Salon Amarti

As a former hairdresser I am pretty picky about where I get my hair done. I 100% trust Sammy with my hair. He does a fantastic job on my highlights and cut. He does exactly what I ask for each and every time I come to the salon. I am a very satisfied customer :-) I love the specials the salon offers — such a reasonable price for such great work!!!

Came here with a Groupon for a cut, style and deep conditioning. Everyone here was so nice and accommodating. I originally had an appointment at 5:30 pm but decided that I wanted to go on my lunch break so I called them and they were more than happy to take me at 1 pm! I got there at 12:30 and was immediately shampooed and they started the deep conditioning. Then by 1 pm I was sitting in the chair ready to get my hair cut. Sammy cut my hair and did a great job, I have long thick curly Indian hair and he took his time putting layers in it and then took the time to blow it straight. Great overall experience.

Whenever I need a haircut, I immediately go to Groupon and Living Social. I never find the need to pay full price, especially living in the Washington, DC area. With that said, I am still very careful about looking at reviews before I purchase a Groupon. My method isn’t for everyone. If you’re looking for consistency, don’t follow my bargain hunting methods.
In this case, I wanted just a little change, so I sought out a Groupon for partial highlights. I hadn’t had my hair cut in about 5 months, but my hair grows out well, so I technically could have gone without.
I found Salon Amarti on Groupon, purchased it, called the next day, and I found myself with an appointment the very next day. I appreciated that I could make it here after work, and they had plenty of availability.
When I walked in, I found that I was the only one there. My stylist was Trepka. Even though I was early, she immediately sat me down and started. She asked what I was looking for. Here is where I am both the best customer ever and the worst: my motto is that hair will always grow back. The stylist does this for a living, and she should know what will be best for me. I told her that my only caveats were that my hair needed to still be able to be put into a ponytail, and I needed to be able to put little to no work into it every day. She took my instruction (or lack thereof) with grace. She asked me a few more questions and then was off to mix up highlight colors.
Trepka was quite honestly the sweetest stylist I have ever had. Normally, I prefer not to engage with chatty stylists who are interested in gossip. Trepka and I talked a bit about her experiences between here and Bulgaria and about my own here. The conversations felt natural with her. It never felt uncomfortable when it was quiet either. She was also extremely efficient.
On to the best part… when you sit down to have your hair washed, the chairs are massaging. Seriously, why don’t more salons invest in this? It was magical.
Trepka left me with a low maintenance cut and highlights that require no upkeep and will blend naturally as they fade out. She is awesome. I highly recommend her.

Because of the behavior of the male hair dresser, and the mess-​up with my billing at the end, I would give them zero star, if that was an option.
The one star is in recognition of the good job of the lady who was in charge of my hair.
I went in for a much needed haircut and style after a week of snow storms and out of town trips which led to an $ 87 Groupon that had expired 3 days earlier by the time I stepped into Salon Amarti.
Prior to all this, I called to make an appointment.
They refused to recognize my Groupon. I told them they still need to recognize the value. They said OK but I have to pay an additional $ 87 telling me the groupon was for half price of that service. I told them that based on their website, I would like to get what $ 87 covers regular price.
I walk in at my appointment time. My slot is already taken. The super nice woman who greets me tells me they will honor the prices and specials on their website. I see $ 105 for cut and partial highlights on their website and she tells me yes, they will do it.
I wait for my turn. The lady who takes me is another one. I am explaining what I want, my situation with the Groupon etc. I tell her that I will get the $ 50 haircut as the normal cost listed on their website and additional service totaling $ 87 or a bit more such as the haircut and highlights special of $ 105 shown on their website
. She says ok. In the middle of our conversation, the male in the salon who appears to be the boss or manager rudely interrupts and says they cannot do that etc, no special on top of a special, that I should ask groupon to refund my money etc. Rude. Plain rude.
The fact is they are not honoring the groupon special anymore, I am paying the full price as shown on their website and simply trying to explain what I want for my hair to the nice lady who is assigned to do my hair. I ask for the $ 50 haircut and style and 10 highlights, $ 6 each (the ‘each highlighting option). So, the total would be $ 50+60 = $ 110 if he won’t let me do that $ 105 price listed. So, my extra cost on top of the $ 87 I already paid would be $ 110-​$ 87 = $ 23. I am showing them their own website prices on my phone during this conversation.
So, this conversation is being turned into an uncomfortable situation in front of other customers because this man chose to interrupt our conversation. I am already feeling very embarrassed. He is doing everything he can to intimidate me.
He says ok, they will do that.
I sit on the chair. He goes to the counter. She goes to the counter. They whisper rudely behind my back.
She comes, does highlights. She is super nice. I wait a long time in the hair washing area while she is checking her phone. I notice the other customer who was behind handled by the man had actually been waiting there much longer too. I say ‘excuse me’ for a towel under my neck and for my hair to be washed. Done. She meticulously does my hair. Very nice job.
2 hours after my original appointment time, the job is done, I am finally ready to pay. I ask her how much more should I pay and she shows me $ 65 on her calculator. So, the total is $ 87+$ 65 = 152 when it should have been $ 110 according to the service I requested. I have no idea where she came with that number. I started to ask her but the man came to the counter. I was already late for my next appointment. So, I paid the full amount, left her a generous cash tip for her labor because I assume the male will take most of the $ 152 money and got out of there as fast as possible.
Overall — If I have to pay full price, I would go to my regular salon folks who are always super nice.
I wanted to try this new place with my groupon.
I felt intimidated, and discriminated, pushed around when I was just asking questions.
The highlights she gave me do not color my greys. They seem to highlight the greys. She seemed so rushed when doing them.
To the the salon: You don’t whisper rudely and strategize how to take advantage of a new customer who comes in with a groupon that expired just a few days ago, behind their back. You just don’t do that. That is so rude!
Not going back to this place. Too bad. It seems nice but after almost 24 hours, I still feel like you took advantage of me. I bought the groupon to save money. I told you I would pay the regular price because the groupon expired. You took that regular price plus a lot extra for I don’t know what.

