I would NOT recommend Mariposa in Santa Maria. She's a very kind dentist and incredibly patient with adults, unfortunately only adults. My daughter is also afraid of dentist and she had a horrible experience both visits unfortunately. Kind doesn't mean they take the proper time to care enough about patient care. They cut her gums both times and rushed the entire procedure both times we were there. The dentist was constantly complaining about my daughter speaking up or asking for an explanation of what was going to be done to her. I had to step in every time. The bathroom had no hand soap, it took 15 minutes for the front desk to provide us with any, in that time we were being looked for by the dental assistant. The dental assistant was amazing with my daughter. Then we were scolded by the dentist for taking the time to ask for hand soap, as if somehow we are responsible for the maintenance of the office. The plunger was in the middle of the restroom with feces covering the entire thing. It's a shame I had to speak up to avoid a child taking responsibility for thier lack of staff attention and responsibility. If I hadn't, my child would have thought it was somehow her responsibility. It's not, if I have to speak up for basic hygiene standards I can only imagine the consequences for the parents who don't speak up or the children that arnt taken seriously. Yes they take CenCal. The dentist is more concerned about the patient input and output, They take SEVERAL kids at once and is constantly jumping from room to room finishing up as fast as she can. I have also visited the San Luis Obispo office they operate. There's Left over used Instruments left on the floor from patients, debris covered the chairs and incredibly dirty floors and patient chairs. I can say the dental assistant and dentist take more time and effort to make sure children comfort and care are their primary priority in the SLO office. I was recommended by a close family member, I really wanted to like them. I would suggest looking around. Dental hygiene is considered a high importance it's a shame there offices and patient rooms are not taken care by the same standards. That's my personal experience and opinion. I don't believe I'm wrong for holding dentist office to safety and hygiene standards for my children. They matter too. All three of my children have gone, ranging from different ages. 11,6, and 7. My 7 year old daughter is the only one who had work done. read more

This place overbooks, the office is tiny, packed, and 90 degrees. My daughter's appointment was at 10:30 and at 10:45 I asked when she would be seen and they said there were still 4 kids in front of her. read more

Love them. My son doesn't do well with dentist or dr visits. They remain so sweet and trying with him. (He's 2 almost 3) highly recommended them! Staff is always amazing. read more

made my apt easy scheduling my kids same day same time. super kid friendly they love playing in lobby

I go in to an appointment that was scheduled at 8am I let them know that my daughter had lost the spacer and they immediately say medical doesn't cover for loss or damaged that they only cover it every 2 years. So I pay the $210 so while they take my child to the back I am calling the department of health care services. I spoke to a representative and let her know the issue and I gave her the procedure code and she first stated that it is incorrect/false information as medical does cover it for loss and damage. However the representative advise me to file a complaint with the dental board. So it's 830ish and the dentist had asked me to wait for 20 minutes as they didn't have the spacer for my daughter mind you they did a check up on 06/05/2026 which they already should have known what spacer size they were going to need. So mind you I ask again the dentist that was going to put the spacer in and she stated it would be 5 more minutes. I let her know I couldn't wait as I had to be somewhere else. She said it would be totally fine and we could reschedule, which I did. I get a call at 1:06pm from Elizabeth stating that she didn't have time to cash me out that she was only a minute away. Mind you the dentist stated 5 minutes and if it was true that they were only a minute away they would've still seen me because I still had to get a note for school. As soon as I stated I had file a complaint with the dental board and with the department health services Elizabeth stated I could no longer take my child as I didn't feel comfortable with the dentist since I filed a complaint. I once again let her know it wasn't with the dentist it was with the staff in the front and her as well. She once again stated the dentist of the office stated i could no longer take my child. I asked her so you are retaliating because i filed a complaint and she stated no. Clearly Elizabeth is ignorant because that is exactly what she did. Mind you when I went in they didn't have a sign that they have the right to refuse service. read more

While the dentists at Mariposa Pediatric Dentistry are wonderful--kind, patient, and great with kids--the front office staff is incredibly rude and unprofessional. Every time I've visited, the waiting room has been a disaster--toys scattered everywhere, barely any seating, and people crammed in like sardines. But the worst part? The front desk staff. They don't greet you when you walk in, don't offer any kind of friendly service, and simply shove a tablet at you to fill out forms--without even checking to make sure they're in the correct language. My final straw with this office came when my child had a scheduled appointment yesterday. We arrived early, only to be told his appointment had been canceled. Why? Because I was at work and didn't answer their so-called "confirmation call." When I called today to discuss it, the receptionist had a snarky attitude and said, "Well, that's the policy, so what do you wanna do?" As I started to explain that I would be moving my son to another practice, she cut me off mid-sentence and hung up on me. This kind of treatment is completely unacceptable. I've never missed an appointment in my life, and I don't need to be treated like a child who requires a reminder call and mandatory confirmation. Canceling an appointment just because a parent is unable to answer a phone call is absurd, and the staff's complete lack of courtesy makes it even worse. While the dentists themselves are great, dealing with the rude and dismissive front desk staff is simply not worth it. If you want to be treated with respect, I highly recommend taking your child elsewhere. I know I will. read more

Unprofessional, under prepared, didn't even see the dentist after being there for 2 hours.

My daughter went today she is 6 and was very nervous about it i believe his name was Michael that cleaned her teeth and took the x-rays he was kind patient super friendly and calmed her nerves right away Dr came in and was very informative and talked so gently to my daughter. She walked out with a big smile on her face thank you Dr and staff :) read more

I don't understand the good reviews, I took my son in and I encountered a young lady at the front who was welcoming, but immediately after rude staff !!!!! the woman named Brenda the Dental Assistant that looked about 45 or 46 yrs old with the blue hair, she was one of the most vile, unfriendly,unprofessional and unethical person I have ever encountered in life , my son was terrified. She kept complaining about other patients and coworkers, constantly rolling her eyes and having an attitude for no reason, she also had a horrible smell that even my poor son complained about. Please save your child the horrible experience and tremendous rude service and staff like this woman that works with CHILDREN, but is rude and vile. read more