Shanghai Stress Free

one up one down. first massage i had here was good. second was borderline terrible. i will go back probably bc its in the neighborhood, but will make sure to scan the reviews to try and pick someone recommended and book in advance.

The lady in the front is good at taking reservations but not so good at holding reservations. I arrived on time for my appointment but I had to wait 25 minutes to finally make it to the table. Very poor communication regarding the delay.
The male masseuse was the least competent I have experienced in NYC. After five minutes I changed my duration from an hour to half hour because it didn’t seem wise to waste the time or money.
Next time I’ll venture further from my apartment.

Good and very friendly. Warm and clean environment. The massage was a bit hard, but overall I would go back.

I love this place. Yes, it is a little low on amenities. But $ 60 for 60 minutes. I have been 4 times every time is different but exceptional.

Bad Vibes, Shanghai. I add my voice to the chorus of Unilocalers frustrated by your inability to treat customers with basic respect and consideration. Management is rude, disorganized and always pulling some weird BS
Show up for your reservation and you may be waiting for 25 minutes. Masseuse abruptly switched out in the middle of a massage? Seriously?
It’s a no frills experience, SOME of the masseuses are solid and the song from Titanic is played every hour. If the management was decent I might go there from time to time.

Bring cash. I discovered at the counter that they charge extra for using credit cards. I had an hour-​long $ 60 massage; this meant an additional $ 5 charge.
I found the massage itself uninspiring; too many mysterious actions back there. But it was decent, and it’s close by and a lot cheaper than the fancy alternatives. I think it’s the kind of place you try 2 – 3 times before you write it off for good.

Very professional, wonderful massage!

This was a great massage! Cassie was my masseuse and she was wonderful. I was really, really impressed by the massage. I can’t speak for the other masseuses, but Cassie rocked it and I’ll definitely be going back.

Great place to stop in for a massage. My sister tried this place and invited me after I was complaining about tension in my back and shoulder. Well, boy did «John» (at least that’s what he told me his name was) worked out all the kinks and knots in my muscles. From the pressure and rubbing to the hot stones, I felt like a new woman!
I’ll definitely go back. The service is good. And the staff are welcoming and polite. The place was pretty empty when we came in for our massages.
Aesthetically, however, don’t expect to be wowed! The goal here is to get a massage, feel renewed, and go about your business (whatever that may be… for me it’s usually lunch and shopping… hey, a girl’s got to continue with the goal of relaxation, right).

I have had massages twice — the first time was fantastic, and I made an appointment with the same person for the following day. When I arrived, I was told that she wasn’t there, and not coming in, and they gave me another woman, who had no sense of touch, did not respond to calls of pain until I snatched myself away from her. It was frustrating that we could not communicate because she spoke no English. Her massage made me more tense. I stopped it about 35 minutes in because it felt so bad, and although they offered to not have me pay, I did pay for the time I used, and explained my problem to them. Today after several years, I called again to try to book a foot massage appointment. The person who answered the phone had little English and I did not feel confidant that he understood what I wanted. AFter my previous experience I wasn’t willing to waste my time or energy, so I thanked him and cancelled the appointment — he asked if I wanted someone to call me and I sadi that if I could speak with someone who spoke English, it would be helpful. No one called my until 4:45, when they said I had booked an appointment and not shown up. I told her I hadn’t confirmed any booking, but it was too late, said good bye and hung up. richard, the owner then called me immediately and said because I refused to book with someone who didn’t speak english, i wasn’t being very ‘nice’ — obviously implying I was a racist. He began upbraiding me for not «cancelling» when he had just said that I didnt’ book. when I explained the true story and said perhaps he shouldn’t have people not fluent answering the phone, he again sarcastically said I should have had the courtesy to cancel, and if I had a bad experience the last time why was I coming back? As I was explaining that I wanted to give them another chance, he hung up on me.
These people must have a regular clientele as they have been around for a few years, but they are completely clueless when it comes to customer service, as some of the other reviews testify. If you try it, you take a big risk of disappointment, a hassle, a hustle, or being treated rudely — — or you may actually have that great massage people write about. For me it’s not worth the gamble.

Today’s experience at Shanghai Stress Free was anything but. I’m a huge fan of the inexpensive tui-​na massage parlors and was so happy to have one near my house. I’d been twice before and always wish I could afford to go more frequently but even at the reasonable $ 60 for one hour price, once you add a $ 20 tip they are a luxury on my budget. I walked in for a 60 min massage, which started out fine. About half-​way through I heard a male customer walk in who wanted to have a woman massage him but none were available. He said he’d come back but the owner clearly didn’t want to loose his business and insisted he stay. She flung the curtain open in the room where I was being massaged and stuck her head down by my face and announced I was 25 minutes in and I was getting a different person now… which didn’t really bother me apart from the abruptness of the exchange mid-​massage. I get it, sometimes you have to improvise, no problem. But it very quickly became clear that the new masseur clearly had NO IDEA what he was doing. He was hurried and unsure and he kept rubbing the same two spots over and over. Totally obvious that he was winging it — I honestly couldn’t care less if the masseuse or masseur is liscensed or not, as long as you can give a decent massage, but clearly this young man didn’t have much (or possibly any) experience. I was thinking maybe I should stop him early because it was just so ludicrous. I gave the owner $ 60 bucks and walked out without leaving a tip (which made me feel terrible, but so did the massage.) The owner was was very sheepish and kept apologizing when I was leaving. I walked down the street before I decided I wanted to get half of my money back because I felt I was cheated out of half of the massage. She offered me 10 mins free «next time,» and I told her there wouldn’t be a next time and I wanted some of my money back. I then had to wait for her husband to return for about 10 minutes to explain the situation to him (she said she couldn’t give me a refund without his ok.) When I explained to him that the young man who was called to fill-​in clearly had no idea what he was doing the owner insisted that I was wrong and that he was «The best in the business.» I had to laugh. I think it’s cool to stick up for your staff… but give me a break. Ultimately they refunded me $ 10. This whole situation would be fairly humorous if I hadn’t wasted a hard-​earned $ 50 on a completely unpleasant and frustrating experience. Total bummer.

