Patient Testimonials
At Smile Specialists NYC, we work hard to provide the orthodontic care you need for a happier, more beautiful smile. Below you will find firsthand accounts from our patients regarding the life-changing care they received at our office. Learn about how the Smile Specialists team can change your life too. If you are ready to make an appointment, please call our office at (212) 287-1282. A member of our staff would be happy to assist you in scheduling your free consultation. You can also sign up for your free consultation online right now to send us a message. Either way, let us help you begin the process of transforming your smile!
“The atmosphere is the best thing about Smile Specialists.” –Yvette Robles
The atmosphere is probably the best thing about us. Even me just working here, I’ve never really had like conflict with any of my coworkers. My best friends are my coworkers. I mean like people I hang out with on the weekends are people that I work with.
Everyone always just tries to have the best interest of the patient, like you know, sometimes you just go places and you feel like you are a number in line waiting, I don’t think anyone here treats our patients that way. We all have some kind of friendly relationship with everyone who walks in through the door. We try to figure out, like we know everyone’s life story before they even decide they are getting braces anyway. That is usually how it happens here. I didn’t want braces when I was 16 and I was like “uhh” and I was kind of forced into it and I’m happy I did because that is probably one of the things I’m complimented on most is my smile. So you know it’s your greeting, it’s your way into the world with anyone it’s your first impression. I just think it is worth more than being scared about something, you know the pain or anything like that.
“It’s a place for people to feel comfortable to come in and get the smile they’ve always wanted.” –Wendy Lagstein
It’s a great place because the vibe here is fun, friendly, upbeat and by the way we fix teeth so it’s really a place for people to feel comfortable to come in and get the smile that they’ve always wanted. Every day that I wake up, I know that I’m going to come into the office, I’m going to meet a ton of people and everyone of them is going to have a story and they are going to share their story with me and I’m going to help them get the smile they want to help make their story even better. So it’s a great place to be.
Everyday, somebody new, somebody different who just wants to improve them self, feel good and smile more. It’s magical. Somebody walks in here and they are looking down, they won’t look you in the eyes and they are covering their smile and they leave here and there are tears in their eyes because they have a smile that when they look in the mirror, they can’t believe it’s them.
We make people feel comfortable, we put them at ease that they can come here, regardless of what their teeth look like. We never make them feel embarrassed, we never make them feel like they have the worst teeth we have ever seen, we never make them feel bad about themselves. Our job is to say “here we are, we are here to help, feel good about it and let us walk you through the journey because it is going to be a good ride”
“I always felt a little insecure about my smile…now I get compliments all the time!” –Vincent Vazzana
They give you everything you need, everything you want to know. They work with you and for me it was a long process. For me it wasn’t overnight and they were more concerned with the health of my oral hygiene than the aesthetic look of it so it was a combination of actually having a healthy smile as well as looking good. I couldn’t get my braces put on until I had work done prior. They set it up, they worked with me on the finance aspect and I pretty much took care of everything financially even before I got the braces because I had to get work done even before then for fillings and crowns. There was a lot I had to do and they worked me through it. First I do this, then this and then when I was ready to do it, then we did it. So it was longer before I could even get that on. I always felt a little insecure about my smile and how I looked every time I smiled and now I get compliments all the time, “oh you have such a perfect smile, your teeth look so good”. So it’s night and day.
“The results and the feeling I got is money well spent.” –Terrance Conyers
They give you a family-type of feeling and you can always drop in to say hello and see how everybody is doing and let them see how you are doing. It is like a family type of atmosphere that I like and I love and I’m glad that I came. They made me feel totally comfortable, I didn’t have any anxiety at all. I always smiled and laughed and joked with family members and friends and they kind of didn’t pay any attention that my teeth were incorrect at all but once I got the braces on, it just magnified my smile that much more. People compliment me that much more on my smile. It kind of gives you that avenue to want to smile and show off the good work that I got here at Smile Specialists and they have taken me a long way, even further. The results and the feeling that I got is money well spent.
“Painless and a fun, family-like atmosphere” –Steve Alexander
I think, hands down it is like a family atmosphere. When you are doing business in New York City, there is a lot of moving around and there is no interpersonal connections anymore. Whenever you walk in, you feel like you are being embraced by your family. I think people should use this organization for their orthodontic needs because it is painless. About six months before I joined the program, I prepped myself for massive pain. My twin sister had braces, my younger brother had braces and they both felt tremendous pain. After my first visit when I got the braces on, I had no idea they were even on. It is painless and a fun, family-like atmosphere and I like it. When I think about confidence, I think after the braces, it has kind of shot up a little bit more and the reason why is because I know there is an improvement in my facial structure and people are telling me they see improvements and I’m seeing a difference in the way I speak in public, I do that for a living, and I’m just overall a lot happier.
