The service here was amazing!!! Each one of those ladies made sure I was comfortable and relaxed. They were all super sweet and easy going. The best first time experience I've ever had. AND my nails came out great!!! read more

Essential Nails - Beautiful Tammy did a great job! - Nail Salons Near Me - San Diego, California