Varnish Nail Bar

$ 35 for a gel manicure? WAY overpriced– I wish I had ck’d their pricing first! On top of it all the girl got the gel color all over my finger area around my nails– every time she tried to clean up the xtra polish that was getting everywhere. I realize my nails are short (due to breakage of a few I cut them down to match) but I have NEVER had this problem before & if u are going to charge $ 35 bucks it should have been top of the line!- judge for yourself…

I had a nail emergency and needed a gel manicure like it was not even funny!!! I had always heard great things about Varnish so I decided to try them out and I am extremely happy that I did! The salon is very clean, neat and very classy! The nail technician was very friendly and nice to me which was a shock because most male techs do not like servicing other males (my own opinion from my past experiences). He took extra care of my nails and did an immaculate job with my gel nails! I am pleased and recommend this Nail Bar to anyone if you are looking for a reasonably priced classy hip nail bar!

Updating my review and giving my review one less star for the following. My mom took me to get my nails done so I wanted to bring her to varnish. She left and told me she wouldn’t be coming back because they charged her an additional $ 10 to remove gel on her hands and feet. My mom got the varnish signature treatment with her mani pedi and gel for $ 117. You would think they would excuse the gel removal. Even their website says its $ 5 for removal. The bottom line is the principle. If you’re getting their most expensive treatment their you shouldn’t have to pay for additional removal. My mom was shocked. All in all she paid $ 190 for her and me plus tip. Service is great as always but my nail tech seemed very rush and not as nice as last time.

This nail bar is exceptional for all the right reasons — meticulous attention to detail, gentle care, and skilled personable staff. Derek, the owner, ensure each and every customer receives the best experience possible. Varnish Nail Bar will have your nails looking pristine and just the way you love them! Hands down!

Love it here. They do great work and are very nice. Definitely my new favorite. What a great find!

Absolutely THE best nail salon! Atmosphere is serene yet modern design, clean, doesn’t smell like chemicals, front desk man is wonderful and kind, they treat you like a queen, romantic comedies play on the TV, massage chair, great technicians. I LOVE this place!

One of the best places in the area for a man/​pedi. They are clean, are always playing cute movies and Derek will work with you on your appointment time, let you know if they are running late or can take you early. Love coming here!

After 1 month my nails have just started to peel. Great customer service! It was little pricier than other places which is fine considering my nails are still intact. The only thing I wasn’t a fan of were the gloves I had to wear under the UV lamps. Otherwise it’s a gem!

First time here… 2 weeks ago…
Personal Experience:
My gel nails are still in tact. Nothing peeling, chipping or breaking. I appreciate you taking the time on each finger, going back to cut cuticle that was missed earlier, to every perfect coat and the beautiful nails I still have. I feel at this point, gel prices should be lower, but I got exactly what I paid for, 2 great lasting weeks of gel — even through the 2 weeks of dishes and cleaning of house!

I have not gotten my nails done in awhile because I haven’t really found a right place to go to for the past year. I went on Unilocal to check out some nail salons around the area and I stumbled upon the varnish nail bar. I read the reviews and decided to try it out. When arriving, they greeted me and the place felt so warm and inviting, I loved it! The nail service was great, I got a manicure and a pedicure. I am definitely coming here again! Was not disappointed at all and I will definitely be recommending this place to my friends!

I’ve been coming here for a few years now. It’s close to both my work and home. Varnish offers exactly what I want in a mani-​pedi spot: clean, comfortable, friendly, well-​priced and professional.
I have natural nails which I keep short, so I can’t speak to the gels or nail art. But for what I like, this place is perfect. Plus, Varnish does not have the air of oppression and chaos some salons have, which gives it more pleasant vibe than than most.

This place is awesome! Around the corner from my office. They are professional and nice and it’s one of the best gel manicures I’ve ever had. Plus they finish that and a pedicure in under an hour.
Only tough part is parking.

Lovely place! I’m glad my colleague introduced me to this place because I really liked it.
It feels tidy and clean, and the staff is very prompt and nice. They hardly ever speak to each other but rather they make conversation with you. The lady that did my nails was wonderful — she made conversation with me, made suggestions, and did a wonderful job for $ 15 for normal non-​gel manicure.

I got a fungus on my toe nails for the first time in my life after getting a pedi here. I’ve been to some questionable nail salons in my life, but I’ve never gotten a fungus before. BEWARE!!!

I love this place. Friendly staff, great nails, and calm atmosphere. Always do a stellar job matching whatever crazy new Pinterest photo I bring in!

My review is based on my first (and only) experience at varnish. My husband had bought me a gift certificate for their $ 75 spa mani/​pedi package, and I finally got around to making an appointment to use it. I walked in the day before and made my appointment for Friday night– obviously it would be busy but I thought making an appointment in advance would give me some kind of priority. Turns out it didn’t.
I was surrounded by regulars who got their feet and hands worked on at the same time while I sat and waited and had 1 person doing my manicure THEN pedicure. After almost an hour and I half I asked them to rush my pedi and give me credit for the unused portion. The amount credited was $ 6, but it wasn’t until after I left I realized that didn’t make sense if my package included sugar scrubs I didn’t receive. I’m not saying I won’t be back and give them another try but my first impression wasn’t the greatest. They were super nice, management just seemed a little frazzled.

