Los Alamitos Optometry

A very pleasant experience with the doctor and all of her staff. Dr. Yamanaka appears to keep herself very up to date on the latest optometric symptoms and treatments, and keeps patients informed on matters affecting their optical health. After I did well on a test to assess my progress in the regimen she had prescribed for me, she personally called me to congratulate me and to encourage me to continue.

When it comes to your vision, you will want the best. Costco is great but Dr. Yamanaka is the best for testing your vision and giving you a deep detailed eye exam. She is a very kind young positive Dr. I got my contacts here for the first time and she was very gentle, informative and overall great. I never thought I could poke my eyes but now I don’t know why I wont… with a contact lens of course… worth every dollar.

I loved my visit there. Everyone was friendly, professional and knowledgeable about my needs and products. I will recommend them to anyone who need new glasses.

Been a patient for over 15 years. Moved to Texas 9 years ago and still come back here for my annual exam. Would not even consider another doctor.

This is the perfect place for me as I have vision issues and these people are the greatest. They are professional and very helpful. I recommend them very highly.

They don’t do the the air puff in the eye! BEST EXAM EVER.
But really, this place is really zen and cozy. Staff and doctor were nice. A major plus is the variety of low cost nice frames. My frames and lenses were available in 1 week. Very pleased with my service here.

Okay I’m with Jimmy here. As much as I’d love to leave a loving review I can’t because of the penny pinching overcharging ways of this office. Me, my sister and my mother all have had experiences where she overcharges or makes us come back to unknowingly be charged for a service that should be just a check up and included in the original price of the exam. The staff is super friendly, yes. She is a great doctor but why can’t you just have a forward pricing list and not try to put hidden charges ?? So if you have the money to be overcharged for everything then yes go here. If you’re annoyed when you get hassled by doctors offices due to their bottom line, then don’t. This office is too shady for me to come back as much as I love the doctor.

I’ve gone to Dr Yamanaka for probably about 20 years now, and the main reasons are because of her eye examining treatment, the examining equipment she occasionally upgrades, and the level of professionalism her and her staff exude.
The office may be hard to find at first, not to mention the parking a little small, but the office itself is modern, clean, and pleasant. I mention the equipment because over the past 20 years I’ve seen and used her new examining tools in which she can runs extensive tests. Eye exam equipment has improved a lot over the years, and upgrading your equipment is also pretty important to me. Especially being and IT geek.
Some examples of Dr Yamanaka looking into my eyes and telling me what I’ve done, what I’ve been through, and how I need to take better care of my eyes:
~ Eye dilation and retina check. Here she checks the back of my eye for plaque or cholesterol clogging up my blood vessels, things that will effect my vision, etc. Since high blood pressure runs in my family, I’ve got to get this done.
~ Super dryness of my eyes, or my contacts are stuck to my eyes. She tells me to stop drinking, OR if I decide to go out drinking that I should were my glasses instead.
~ I’ve got dark spots in my eyes. She asked me, «Has someone been dropping the blue pill?» Stunned, me thinking hmmm, must’ve been that experimentation with… Shes thinking, viagra… Wait wait, NO… Holy crap!!!
As Kelley U. put it, «She cares about her patients», and it’s true. And I agree with Peter C., «I really want to make sure that I get the best treatment for my eyes». Yes, it may be a bit more expensive versus some other optometrist, but I believe she is the best at what she does! Even after getting lasik done, and all of my post-​lasik follow ups have completed, I still go to Dr Yamanaka as my regular eye exam specialist. Her staff, Melody and Tristina, are also helpful and courteous as well. From appointment scheduling to frame selection, they do a job well done!

The office is beautiful and Dr. Yamanaka is very nice, but there is a price to pay.
While waiting for the doctor, you are FORCED TO WATCH a video selling «eyelash enhancement» or vitamin sales for macular degeneration. Make sure you ask if you want BOTH an eye exam and contact exam, as she wants you come back for ANOTHER exam at full price. Also, I didn’t give them permission to text my phone and I’m receiving texts to be on their «re-​exam» list. Finally, my eyeglass prescription was for only ONE YEAR, not TWO, like most other optometrists. When you make your appt., ask to OPT OUT of the video propaganda and texts, and make sure you understand the costs of the exam!

These ladies were all wonderful. I had to get an exam, along with my 3 year old, (not an easy task). They were so patient with my son, as he is non-​stop running around. I really appreciated it this as not many other businesses would be so accomodating. The office was gorgeous and the doctor was awesome. If you need to get your peepers checked this is the place to go.

I have been wearing glasses since I have been 12 and let me tell you, I have coke bottles, so I would be lost without a good optometrist. I have been seeing Dr. Yamanaka for many, many years now. I always look forward to my office visits with her because I always have such a great time there. I know that sounds weird, but her staff are great, Nilda and Crystal are very helpful and personable. Dr. Yamanaka is a wonderful doctor and really nice person. She cares about her patients. She performs very thorough examinations and will always take the time to answers any and all questions I have. Even though I live in South Orange County now, I make the drive back to North OC to see her and her staff at Los Alamitos Optometry.

