Smile Designers

This has been my dentist for years, and I really love them! Great customer service! My cleanings are quick and thorough, and I love how they send reminders via email and text message.
I even brought my kids over for their first cleaning and they were so great with the kiddos. Highly recommend this dentist!

They have been taking care of my teeth for years now. I’m always happy with their service. Very caring and friendly staff and doctors. I always recommend them and have referred so many friends there.

My wife and I have gotten our dental care here for almost 5 years. My wife never liked going to the dentist, but Smile Designers has changed her attitude completely. The Dentists and staff are all very friendly and do great work. They also try to squeeze you in on short notice if you have any pain or issues with your teeth. We both highly recommend Smile Designers.

Dr. Rafie and everyone at Smile Designers are great. It’s always easy to schedule an appointment (they’re always very accommodating with me too) and cleanings are smooth and painless… as are the few procedures I’ve had done there. I highly recommend them, and I plan on staying with them.

I came in with a broken crown and alot of pain. They took good care of me. Everyone was pleasant and they stood behind their work when I did have a problem with the crown they saw me immediately and fixed it. It is still good 6 months later. Thank you!

Zero star if I could
Very bad service and attitude dr. Forget about 2 years to take the glue out from my teeth after finish my braces

I have been going to Smile Designers for the last 8 years. The insurance that I had at the time, was able to cover the cost for the work I had done, but when I began working with other companies, no other insurance company would cover Smile Designers. Every other dentist that I would visit for cavities, crown work or anything else of that matter, I would always end up finding myself back at Smile Designers to fix what the other dentists would do poorly. The staff here is always friendly and the dentists are great at what they do. It’s always been the same two dentists, who are also brother and sister, and they have always done their best to get to know each individual and after not having seen them in almost a year, they talk to me as if it were just a few days ago that we last spoke and they ask how I am doing and bring up events in my life that I share with them in the past. They can sometimes be on the pricey side, but their work is worth every single penny. They are excellent at what they do! I recently chipped my front tooth and went to a dentist called Bright Now! Dental Group and the dentist there stated that a veneer was the only thing that could repair this situation. The chip in my tooth was so small and they wanted to basically remove or should I say grind off a good 50 percent of my tooth so that they could put a veneer over it. The veneer was completely unnecessary and when I told Smile Designers the story, they took a look at my tooth and said it was not necessary. If they were in it for the $ they would have agreed, but they didn’t. They fixed my tooth and made it look as if nothing ever happened! I highly recommend them!

The first time I was here, I came in for a teeth cleaning and was handled with care. I was able to watch my favorite movie to distract me the whole time they were cleaning. The dental assistant was very nice and friendly. Things have changed since the last time I was here. Staffs are rude and my dental assistant was brutal. There was water splashing everywhere on my face and she really was hurting my teeth so much that I kept moving to get away. She got irritated with me and stopped use the drill to clean my teeth. I am sure they are charging my insurance a nice sum for their service and to treat me like I was burden. Yeah I don’t think I will go back. I will just take me and my insurance elsewhere.

Anyone who writes a negative review about this place obviously hasn’t been to other dental offices in SD. The dentists here fixed and redid years of bad dental work I received at other places.
I don’t need my hand held or my butt kissed at a dental office, I just want quality, gentle care.
For the first time in my life, my teeth don’t hurt. The office is clean and the people are nice.

I try very hard not to write negative reviews because I value the importance of positive feedback and hate to tarnish any business’ name in the fear that it was just an off day. However, I had a negative experience the first time at Smile Designers… and I chalked that up to a fluke occurance. Wrong. Having just finished my second routine cleaning there, here is my review.
Front desk was almost friendly-​ish, but didn’t make eye contact when I entered and simply asked my name while looking at the computer.
The male hygienist is awkward. He doesn’t explain what he is doing as he goes, places the x-​ray clamps without asking if it pinched, which it did several times. My dentists in the past (before moving to SD) have been so accommodating and gentle that I am having trouble processing how unpleasant this team behaves. The dentist and the hygienist made me feel like total crap about my teeth. Considering I am a Sonicare using, teeth flossing, Listerine swishing, straight teethed gal I can’t imagine how they speak to their patients with serious dental issues. I’ve had some enamel issues/​teeth clenching wearing on my teeth for as long as I can remember (as does my mother, I basically inherited a duplicate set of her teeth) and this office informed me condescendingly how my teeth/​enamel are «basically going to shatter from the top down and you’re going to have to have them all crowned and root canal-​ed.» I tried to explain that my teeth have been the same for years and that maybe they’d like to see records from my previous dentists as this isn’t a new problem. They insisted I was wrong and continued to hammer these terrible antidotes until I simply told them their point was noted and to please complete the cleaning.
I also agree with the previous review that explains the cleaning process with a tiny drill like tool that sounds terrible, feels uncomfortable and doesn’t leave your teeth with that super clean feeling like I’ve had at every other dentist visit previous to this office.
So, yeah, don’t give them your business. They are simply terrible and I can’t believe they have repeat patients.

