I don't know about your area, but one very important thing to ask is "Is your process Hexavalent or Trivalent chrome?" You want Hexavalent, but it is more environmentally hazardous (and expensive) and therefore more and more shops are going to the Trivalent--and of course the Trivalent shops will tell you its 'just as good'.
Another consideration is how much prep time they spend on the copper (after they plate up the copper) removing surface imperfections prior to plating what you actually see--the nickel then chrome.
Artisans produce that incredible defect-free lustre we all admire, hacks in the 'bucket shops' produce that shine-without-depth and scratches and waves in places you can see when you look closely.