I read the other reviews and went to Dr. Yamanaka. I don’t know if the other reviewers are her friends or what but I had a totally different experience. First the positives; the office is very nice and the staff is friendly. I was escorted into a room to wait for my exam. While waiting there was a video shown that talks about that eyelash lengthening formula. During my husbands wait the video was about eye vitamins. That was annoying, but I wasn’t distraught over that. The doctor came in and gave a thorough exam. Normally, when I go to the eye Dr. I get one eye exam and get my glasses and contacts (I have double VSP insurance). After my exam I went out to pick out frames. That’s when the trouble begins. I was told that I had just had an eye glass exam and I had to come back and pay $ 125 for an additional contact lens exam. I couldn’t believe it. They said it’s a totally different exam. During that time my son who only wears contacts was in the exam room. I asked if his exam was also just for glasses, because I wasn’t going to bring him back for another exam. The technician wouldn’t answer me. She kept trying to change the subject. I told her that if he needed two exams to get his contacts to go stop the exam right then. Again she changed the subject. Finally, my husband got up and just went into the exam room. He asked the Dr. about this and she said he indeed would have to come back for an additional exam just to get his contacts. We yanked him out of the room and ended the exam. I ended up refilling my glasses prescription because I had already had the exam. I went back to my old optometrist and got my contacts. This place is all about money and selling products. The technician had to initial all the extras I didn’t want on my glasses to prove I had been offered the extra features. There are LOTS of good eye Dr. in the area that actually want to help and not just get your money. I will never go back and I encourage you to do the same.

I actually found Dr. Yamanaka here on Unilocal.Based on the great reviews, I decided to give her a try. She’s simply the best! She took her time giving me a thorough exam and answering all my questions. She is sweet, professional, easy to talk to and a great optometrist. All the other reviewers have it right, she’s the best and I will be a return customer!

I don’t remember how long I have been seeing Dr. Yamanaka but it has been a long time.
I guess it is a good sign of her work that my eyesight has not deteriorated a lot over the years and because I have other issues with my health that can affect my eyesight I am always comforted by the fact that Dr. Yamanaka is constantly striving to improve her self and her practice.
I know that I could get cheaper examinations and cheaper glasses at Costco or Target but I really want to make sure that I get the best treatment for my eyes and I am willing to pay more for it.
Although this doesn’t stop me from giving her staff a hard time about their prices… which brings me to the quality of her staff. She has the friendliest and nicest people working for her. They are extremely professional but make you feel at home the minute you walk in the door.
Her office is always super clean and decorated very nicely with comfortable chairs and a nice flat screen monitor.
The exam rooms are well kept and she keeps them equipped with the great technology.
As to the Doctor herself, She has a very easy going personality and even though I have been seeing her for years I feel that she would be just as friendly and easygoing with a new patient.
I highly recommend Dr. Yamanaka and Los Al Optometry.

This place is fabulous. Dr. Yamanaka is quite possibly one of the coolest optometrists I’ve ever met. And she uses top notch technology for the eye tests, which is a relief since most of the optometrists that I’ve used in the past were pretty oldschool. They literally take a picture of your eyeballs before you take the eye exam so they can see what’s going on in there.
I don’t know about other high end optometrists, but her office provides Izon lenses which are pretty bad ass. Izon lenses are high resolution, so it’s the equivalent of watching HDTV when you’re wearing them. I got them last year with my Coach frames and they are AMAZING. My eyesight isn’t terrible, but I felt ten times safer driving at night with these lenses. FYI-​they are pretty pricey though and unfortunately one of the reasons for my visit was to get them replaced because the lense for my bad eye got scratched. BOOO!!! And I also went in to get some contacts since I desperately needed them for my active lifestyle (try training for a half marathon with not so good eyesight wearing glasses-​NO BUENO). So even though my insurance covered a portion of my visit, I still ended up paying a lot of money. The money wasn’t a big deal to me because I know I’m getting top quality eyewear, and when it comes to driving, which is when I mostly need my glasses, I’d rather be safe than sorry. Their services are impeccable, but if you’re hurting financially, this place might not be the best option for eyewear. You’re going to see a lot of Prada, Gucci, Marc Jacobs, Coach; lot’s of designer options. And like most optometrists, the staff are trained to up sale when it comes to frames. Perhaps they can work with you if you’re on a budget, I never needed too, but since these are trying times for most people, I feel that it’s best to put this note out there.
Other than that, the staff provided awesome customer service throughout my visit. Two thumbs up for how sanitary they are. And they are very friendly. To be honest, if I didn’t know any better, I would have thought I was shopping for glasses in Laguna or Irvine. Although, I’m sure the pricing at Los Alamitos Optometry is much cheaper than the high end optometrists in South OC; I guess it just depends on what your insurance can cover and what you can afford. So if you got the money and the insurance, definitely check this place out.

The absolute BEST optomitrist in the entire world.
She is so friendly and welcoming and her staff in unbelievably helpful. She makes you feel at home, she’s hilarious, and she has a great glasses selection.
I’ve never had a bad experience with her and this is coming from a nervous patient. She’s just wonderful!