My experience this time was an unfortunate one.
I arrived early for my appointment and was promptly and amicably greeted by the doctor and told that I would be attended to shortly. At 2pm, the time of my appointment, three female employees returned from lunch through the front door, only one acknowledged me. Then the secretary informed me that I would be attended to shortly. Shortly thereafter, I was brought back by an assistant or hygienist (didn’t introduce herself) and shown my chair. I waited there for 15 minutes before I final got out of the chair (with my bib) and walked to the lobby to let them know I am still waiting for the dentist. After returning to the chair, the dentist appeared.
The work began with no explanation of the procedure. I had to ask what was going to take place.
A couple of the procedures took place and finally I was ready for the Zoom whitening treatment. The assistant again began working, without explaining the procedure. After the first of four 15-​minute whitening sessions, I complained of a burning sensation in the gums. She informed this was normal. If it’s so normal, she should have explained this all to me beforehand. After the second 15-​minute session, I complained of soreness in the teeth and shooting pains. Apparently this was normal too. Again, I was somewhat skeptical.
After all work was completed, I went to the counter to pay and was charged $ 150 more than I was quoted over the phone. I was very detailed when I called and took notes and now this quote was incorrect. They chalked it up to a misunderstanding and I was very disappointed.
Needless to say, the appointment took 20 minutes longer than expected.
All in all, I was disappointed in the lack of friendliness an professionalism in this office.

Yes, the lobby and front staff personnel are great, but once you get to the back, everything changes. As mentioned by many others, every time that I was there, they spent more time trying to persuade me to get Invisiline than focusing on mine and my kids dental hygiene. And why do I say they don’t really focus on dental hygiene???
Well…we recently moved and went to a new dentist. What do you know… I have 3 cavities and my son has 6 (including plaque build-​up that was infected). Our new hygienist says that our issues have been there for a very long time… they don’t just pop up out of the blue.
If you are looking for all the new «gadgets» that you can get for your teeth, then this is a wonderful place. But, if you’re looking for actual, competent DENTAL care… look elsewhere.

Great office! :)

My appointment was June 2011. I came here with a Groupon for my 6-​month dental check up and cleaning. THANKFULLY (after reading these reviews) I didn’t listen to all the rigamarole these places give you about invisaline, whitening, and filling replacement. The cleaning they gave me was unlike anything I had ever experienced. It was all done by a machine and water, no traditional hygienist scraping off the plaque. Trouble is, my teeth still felt unpolished or «dirty» when I left. I went back and complained, they re-​cleaned my teeth (using the same method).
The lobby is overly nice for being located in a strip mall: marble floors, huge ornate picture frames, a lot of over the top furniture that reminds me of a Vegas plastic surgeon’s office.
In the chair, they ask you what movie you want to watch, and a little monitor hangs right directly over your head and you watch the movie while they’re in your mouth doing god-​knows-​what. The art of distraction had me skeptical and nervous.
Finally, this month, I wanted to buy replacement whitening gels for the trays I already have at my house. As a prior patient, I called to see the price (expecting about $ 10/​tube, which is typical but I’ve also seen it cheaper.) Excuse me! **$ 85** for 4 tubes. Those gels must have been what paid for the over-​done lobby.
With a groupon, I suppose the cleaning I had back in June was fine, but I won’t be back to spend real money at this place. And I recommend Sunny Smiles dental if you want to get whitening trays. Or any other ol’ place with a … wait for it … Groupon.

I had a great experience here. I chose them because I live on W. Pt Loma Blvd so obviously it is close to my house. I haven’t been to the dentist in YEARS so i was super nervous and unhappy about having potential bad news.
When I arrived they were so friendly and patient and understanding. They listened to everything I had to say, answered all my questions, and broke everything down for me so I could understand. I am returning on Tuesday for more procedures needed, and my husband will be scheduling his appt as soon as he needs one.
I read some of the other reviews… they didn’t once try to pressure me into anything other than the cleaning I had come for and to offer me a recommendation for another service and different doctor, which is obviously not making them any money and is completely up to me whether or not I actually look into that option. I felt no pressure or judgement which is exactly what I wanted. I was 100% happy with the treatment I got and will be going back to them from now on.

