Downtown LA Optometric Vision Center

I had something in my eye that was extremely irritating. I found Dr. Barnes on Google took my chances. Their office is near my work, so I walked over and was in and out with time to still pick up lunch. The doctor and front office staff were all very nice and helpful. I will be going back for my annual check ups. Nice, polite, helpful, informative, and quick!

Dr. Barnes is one of the best eye docs I have ever seen. She was so pleasant and helpful, and explained everything to me as she was doing it. Her staff was accommodating and got me in to see her at the last minute. I highly highly recommend her.

Friendly and professional service from both Dr. Barnes and the staff. Call a few days ahead of time for an appointment.

Been seeing this doctor for over 20 years she’s great. Some of the staff no Bueno. But Dr. Barnes is wonderful. I have to agree that her staff sometimes don’t return phone call or do all that great. But I’m sure to let her know. I won’t charge her for anything. I did once when I had gotten a new health plan. Big mistake. She just need better staff

Dr. Barnes and her team, at the Downtown LA Optometric Vision Center, demonstrated excellent customer service today during my visit. The staff showed care, knowledge, and an eagerness to assist me and Dimitri with all of our questions and needs; for both contacts and glasses. I’m so pleased Dimitri brought me here for my first eye exam in over 4 years. Keep up with the great work and thank you for being a great team.

I’ve been coming here for years for my annual vision checkups. I had initially found Dr. Barnes when I had an eye infection from my contacts. I was a nervous disaster and scared that I had permanently damaged my eyes. Dr. Barnes has an amazing «bedside manner» and kept me calm and collected. I’ve always found her staff helpful, friendly and courteous. Even though I have moved and her location isn’t the most convenient for me anymore, I have NO plans on changing doctors. She is that great.

I work upstairs in the building and I have to go downstairs to make an appointment because these people NEVER pick up the phone. They have a recording saying they will call you back «within the hour» and NEVER DO.
It is the size of a small shoebox, there is never anyone in there and they cant even pick up the phone. I post this after MULTIPLE times experiencing this over the courser of 2.5 yrs. Very unprofessional.
Aside from not getting through to them when you need to, they are not bad, despite what others posted here. Staff is nice, which they should be seeing as you have to go there because none picks up the phone.

I agree with Kathy C’s review. This place is a joke. Went because it’s close to work around mid-​day, mid-​week and I had been experiencing a little fuzziness with night driving. The receptionist area was a hot mess and unprofessional (lunch out and the smell everywhere). Waste baskets around the store hadn’t been emptied, carpet dirty.
The doctor was very nice, but the all the equipment looked old. I assume it didn’t work right either (or the doctor was completely incompetent) because I was told after the exam that one eye was myopic and the other had astigmatism and was written a prescription. I found this odd because in the 15+ years since my eyes starting going bad they have always progressed the same and even when I got lasik several years back they weren’t that bad (both nearsighted). Whatever, I took it to another place to get the prescription filled.
Get my glasses and it’s like I’m looking out of a fishbowl and I get an immediate headache. The prescription was obviously completely out of wack. Got another exam somewhere else and low and behold, I still have ²⁰⁄₂₀ vision. I was prescribed lenses with a type of filter to help w/​the fuzziness with the light at night. All this I had to pay for out of pocket because my vision insurance was wasted on Downtown LA Optometric. Save your eyes and skip this place.

Dr. Barnes is such a delight. I’ve never really been wowed by an optometrist before. It seems like most are just trying to rush through the process. Dr. Barnes is actually passionate about the eyes and explains the why of each step of the exam. I had an awesome visit and I’ve been wearing glasses for 15 plus years and have been do dozens of eye doctors. I’m so happy I chose this office. If you need an optometrist in DTLA, look no further!

A good friend of mine recommended Dr. Barnes to me nearly ten years ago when I was looking to change optometrists, and I’m very grateful he did. She is a truly first-​rate professional. I’m at that age when my vision is becoming noticeably worse each year, and that’s a tough dose of reality after enjoying perfect vision for years. One of the things I like best about Dr. Barnes is that she takes the time to explain what’s happening and place each issue in context. She explains every test she performs, offers various options when appropriate, and even explains what’s likely to happen ahead over the short and long terms. She’s friendly, patient and easy to understand, and her staff are pleasant, helpful, and knowledgeable. But here comes the best part. I foolishly let my vision insurance lapse and recently scheduled my first visit with Dr. Barnes in three years. I knew my vision had slipped considerably in that period, and Dr. Barnes confirmed as much. But after walking through the various options with her I ordered a new pair of glasses with several new features and I picked them up yesterday. I’ll tell you, I was astonished by the difference. It’s like I have the vision of a teenager again. I’m looking through the world with a brand new pair of eyes. Dr, Barnes is an excellent optometrist, and I recommend her without any reservations.

Ok, first pair of reading glasses. The doctor was completely awesome and loved her bedside manner. They fixed a prescription just like that. Such a great find for a new bee reading glasses person

Came for a vision exam after having a terrible experience at another location and all I can say was that this was the completely opposite experience from that! The receptionist was super nice and helped me pick out my glasses. Dr Barnes gave me a thorough exam and gave me a walk through of everything she was doing. Yeah they don’t have a big selection of brand names but I don’t really need Gucci or Prada anyways!