So far so good. They were always accommodating. The manager is a boxing fan and that always helps;) clean cozy lil place. Parking is not so good. But the customer service definitely makes up for it.
Five stRs all the way. My hubby and I love this place so far

Came here after the beach, needed my toes done badly and after reading all the Unilocal reviews I decided to give this place a try!!! Love how they decorated the place! Very small but very nice! I like how their pedi bowls they use liners so that is a plus knowing that it’s clean!
I had the pedi milk bath that came w the callus removal and sugar scrub! It was really nice and my feet felt really good! So that was a plus!
What I notice that I dnt like was that the buffer and file she re used! Not only that but I could also tell that the pumice stone looks like it was used more than once! But when I look around some tech did had new buffers and file tho! So I just happen to have the one that ddnt use new on me! I tip her pretty well even when I wasn’t too happy about that since my toes was in really bad shape and she did do a great job cleaning my cuticles really good!
Overall I did like the atmosphere and would really give this place another try! But I will speak up next time! Would the higher price than other salons, I would expect everything to be at its overall best with making sure that all tools are new and not reuse!

I recently moved to the area and drove past this cute little salon and decided to give it a try. I came in Friday evening and the place was really small and very quiet. There is only maybe 8 pedicure seats, so you can imagine its a smaller salon. It’s located on a busy street, so I was notified by the owner I can just park at the Chipotle parking just down the street.
I wanted to go all out so I got the almond milk pedicure and it was an hour of pure bliss! She cleaned by cuticles, did a scrub, removed my callus and did a wonderful job on my nail polish. The place is a bit pricier than most other places, but at the same time you get some peace and quiet while you get your nails done. The staff is unbelievably nice and extremely accommodating! I also love that I can watch a movie while relaxing. Cannot wait to come back!

I sort of fail in the girly category. Why? Well, when it comes to my hands they aren’t quite in the best shape. Don’t get me wrong: my hands are soft with long, feminine fingers. I don’t have weird calluses or liver spots. The problem is that I bite my cuticles in times of high anxiety and I also stink at applying nail polish with my non-​dominant hand. With that being said, I knew I needed a manicure to help beautify my digits. A Unilocal search revealed Varnish and so off I went for some pampering.
Varnish is a small, corner salon located in the Burbank/​Toluca Lake border across the street from the well-​known Mexican eatery Don Cuco’s. I had made an appointment for a Quickie Manicure (trim, cuticle treatment, hand & forearm massage, nail polish application — $ 15); and didn’t think to leave too much earlier than my set time. That was a mistake as Varnish is HORRIBLE with the parking situation. There is no available lot and the streets are quite full and limited with what sides you can park on. I had to park several blocks over! Definitely take that into consideration.
Stepping foot into Varnish, one is greeted by a pleasant receptionist (a male during my visit). He was quite friendly and professional, immediately standing up to welcome me and explaining that I can begin by choosing my nail polish color. Varnish features a wide selection of Essie and OPI polish which most of us ladies adore. Light, dark, glitter, sheer, french tips… they have any color that you seek in the rainbow and beyond.
The salon is quite narrow and basically a long rectangle shape. Don’t expect anything fancy as it is suitable but not at all how it looks on the website. Varnish isn’t a spa or a high-​end nail salon (there IS a flat screen TV to watch movies on but it was some made-​for-​tv movie cheeseball land when I was there). Yet, the service makes up for the lack of interior frill.
Lan was my nail tech and she was attentive to her work and somewhat quiet but also very bubbly when spoken to; asking questions about me and sounding like she genuinely cares. Her work was great, as her skill level definitely shined through. Never once did I feel rushed and Lan would ask me every step of the way if I was pleased and/​or needed more work done. The massage was relaxing and the polish application was spotless. I even messed up a nail under the dryer and Lan was very patient and redid the nail. She is much recommended.
Some minor notes: I really enjoyed that none of the employees at Varnish held inter-​staff conversations. I find it very rude and unprofessional when employees at nail salons speak amongst themselves in foreign languages the whole time. It makes me uncomfortable, I worry they are talking about me, and I feel that they aren’t paying attention to their work. That isn’t the case at Varnish. Another positive is that Varnish accepts tips to be charged with your card. This is rarely the protocol at beauty salons and makes Varnish standout.
Long story short, I was very pleased with my nails (they look gorgeous). I will definitely return and request Lan. Again, parking is complicated and the salon isn’t high-​end bourgeois; but it is worth the great prices and service. Varnish is a solid choice when looking to make your hands and toes pretty!