When I walked in, all everyone was concerned about was whether or not I wanted whiter teeth or braces. After all the X-​rays, Dr. Rafie tried for 15 minutes to convince me to pull out 4 of my teeth and get braces for the next 10 years so that I could have a «better» smile. Did he look at my X-​rays to see if I had cavities? I don’t think so. He asked me if I thought I had cavities. I pointed to a tooth and he said, «I thought so. I’ll fill that.» My previous dentist said I had a big cavity on the side of my tooth. I couldn’t fix the cavity at that time because I didn’t have insurance. When I came in for the filling, Dr. Rafie filled the top of that tooth, not the side. All that to say, I need to find a dentist that actually cares about my teeth.

My husband and I tried out Smile Designers using their Reader deal of $ 85 for a first time visit including all XRays. We are uninsured for dental so the ad was enticing and we were in need of a cleaning. We moved to San Diego about a year ago and had tried a local dentist in PB through a mailer about 6 months ago. The dentist was incredibly unethical. He bribed us with a low cost entry point and then gave both of us a laundry list of items that needed to be corrected (cavities, etc.). Needless to say we smelled the BS the minute we walked into the place… but now onto the good stuff w/​Smile Designers.
They did a very thorough exam and XRays (18 to be exact. have never had that many before) and used an amazing cleaning tool to clean our teeth. Dr. Khansari read off to the assistant (who also was very friendly and attentive) the condition of EVERY one of my teeth.
Very thorough and gentle. She also informed me of 2 metal filings I had (I had previously been told they were all removed by another dentist who did the work). I have had health issues so she was helpful in talking me through any issues my teeth/​jaw/​etc. could be having to affect the other health issues.
Finally…I had NO issues or laundry list of things that I «needed» having done (neither did my husband)…clean bill of health!
Very nice office. Movies if you want to watch. We didn’t have any major dental work done so the negative reviews here I cannot comment on but for a general well visit I would say best experience I’ve had in a long time… and very ethical office.

I’m not sure who’s writing these other reviews. My wife and I had severals crowns and a number fillings done by Dr. Khansari and we needed to have every bit of dental work re-​done as well as several previously unneeded root canals after decay was left under all the worked on teeth. It cost thousands of dollars to correct all the terrible work that was done here. Nice people and a nice looking office, but completely incompetent dentists.

I absolutely love this dentist. Dr. Rafie has been taking care of my smile for a few years now.
He is quick, efficient and very friendly. He provides excellent service at a very reasonable price. He has very modern equipment in their fairly new offices.
Stop in for a whitening procedure — just $ 250! They use sharks* with freakin’ lasers attached to their heads to remove that candy corn smile you had when you got there…
The receptionist really brightens their office, too. Get there early and ask her about the refrigeration repair mafia. She knows some good food places around town, so I hope to squeeze a little knowledge out of her.
This is a small office with very personal service. You don’t feel rushed, and you will never feel like you are just another Porsche payment to them. Once you’ve been, you’ll want to send a friend.
*when actual sharks not in service they use the ZOOM2 machine

Worst dentist I have ever been to. Spent $ 1700 on 2 crowns and after a month of misery I am still in pain. Ended up in the ER from my body being so stressed from infection and the bite being off I was having heart arrhythmia.
Walk: Don’t run to anyone else. I have been in 3 times for adjustments. I actually think one was on backwards. Haven’t been able to bite on that side without pain the whole month.
UPDATE; a YEAR HAS GONE BY AND MY MOUTH IS STILL NOT RIGHT. HAVE BEEN SEEING A PHYSICAL THERAPIST WHO SAYS THAT THE ABOVE DENTIST PUT MY JAW OUT (NO WONDER THE BITE DIDN’T FIT!) I HAD A ROOT CANAL DONE ON THE TOOTH (WHICH I THINK HE BROKE SLAMMING THE CROWN ON TWICE) AND I AM FINALLY JUST STARTING TO GET SOME RELIEF WITH THE THERAPIST. IF I COULD GIVE THIS MAN A MINUS 5 STARS I WOULD.