Profile

Located directly across from the always-packed Mario Batali boîte Casa Mono, Aspa & Nails is a subtle cut above your typical neighborhood nail place. A few steps down from street level, the immaculate corner space boasts fancy touches like marble floors and piped-in classical music, but it still packs its clients elbow-to-elbow at a dozen or so mani-pedi stations, resulting in fast-paced though efficient service. While the polish selection is standard—the usual spectrums from OPI and Essie predominate—the treatment menu stretches as long as RuPaul's acrylic tips, with seven manicure options, including paraffin and children's manis, and the same amount of pedicure choices. The salon also offers waxing, facials, and basic massages in two private rooms, but their bread and butter is hands and feet: Come lunch breaks, rush hour, or weekend date night, the room fills with smartly-dressed working girls reporting for their weekly dose of polish, pampering, and gossip rags. — Carolyn Murnick