Had a color and cut with Trepka a couple weeks ago and had a great experience. Went mid-​afternoon on a weekday so it was a little quieter. She was very attentive, and immediately sat me down first and did a full consultation about what I wanted as far as color and style. Got a great bright red color and the style is what I wanted. Overall she did a great job and I will definitely be back.

I was able to get an appointment the same day I called for cut and highlights. The salon was clean and not too busy (weekday afternoon). My stylist did a good job and was pleasant to talk with. I didn’t feel rushed or forgotten about. I was pleasantly surprised that I was done in just one hour. The only negative was that he smelled like cigarettes.

It was my first time visiting the salon because of a Groupon deal.
When I called, they were available to cut my hair on the next day. I arrived early (at 5:30) for my appointment at 6 pm and they took me right away. It was a Thursday evening so the salon was not busy but it was still very clean and ready for customers.
My stylist was Nasy, and I have very thin and fine hair. She sat me down, had a consultation with me and asked me what I wanted and expected. After going through some ideas and coming to an agreement, she shampooed my hair and then started cutting.
At first I was very shocked with how short it was when Nasy was finished. Once I got home, washed my hair and styled it myself I really liked it. I got a longer angled bob cut with layers. I got complements all weekend on the haircut and it grew on me more. The overall cut itself was great and after getting over the initial shock of the length, I really love my haircut.
I will definitely go back to Nasy for my next hair cut.

Sami has been cutting my hair for close to 15 years. I drive from DC to Alexandria because I like his work and can usually get an appt the same day or just a day in advance. The salon is well decorated, with high quality massage chairs for hair washing – I never want to get up after they wash my hair because I’m too relaxed by then. These are not the crappy massage chairs that dig into your back and throw you every which way during a pedicure at the nail salons, but the kind where you can feel tiny balls sliding gently along the muscles up and down the spine. Sami is a good guy and I’m glad his salon is a success.

I used to work right in Old Town so I have been coming to this place to get my hair cut and/​or highlighted for years! I have always thought they have been efficient, professional and very clean. This past couple times I have seen Sammy who has trimmed and highlighted and has now low lighted my hair. I think he does a great job. He listens to what I want about not to cut to much or the color I am going for. I always walk out very pleased and receive nice compliments on my hair. I think they are moderately priced compared to some of the other expensive salons in the DMV. I recommend this salon to anyone in the Alexandria area.

I booked an appointment a month in advance for a manicure and pedicure the day before our wedding and spoke to them twice on the phone. I used vacation, left work early, and went to my appointment. I ended up waiting for 40 minutes (I was 30 minutes early), to find out the nail technician was on vacation for the week. The stylist (they had no one working the front desk) did apologize, which I appreciate, but does not fix the situation. I will never use this salon.

I stopped in today on my way home from spin class. I was looking at the hours to see if I had time to run home and shower, and Sammy told me he could take me right then. I really appreciate that. He did a good job and the price of the cut was good, especially for this area. I will definitely be back!

I am incredibly disappointed with my experience with Salon Amarti. Prior to purchasing my Living Social deal, I read all the reviews. I went in with high hopes after reading that the salon deals well with «long, dark, indain hair». I had a terrible experience with my stylist Nacy, and would not recommend their hair services to anyone.
I have been growing my hair for 2 years, and when I walked in, my hair was down to my bellybutton. I explicitly asked for 5 – 6 inches to be trimmed, and for my hair to lie mid-​chest/​bust. I pointed and motioned to the location on my body multiple times during the consult, and asked the hairdresser if she knew where to cut to before the process began. She seemed confident and in agreement with me about the process. She also demanded that I remove my glasses before the cut began… you can see where this is going.
When I looked in the mirror following the haircut and saw my hair had been cut to an inch ABOVE my chest, a significant difference. I was absolutely dismayed — it took me 2 years to get my hair to that length I walked in with. She attempted to explain the situation away, saying that she had lined the cutting up with a letter on the cape and that «I had wanted it shorter for summertime» (as though that gave her license to take all the extra length off), and that it would look better once it was dried. I stood in the salon in absolute shock and repeatedly went over our consultation, at which point she admitted fault and stated that she should have had me stand during the cut. Great, that observation is of no use to me now. She didn’t even cut in a large chunk, there were tiny sections of hair scattering the floor so I couldn’t even have the hair donated for a cause. Maybe she is great with short hair, but I recommend another salon if you have long hair and want to maintain your length.

