Reviews

Based on 20 reviews

kittykistner1

Finally! A Day Spa With Some Unique Character...

I visited Nirvana spa last week for the first time and enjoyed a facial with Naomi. It was absolutely amazing, the best facial I've had in years. Her technique applying the aromatherapy masks and massage relaxed me so much I almost slipped into a coma and my skin is still glowing a week later!
She was very professional and knowledgeable about the various product lines and I found it VERY refreshing that she wasn't pushy regarding purchasing product and only made suggestions after I requested them. Overall an amazing experience I would definitely recommend.
One additional thing to add is that the spa atmosphere is pleasantly different. Most spa's I've visited in the Pearl are very relaxing but somewhat aseptic. I found Nirvana to be clean and relaxing but it had a lot more character. The pedicure stations look like Moroccan thrones. Very cool. That is next on the list. We're planning a girl's night out so we can check out if the free cocktails are all they're cracked up to be. Stay tuned. I'll let you know...

posted at 01/29/08

ljbarnes

Worst massage ever

To celebrate a birthday of a friend, we booked massages at Nirvana to start our weekend. The spa is small and there are no seating areas for several people to sit and visit before services. So we just stood around and waited. I ordered an aromatherapy massage. The scent i chose was peppermint, the attendant failed to tell me how incredibly strong and menthol feeling the scent would be. The massage table only had one small blanket. I complained several times that I was freezing - she never got me more blankets, but just continued on with the massage. It was so uncomfortable I never was able to relax and was wishing it were over. After it was over, I complained to the front desk and was told that some of the rooms do get cold. I think it ridiculous to spend so much - $90 - on a massage that was horrible and not at all relaxing. If felt that there was no emphasis on customer service, which to me is the only reason you go to the spa - to be pampered and treated really well. If you want a good massage, do not go here. Also, do not plan to go here with group of people if you hope to relax and talk after or before services because they have no space for that. I feel very mislead by their website and the other reviews I read of their spa.

posted at 01/29/08

apple5726

This ?spa? is toxic.

I seriously cannot imagine anyone with integrity (an acupuncturist? Trained massage practitioners?) wanting to be an employee at a place that seems to have to ply clientele with several alcoholic drinks (I watched several clients be served more than two drinks in an hour period, not making a very serene calm ?spa? environment) and write their own reviews to look good. The review below about the owners stealing their email and using it to write a good review?I am sure that is not the only one?or maybe those drunk girls are the ones who write how clean and professional the spa is. Makes you wonder how many of their reviews are written by the owners.

I had a manicure on a recent Friday afternoon, and was treated as second class because I did not want the $80 pedicure, did not want 3 martinis, did not appreciate the loud drunken bar atmosphere that was just beginning around me.

posted at 02/02/08

dolphingirl19

Friendly courteous service, great pedicures

A few years ago, my best friend gave me a gift certificate to Nirvana. It has now become an annual tradition and one of the highlights of my year. The minute I walk into the spa I feel I've walked into a peaceful oasis away from my normally chaotic life as mom of a 2-year old. The owners and staff are always courteous, professional and welcoming. You can go anywhere to have a pedicure but if you want to have an experience then go to Nirvana. You might pay a little more but it's worth it!

posted at 02/15/08

gmlady

It's Great!

I really enjoyed the decor, the professional, courteous staff, and the hospitality. I went with a friend for several different services, and they were all great. We had a really good, relaxing and luxurious time. We left feeling completely revitalized, and felt ten years younger.

posted at 02/29/08

manipedigirl

Not worth the money

I recently went to Nirvana Spa for a manicure/pedicure service, and I have to say I am quite disappointed. My pedicure was nice enough, but the manicure has been a disaster. Not only did I not have my cuticals trimmed properly (as they said my nails were in good enough shape) but after only 4 days my manicure is almost completely gone. I did get a french manicure, but regardless the white tips are severly chipped and the clear coating has peeled off. Considering I paid $150 for the mani/pedi service, I expected MUCH more. I usually go to a great little place on 23rd where the mani/pedi costs $50 (total), and the quality of the service is much higher, and manicures always last at least a week. Nirvana is a pretty place to go, and they do have good wine, but in terms of paying an insane amount for a manicure and pedicure, it is definitely not worth it.

posted at 03/20/08

portland1973

Very friendly helpful staff!

