By Allison Kaplan
Updated: 07/10/2009 11:07:27 AM CDT
Photo: David Miller gives a 40-minute massage to a customer at the Great Metropolitan Backrub in St. Paul's Highland Park neighborhood. The walk-in massage studio offers fully-clothed massage in an open setting. (Pioneer Press: Chris Polydoroff)
Wherever there are crowds of people with time on their hands, money in their pockets and tension in their necks, there's a massage chair. Quickie relaxation outposts have become as ubiquitous at shopping centers as pretzel stands and the pushy characters selling lotion at kiosks.
On the one hand, it makes sense to offer folks a fast, affordable escape from a noisy, chaotic place. Mall massages average a buck a minute and don't require reservations. But is it possible to relax on the spot, exposed, surrounded by shoppers and cash registers and screaming children? Does a 10-minute rubdown do much more than leave a customer wanting more?
We found out by treating — or, more aptly in a couple of cases, subjecting — five of the newspaper's consumer volunteers, the Store Troopers, to 10-minute public chair massages.
Take a cleansing breath and let our loosened-up troop help you decide whether to go for the instant gratification, with its obvious limitations, or save up for a spa experience complete with cucumber water, new-age music and a door.
STORE TROOPER: Rolla Breitman of St. Paul
Visited: The Great Metropolitan Backrub, 762 S. Cleveland Ave., St. Paul
Price: $10 for 10 minutes (senior rate; regular price is $15 for 10 minutes or $10 with a $25 monthly membership)
Experience: Located in a storefront in the heart of Highland Park, three massage tables are set up in a common room with window views for walk-in massages. Getting massaged next to a stranger was, well, strange, but Breitman was able to "block it out" because the person next to her was quiet. When another customer wandered in, Breitman's masseuse handed him a sheet and asked him to wait.
Effectiveness: The masseuse asked about problem areas and concentrated on those. At the end, he showed Breitman exercises to loosen her shoulders. Breitman worried 10 minutes would not be enough to help her sore neck but says, "It definitely helped relieve stress in a short time."
Recommendation: "I would recommend it to friends. Not a bad way to spend $10.74 (with tax)."
Click here to see the whole article with four other businesses reviewed.
