Brookside Optometric Group

I have been a patient with Brookside Optometric Group for many years and my experiences had always been positive until recently. Last week, I called their office to schedule an appointment for new glasses and to order a year's supply of contact lenses while my prescription was still valid. During that call, the staff member scheduled my appointment for next week and told me that someone would call me shortly to place the contact lens order. Five days later, I had not received a call, so I contacted the office again. I explained that I was still waiting for someone to call me so I could place my contact lens order. A different staff member informed me that there were no notes indicating that I had requested contacts, apologized for the oversight, and assured me that someone would call me later that day to place the order. I agreed and waited for the call. Later today, another staff member called. I explained that I wanted to place an order for a year's supply of contacts and then use my insurance for glasses during my appointment next week. At that point, she informed me that my contact lens prescription had expired 4 days earlier. I explained that I had called the office before the prescription expired specifically to place this order. She said she would check with the doctor (Dr. Sohail Din Akram) to see if the prescription could be extended. When she returned, she told me the doctor (Dr. Sohail Din Akram) declined and cited California Business and Professions Code SS2541.2, stating that contact lens prescriptions must be valid for at least one year and no more than two years. Ironically, that statute actually means the doctor (Dr. Sohail Din Akram) has the discretion to issue a prescription for up to two years, especially considering that my prescription has remained the same for the past 3 to 4 years. Unfortunately, no one took responsibility for the staff oversight, even though I had called before the prescription expired to place my order. I did my part by contacting the office in advance, but the staff stated there were no notes from the original call. This situation was very frustrating because the issue could have easily been avoided if the original request had simply been documented. Based on this experience, I would recommend considering other optometrists who have better internal communication and accountability within their staff. If you have Dr. Sohail Din Akram, I'd recommend switching to a new doctor. Before deciding to go here, please read the other negative reviews. You will notice a pattern. I can almost guarantee that the owners or management will not actually resolve the issue. Most likely you will simply get a response asking you to contact their office again, which only leads to more runaround. If they truly cared about their patients, someone from management would reach out directly to resolve problems instead of posting generic responses. Unfortunately, that does not appear to be the case here. In my experience, it feels like once there is an issue, they are not interested in taking responsibility or making things right. If you are looking for an optometrist that values accountability and customer care, I recommend going elsewhere.

My daughter has been coming to this facility since she was in Kinder. She turns 14 next month, so it really shows how long we've been a part of this place. Over the years, I've seen many doctors, not because I had problems with anyone, but just to get the quickest appointment. This gave me the opportunity to meet different doctors, and they have all been amazing. I only see Dr. Wynn once a year, for yearly checkups, so I didn't really expect him to remember me. However, I was really impressed when he did! He remembered that I had four daughters, which was amazing to me. This time, I brought my son to the office, and right away he congratulated my husband and I for having our first son. It shows how much he loves his job and values the relationships he builds with his clients. It's not every day that you meet someone who takes the time to remember details about you and your family. His attention to these small things makes a big difference in how I feel about our meetings. Overall, I am so pleased with the care he gives. I feel that he genuinely wants to connect, and because of that, I will always give him a 10 out of 10. He truly stands out in his profession! I have to add in. I love the ladies in the front office. They always have such a positive attitude, Very friendly and welcoming.

Booking appointments and having our exams was so easy. I was able to book a same day appointment for my daughter. I went in a week later. After each exam we purchased glasses. I can't understand how both sets of glasses were lost when they were ordered a week ago part. No one caught it until I called in. We're still waiting. I'm hoping that this is a one time occurrence as I'd like to continue building a rapport with this business. The staff were easy to work with. The environment was comfortable.

I don't like doing reviews but once in a while some situations are frustrating and I feel like I should warn ppl. My experience here is one of those(8/24/2024). Ive been wearing contacts since I was 15. But over the last 5 years some doctors have been telling I've developed astigmatism in one of my eyes. But they irritate my eyes to the point my eye looks bloodshot and I get horrible headaches because of the inflammation around my eye. It happens every time I wear the astigmatism contacts. I now only get non-astigmatism contacts and the difference is not noticeable to me and I always get glasses as well. I explained this to the doctor as we started the eye exam. He explain possible reasons and still pressed on the astigmatism prescription. I agreed to try out his brand of contacts and went to work. By mid day I had to go home because as expected I had a red swollen eyeball with a killer headache. I sent an email to his office with photos and requested a re-examination. I showed up to the re-examination to the doctor telling me that there is nothing wrong with my prescription. So I told him that the expected happened and to look at the pictures I included in my email. Only for him to respond "I don't read emails" with a bothered tone. So I responded that "well someone got the email and re-scheduled me" and he said "the office only handles the appointments". I honestly didn't care to push it further as I needed to get to work. He reluctantly agreed to change the prescription and didn't even bothered to check my eye. And then only for him to pass me over to his sales agent and try to sell me on their overpriced glasses. Frustrated I walked out but thankfully with the updated prescription. Saving grace is that the office staff is very polite and kind. This popped up because they reached out to me to come back in for an eye exam. Yeah, no thanks. All you did is remind me to post this review.

I visited Brookside Optometric and honestly had a very disappointing experience. From the moment I arrived, the front desk staff and assistants (including the ones who appeared to be Latina) treated me with indifference and arrogance. I felt uncomfortable, as if they didn't want to help me. Considering the upscale area where the clinic is located, I couldn't help but feel there was some racism or classism in the way I was treated. The only good part of my visit was the doctor. He was professional, patient, and explained everything very clearly. The real issue came when purchasing the lenses. The Asian lady in charge of the sales area seems only interested in earning commission rather than genuinely helping customers. I brought my own frames from last year purchased at the same place and simply wanted to replace the lenses. My insurance covers $150, yet they wanted to charge me $256 even though I was reusing the same frames. I also brought a pair of branded polarized sunglasses. At first, I was quoted $206 without insurance, then suddenly the price dropped to $77 with insurance. When I agreed, she changed the story and said they couldn't do it because they didn't have the polarized color I wanted right after realizing she had undercharged me. The whole experience felt confusing, non-transparent, and made it very clear that all they cared about was my money. When I asked why it was so expensive if the frames were purchased there, she couldn't even give me an answer. To make things worse, I ended up going to Costco, where they replaced the lenses on BOTH pairs for only $170, and they still gave me a 20% discount just for being a member. Much more professional, fast, and without confusing pricing or pressure to buy. In conclusion: great doctors, but the front desk and sales staff provide terrible service, with no real intention to help and no transparency in pricing. I won't be returning.

Front desk staff is NOT friendly or welcoming at all. Always moody and miserable looking (why work in healthcare if you hate people?). They messed up my daughter's prescription not once but twice. They did "offer to fix it" one last time free of charge but after I'd have to pay... need I say less? I had high hopes of this place based on reviews but was unfortunately extremely disappointed and will not be returning. Side note : they are on the 2nd floor and the elevator is constantly DOWN. Have fun trying to go upstairs if you require a wheelchair or have a baby in a stroller.

Such a Great place! Dr. Vanover is one of the best! The man who helped me Pick out my new glasses was extremely professional and had an outgoing personality!

I have been going to Brookside Optometric Group for several years. They have an excellent staff with knowledgeable doctors and a great support staff. In addition they have an excellent selection of frames and lens options. I was very pleased with my last purchase and would definitely recommend them to family and friends.