“I couldn’t believe how fast [my teeth] straightened out.” –Shawn Allen
I love this place one because of Dr. Lagstein. I’m a sneakerhead so the first time I came in here and I had my sit down consultation, I had on these neon Lebron’s and he looks at them and he said “let me see those” so I just kicked off my brand new sneakers and he put them on and was walking around and he had on True Religion jeans and I’m like “this guy is awesome”. He is always joking, always smiling. I had what is called a cross bite and like even though my teeth weren’t so far out of alignment, just the crossbite. One of my upper teeth were behind the lower teeth row so sometimes when I smiled, it would almost look like I was missing a tooth. They were able to jump that tooth and set it properly for me so that I didn’t have to pull any teeth to make room in the arch. I also had some crowding on the bottom and that straightened out.
I couldn’t believe how fast that straightened out. It straightened out literally like within a month to two months and by that time, I saw that my bottom row was just perfect. I was amazed. The speed and the way they catered to everything I needed and the fact that I didn’t have to pull any teeth was awesome. Within the first three or four months of me getting the braces and they started to move a little bit and sit where they were supposed to be, I had the best job that I’ve had to date, the highest paying job. My girlfriend is beautiful and she’s smart and she’s doing her thing and just in general, hanging out with my friends. I have a three year old son and just being able to laugh and just really completely let go and just enjoy the time that I spend with him without having that in the back of my mind, it is just awesome, I can lie.
“You start seeing your teeth shift immediately.” –Priya Patel
They are really amazing. The fact that they remember my name every time I come is really great. The doctor, when I first met him called me pretty and all that and he made me feel like my teeth were okay but deep down, obviously I know that they aren’t but they are going to get better. I make the trip all the way from North Bergen to come here and that’s serious because nobody would ever come that early in the morning for braces and I was willing to patronize it. This is the best place I’ve been to by far and I’ve checked out a lot of places but by far this is like the greatest place I’ve been to and I definitely recommend getting braces. Whether you are 21, 30, it doesn’t matter how old you are, it’s perfectly fine. The fact that they have Fast Braces, they give you that opportunity and it’s a quick process. You start seeing your teeth shift immediately.
“Now, I’m not afraid to smile.” –Natasha Griffith
From when we walked in it was just so welcoming. It didn’t feel like a dentist’s office, it felt like somewhere that people would actually care about you and hear what you have to say and hear what needs you want. Well they offer the micro braces and that was a plus because I didn’t want a full front grill plus glasses, that would be too much. So when I saw that they offer micro braces, I literally ran in the next week and it’s in and out. I wasn’t expecting to come in and five minutes later be done and be on my way. I was expecting a 30 to 40 minute wait, maybe even an hour.
Before getting the braces on, I would not smile for pictures at all. I would do the cheesy forced smile but now I’m not afraid to (smile showing teeth) cheese, cheese all day, I’m not afraid to do that. Before I was insecure. I didn’t want to smile at all but now I have no problem. Like look, I’m smiling right now just talking about it. So imagine me outside doing selfies. It is ridiculous now how much I smile more. Everyone is noticing that I’m smiling more so that’s a plus, that means they did their thing, they did the right thing for me. They helped me out and brought my confidence all the way up here (hand above her head).
“I didn’t like to smile, but now…” –Natalie Prevost
I was nervous about getting braces because I thought this whole thing would be like using needles and numbing and stuff but they didn’t use any of that. It was fast and it didn’t hurt, it did hurt a little when it started moving my teeth but then after that, I just got used to it after like a month. When they say something that I need to work on, they would follow with something positive so I didn’t feel so down about it. They always greet me and they are always polite. I used to have teeth up here (in her upper gum line) and smiling was uncomfortable so I didn’t like to smile that much but now that I have braces and they have started straightening out, I like to show my teeth a lot and I don’t feel so uncomfortable showing them.
You have a wide variety of things to get, you can get coloring. It doesn’t hurt as much because I have friends who have braces but they didn’t come here and they have told me about numbing and pain and a lot of terrible stuff but here I didn’t experience any of that. It was comforting, fast and it hasn’t been a year yet that I’ve had my braces on but there has been a lot of improvement and I feel more comfortable like this.
