Polish n’ Refine

I’m so confused by this place based on my first and only visit last week. I wanted to like it based on the reviews and the proximity to home. However, I refuse to return to places that cut me, resulting in a painful sting for a few days. I got a gel mani and a pedi. The pedi wasn’t anything special. Actually, the nails were cut really awkwardly so I had to fix the shape of my toe nails when i returned home. It was definitely a no frills pedi — they don’t speak in hushed tones to one another when they’re working on someone (most people probably don’t care?), chair didn’t massage, the tubs aren’t lined, and the tools weren’t opened from a package. Clean freaks probably won’t care for it.
The gel mani was one of the worst I’ve received. First she cut the skin on my thumb, and before I could even say «ow!» she dabbed something on it to cause it to sting like heck. It didn’t stop the bleeding and I was praying it would prevent an infection (since, again, the tools weren’t from a sterile package. I should’ve ran away then but since I had a wedding that weekend, I just wanted the job to be finished. Plus, being pregnant, I’m too tired these days to do it on my own. The application was super sloppy, it wasn’t applied to the sides of the nails until I insisted upon it and the polish was all over my skin. It was all bumpy too after curing. The cut wasn’t treated gently at all so nail polish remover kept being swept all over it (ahh! seriously?). Now I have a nice red scab. Honestly, my nails looked better before coming in since I usually do them myself for this reason, but thought I’d give this place a chance for a special event based on the reviews. I’m beyond baffled at the cost too. Anyways, wanted to give an honest review based on my experience. Thinking nail art is their draw?? Hoping it was just me, either way I’m too scared to return.

I had a very specific request since I was getting ready to head to a music fest, and my nails look great! I have received so many compliments and I keep staring at my hands — yay!

They are very friendly here and do a wonderful and thorough job with your nails. Prices are on the higher side, however, and you don’t get any perks like a shoulder massage when you sit for your nails to dry

I booked Monica a year in advance for a mani/​pedi on my wedding day. This girl has got a gift! If you want grade A service, this is the place to go… but, just make sure that you make an appointment. She is a very busy woman! :) If you end up not being able to get an appointment with Monica, the other women do a beautiful job too. I have never walked out of Polish n Refine disappointed.

Monica and her crew are just like family. You want to go to a nail salon that takes the time to care about your nails and life as much as you do.

I’ve had a problem finding good nail salons in the past, but this place is great! I have been twice and will go for my 3^rd time next Friday. The only reason that I don’t go all the time is that I live up in Malden and Polish n’ Refine is too far. I get my hair done down the block, so I have vowed to make time for my nails every time I make a hair appointment.
Both times I went, I got a $ 25 gel manicure and a $ 25 regular pedicure. The women there are so nice and the job they did on my nails has been perfect both times. My gel manis last a long time. The only reason I’ve taken off the polish both times is because I had dark polish and didn’t feel like filling in the bottom (new nail growth). They would have lasted 3+ weeks if I had. Pedis last a long time too. About 3 weeks before chipping.
This might not be the norm, but both times, I’ve had one person do my gel nails at the same time as I was getting a pedi from someone else. I loved this has it got me out of there quicker. In any case — I will be back as often as I’m in the area as this is, by far, my favorite nail place in Greater Boston!

Always take lots of care and time, even when doing a manicure. Very sweet and friendly. Polish always lasts a long time. And very inexpensive !

My assessment of the pedicure I received this evening:
Pros:
— pedicures are $ 25
— covered the basics: foot soak, nails and cuticles trimmed, feet exfoliated, legs briefly massaged
— excellent range of polish colors
— pretty much everyone who works there seems to be a native English speaker so it’s easy to communicate
— the women who work there were very friendly and helpful
— large magazine selection
Drawbacks:
— strong smell of chemical fumes upon entering
— pedicure is on the shorter side (although not rushed)
— nail drying station is a bit beat up but it got the job done
— tips must be in cash (this is not stated anywhere however)
Overall, I was satisfied, especially for what it cost. I’ll go somewhere else when I want to treat myself to a luxurious pedicure, but I’ll go back here again when I’m looking for a decent pedicure that won’t break the bank.

I love love love this place! Very clean!
They are so sweet. They get to know you!
Monica is super friendly & so is her staff.
They do amazing jobs. I always recommend them to friends & family.
They have a good selection of colors to chose from also.

After hearing good things about this placed from several people, I though if give it a try! I booked online which was really convenient! I got a gel manicure… and its awesome! I can’t remember the woman’s name who did my nails but she was so sweet! made conversation with me the whole time, and asked me after every coat of polish if I was enjoying myself! It was $ 25, which I thought was quite reasonable! YOU CANNOT LEAVE A TIP BY CREDIT CARD!!! which I felt horrible about because I only had $ 2 in cash! would have given her more than that of I had it! Can’t wait to go back and get a pedicure!

