The Best Pediatric Dentist -- A True Lifesaver! We had an incredible experience with Dr. Laleh Vakili, and I can't recommend her highly enough. After some truly upsetting experiences with previous pediatric dentists -- including one who wanted to put my daughter under general anesthesia for five supposed cavities (which turned out not to be true) -- we were desperate to find someone honest, kind, and competent. Enter Dr. Vakili, who was all that and more. She was able to see us on short notice, and from the moment we arrived, it was clear we were in the right hands. Her entire team -- from the front desk staff to the hygienists -- was warm, professional, and incredibly well-organized. The atmosphere is welcoming and child-friendly without being over-the-top, and everything ran smoothly from start to finish. Dr. Vakili took her time to explain everything clearly, gave my daughter a thorough exam, and quickly realized that the previous treatment plan was not only unnecessary but completely overblown. She addressed all of my daughter's real dental needs in a single visit, with incredible care and attention to detail. It is rare to find a healthcare provider who is both technically excellent and completely trustworthy, but Dr. Vakili is exactly that. If you're looking for a pediatric dentist who will treat your child with integrity and compassion -- and not push unnecessary procedures -- this is the one. I only wish we had found her sooner. read more

Here's the updated review: Dr. Vakili contacted me and kindly waived the bill. Unfortunately, she asked me to find another dentist because they do not match well with my insurance. It would be helpful if this information was clarified upfront to prevent situations like mine. read more

We have been taking our sons to drive families for over 10 years since we moved to bay area based on our friends recommendation . Even after we moved to north bay we still make it there as she is well worth the trip. Dr Vakili approaches care from both preventative as well as educational perspective. She is conservative in her care and only does what is absolutely necessary. I have nothing but praise for her and her staff. She is a gem and I am very happy to have her as our kids dentist. read more

Dr vakili is very knowledgeable and kind . She is the best pediatric dentist I've ever seen. The office is really clean and professional and make children to feel very comfortable . read more

Be ware and check your bills carefully. We were told we had to pre-pay 50% for sealants for our daughter since they weren't sure how much our insurance covers sealants (this is already atypical - my previous dentist always billed us afterwards if necessary). We were told we would be promptly refunded once the insurance paid. We paid the 50% and didn't think more about it. Our insurance paid immediately and almost 6 months later Dr. Vakili's office still had not issued a refund. We reached out and Dr. Vakili said they will issue a check but it left a bad taste. There wasn't any explanation for their oversight and if we didn't catch them, they would have never followed through with the refund. read more

My kids have both seen Dr Vakili for over a decade each. Dr Vakili is very passionate about what she does and has always kept my kids' best interest in mind. She is very approachable and knows how to work with young children. She is extremely patient and has always thoroughly explained the needed procedures. Her office is immaculate and her staff is very friendly and accommodating. I highly recommend her as a pediatric dentist. read more

We have been taking our kids to Dr Vakili for almost 5 years now. She is a great dentist and takes measures to make our kids comfortable and us feel safe during covid. The TV programs are great distraction and the office setup is very open and well lit with natural light. Her staff are very friendly but we have been using the online system to make appointments . You need to make sure you plan ahead for cleanings as she gets booked qucikly. On one recent occasion we had an emergency and she saw us on a weekend to check on my son's tooth to make sure it was ok. She was very attentive and explained her treatment options and followed up afterwards. read more

Thank you Dr. Vakili for getting back to me quickly and scheduling the tooth extraction that my daughter needed. My girls have been coming over to see you for the last 14 years and every time we come over we definitely feel how much you care about your patients and patients' families. read more

Dr Lam and the dental staff have been super patient with my anxious son. They are wonderful!! Highly recommend.

I can't say enough positive things about Dr. Vakili and the great, loving, professional, thorough care she has given to my kids for years. She is wonderful. read more

On the one hand, she's a little expensive, it can be difficult to get convenient appointment times for working parents, and my insurance doesn't ever seem to quite cover enough of her work. On the other hand, this is an extremely well run business, with caring, skilled & efficient dental assistants, ceiling monitors constantly playing Pixar hits, a beautiful, clean coral reef tank, and modern equipment & methods. My kids sit down, open their mouths, stare at the ceiling, answer questions and never complain! They keep good dental records, and have never forgotten my kids' birthdays. Dr Vakili herself is very thorough, quick & professional. We went to her for a second opinion after another dentist was trying to push very expensive pre-orthodontic treatments on our kids' baby teeth. (Really?) Dr Vakili gave us specific, detailed, accurate, long-term advice and two different Orthodontic referrals. Years later, when our kids were old enough, one of those referrals became our Orthodontist. At one point, I tried convincing my wife to switch to a cheaper dental plan & provider, but my wife refused. Now I think she was right, because Dr Vakili really cares about getting it right. read more

