Drybar – Chesnut Hill

I’ll start by saying that I’ve been to DryBar in Back Bay and in NYC (UWS location). All of my experiences have been fantastic to date. Except yesterday. Here’s why:
(1) Honoring Requests — A friend booked a group blowout to celebrate my upcoming wedding. Even though she asked for us to be seated together at the time she made the reservation (which was weeks prior), we were not. It was as if we were just walking in as separate clients rather than a group celebrating a special event. When asked, the manager said «We’re doing the best we can.»
(2) The Music — I understand the rationale for the music (otherwise all you would hear are the hair dryers), however, the music was painfully loud. It was so loud that I could barely speak with my stylist while being shampooed. I overheard a conversation between the manager and a stylist where the stylist asked on behalf of her client if the music could be turned down. The manager said, «No.»
(3) The Stylists — My stylist appeared to be under weather and tired, which of course can’t be helped, but her attitude just wasn’t great. She seemed annoyed to have to work with me. Some of the other stylists in the salon weren’t particularly friendly either. Overall, I did not feel welcome.
Again, this is VASTLY different from every other experience I’ve had at Drybar. I’d suggest just going to another location.

I got my very first blow out on Saturday! I had read some mixed reviews, so was nervous on time. I got there a few minutes early for a 9:15am appointment, receptionist was nice enough, got me a coffee and within 5 minutes I was with my stylist. I have fairly easy hair, holds a curl well, but wanted a style that would hold all day as I have an event at noon and again at 5pm. I walked out with a lot of volume, but as my stylist told me it would, it fell nicely as the day went on and have no complaints! It was nice to not have to stress about my hair all day! Thanks

I sent an email to Drybar directly before this review because I felt that was more cordial and appropriate. However, I have not received a response so I signed up for a Unilocal account…
«I’m contacting you in regards to my experience at Drybar on ⁴⁄₉. I received this email address from Unilocal.Instead of writing a negative review, I figured it would be best to directly contact you. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to write about my experience.
I will say, I have had positive HAIR experiences at Drybar before. I think I’ve been twice. The girls are talented. 4 STARS FOR THEIR SERVICE. The customer service and/​or scheduling of appointments is … subpar. I’ve had to wait for my appointments, usually around 20 minutes. While I still don’t think this is acceptable when someone has an appointment, it was hardly worth complaining about those two times. However, a recent experience has made it worth it to speak up.
I had an appointment scheduled recently a week or more in advance. I showed up to my appointment at 10:10, checking in with the receptionist who politely recorded my name and asked if I wanted anything to drink. I noticed at least six people waiting. About 15 minutes went by — an acceptable wait period, I think. Those who were waiting started being taken. Another 10 minutes went by and I started to get nervous. The receptionist still had not checked in with me to let me know they were behind. Because I had somewhere to be, I asked her how much longer it would be. She informed me that there were still two girls in front of me… indicating that I would not be seen until 11:00! I asked her how this could be when I had a 10:15 appointment? She responded that they were behind and that they get busy on Saturdays. I was very frustrated with this response — I was NOT a walk-​in. I had an appointment! It doesn’t matter that Saturday’s are busy. How could they be that behind already at 10 in the morning? What is the sense in making an appointment? I asked her if she could squeeze me in later in the afternoon since I had somewhere to be, to no avail. She told me the next available appointment was at 7:00 p.m. I asked her what I should do in the future for booking appointments — book an hour early and not show up until I really want to come? She told me this was not necessary and that I should book appointments for when I want to really come — Well, from my second or third experience there, that is not true. I’ve waited before. So I left, frustrated, greasy, with my hair a mess headed to my nana’s birthday lunch — a situation I could resolve easily for the lunch, but for the wedding? Yikes.
From a business standpoint I really don’t understand why appointments are made every 15 minutes. It doesn’t seem like the girls can keep up with it — and that’s not their fault. By reading many Unilocal reviews I can see that it’s not uncommon to not get seen at the booked appointment time. What is most frustrating is that I was not informed they were running behind when I first arrived. If I knew I had to wait 45 minutes before being seen I would have left right then and tried to speed over to another blowout salon. Instead, I was left thinking I’d be seen any minute until I had to ask when I’d be seen.
I’m really not sure what to do from here. I love my hair when I leave DryBar. This one star is not for the stylists! I had already made another appointment before my bad experience. However, now I’m thinking I need to book that appointment an hour earlier, expecting a wait. OR, and I’m really sorry I’m saying this, I need to find another place to get a blow out.
Thank you for hearing me out. I have never written a negative review about anything in my life. I just felt like I received horrible customer service and I needed to speak up. I’m hoping I can give DryBar another chance and have a different experience.»