Haven’t gotten my nails done in over a year and when I made the decision to once again go here I experienced nothing but satisfaction. My wedding is tomorrow and I went in very last minute to have my nails done. I got my nails done by Monica again and she was so amazingly friendly. I showed her a picture of what I wanted and she made it happen. I’m so beyond happy with how my nails came out. Will never go anywhere else except here

I can never complain about my nails when leaving Polish and Refine! The atmosphere there is so friendly and I’m always so happy how my nails turn out! My manicure is always on point as well as my pedicures. This is the only place I trust to care for my nails :)

Ok so I’ve only lived in Boston about a year now. I am super picky about my nails so finding a nail salon that understands what you want and not do what they want is very hard. I found a place in hyde park that’s great BUT u can’t make an appointment and the wait is insane (I sat there for 4hrs between waiting and getting them done)…so essentially I gave up on them, I didn’t want to spend my entire day off in a nail salon. My search for a nail salon continued! I like acrylics and have gotten them for years, I needed to find my new nail girl! :(Polish n’ Refine came up in my search among a ton of others on centre street. Read over the reviews among other places and settled on this one. I did not know there was only 1 person who did acrylics and it was by appointment only, so unfortunately I had to take myself down the street for a full set and ended up going home to reshape all of my nails. Grrr. Called polish and refine and got an appointment when my refill was due and after being completely frustrated with 2 nails coming off I knew I wasn’t going back to the other place, **(It is street parking, so go a little before your appointment to find parking with enough time.)
I FOUND MY NEW NAIL PLACE! Monica is great! (the only one who does acrylics) she literally dissected my nails, refilled and reshaped to my hearts content! She makes conversation with you to get to know you, which I loved since it was my first time and of course I was skeptical, she kept making sure I was ok with my nails and the shape. Quality! Finally someone who cares! She was very thorough! I did not walk out of there without having set my next appointment! Thank you Monica, I will see you in 2 weeks!

What a great find! It is close to my school so I thought I would treat myself a few times a month. They have reasonable prices! Big win!

I came in looking for a mani and pedi first off the nail selection was ok not much to choose from very dull. I’m so used to my salon I got to but they were all booked up so I figured why not try this place from all the good reviews bad decision. The pedicure was alright the women she was young around 20s was very aggressive and did not even massage my feet feel like they need moisturizer so the pedi was not a good experience paint job ok but how hard is it to paint toes anyways.
Let’s get to the awful manicure first off she had me dip my fingers in stemming hot water.
Then she started working on them no massage what so ever and when she did I still had my ring on so uncomfortable. She never had me wash my hands either what was all that about. On top of everything put a hot stemming yellow smelly towel on my hands I almost freaked um I’m so grossed out I bit my tongue. And she kept answering her phone so rude.
She started painting that was ok when I asked for a heart on my ring finger she couldn’t do it it right it looked awful had her redo it two times finally I just painted the whole nail with metallic glitter. Her bedside manner was awful she didn’t even say thank you when I left her a good tip.
If I would have got a sorry and a thank you cause she doesn’t know how to be creative that’s why I stopped into this place and she has no manners. Whoever it is that you Unilocalers rave about on Unilocal I did not get her to do my nails I lucked out and left feeling aggravated that will be my first and last time there.

Wish I could give this place five stars, but unfortunately my experience with the service wasn’t great. Don’t get me wrong, I had an excellent pedicure.
I had a scheduled appointment for 12:30. I was two minutes late because I had to find street parking and I had to circle around Centre St. a few times. They looked pretty busy when I walked in, but told me to choose my color for the polish. It was my first time here, but they were not very warm and welcoming. No one told me how long I had to wait, even though it was well past my appointment time. I had to ask them how much longer I had to wait and they finally started my pedicure at 12:50 with no apology for running so late. I was already rubbed the wrong way since service makes for a lot of the overall experience you have at a salon.
Anyways, when they finally started my pedicure, I was very pleased. Very professional and probably best pedicure I’ve had. The technician was very thorough and the massage felt great. She couldn’t speak English very well, which was okay, since I just relaxed on the massage chair and caught up on my emails.
Will certainly be back in the future, and I hope that the lack of great service today was only because they were so busy before the holidays.

I’m writing while still receiving my pedicure. I asked the woman working on my feet to please scrub a little extra on my heels because they were super dry (it’s been a while). Turns out, she’s been scrubbing my feet for like 20 minutes! She even went back and scrubbed some more after applying lotion because she felt a bit of additional dry skin. My feet are scrubbed so well, I can serve cheese and crackers off of them! This woman is not messing around.
This is my first visit. Everyone is very nice!
My heels needed some extra TLC and they received plenty of it! Very pleased.
Extra bonus, pedicure is $ 25. I’m not a regular nail chick, but I think that’s a good price! Yay — I’ll be back!

Nice staff. Great experience.
It’s always best to make an appointment, they do well sticking to them and they are a priority.
The technicians are always helpful when I’m struggling to pick a color. The regular pedicures are also very relaxing, I’ve watch a spa pedicure and it looks amazing!

Great pedicure! While I remain loyal to my usual pedicure in Brookline, I need to have a good «back up» place and looked through Unilocal to see what I could find. P & R had good reviews, so I thought I would just take a chance on a warm Saturday (yeah, those happen occasionally in New England) and walk in.
While there was a lot going on, the woman said she could get me in but did say it would be with someone who was «a little slow», and asked if that was OK? Fine with me… I would rather have someone take their time than rush through it, and I had time anyhow.
She was very nice, great leg massage, and my feet look nice. At the end, another woman came over to do the color (maybe to speed things up?) but all was good and I would definitely return. $ 25 for the pedicure, and they have a punch card thing (maybe buy 10 get 1 free?).

Best full set I have ever had done! Monica is fantastic !! She is in demand so make an appointment. All ladies are very nice and place very clean. I had great pedis as well!
I go every 2 wks for a fill and polish change and Monica always keeps me current on what is stylish. I’ve been all over dedham, west Roxbury and Rossi and polish & refine is the best!!! They are also open late every night (closed Mondays)