I had booked appointments at another salon for my mom and I for manicures and pedicures the day before my wedding. When I arrived at the other salon they said thier manicurist had quit and they had no one available and they were rude and offered no apology or solution. We were forced to leave and walk around and find another salon. Although Salon Nirvana was unable to accomodate us, we were greeted by a lovely woman named Rose who called every salon in town trying to find us appointments and offering many helpful suggestions.I was thouroughly impressed with this Salonand Rose, she treated us with more kindness and respect than the salon that scewed up our appointments. If I am ever in the area again I will not hesitate to book all my services at this salon! Thank you!

posted at 05/05/08

mmelady

DO NOT ORDER GIFT CERTS ONLINE!

If you are going to purchase gift certificates from Nirvana Day Spa, don't do it online. I had several people order online who are out of town to contribute to a spa day for my sister in law, and Nirvana is showing no record of any of the people that ordered. Now, they each have to go through the hassle of prooving they ordered. Very disorganized and unprofessional system. Lets hope the spa services offered are better than the customer service!

posted at 05/10/08

robototron

Great urban spa

I got a gift certificate to Nirvana a year ago, and didn't have time to use it until recently. The gift certificate had actually expired a few weeks prior to my appointment but the staff made sure to accept it anyway. I also had to change my appointment and got no attitude whatsoever even though they were essentially doing me a favor by honoring my expired certificate. My massage was great, the masseur was very attentive to what I wanted. My only complaint being that the music was super cheesy and a little bit annoying, but I understand that it's hard to please everyone's musical taste.

Anyway the spa is lovely inside and it's obvious that the owner has put a lot of work into making it a unique space. I think that people who complain about the setting here aren't really giving them credit where it's due - given the fact that the spa is housed in what is essentially a typical urban storefront, in the middle of a very busy neighborhood, I was very impressed. It was a little bit noisy in the room where I was getting my massage, and they could maybe look in to doing a bit more sound-proofing given the small size of the space, but sometimes you have to be realistic with your expectations. As for the "dirty" floors - come on people! They're just unfinished! It's a pretty common look in contemporary design, lots of galleries and boutiques have the same floor... I guess those reviewers who had a problem with the floor were either looking for mistakes or from the suburbs or something. I had no issues with the cleanliness of the place.

posted at 05/11/08

lvnlyf

Very dissapointing - UPDATED based on 5/29 post

I had the hot stone massage, chocolate mani/pedi and lunch. The drinks were nice but the mani/pedi were horrible and so was the facility. For the pedicure they quickly went through the motions and put the paraffin wax on my feet then left and I didn't see anyone again for 30 minutes. Not worth paying for a 50 minute service when you are really only getting 20 minutes. For $75 it was a ripoff especially because they advertise a heavenly foot massage that ended up being less than 2 minutes. Not so heavenly. The manicure wasn't much better. They didn't cut or file my nails as requested and didn't trim my cuticle correctly. You can get a better manicure elsewhere for less than half the price. The foot bath they have is pretty scary. It is community and awkward to use. Ewe, not that I would have used anyway. How do you keep something like that sanitary? The decor is pretty but a little busy for a spa. Then for lunch... food was okay but they don't offer any place for you to eat and drink. You have to fumble around with everything while trying to balance your plate on your lap. Not very relaxing. The overall experience was very dissapointing. You read all these great reviews and think you are in for a treat but by the time you leave you feel like you were mislead and paid too much for what you receive. I will never go back.

UPDATE- I don't work at or own any spa. I'm a paying customer who how has a job in a corporation & I LOVE getting pampered. It's really pathetic that the employees at this spa comment so rudely on others opinions. This alone should tell you what type of place it is. As far as my manicure, they did cut & file my nails & cuticles they just did a horrible job at it. I requested squared nails and they rounded them so much that I had to started over to get my nails they way I like. They cut my cuticle so bad one finger needed first aid. You expect this with a $10 mani. When I am paying these prices I expect to be treated like a queen during the visit.

posted at 05/24/08

drjeffdougal

Something Fishy About Connieanne?s Review of 5/24

I was more than a little shocked when I read connieanne1?s review of Nirvana Spa, where I work as a massage therapist.

I was curious to know which client it was, so several of us went back from the date of the note. In the last two months, we couldn?t find a client who got that combination of treatments. So, was this person even really ever here? She gave another spa a glowing review. Could she be the owner of the other spa?

First, she complains about the paraffin foot treatment. This consists of coating the feet in a large amount of paraffin wax, and then waiting for the warm wax and body heat to treat the feet. Since the feet are encased in a large amount of wax, there is nothing that can be done while the client is letting the treatment heat the feet. So how can she possibly complain about it?

She states that she got a manicure, and her nails weren?t cut , filed, and the cuticles were not trimmed? COME ON!!!!???