I used to love coming here, wine mimosas fun music, and my hair always came out great! Lately I’ve come here and waited over 40 minutes when I scheduled an appointment? No apology from staff or management. Just it’ll be another 20 minutes. I typically only come here when I have an important event. Last time I was here for a party I was attending and warned the girl that I had just gotten a spray tan and by not paying attention water ran down my neck while she was washing my hair… Needless to say spray tan ruined and didn’t want to go to my party. Hair falls flat every time and it’s overpriced and unprofessional. Won’t be back

So I typically go to drybar in Back Bay where I have had great experiences. Don’t waste your time in Chestnut Hill. And here’s why:
Instead of the luxe feel that dry bar advertises, this location is filthy. All of the flowers in vases were dead. The receptionist didn’t offer so much as water. I could overlook all of that but I was also taken 20 minutes late, I understand things happen in a salon and didn’t really mind but things continued to go downhill from there. My hair was washed quickly and my top was soaked. I showed the stylist several pictures of how I wanted my hair to look, including one of myself after a Back Bay drybar blowout. I asked for straight with some movement which she decided really meant weirdly curled on top. My hair looked terrible. I complained and another stylist attempted to fix it which only made it worse. At this point I had been there almost 2 hours. I decided to cut my losses and leave.
After wasting my time and money, I now had to go home and rewash and redry my hair myself. I can’t believe people continue to go here.

Loved this place when it opened in November 2013. It has rapidly gone downhill. This is no reflection on the stylists. They are all capable and pleasant and do a good job. My complaint is that it started out feeling like such a treat and now feels like a mill. If there’s anyone to receive/​greet you they’re unpleasant and surly at best. You may or may not be asked if you’d like a beverage and if you are it most likely won’t appear until you’re in the middle of your blowout and can only stare longingly at it while it grows cold. The water temperature goes from scalding to freezing in a nanosecond, the ceiling is dirty. It must be hard to get good help.

Don’t waste your time or money! I got there 15 minutes early, and I waited for 1 hour to be seen. The whole point of this place is to get your hair done for an event, well it’s pointless if you miss your event because they were late!
The woman who blow dried my hair, was pulling out my hair and it was completely broken and brittle when I left there. I WILL NEVER GO BACK !!
I can do my hair better myself.

UGH. I’ll start by saying this, if you’re getting your hair done for anything even remotely important — schedule your appointment for AT LEAST a couple hours earlier than you were planning.
When Drybar first opened I LOVED this place, my hair always looked amazing, they were never more than a couple minutes late, and they served mimosas or wine — which made it really unique and almost like a luxury to go there before a special event. Flash forward to now, I honestly don’t know if I’ll ever try booking another appointment here. The last 2 weddings I’ve had I booked appointments at Drybar months in advance. The day of the wedding (s) I showered, not washing my hair since I knew I had a hair appointment later.​Both times I waited 40+ minutes before finally walking out, getting home with about 10 minutes to do something with my dirty, frizzy hair — forgot to mention both times I had my makeup done prior to my hair appointment, so it’s not like I could just run home and shower real quick. Every single time I’ve been here over the past year or so, it has been insanely busy, with at least 5 or 6 people waiting and another 4 or 5 people trying to check in or out. They book appointments every 15 minutes and it just seems like there’s no way the girls can keep up.
I worked as a salon receptionist for years and totally understand that things happen sometimes and inevitably you start running behind, but this hasn’t been that, it’s been chaos every time. When checking in you’re never told that they’re running behind or it’s going to be at least a _​_​_​minute wait, so you can decide then if you have the time and not after you’ve wasted an hour of your life sitting there. The receptionist never checks in with you to apologize for the wait or tell you how much longer it’s going to be, because there are so many people that she can’t keep track of who’s who and how long they’ve been waiting. The last time I went there they ended up taking the woman scheduled after me, and after waiting almost 50 minutes for an appointment I’d had it and walked out (keep in mind the only 2 times I’ve ever had to do this in my life were these 2 times at Drybar)
Aside from the scheduling aspect I really like this place and the concept. If they can get their act together and maybe tweak how they schedule appointments, I would absolutely recommend this place. Until then just err or the side of caution and book your appointment super early or be prepared to spend a good chunk of your day sitting in the salon.

