Who we are.
A boutique Chinese foot spa in Beverly Hills and Santa Monica, built on the conviction that the ancient practice of reflexology deserves a room worthy of it.
Fifteen years, two locations
How a room with six chairs became the standard for reflexology in Los Angeles.
A film school graduate in search of something lasting
Piran Zarifian left film school and moved between production companies, one show ending and the next needing to be found. Wanting a foundation his family could rely on, he began looking for a business to build rather than a job to hold.
Six chairs on South Beverly Drive
The first BAO opened with six chairs and was booked almost from the day it unlocked its doors. Within that first year the spa was invited to Roger Neal's Beauty Suites for both the Golden Globes and the Academy Awards.
Wilshire Boulevard, a block from the Pacific
Six chairs could no longer hold the demand. Santa Monica opened in the slower rhythm of the Westside, so that regulars no longer had to cross the city in traffic for an hour of quiet.
Three gift cards, always in the bag
A client since the earliest days, Tyra Banks told Us Weekly she keeps three BAO gift cards with her at all times. She has brought a great many people through our doors, and a great many of them are still with us.
The same hour, held to the same measure
Fifteen years on, both locations run to a single standard: California certified therapists, a staffed reception through every hour we are open, and a record of each visit so that your next session begins where the last one ended.
“I would have to say I am most proud of my staff.”
speaking to Voyage LA, 2018
Piran came to this from film school and the production world, in search of something with more permanence. His mother was devoted to reflexology and brought him along one afternoon. He surveyed the city afterward and found the practice everywhere, and the setting it deserved almost nowhere. BAO exists to close that distance.
Attention, held to a standard
Reflexology has been practiced in China for millennia. What we added was the service around it.
Certified throughout
Every therapist is California certified and trained to read the whole body, not the feet alone.
A reception, always
Someone is at the desk through every business hour, to answer a question or arrange a visit.
A record of each visit
What you favored, what you did not, kept on file so the next session is adjusted before you think to ask.
Trained, then trained again
Our staff are put through rigorous training, so that every guest leaves genuinely cared for rather than merely served.
Why reflexology, specifically
Pressure applied to precise points on the foot carries a signal inward, helping regulate the organ each point answers to. Circulation rises. Neural pathways clear. Add the shoulders, the back, the head and the legs, and the whole system is returned to itself.
Our most requested treatment remains the sixty minute reflexology and body massage. Athletes and expecting mothers feel the benefit most acutely, and the trainers and yoga instructors of the surrounding blocks are quietly among our most frequent guests, in before a class or restored after one.
BAO in the press
Fifteen years of being written about, by people we did not ask.
Recognized by the California Massage Therapy Council, honored with a MindBody Visionary award, and members of both the Beverly Hills and Santa Monica Chambers of Commerce.
Come see for yourself.
Both lounges are open daily, 10 AM until 10 PM.
Beverly Hills, CA 90212