Marilyn Jaeger Skincare Studio may well be the best-kept secret in Laurel Heights. A posh little neighborhood known for its mixture of residential and commercial development, it's the kind of place where ritzy boutiques share breathing room with 1950s-style five and dime stores. Given Marilyn Jaeger's imposing reputation as harboring one of the most loyal client bases among San Francisco day spas, it's the kind of place you'd perhaps expect to see at the center of Fillmore Street's spa mecca or among the hubs of rejuvenation strewn so habitually around the Marina.

Not surprisingly, aesthetician Marilyn Jaeger's original spa was a modest outfit on Union Street that she ran solo seven years ago. After realizing that she couldn't go it alone (she was often booked solid six months in advance), she trained an apprentice aesthetician and ultimately moved to the current Spruce Street location in 2000. -- Nirmala Nataraj