I just got out of this salon and am never coming back. I used the Groupon deal for cut, color and style, and can honestly say that this place is not worth your time or money.
First off, when I arrived on time they made me wait 15 minutes with no apology. They also forgot about me while my color was setting. However, my biggest frustration is that the stylists here so not listen to you or your eyes to understand you. I told them at the beginning what I was looking for (color, a trim of my split ends (only half an inch at the most) and volume).
My stylist instead ignored me and had the stylist use moisturizing shampoo and no product whatsoever except spray! He scoffed at me and told me my hair already was voluminous. I really think I know my hair better, and felt it was rude of him to argue with me– right?
The worst part was the stylist who brushed my hair so hard and blasted it with a hot, hot dryer even though I asked her three times to cool it down. My hair is limp, thin, rats tail with flyaways everywhere– the worst way to have it look during Christmas time. She didn’t even style it– just blow dryed and brushed it into oblivion.
And after all that he tried to charge me $ 25 extra for doing a partial color instead of a full color! Can you believe it? I tipped him $ 15 but should not have.

If you’re short on time and you need a quick mani/​pedi this is the place.
This is my second visit to this salon; both visits were a result of a groupon deal. The salon is located in the heart of old towne Alexandria with street parking available within walking distance of the salon. This salon keeps it simple with the basic manicure and does not offer gel but does offer spa pedicures. While most salons may be busy after work hours this one was not; you could take that as a good or bad thing. I was in and out within an hour.

Trepka is the only reason I come here. I trust her with my hair and she’s never let me down.

Nasy was my stylist for a Groupon haircut, full color, and style.
She did a fantastic job in listening to what I wanted. I have very long, very curly hair and have had horrific haircuts with people who don’t do curly hair well in the past. I’m about 8 weeks away from my wedding so I was super extra nervous about this decision but I’m on a tight budget and decided to try this out.
I didn’t have an exact color in mind but I gave her vague descriptions and came out with a very natural looking color that corrected 6 months of roots and a previously over-​processed color job very well. I just wanted the ends trimmed but I wanted to keep my length and add some long layers to give my hair some shape without creating too much body and Nasy delivered.
I made the call to not dry and ‘style’ my hair, but she did put in plenty of product so I wouldn’t air dry into a poodle, and she styled my bangs just the way I like them.
There are other salons in Old Town that will give you more «upscale service» but I’m perfectly happy to go here again.

I’ve been here before almost 2 years back and loved the way my layers were done and saw a groupon for them again and thought to try them out again! I have dark long (Indian) hair and have partial highlights. I went in thinking to get my hair dyed all one color and get rid of the highlights since I’m experiencing a lot of gray at the top of my head that I want to cover up. My appointment was with Nacey and she looked at my hair and recommended that I don’t dye it all one color and recommended getting more highlights to cover up the gray. I agreed and she gave me highlights and cut my hair and gave me more layers. For anyone who wants layers, she is the BEST person to go to because she will really define and shape your hair and is a perfectionist at doing so! My highlights were amazing and my cut was phenomenal! I was very very pleased with her.
The only downside to my visit was that they tend to overbook and manage 2 clients at one time. Nacey was shuffling through me and another customer and I was getting a little annoyed with that because I think it’s important to give all your attention to one customer so there is no room for errors at all.

I first went to this salon because of a groupon/​living social deal.
I went in for a highlight. I have curly hair and lots of it.
I ended up with highlight/​lowlights. My old stylist whom I loved moved and I needed to try somewhere new and this place turned out very lovely.
They shared with me a deal they had on karatin treatments so on the following month before my sister’s wedding I did the karatin treatment for the first time in my life. I had originally scheduled an appointment in NYC. Time didn’t permit me to make it up there but I’m really glad it didn’t work out because Salon Amarti did a FANTASTIC job!
I was a knock out at my sister’s wedding. It cost nearly $ 100 less than it would have in NYC and I love the staff there. They were really friendly and I’ll probably be back soon!

I went for a mani pedi and I’m not sure that I would go again. The staff is friendly but the salon feels old, out dated and dirty. The mani/​pedi station has an old, run down massage chair with a ripped seat. Towels used for the manis and pedis were frayed and looked like rags. Many of the nail polishes looked to be expired. I did not see any license or certification info posted.
There are a ton of well kept salons in this area that charge the same price as this one. Go to one that has better standards than this one.

This is the salon I go back to! I started with a Groupon (and end up going very regularly on a Groupon – I’m a student, so, yah), but it’s not a place that requires Groupons to stay afloat.
They’re a quality salon without being snooty – sometimes there’s a bit of a language barrier, but Nacey (my regular) gives me a great bob every time. I even branched out into color with them, and I’ve never gotten so many compliments in my life.
They do a great job fitting me in, but that’s a bit of a problem, too– they’ll double book and jockey you in the chairs – which means sometimes you feel a little shuffled around – but always a good cut.
Do it!