I needed my eyes checked ASAP and only had one hour before I had to leave the area, so I called this office and they were able to fit me in right away!
I was so relieved. Although making an appointment is always preferred, I think this place is extremely flexible in that they will try to accommodate people in a rush! It was $ 89 for my visit, but included a follow up visit a week later — so I would say that’s pretty fair!

Dr. Barnes took her time with me and love that she is only a few blocks from my loft, very convenient! I also didn’t feel like driving since DTLA provides everything near you.
My pink eye is healing well with antibiotics.
I am very grateful and they have reasonable office visits:
$ 89/​visit.

I just moved downtown and needed my early eye exam for contacts. had this place recommended to me and it took my insurance so i tried it out! i had absolutely no issues at all and everything was so easy. Dr. Barnes was very helpful and seemed like she really cared about my vision. when she didn’t have my prescription to try out she made sure to order several ones for me to try so i could find the perfect fit. Once i decided i liked the pair she had me try, then i ordered a yearly supply from them. They were reasonably priced and they gave me a rebate form. front staff is nice & helpful, too. they called me the day my contacts came in so i could get them asap!
long story short, very good experience and i would recommend this place :)
i took off one star because parking is a bitch around there and i don’t think they validate (maybe i’m wrong, which would be great). i walked there for my appt so i didn’t have an issue but when I had to pick my contacts up and i was in a rush, all i could find easily was the garage under them which was $ 2.50 for each 15 mins.

I went in and there was a woman who assisted me. She was so nice and friendly. Because I have a good insurance, she recommended that I get anti glare and something else as well for my lenses. She helped me out a lot. The only bad thing about the place is that they dont have a great variety of brand names. I only remember seeing ray bans and bebe. Overall, the place is clean and welcoming

I was out of contacts and when my old optometrist office told me they wouldn’t be refilling my prescription even though IT WAS STILL VALID (so I would have to pay for a new exam, etc.) I decided it was time to find someone better.
I found this place on Unilocal after calling some others that did not accept Davis Vision and I’m so glad I chose Dr. Barnes! Because I got a new doctor, my insurance required me to get a new vision exam anyways. I was dreading it. Like, does anyone have time to wait at an office for an already lengthy exam? But to my surprise, I was in and out within 45 minutes. This included paperwork time and the office staff calling Davis for me. My contacts were ready for me within the week and picking them up took less than 2 minutes.
The doctor herself is HILARIOUS and extremely efficient (as previously stated). She has pretty good hours and I was able to easily make/​change my appointment. I would highly recommend her and this office!
Tip: If you don’t work/​live within walking distance, Figat7th probably has the cheapest parking and is a 5 – 10 minute walk away.

I came to see Dr. Barnes today off of a recommendation from a friend. WOW. I’ve only had one other eye doc as thorough & knowledgeable as Dr. Barnes. Dr. Barnes & her staff are very professional and courteous. They have a wide selection of frames that are reasonably priced. This place is less than 2 minutes from my job, which is nice — I can go on my lunch hour. Overall, it was a great experience. I cannot wait to get my new specs!

I made an appointment for the very next day and Dr. Barnes had plenty of openings available. I arrived 10 minutes early to fill out the paperwork, and the Dr. saw me on time. She realizes that we are all working professionals and have to get back to our 10 hour days.
Dr. Barnes is pretty nice and answers your questions. She is quick and effective. She doesn’t make a lot of eye contact, but her bedside manner is there.
The office staff is friendly and they will help you order your glasses or contacts. I knocked off a star because their frame selection is terrible. I wanted to get a new pair of glasses but their selection was really bad. They didn’t have any fun fashionable glasses and the frame I wanted was bent and too small. She said that a lot of people came in at the end of December to use up all of their FSA funds, which is possible, but it’s already 2 weeks into the new year, she should have restocked the frames by now!
I was happy that the office matches US internet contact sales prices. The previous eye doctor I went to did not do that. However, I have to come back to pick up the contacts, which is a bummer, because my past eye doctor always had them in stock.

Seriously, nothing makes the world shine a little brighter than an awesome pair of new glasses or contacts! I walked out of here looking at the lovely streets of DTLA with a whole new appreciation. I mean, I could see the leaves! The tops of buildings! Was pretty spectacular.
They say that you shouldn’t be picking dr’s off Unilocal ratings, but Dr. Barnes is the real 5-​star deal. I was in and out with a full eye exam for contacts in under an hr! Great for a DTLA professional with little time. Dr. Barnes also was super friendly and knowledgeable, in addition to professional and just plain awesome. She explains each procedure, part, picture in a science-​based way that is not at all boring or intimidating, but that helps you understand what’s going on with your eyes, and that helps you become part of your own health care! AWESOME! The staff are equally AMAZING! Roxie helped me with my first pair of contacts and was so patient as I painstakingly asked if it was flipped inside out, or if I could hurt myself. So nice!
I would highly recommend this spot to anyone in the area. This cute little shop is perfectly located on 6^th street between Hope St. and Grand Ave., right next to the dry cleaners. It’s under the portico, so don’t get lost. Just look for the sign!