Clean and kid friendly. But IMPOSSIBLE to schedule or reschedule an appointment. IMPOSSIBLE. "Moolah (money) before molars!" seems to be their mantra! Their business model really bites. They need to hire another dentist instead of choking every minute out of every day and keeping their calendar so tight that you cannot, CANNOT move an appointment! I asked for a referral dentist and they provided Dr. Charles Spitz @ 650-375-8300. read more

My kids have been Dr. Vakili's patients for some years now and they've always had a positive experience. The enjoy watching the movies, the prizes and entering the raffles. Dr. Vakili and her staff are professional, helpful and very patient and kind. In the past I had some issues with my insurance and they were quick to answer my questions and provide me with the information I needed to help me to sort it all out. read more

She is quite friendly and approachable and her office was always well-run. Our insurance unfortunately no longer allows us to see her but even the transition was smooth as she gave us some recommendations. Our kids (7 and 9) saw her from age 2 until now and they have not needed any real procedures so I cannot speak to that aspect but her general approach to general care and orthodontic recommendations was much appreciated Front staff office were generally ok; dental hygienists were variable over the years but generally able to keep kids entertained and educated. read more

I have been taking my two son to Dr Vakili for almost seven years and have always received excellent service. She is a wonderful dentist. She is professional but very kind and caring. The front office is always pleasant and helpful. In addition to a very welcoming environment, they have plenty of distractions for the kids: fish tank, games, toys and video goggles. I highly recommend Dr Vakili and her associates for anybody in the penninsula. read more

Having been a patient of Dr. Vakili's for 14 years, I have had such an amazing experience and have received great dental care. Her office and staff are extremely kind, and Dr. Vakili never fails to put you at ease when under her care. I am sad to have graduated from her practice, but as a former patient, I highly recommend Dr. Vakili. read more

Have been bringing my 3 kids here for years. Dr. Vakili is awesome. Patient, knowledgeable and a delight. Her staff have been friendly and helpful. Would highly recommend. read more

Dr. Vakili is highly skilled, compassionate, and very caring. My son bonded with her and displayed immediate trust. Several other dentists were unable to treat my son's dental issues. Dr. Vakili had dealt with this kind of problem before and had a treatment plan and equipment in place to accommodate the problem. He had an excellent outcome. I am so grateful to her and her staff for their compassion, connection, caring, efficiency, and dental skills. If I could give more stars, I would. read more

Dr. Vakili and Dr. Lam may seem nice if you blindly follow whatever they say, but their general knowledge on health and specific knowledge on certain dentist procedure do not reflect the latest research in the field. For example, Dr. Vakili claimed that drinking milk is good for the health of the teeth because there is antibody in the milk. This is absolutely wrong. First, only mother's milk contains antibody, not the pasteurized cow milk. Second, the antibody in mother's milk provides certain immunity for the child, which has nothing to do the health of the teeth. I also agree with a few other parents who posted before, that the polity that x-ray is required for 4 year-old to take 4 x-rays does not make sense. Knowing that they refused to see patient without x-ray, I proposed for my son to take 1 x-ray in stead of 4 x-rays, the doctor refused and said they would not treat my son unless we agree to take all 4 x-rays. Regarding the necessity of x-ray to check invisible cavities, I encourage all parents to take to a few other dentist to understand it more. We grew up without any x-rays, our teeth seemed to be all fine. I will leave the judgement to your own. I could not tell them that I have a Ph.D. in x-ray related scientific discipline and probably know more x-ray than all the people they have met. I am most bothered that the doctors take a retaliation attitude when the parents don't agree with their so called best professional judgement. I understand they don't need more patients but this arrogant attitude as doctors is alarming. read more

Took our 4-year old child to this so called "pediatric" and kid-friendly office. Dr. Vakili was so unprofessional and completely lacked skills to talk to a child in non-threatening manner. Her favorite quote is "if you do not listen to me I will ask your mommy to leave" ..... and then what - they do what ever they want? I have confronted Dr. Vakili about this and what we got in return? We are no longer welcome in her office! Well, we will take our child elsewhere! read more

