Drybar – Upper East Side

Naturalista here! I have 3c/​4a hair and today was my first time trying drybar! I LOVED MY BLOWOUT! Lauren did such a great job and tailored to my natural dry hair needs! However, I must add, I am a moisture addict! And prior to this blowout I left in my favorite deep conditioner in overnight to prepare my hair for the blowout.
Did I add they supplied me with wine and «Crazy, Stupid, Love» as their movie choice
I will be back for sure!

Have gotten my hair blown out many times at different salons but decided on a whim to make an appointment at Drybar since I had an event that evening and wanted my hair to look put together! I arrived half an hour early to my appointment, no problem, planned on waiting and reading magazines in the meantime. I was asked if I wanted a drink, I asked for a coffee; 20 min later I still had no coffee. At the time of my appointment a woman approached the waiting area and said, «Kari, Katie…» I said, «Kacie?» My name is not difficult to read (at least I don’t think it is) so I was just v confused and irritated at this point. She washed my hair and did the «mai tai» blowout which is described as «beachy waves.» I walked out with less beach and more wave, my curls are tight and not what I was expecting. Overall, this experience was poor. The receptionist was honestly very unwelcoming the second I walked in, not sure if it’s because I’m 20 and not an Upper East Side mom (yet), but it’s not okay to be unfriendly to costumers, no matter their age. I hope if I choose to frequent this Drybar again and spent 45 $ on a blowout I have a better experience.

Just went for a blow dry this morning. The appt. was a few minutes late but not bad. The young lady who blew my hair was lovely and asked me specifically what I wanted. The only reason I am not giving ⁴⁄₅ stars is that I realized after I left the salon that some of my hair underneath was still damp. I thought it might be the hairspray she put in but she didn’t put in that much so I don’t think that was it. Also, I have never been able to get a good wash at a Drybar. Even after saying I wanted her to wash my hair twice she barely touched my scalp. This isn’t the first time this has happened. It has happened at other locations.
Either way, I would definitely go back to this location to try it out again. Staff are polite and friendly.

I’ve heard from a lot of people that drybar is either a hit or miss. This location was a miss for me because I got in 40 min after my scheduled appointment time. The girl at front desk is not friendly at all nor professional and The girl I had for my hair seemed like she doesn’t know what she’s doing and was not enthusiastic at all. Tip for drybar is to hire better. My hair looks like I can do it better myself. A waste of money

Much prefer other blow out places to the DryBar franchise. I find that the blowouts don’t last long at all, and your experience greatly depends on your stylist. On multiple occasions, I’ve gotten blow outs that I could’ve easily done myself.
I also find that no matter when you book your appointment, you end up waiting at this location. They should really notify you if your stylist is running 20 minutes late.

This was a nice surprise — really. I just needed my hair to look good for a luncheon, and I had wanted to check this place out.
The biggest difference is that the focus is on the blow out. You can tell there is more emphasis in their training, namely, focused on that end result. I just sat back and tried not to stress, knowing I had to haul butt out of there. I slowed down, I had to admire her handiwork — Simone really made my hair look a hell of a lot better than where I go to get it done — uh — sorry to my blowout (where I get my color & cut — Hillary too?) overlooking Central Park — this is a case of good training and specializing — Simone did an awesome job.

i’ve been to this location on two occasions now and have enjoyed each experience. on my recent visit, i had eva who was incredible. she gave me the service i expect from drybar. a really good, thorough wash and was meticulous in her drying and styling. also recommended products that would work best for my oil hair. really loved this experience.

Was contacted by corporate about my somewhat disappointing experience. I liked that the company seems to care and i was happy to give the UES location another chance. I scheduled an appt through the corporate contact only to show up saturday morning and not have an appt in the system. I showed the lady at check in my email from corporate that i was «all set for saturday at the UES location» and all she had to say was maybe I could be squeezed in 15 – 20 minutes … now, clearly this was not her fault and corporate has some communications issues. Also, I didn’t expect to bump others and have their appt’s screwed up. My problem is that she offered no apology or advice and made it seem like I was somehow at fault when I clearly was not. I had to ask if she was able to see availability at other locations, which she was able to do & luckily there were openings, but this seems like customer service 101 and she should’ve offered this right away (along w an apology for the company’s screw up). Overall, the customer experience at drybar UES is seriously lacking and for the size & quality of location I don’t think it’s worth visiting. I ended up a the Bryant Park location which I will review separately. If you need a blowout, avoid this location — it’s cramped & the stylists are much better at the other locations.

My hair looks fantastic every time. Great experience and I love the products. I’ve been to this location 3 times and each time I get the same perfect blowout.