“It has boosted my confidence a lot.” –Michael Lynrm
When I first came here, everyone was so welcoming. It was just a real comfortable environment and everyone seemed to know what they were doing. When Dr. Lagstein was looking at my teeth, it was like he cared more about my teeth than I actually do. It’s like a good feeling. When I first got in I was like nervous at first because I didn’t know if it was going to hurt or whatever but where i am now, they know exactly what they are doing and they tell you what to do and if you follow the steps, everything is going to be okay. My teeth have improved like times ten since I’ve been here. Before I used to be scared to smile for pictures, all my pictures I have just like a straight face and even though I have braces, I kind of like smile at people to let them know I’m coming, like I have arrived. Yeah it definitely has boosted my confidence a lot. I’ve even had some people say “it’s good to be around somebody who is taking care of their self and taking the initiative to better them self with something like that”. It has definitely been a good confidence builder. You will love them. They are like really cool, everyone there is like really cool. They will take really good care of you and you will feel really good about going.
“They treat you just like family.” –Lester Greene
It’s like family. They treat you just like any family member so I felt really welcomed and that’s what you want to feel when you are getting something done on you. You don’t want to feel like it’s nerve racking or something really big. They just make you feel so comfortable and I just love that home cooked feel and I think at the end of the day, a lot of people just want to feel appreciated wherever they go, even if they are meeting for the first time, you still want to feel like there is a mutual respect going on. So the chemistry is just right here at Smile Specialists. I didn’t even know my smile was that bad until I came here and it wasn’t that bad, it’s just that sometimes you don’t pay attention to certain things until people point them out.
When Dr. Marvin came to me and said you can do this, you can do that, I was like oh I never really thought about it that way. And he wasn’t negative about it, he just said if you want to improve, you can do this and you can do that and so I just completely trusted him right from the beginning and so here I am six months later and my smile looks incredible. It was almost like a boulder was lifted from my shoulders, do you know what I mean. I walk upright when I’m walking and taking pictures and I’m smiling big now. People are like “oh wow your teeth look beautiful, did you do something, there is something different about you”. It’s just an aura about me that just changed from night to day. It is an incredible transformation.
“Beautiful experience and amazing results.” –Kristopher Afum
I love this place because the people are with you every step of the way and the outcome of the performance in teeth is beautiful. The atmosphere here is different, it is more youthful and there is a certain energy once you walk in. You see the smiles, you see the greetings, everything is just so unique here. Other dentist offices were kind of like funerals, dry and cold. Well before braces, I used to do the laugh and cover but now it is just amazing. I meet people, I greet people. Even at my job, they are like “Kris you are just so much happier and it’s good to be around, you are always smiling”. In the morning times, on a tough morning, you’re like “hey guys how is it going”. My confidence level has definitely boosted me a lot. When a dentist tells you “hey wear this for three weeks and you will see results” and in your head you are thinking I’m not going to see results in three weeks and then when you do it and you come here and he shows you, you are like WOW. Then everything that he tells you, you want to do it because you want to see the results. Come here, it is a beautiful experience and the results are amazing.
“I feel I can be more myself now” –Kenneth Damiano
Yeah it feels like people are just closer to you and they establish a great relationship with you opposed to the ones I’ve gone to where they just get straight to the point instead of like here where they just care for you and they want the best for you. I actually thought it was going to be a little scarier than what I thought it was but it wasn’t, it was like a simple procedure. Everything was fine and just went smoothly. It took less than an hour to put them on. I thought it would take like three hours with them doing a lot of stuff but no, it was easy work. It is a huge change and I feel like I can be more myself now and I smile more. Why would you want to go out and not feel good about yourself. Yeah it was a little pricey but it is worth it at the end of the day.
“I feel like I can’t stop smiling.” –Jeffrey Turnof
They aren’t like the normal dentist office where it is cold and they just want to rush you through. I’ve had a couple different assistants and each one, I felt just as comfortable with and a couple different dentists and each one is super friendly. It makes it like it’s easy to talk to them and there’s like this personal family touch, it feels like when I come in here, that I don’t mind traveling six hours across country or traveling an hour from Penn Station to get here. One of the reasons that I got braces was I noticed that I took a family trip to the Bahamas and in every single picture I wasn’t smiling and now, even when it came to the last couple of months with the braces on, I knew that you could see me smiling in every picture because I could see the progress and I just got them off a couple minutes ago and I feel like I can’t stop smiling. I can’t wait to get out of here to show my family. Honestly it is just worth it. I had them for almost two years, it would have been two years this October. I was really reluctant. I had braces on as a kid as most people did and I didn’t wear the retainer and then they reverted back and it’s like, if it’s something that is bothering you, I’m 33 years old and I started when I was 32 and there is no age that shouldn’t be able to do it. Just do it man, it’s worth it.