It's been a couple of years since I've taken my boy to here. When I did, I had to make sure that the staff would be accommodating to my son, who had really horrible experiences and was very scared to see a dentist. When I first took him here, they were wonderful. I mean wonderful. He has gag reflux and finds it really hard to do the xrays. They were, at first accommodating, nice and gentle. My son would ask me for reassurance before going to make sure they didn't do the xrays, but of course they always try to encourage. The last time it happened, he ended up throwing up and later when the doctor came in, who is usually really nice, seemed to not be as supportive of him and pushed for "better get your xrays" and we really need to get this done. Well, that didn't help at all. My son, who is already pretty hard on himself felt bad, and now got back to not wanting to go to the dentist because he's scared of throwing up again -- who can blame him! So, a few years ago, they would have earned 5 stars. Now they earn one star. Because the truth of the matter is: my son has gag reflux - the pressure should not have been put on my son, but finding a solution for xrays that wouldn't trigger this. Why do I write a review now? Because I just had a conversation with someone about needing a dentist who was gentle ... I would add 'gentle and consistent'. So I am still looking for just the right dentist for my boy. read more

Office great, however dentist just wants you money. Vakili just kicked us out for not following her plan. What plan? My 4yo had PERFECT teeth (according to her own words.) Nevertheless she still tried to figure how to make money on spent time with us. She is a "no-no" dentist in our list! read more

Dentist appt. was fine. Then when my insurance would only pay a small portion I owed Dr. Vakili $380.00. So I paid what I could and asked if I can make some payments and pay it off as quickly as I can. They said NO, it's against office policies we will have to send it to collections. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Have you heard of times are hard and customer service. I guess not. Will never go back there again. I told them here is the money and never contact me again, I will take my business elsewhere. read more

Didn't see her anymore....my kid only had to do filling but the substitute dentist said he needed root canal and crown... jeez....the dentist didn't even examine my kid's tooth carefully to make her decision of 'root canal' treatment... took him to another dentist and filling was done and the tooth works perfect... i dont want my kid to do root canal when its not necessary to do it.. this should be the last resort when the tooth couldnt be saved and cavity was really bad... poor judgement. read more

I have heard great things about this dentist. However, I have called 3 different times since December (and I know they were closed for a period...I left one message during that time) and left a message each time to sign up my 2 boys for first time appointments and have never received a call back. In addition to that, no one ever seems to answer their phone even during normal business hours. It's sad that this dentist is probably amazing but because of poor reception skills, I , nor many others, will ever get to find out. read more

We have been seeing Dr. Vakili for a few years now. I have one son who is completely fine seeing Dr. Vakili and her staff. My other son is a bit anxious about going to the dentist and when he would get upset about the taste of the toothpaste or the feel of the electric toothbrush, the assistant would get visibly annoyed at him. They did not have any other options for toothpaste, which is odd. When I asked that we see another assistant for the cleaning next time, I was told that you can't request that as you get whoever is next available. I personally like seeing the same dental hygenist when I go to the dentist, so why would my kids be any different? Per a recommendation from a friend of ours, we now see Dr. Michael Sala in Redwood City. He was so gentle with my son, explaining everything and giving a choice of toothpaste. It's not as "kid friendly", but worth it if you have a child who is even slightly sensitive. read more

My 3 year old had his first appointment with Dr. Vakili and it went great. When I called to make his appointment the person who I was talking to was pleasant and nice and it seemed like their schedule was pretty open, since I got the time and date I wanted. They also emailed over forms and patient information, which is such a time saver once you get in their office. The location is great, right off the freeway, great parking. The office is clean and inviting. There was a little area where they played movies and had bean bags where the kiddies could sit and relax before their appointments. The appointment itself went well, everyone was nice and accommodating, they definitely know how to work with kids and make them feel comfortable. Overall the experience was great for my 3 year old, we will be coming back for his next check up. read more

We love Dr. Vakili and her staff. Everyone is so nice and treats the patients with such warmth and kindness. We have felt so fortunate to be in Dr. Vakili's care all these years. We totally trust her and know we are in great hands. read more

Dr Vakilli and her team are great and Very kid friendly. Gentle, kind and super patient with fussy kids. Lots of kid appropriate distractions such as fish aquariums, tv screens, beautiful and tasteful wall art. I have been recommending her to all my friends. Dr Vakilli is also very honest and not only business driven as I have seen in another location read more