I’ve never been compelled to write Unilocal reviews, but there is a first time for everything. Really not worth the money this place. And I don’t think it has much to do with the person I got, it has to do with the lack of training the staff receives.
You’ll only walk out of there happy if you happen to get someone who really loves doing hair, but for some reason didn’t want to go to beauty school.
I went in asking for the Cosmo which is one of their wavy styles. I have straight hair, but have been to plenty of hairdressers who can manage this no problem.
My ‘do went from wavy to straight within 30 minutes of leaving this place, which is not what I expect after spending 40 dollars on my hair. I don’t care if they claim this is a low price, it is not low enough for the blow out I received. I could have done and have done a better one myself.
Go to a salon to get a blow out if you’re going to spend the money. Really not worth it here.

I’ve been to the dry bar 5 times, each time making an appointment, and each time taken in 15 – 30 min late. The last time I was there, I was in a rush, had a newborn waiting for me at home, and was really hoping they would actually take me at my scheduled time. 20 minutes past my original appointment time, I got fed up with the general lack of consideration, and went to the front desk to ask what their system is, and how I can schedule appointments so that I am taken on time. I was asking for the sheer purpose of knowing what to do next time. The receptionist seemed annoyed at me, and rudely told me there is nothing they can do since they can’t predict how long each customers hair takes.
Finally, I was called 30 min after my scheduled start. The lady doing my hair was not friendly, and did a bad job with my hair. I specifically asked her to blow dry it out of my face, but unfortunately when I left my hair was flopping on top of my eyes. This has happened to some extent every time I’ve been there, and I always have to fix it at home. I can’t understand how I can manage to blow dry my hair at home so that it stays out of my eyes, but some professionals can’t seem to figure it out.
This was the last straw with the dry bar, and because of their overall lateness, as well as inability to keep my hair out of my eyes, and receptionist rudeness, I am not going back.
I suppose that as long as they have customers that are not in a rush and don’t care about waiting a half hour past their scheduled time, they will stay in business. But for me, it is simply not worth the time or money.

Only okay.
Even though this place is reasonably priced, I consider getting a blowout a little luxury. Because of that, i would rather not feel like I’m being herded like cattle. The overall experience was rushed — get ‘em in, get ‘em out — and just generally somewhat unpleasant. Reception wasn’t very friendly and I never got my water (no big deal, but when one of your selling points is free beverages, it’s nice to actually get one). Like most others have mentioned, they also seemed to be running quite late — I think I was finally taken to get my hair washed about 15 minutes after my scheduled start.
My hair looked nice, but it didn’t last very long (we’re talking 12 hours max), which was also a letdown. Great business model and I bet other locations are better, but I wouldn’t go here again unless I was in a bind.