Then she complains about our footbath (which everybody loves). It is treated daily with chemicals, and on a weekly basis someone comes in and drains all the water, scrubs everything, and puts in fresh water. Not even Jacuzzis in apartment buildings get such care and have such hygiene.

Criticism is good, but not when it?s just outrageous B.S., and probably from a competitor.

posted at 05/29/08

tropicallana

Disappointing at best!

My very busy daughter who is an executive with a large company here in town treated me to a very expensive facial at this Salon to celebrate Mother's Day. We could not go on Mother's Day so we went the following weekend. We were going together and scheduled it for the same time two weeks in advance.

Two hours before we were to arrive, they called to tell us that we would have to reschedule because there "during the week" receptionist had overbooked due to having ADD. My first question was, "why would they keep a receptionist that repeatedly overbooked clients?"

We were not able to have our facials together as we had planned. We had both envisioned sipping bubbly while having our facials together. I had to wait an hour into her facial to even go in, my facial was very good and the young woman who did it was excellent. The only complaint I have is that during the facial, a manager was knocking on our door to make sure the facial was over. I felt very hurried! My daughter's facial was not very good and she was disappointed. For the price we expected more!

The atmosphere was a little tacky and the rooms for treatments were a little gloomy. Not an experience that either of us would repeat again. (By the way I do not work for any salon, just a paying customer)

posted at 06/02/08

RileyOne

Lack of professionalism is the one consistent element

With pricing on the higher end of anything in town, I'd recommend you spend your money at a more consistently reliable spa. They offer a beverage with services, but this doesn't nearly justify the $65+ pedicure price tag.

I worked at Nirvana briefly and there was high turnover in the staff. I know of two instances when a massage therapist and nail tech worked prior to receiving their licenses and several staff members walked off the job with no notice, usually due to frustrations with the frequently absent owner/managers. Customers complained frequently about mediocre/short services and scheduling errors.

Nirvana could be a beautiful place, but my experience has been that more customers leave their feeling mistreated and ripped off than pampered and relaxed.

posted at 07/20/08

LovnLyf

Never Again

The staff here was unprofessional and the prices way too high. Anyone who gets massages frequently knows you should not drink alcohol before one yet this place seems to try and get all the customers drunk. Don't waste your time or money. It makes sense that these employees are not even trained properly.

posted at 07/25/08

Lilypadportland

Loved it!

I went into Nirvana Spa with a friend from out of town for a facial and pedicures and we were so pleased. Right when you walk into the door, its like a different world, the decor is different than most spas, its fun and funky! We were greeted by the receptionist and set up to begin. My facial was soooo nice and relaxing and the pedicures were just what the doc ordered. They offered us a glass of wine to complete the service and we had a great time catching up and relaxing. The staff was so kind and gracious to us, we will be back for sure. It was so nice to see a place with personality, not a cold spa setting where you get herded around like cattle to make room for the next person coming in.

posted at 08/14/08

opinionpdx

mediocre massage

I just had a massage at Nirvana, and had a mediocre experience. The wine while waiting was a nice touch. I received a hot stone massage which was relaxing, but I was distracted by the foul order of the massage therapist's feet and hint of cigarette breath. I thought a high end place in the Pearl like this would screen their staff more appropriately and have guidelines for grooming and appearance.

posted at 09/25/08

CarolinePDX

Out of Business

Be careful...there is a sign on the door that they are locked out by their landlords and are probably OUT OF BUSINESS.

posted at 12/20/08

stoneyson

poor buisness

I called and left two messages about getting an appointment and they have not called me back. To hear they may be out of buisness make me wonder, or is it just the bad weather? I read the reviews and it sounds like this buisness has had less than average service for awhile.

posted at 12/28/08

jleek1279

TERRIBLE BUSINESS OWNERS

Great pedicure-$60
Fabulous Massage-$120
Karma catching up and place going out of business after horrible owners treated all the employees badly and stole money from them- PRICELESS!!!!!

posted at 12/31/08

lyuba

to all nirvana clients

Hello everyone its Luba.Nirvana spa is closed. But I will still love to see my clients. I located at Se now. My phone is 503 475-5163. I hope to see you soon thanks.

posted at 01/02/09

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Nirvana Apothecary & Day Spa

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kittykistner1

ljbarnes

apple5726

dolphingirl19

gmlady

manipedigirl

portland1973

mmelady

robototron

lvnlyf

drjeffdougal

tropicallana

RileyOne

LovnLyf

Lilypadportland

opinionpdx

CarolinePDX

stoneyson

jleek1279

lyuba

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Nirvana Apothecary & Day Spa