I have been taking my 4 year old and 5 year old girls to Dr. Vakili for about 2 years now. We have had nothing but positive experiences with her and her staff. This place is super kid friendly. Everyone went out of their way to make my youngest daughter feel comfortable when she was scared to have her cleaning during her 1st visit 2 years ago. Now she looks forward to going. read more

just back from Dr. Vakili where I took a 2 year old and a 4 year old. They happily booked me consecutive appointments and were wonderful with the girls. The hygienist who worked on my daughter was gentle, professional, and managed to get four xrays from a 4 year old with no tears, screams or cries for mommy. this is in contrast to her last dentist with whom she screamed bloody murder for the entire appointment. A world of difference for sure. each of my girls got a brushing lesson (more for me it seemed), a cleaning, a flouride treatment, although at 2, they didn't use the "tickly brush" cleaning and just a toothbrush as 2 year olds can't still for it. Then Dr. Vakili came in, assessed my girls' teeth and took time to answer my questions and concerns, I got the braces warning and an explanation as to why. She also complimented me on the health of my children's teeth - which made me feel good that I don't give the kids many opportunities for sugar and junk. She was warm, gentle and informative. I liked her quiet style that at the same time resonated intelligence and confidence. read more

I have been bringing my 3 boy's to Dr Vakili for many years now and have alway's had a great experience. Dr Vakili and her staff are so patient and good with nervous children which makes bringing them to the dentist that bit easier, she herself is always so friendly but also good at what she does recently we had an emergency occur and we needed to see her straight away she and her assistant waited late for us and treated my Son and also made calls to other doctors for us. When leaving the office that evening she gave us her number to be able to call her should we need it. We are very happy with this dental office. read more

She is great - professional and attentive. My then 2.5 y.o. didn't cooperate, so I was on a chair, and he was on top of me, and Dr. Vakili did the filling very quickly. Yes, it is difficult to get appoitnments when you need them - this is explains how popular she is.... But she will see your kid if you have an emergency as it happened to us. read more

Great office! Brought my daughter here for her very 1st check up and she was about 23 months old. Staff was very patient with her even when she started crying! Highly recommend. Dr. Vakili is patient, gentle, and efficient during the appt. I would of continued going here if we didn't have to move. Fun waiting area for the little ones :) read more

Anyone who can get my daughter to stop sucking her thumb deserves more than 5 stars. We tried everything and during a visit with Dr. Vakili she explained to her all the reasons she should stop and she did! I remember hating going to the dentist as a child. It was not fun at all. But, my girls are pretty distracted with the fish, the decor and the TVs hanging on the ceilings that they hardly notice what's going on. Each visit goes quickly and smoothly. I find Dr. Vakili and her staff to be very nice and friendly. I would say the only downside is that it's very hard to make an appointment. You really need to book your next appointment before you leave. If you think you can call and get in the next day, week or even month, you're kidding yourself. She's popular and her schedule shows. The first appointment is the hardest to make, but I think it's worth the wait. read more

Our younger son has been seeing Dr Vakili for over 5 years now, so this review is definitely over due! Dr Vakili and her staff are all very patient and friendly, and her office is cheerful and well-run. Over the years, our kid had to undergo some pretty serious dental work, including a baby root canal and gum infection, and I so appreciate the gentle handling our kid received from Dr Vakili and her staff. In the more complicated procedures, they take extra care to reassure him and would very patiently explain to him what is going on. Only con I can think of -- she is in such high demand and it can be difficult to schedule an appt. read more

Dr Vakili is a lovely warm person who makes a terrific pediatric dentist. It is extremely challenging to run a dental practice with billing, retention of staff, etc in this era and I think she is doing a wonderful job. Her training and technical experience is second to none and she (I think) even accommodates some fairly low income patients who really need and benefit from her skills which is not true of all dentists or doctors. read more

Excellent care and thoughtful follow up. We have been patients for almost fifteen years because our children (now teens) don't want to go anywhere else! read more

Over priced and recommends more than 1 x-ray a yr. Ridiculous... Has a letter written up that if you cannot consent to the initial and periodic x-rays done, they cannot accept you as a patient. More than one X-ray a yr. is only necessary if you do have problems or any diseases within the teeth. My daughter does not. Not going back. read more

My husband and I have been searching for a pediatric dentist for our 4 year old daughter since our arrival in the bay area. We came across Laleh Vakill as a potential candidate primarily because she was in our military insurance network as being a provider. We felt so lucky that Laleh Vakilis's practice was accepting our insurance until we got rejected . Over the phone, the receptionist told me bluntly that new patients were only accepted if it was a direct referral from a current patient family. This seems not only the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard, but if we are new to the area, and a product of a military family, how on earth are we supposed to get a direct referral from anyone. For clarity, I did ask the receptionist what it means and she said referrals are only allowed through current patient friends and family members. I find this network of distinguish referrals not only appalling, but just not the best decision for a so called professional business who network themselves to the public. Laleh Vakili, I don't have any friends or family that are part of your "distinguish network" of referrals, but, it would be very appreciative if consideration was given to all instead of just a select distinguished few. read more