After reading the reviews before I came in, I was a bit nervous. I almost entered the scene with a combative mindset ready to be pushy if my appointment wasn’t met in a timely manner. I was also more nervous because I was actually the one a few minutes late, know their strict policy about that I tried calling in, however there’s not direct number. That was actually a bit of an annoyance that I couldn’t let them know myself, but that’s besides the point. The customer service woman said she’d let them know. And she was friendly, so I wasn’t too worried.
My four stars are mostly for how well Shaunette (I probably butchered her name) did. My hair came out great for the price and she was quite friendly. There was no hair pulling and burning of the scalp as some people complained about. This place is not where I’ll be transferring all my business to, since I love my usual hair stylists, but it’s a good alternative for when I want to make a last minute appointment.
I think that’s all people should be concerned about, I don’t think the atmosphere should play much of a roll in the decision if you just need a quick do. The only things I didn’t really like about it is the awkward staring at the person getting their hair done across from me… since there are no mirrors like a conventional salon. And the brushes they used were a bit disconcerting, because they legitimately looked worn down and beaten. They were missing half the bristles, yet my hair still came out fine. I probably wouldn’t have thought much of the brushes or noticed it as quickly if it wasn’t for another Unilocal reviewer.
Tl;dr: Overall the people there were friendly to me and I got the appointment I wanted even though I was a few minutes late. My hair came out great and lasted all week, so no complaints.

I love the concept of Dry Bar. It is such a treat to be able to get style your hair! However, the quality of the staff is very inconsistent. Definite draw back is that you can not book an appointment with a specific person. I have had some really nice stylists who were friendly and did a great job (only 1 or 2). Many times it is someone who is in a bad mood, yanks out your hair during the process, and doesn’t even give you the style you asked for! By then end I have been so frustrated that I don’t even want to have that person touch my hair anymore. I guess it could be ok for people who just want their hair blown out straight?

First of all, this business is pure genius. Who doesn’t love getting their hair washed, blown out, and styled? This location is great because you can actually park! The receptionist was very nice as well, immediately got me water when I walked in and initiated conversation. Plus the interior is so cute, love the yellow everywhere. You really feel so relaxed. I went with the «straight up» style and was so pleased with the result. Latina knew exactly what I wanted, a little volume, a little curl at the end, but nothing too wild. She was extremely personable, funny, and we had a great convo — I will definitely request her when I go back (which will be very soon). Even though it was 7 pm she never once looked tired and had great energy throughout the entire process.
Oh and all of the products that they use smell ahhhhmazing and my hair stayed in tact for days. Will definitely be back!

I recently got a ‘Cosmo-​tai’ at the Chestnut Hill location with Jenessa and could not be more pleased! I let her know that my hair is very mailable and holds curl well and she knew exactly what to do. Overall, I was extremely impressed with my experience. Will definitely be going back and considering signing up for the Barfly Membership!

The Drybar is downright amazing; do not have enough good things to say. Have been here on multiple occasions (before formals, birthdays, Valentine’s Day, or just because). Always need to make an appointment in advance to reserve a time and day because it can get booked quickly near special events or on the weekends. I normally get an intense version of the cosmo since my hair doesn’t hold curls easily. All stylists are cognizant of this and use tons of hair spray to make the curls hold and I surprisingly have never had a problem with them falling out! All the stylists are pleasant to speak to and are pretty young, which adds a youthful vibe.
So much fun to do with friends for a special occasion or just by yourself for fun. Very reasonably priced for $ 40 and the blowout/​style is better or just as good as most high-​end salons.
The only drawback is they took away the complimentary glass of champagne or wine that they provided 1.5 yrs ago. Now they just have coffee, a cookie, or water. Can’t complain, but would love it if they brought back the alcoholic drinks!

My sister scheduled 8 people on her wedding day to come in the morning and Dry Bar messed up and said she had only scheduled 6. She had it in writing that they had confirmed for 8, so it’s really frustrating for them to have this kind of mistake on her big day. They also made my mom look crazy with shirley temple curls, which is confusing to me because it seemed like all they did was use a curling iron to her hair when she wanted a blowout.
For my hair, I wanted big messy curls. My curls fell out by 3 pm and I had to re-​do them at home with a curling iron. The curls that the stylist did also didn’t look any different than what I could have done on my own. I did like my stylist though because she was nice, but I probably won’t come back here.
FYI my sister came back the next day for an updo, and it just looked unprofessional. She had hair strands sticking out in random places. The stylists need to work on their technique.