Good Lord did Cassie do a number on my body! It was called for. A year closer to 30 and my birthday twin and I booked ourselves 1-​hour/​$ 60 massages.
The staff were thorough, polite, soothing but firm, and Cassie definitely knew what she was doing. I have a number of sore spots and she helped work the kinks out. I will be going back for another session with Cassie.
The only ONLY complaint I have is that you can occasionally hear noise from other massage rooms or the hallway. I wasn’t too bothered. Mind you, this isn’t a spa-​like environment, though it is clean and I was very, very relaxed. Interesting mix of Kenny G. and Asian instrumental music :)
Ten massages gets you one free! Good deal!

I love this place and go regularly. Julie is my favorite because she’s very strong and I like deep massages with lots of pressure. I also like the guy, who is also strong and very thorough. He does more stretching, Thai-​style, where he gets on top of you and moves you around. Overall, this place provides high-​quality massages at a good price.

I went as a walk-​in for a simple 60-​minute massage. The person who came in about 10 min. after me opted for a 30-​minute massage so he could be squeezed into another massage therapist’s schedule. I was told I’d have to wait another 5 minutes, but would be given 5 minutes free of extra massage. It was Sunday and was in no rush, so it was fine with me. More about this later…
This is a simple, no-​frills establishment. Considering the going-​rate for a massage in this town, the décor is as extravagant as the prices for their services. This is a place for an ambiance-​free massage which is just fine. Aesthetics aside, my only problem with the facility is the lack of sound isolation in the treatment rooms. You hear all sounds in the entire place – mandarin chatter between employees, your neighbor’s moans and groans, and the slappy slap sounds of some massage techniques.
My massage therapist was professional and thorough. The little alarm clock they use to time your session is a little off-​putting but those nuisances are to be expected at a budget place.
So after my pretty effective (unfortunately pain-​free, but good) 60-​minute massage, I had my bonus 5 minutes. The therapist focused solely on my scalp. 5 minutes of indescribable bliss later, my session was over and the place earned its fourth star in my rating.

I have to break the 5-​star streak. Sorry, Shanghai Stress-​Free. I had a nice 30-​minute massage, and like others have said, the place is clean and the staff is pretty polite. There were 2 things that made my experience (in Unilocal’s terms) «A-​OK,» though. I was not impressed when my masseuse started the timer, then talked to me for a couple minutes before actually beginning. I also didn’t like that I was charged 2 $ for using my credit card on an over 30 $ purchase. (So beware! Or bring cash!) Then, I tipped 20%, and apparently that was not enough, because both the cashier and masseuse were pressuring me, saying «that’s it? that’s it? are you sure?» Especially since I already paid the 2 $ charge, I didn’t feel I should pay more than 20%.

This is a great addition to the neighborhood, the staff are friendly, the place is clean, the prices are very reasonable and they do a great job working out the terrible kinks in your neck, back, arms, etc. The woman I had today did an amazing job finding the terrible kinks in my neck and along my spine. And the hot stones are amazing! One hour is $ 60. Just don’t forget your undies because they expect you to take off your pants so they can work on your legs properly. I hope that they stick around!

Great service at a great price. It’s a massage parlor, not a spa, but they have a couples’ room that makes it very nice for a shared decompression. Some other places charge an arm and a leg for treating couples both at the same time, but here it is just the same price (as it should be). The massage itself was very good, powerful but relaxing.

I’ve been working overtime a lot lately and all the stress had concentrated itself in my neck and lower back. So I went Unilocaling this morning to see if there was an affordable massage place near my apartment and found the reviews for Shanghai Stress Free. I walked in without an appointment and now I just got home from having one of the best massages of my life.
Asprey J.‘s review describes the place very well. I asked for the 45 minute massage and when my time was up went ahead and asked for 15 minutes more. It’s not a fancy joint but it’s clean and the staff is very friendly. There was a slight language barrier with the woman who gave
me my massage but nothing insurmountable — for example, I’m kind of a wuss about deep pressure and she didn’t have any trouble understanding when I told her so. She used just the right amount of pressure, found all my kinked-​up spots, and I left with my lower back feeling better than it has in months.
And the hot stones! OMG. I’ve never had hot stone massage before, and apparently it’s part of the standard massage there. They were just hot enough to penetrate pretty deep into my muscles without burning my skin. I don’t think I ever want to have a massage again without those wonderful little things.
I’m so happy to find a massage place that’s in my neighborhood, so good, and so affordable. It was $ 60 for an hour, which is cheaper than anywhere else in NYC I’ve ever found, and I went ahead and got the card to start saving for my free massage after 10 minutes. LOVE this place!

Excellent massage!!! I’m tired of paying double for a «spa» atmosphere. She used hot stones and got all the kinks out of my back an neck.
Very nice people and clean place. The review below is 100% my experience, so I won’t bore you again with detail.
Note: $ 3 extra charge for credit card payment.
edit: My review was based on Mimi. I recommend making an appointment with her.