Never again. I was so excited to try the dry bar. I waited until a special event l to finally try it out. I went there to get my hair blown out before a wedding. I said I wanted beachy soft waves that went away from my face. I left looking like a poodle.
i had a bad feeling when I saw the stylist getting ready to use an extremely small barreled curling iron. But I thought she’s the expert let me let her do her thing. I have should trusted my gut. The curls were so tight I was one step away from Shirley Temple. I ended up just having to put my hair up. Worst $ 47 I’ve spent in a long time.
I should have given this a test run before doing it on a day I wanted my hair to look amazing. I would definitely suggest testing it and finding a stylist you like.
Next time I plan on getting it done up in the Heights cheaper and they do a way better job.
I’m updating my review to say how impressed I was with the customer service I received after posting initial review. I was contacted within a week by someone from their corporate office. This is so unbelievably rare and I really appreciated and respected that someone from corporate reached out personally. They offered a complimentary blow out so I could try the dry Bar again. I’m definitely going to give it another try. But I just wanted to say the customer service from the Dry Bar was great!

What I had done: The Straight Up Blow Dry
Would I go back?: Yes but the service in terms of timing was lacking that day
Story: Came here looking to pamper myself one day out of the blue. Checked in at the counter was asked to take a seat and what sort of drink I would like — wine, soda, water, etc. Very nice gesture. Chose some wine — pretty solid. Now this is where it started dropping off. I had to wait over a half hour — not sure if there was over booking that happened but this was unacceptable. This was the nixed first star. After that everything else for the most part was smooth sailing. I think the stylist did a great job. The other nixed star is due to the fact that I was not compensated in any way for that huge lapse in service. The whole point of this place is in and out quick but good service.

I saw several people leave with amazing hair. The price is amazing for what you get. The place is really clean, neat, and the staff is super friendly. But this rating is for Black women with 4B/​4C hair.
You shouldn’t make excuses for how your hair is naturally, but it took two hours for my hair to be washed, dried, and flat ironed (see before and after photos – Black girl with cream top and black cardigan). The wonderful people working with me had to stay an hour after closing, which made me feel bad. But these places really weren’t designed for people with thick, tightly-​coiled hair. The stylist I worked with knew how to deal with my hair, but probably not as well as a salon dedicated to Black hair or a Black stylist. I will likely go again and see if my next experience is any different. But if you are Black with super tightly curled hair, this ‘may’ be worth checking out. Good news, my hair is straight enough that I can finish they flat ironing, styling, curling etc myself. Great service and people, but not for all hair types.

Came here for my first time a couple weeks ago and loved it so much that I’m getting my hair done here for my mother’s wedding.
I had Aileene and she did a phenomenal job! Extremely friendly, welcoming and walked me through my options on what I can do as well as providing her personal feedback. I was so happy with my experience and can’t wait to go back!
I highly recommend Aileene. I believe she’s only there on weekends so catch her if you can!

I am obsessed with THIS Drybar location :). It isn’t far from my apartment, so I tried it out the morning of my graduation. My curls were flawless all day!
Also my cousin was visiting from out of state, her appointment was about 15 minutes before mine so she headed over to Drybar before me, needless to say she got lost! I ended up there before her, she arrived about 20 – 25 minutes late to her appointment, and they still took her with ease and grace! Much appreciated!
Can’t say enough good things about this experience. I am sad I’m moving out of state and will not be able to keep going here :(.
Just an FYI hair texture for me = wavy, so curls hold easily. My cousin’s hair is straight, so curls do not hold easily for her, but I think they held up well :).

My stylist was pleasant and they took me on time for my appointment. Those are the only positive aspects of my experience last night.
I walked out of Dry Bar at 9:45pm with sleek, straight hair, with just enough volume at the crown and a very slight natural wave at the ends. I was so pleased with the outcome, until I exited the subway at 10:35pm and caught my reflection. My naturally curly hair was back in full force. I literally did not make it an hour before my hair looked exactly the same as it does when I wash and air dry it at home. The ends also have knots in them, like they got stuck in the brush while being blown and aren’t smooth.
I have easily had more than 200 blowouts in my adult life. I have never seen one unravel so quickly. I had to run a flatiron over my entire head to fix it.
I am sad to report that my experience was a complete waste of $ 57.03 ($ 47.03 is the new cost of a blowout with tax, and $ 10 for tip). I would strongly recommend that if you are a naturally curly girl, you skip this place. DryBar doesn’t seem like they can accommodate our hair type.

Two out of three isn’t bad!
I waited until I had a few blow-​outs under my belt before I reviewed Drybar. The first one with Ashley (Ashleigh) was terrific, my second blowout made me look like I was ready to collect social security (booo), the third with Candace was terrific.
It is safe to say that I am sold on Drybar and could be convinced to buy an annual membership.