I went into Drybar Chestnut Hill to get my hair done for my engagement photos that night. Since it was a special day, I wanted to make sure my hair looked fab. I had never been to a Drybar location before this, but have heard good things from friends so I decided to outsource my hair for the event. Who doesn’t want to look beautiful for their engagement photos?
I arrived and was seen on time. The stylist was very quiet but nice. Whatever, I’m not a very talkative person anyway, so it didn’t bother me. The wash was fine. She didn’t seemed concerned when I told her that my hair has a hard time holding a curl. I was confident that my hair was going to look great.
Then, the blow dry started. She practically burned my scalp a couple times with the dryer. She adjusted after I told her, but then proceeded to go over my hair with the dryer at least 15 times on each piece, which seemed like a lot. My hair is fine and soft and you have to put a lot of product (mouse, dry shampoo, texturizing spray, something) to make any style stick. If you have ever done any hair professionally you would know that you can’t put too much conditioner in fine hair. It just makes it beyond slippery and good luck getting it to hold any style. My normal hair stylist told me I should never put leave in conditioner in because it’s too heavy for my hair. What did this drybar stylist do? Put in leave in conditioner…
After she dried my hair and it was obviously not holding a curl, she told me she would go back with a curling iron. Okay, fine. But then she started texting on and off during my blowout. Even leaving her phone on the counter face-​up so she could see if she got a message.
I was getting a little impatient because I was seeing pretty much no progress. My hair had 0 volume like in the photo I chose, and no curl. Finally, she used the curling iron to add some pieces in, and then sprayed and I was done. Overall, not impressed, but I was pressed for time and just said okay and paid my $ 40 + suggested $ 10 tip and left. 30 minutes later, my hair looked like I had let it air dry. It had 0 curl, 0 volume. My fiancé even asked me if I had skipped my appointment. I was so frustrated. I tried to fix it myself with a curling iron, but my hair was too far gone. Too much moisturizer on these fine locks.
Needless to say, I won’t be back. I wish the stylist would have taken 2 minutes to just talk to me about my my hair. What works, doesn’t work, how I normally style it, what product I use, etc. I know it’s not a «blame the hair» situation because both myself and my normal hair stylist have been able to get curls that last 6+ hours.

A friend and I had our hair styled here before a wedding a week ago. Our appointments were relatively on time (maybe 5 min later but they were packed). I have very straight hair and I’ve been told it’s hard to style. I let my stylist know ahead of time, because I wanted to try a curly look, and she took her time making my curls extra tight and then putting a lot of hairspray. After I finished paying and was waiting for my friend to finish up, another stylist pulled me into her chair and did a little bit more work on my bangs because she said she saw «a few straight pieces». I thought this was so nice because she didn’t have to do that at all and I really liked the small change she made.
My appointment was at 12p and my hair held up for the rest of the day and the entire wedding! Even the next morning when I woke up, a lot of the style was still intact, so I believe they did an excellent job and I would definitely go back again and have my hair styled.

Oh Drybar. I’m totally in love! It is amazing what a good hair wash and blow-​dry can do for a woman.
I was recently in the hospital for several days and when I left my hair was a hot mess. My hair is super thick and pretty long. My mom convinced me to give the Drybar a chance to handle the mess that was my hospital hair.
She called to make an appointment for me the day after my hospital discharge. She let them know my deal (incision from neck surgery & limited head movement) and they reassured her that everything would be fine.
I arrived for my appointment and was instantly offered something to drink. My stylist offered extra towels behind my neck to make me more comfortable and another to cover my incision. She acknowledged my incision but only to make sure that I was was feeling ok. The whole experience was so comfortable and relaxing!
As far as the actual blow-dry…it was perfection! My hair looked fantastic. And not just for that day. It lasted for several days! Perfect!
I’m a Drybar addict now. I can’t wait to go back and I will definitely be returning to give the other styles a try!