“I love to smile now.” –Jeffrey Choi
They always remember my name which I think is so amazing. I’m sure they have like hundreds of patients but they always greet me by my first name, always greet me with a smile and they make me feel at home and it’s like a really nice, personable kind of thing. So I had an issue with crowding, like my teeth were starting to overlap a little bit so they helped me kind of go through the process of what I was to expect. I had the braces behind my teeth because I felt like I was a little older now, especially when I’m in a professional atmosphere and I don’t want it to be too visible. They explained to be what I should expect and what it would be like. It was actually shorter term and it is much more effective, I feel like, than Invisalign or any other product out there and it worked really well I think. Before I got the braces, I started noticing in pictures at certain angles that my teeth would look a little crooked or a little crowded and I kind of didn’t really like that so once I started seeing them in pictures, I started realizing that maybe I shouldn’t show my teeth in certain pictures but now I feel like everything straightened out and it looks great. I love to smile now, it feels good.
“My confidence level was a 4, now it’s a 20!” –Fatim Mamdouh
Actually they are one of the best. I tried and went to other doctors and Dr. Lagstein’s office, they are all very friendly and it is basically like a second family. They are always here for you. They will do anything to make the appointment very convenient. They are very flexible. No matter who you are or what you do, they are very flexible. I just started my treatments, it has been two months now and I will say my confidence level was, I would say 4, and now I would say at 20 because they technically change your life. The time wearing these braces is shorter than the regular. Usually you have to wear the regular braces for more than 18 months. With the fast braces, it is between 8 and 10 months. So for my social life, it is going to be practically easier. It is not a regular boring doctor’s office. They are a second family who will always be here for you and they always do their best to make you feel very confident.
“Confidence is great.” –Diego Dunker
Everybody is very friendly. An example, case in point, just coming in now, they said “Hi Diego” and I barely know their names, I may know one or two people but just that they know you by name and give you updates, ‘hey listen they are going to be with you in a second” so you have some very personable people who are not afraid to be professional but also be personable as well too. My smile wasn’t the most confident so I came here. Now with two things, one simply because I have on braces I can smile easily with people saying “maybe his teeth were a little messed up but he has braces, he is working on it”. So I can smile. The second confidence was a doctor here, Dr. Lien who has been with me throughout the whole treatment and every treatment when I’m here at six weeks, he gives me an update like looking good, another 7 months or another 8 months whatever the case is and it gives you that motivation, that goal and you are like good, by then I will be smiling with twice as much confidence as I have now. Confidence is great. Every visit becomes more confident.
“[It] is very fulfilling for me.” –Autumn Campbell
We’re very family oriented. We all have personal, warming relationships with our patients and it just makes them feel right at home. They feel very comfortable initially when they come through the door, even when they schedule appointments first over the phone and then we continue to give them that feeling, each stage of coming to the office. It never gets old to me. I meet different people every single day, all the time, and everyone has their own life story and the fact that I can impact them, just even putting a smile on their face and making them feel good about themselves. It keeps me going, it never gets old. It is a little repetitious but it never gets old because I meet so many wonderful, wonderful people that I’ve made friends with and they will be in my life forever. Seeing my patients get married, oh it is just a journey for all of us that we share together so it is very fulfilling for me.
“I like this place because everyone is so friendly.” –Angelica Morron
I like this place because everyone is so friendly. I had braces before when I was younger and it was torturous. I hated going there, they were just Russian people and everyone was speaking in Russian and I just felt so weird. Coming here my first time, I was like “oh there’s people here my age who work here and I can communicate with them. The first time was okay and then the second time everyone was so friendly and I met the dentist and Dr. Lagstein and they were welcoming so I was like “I’ll just stay for the ride”. My confidence level was horrible. I didn’t want to talk and now I have braces and I see the changes that are progressing and now I’m like comfortable with them because I had a tooth that was way back there flapping so now when I talk, I don’t see it anymore. So now I have braces, but everyone has them so I really don’t care anymore.