My rating is more about my stylist vs. the salon. I have had mixed experiences with Drybar and been to 5 of their locations around the city– some great and some not so great.
I work long hours and it hard for me to plan out way far in advance l like that I can just walk in and I love how late they stay open.
My Hair Type:
I am African American with natural hair that is just past my shoulders and it is THICK. I am very particular about how I like my hair styled to minimize damage. For my its all about the blow out and having the patience to take small sections without just starting to hack at my head with a brush.
Yesterday I had an appointment with Paul and he was fantastic. Very pleased with how my hair turned out and could tell he was very experienced in my type of hair. I had me in and out and was super sweet. Will be back again and have him as my preferred stylist!

I’m a bit torn in this review. For the environment, prompt service, and friendliness, this place receives five stars, through and through. Perhaps I’ll start there…
I was headed to a friend’s wedding in Connecticut, and I decided I wanted a bit of pampering beforehand. Make-​up is fun and easy for me to do, but hair has never been my forte. I have very fine hair that I have trouble styling, and I decided that $ 40 for a shampoo and blowout would be a nice way to unwind and look nice before my day of celebrations started. Not only that, a few friends have been to this location and have raved about it. I booked my appointment online (points for that!), and showed up for my 10 a.m. appointment around 9:50. I was offered water and cookies upon arrival, which was great! My stylist greeted me before 10 and took me to get my hair shampooed. Honestly… there is little in the world that I love more than getting my hair professionally cleaned. (I know I can’t be the only one. ;-D) After I was all clean, we went back to my chair and discussed styling options. I was pretty straight forward with her and told her my hair can be temperamental with styling; I knew curls wouldn’t holdwell until a 5 p.m. wedding, but I wanted something with a bit of wavy and body. She took the time to listen, and we both agreed that the Mai Tai would be the best option. She spent about 40 minutes working with my hair as I relaxed and watched a movie on one of their flatscreen televisions. At the end of my time with her, I had wonderfully wavy hair with body! I was legitimately impressed! I very happily left DryBar with my hair wonderfully styled for the wedding…
…and by the time I got back to my beau’s apartment thirty minutes later, it was completely flat and almost all of the waves had straightened out. I use little hyperbole here. It was almost all just gone.
Like I said, my hair is fine and doesn’t always hold a style, but, I have had my hair professionally styled and blown out before with success. This just was not a success. I was disappointed, I must admit. It looked so great upon completion! Though it was a great price for the services I received, I suppose I was bummed that I, essentially, spent $ 40 on a service for something that didn’t work. In hindsight, I realize that she didn’t use that many products and much as she just blew-​dry and curled my hair with a curling iron. No wonder it didn’t stay well!
Like I said, everything else about this place was top notch. If you have hair that can be blown out and styled well, go here! I’d recommend this place in a hot second, regardless. For me… it just was not a home run. Perhaps, given a second chance, I’d go for a sleek style as opposed to a wavier /​curlier option.

Chick flicks, wine and magazines all while getting your hair done?! I think I’ve died and gone to heaven.
The minute I walked in I was offered a drink and was met by my stylist in a matter of minutes. They are really efficient and I was started on right away. My stylist first asked me what I interested in and then I went to get my hair washed. This is where they lose a star. the wash was great — don’t get me wrong, but the chairs are so uncomfortable! It even hurt my neck a little :(I mean, it’s not that big of a deal but comfort goes a long way. I then got the cosmo which was wonderful! I was able to enjoy a nice glass of wine and my stylist was neither too quiet nor too chatty, a perfect in between. The style lasted all night and my hair still looked great the next day! Next time though, I would tell them to go easier on the hairspray. Though I did ask for it, a very generous spray was given and while it did aid in staying power, I think less would have been just as fine.
I really like this location and the overall set up. I like that the building is longer length wise as blowdryers going off every couple of minutes in a close proximity can be a bit annoying. I have been to the midtown east location and this one is a million times better! The staff is more professional and friendlier.

I’m torn. I love this business for the most part; the idea is genius. I am unhappy with the consistency though of the services I’ve received.
I’ve visited three locations: UES, Parker Meridian and Murray Hill. All of the shops look amazing; the décor is great and the front desk staff have always been nice.
On all of my appointments I’ve both been asked about and requested the use of products. Unfortunately, only on one of those occasions were products actually used. Even after being asked each time! I have fine hair so it responds great to Drybar’s voluminous products and I love them. I just wish I knew I could get the same Cosmo blowout no matter which location or stylist I go to.