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Like Pulp Fiction's Vincent Vega, Li Cheng, the bubbly Shanghai-born owner of this modest Midtown massage outfit, knows a foot rub is not just a foot rub. The acupressure specialist, who opened up shop in May 2006 above a Blimpie & Twin Donut on Little Brazil Street, claims the medley of Chinese potions that she mixes for her famous herbal foot rubs helps detoxify the entire body, and thus improves skin clarity. While feet soak in wooden basins, Cheng pushes reflexology points and squeezes toes, ankles, and calves to alleviate pain and fatigue. The peony petal-speckled, milky jelly bath is deliciously warm and gooey. Yang-deficient guys go for energizing Tibetan seaweed and saffron soaks with cooling menthol. Cleansing back massages, another popular choice with male clients, consist of a steam, exfoliation, and mask treatment, followed by a “hard” or “medium” rubdown by estheticians in blue doctor’s scrubs. Parafango body wraps,  facials, and massages utilizing almond oil-lubricated hot stones, are administered in compartments separated by pale gold curtains. The near-Chinatown prices are matched by a lack of both privacy and English speakers, and each massage’s unhappy ending comes with the jarring beeping of a hand timer. — Rose Reis

Two hours, any combination of services, costs $110; three hours, any combination of services, costs $150.