Yeah, I didn’t want to either. But it was about time we reviewed Taro Bunny. So I took one for the team.

And so, I got the most expensive and the cheapest manicure in Los Angeles to see how they compare:

At Main Attraction Nails on Main Street, you can get a gel manicure for $35. When I posted it on Instagram Stories, I immediately received 15 DMs asking for the salon name. It’s what you expect from a typical nail salon: loud, obnoxious pop music, someone venting to a friend through AirPods, and nail techs who may or may not be talking about you. I was in and out in 20 minutes, which I appreciated. Honestly, there’s something comforting about the chaos of these salons. The nail color selection was basically unlimited, and while I was tempted to do a Hailey Bieber-style glaze, I stuck to the basics to keep it $35. About two weeks later, the polish started peeling from the top, snagging on my hair every time I washed it. You know that feeling. Terrible. That’s when I went to try Taro Bunny.

I’d seen a lot of videos of them online. I can’t tell if they’re paying influencers or if the hype is real, but either way, I went. I even shamelessly DMed them, but got ghosted. You get your own private room, so I felt bad putting in my AirPods to watch The Summer I Turned Pretty. My nail tech didn’t really open up until 40 minutes in, we sat in the private room in awkward silence. But hey, at least I was sitting against on an Hermès pillow.

The equipment was super high-tech, all the polishes were branded. I’m not sure if it was technically a Russian manicure, but it sure seemed like it. My cuticles have never been so clean. I’m writing this article with 2.5 weeks of grown-out nails, after washing my hair daily in the Amalfi Coast, and not once have had a strand of hair snagged. So I’ll give them credit: the details were flawless.

The color selection was limited, but I was told the owner travels to China to create her own “organic” nail polish shades. I got a milky white I’d seen on Pinterest—it felt chic, and I absolutely love it. At the end, you can use their selection of $150+ hand creams (which honestly didn’t smell that great), and you feel like you have to tip as though you’re at a restaurant.

Oh… did I mention it was a 2-hr service? The massage was 20 seconds. 10 on each hand. I was extremely late for my dinner reservation at Saffy’s so I ended up at Gyoza Bar instead (we’ll talk about that another time).

So, the conclusion:

For a special occasion when you need perfect nails, I’d definitely recommend Taro Bunny—just block off two hours. For monthly upkeep, it’s absurd. At Main Attraction, you’ll need a manicure every other week once they begin peeling. That’ll put you at about $70 a month… in which case, you should’ve never cheated on your local neighborhood nail salon. If I had more time, I would make this a more metaphorical article about the danger of temptation and the unsetting feeling of being able to find “better”. Because in the end, the grass is never greener.