Lewis Gross, DDS

FYI… this is the same establishment as Holistic Dentists.
Was a patient in sept 2012 — Jan 2014. What an absolute nightmare! Not holistic at all and a complete butcher to my teeth. Avoid at all cost. Because it will cost you $$$ and your teeth.
Here is a list of my experiences before I finally had the sense to seek another dentist.
First red flag-​while waiting to see Dr. gross, I witnessed first hand someone being turned away after having been told their insurance was accepted over the phone. Naturally this person was pretty upset as he had taken time from work to be at this appt. Unfortunately for me, they took my insurance. TIP– get an email confirmation that they accept your insurance.
Money– A real put off was when the billing manager hassled me about payment options prior to the appt. What I found really enraging is the amount quoted for the work would increase substantially midway while the work was being done. When this was brought up, they claimed it was a mistake on their part. I felt stuck to continue the work as they had already done half of it. I later fund out from my next dentist that Dr. Gross was really overpriced and I had great coverage on my insurance. TIP– make sure you get a quote of the work to be done in writing.
Extremely painful– I found Dr. Gross to be extremely heavy handed and not empathetic to patient’s sense of pain. It almost seemed as if he enjoyed causing pain, the way the needle was jammed into my gums. I’ve had other dentists give anesthesia and it was not painful.
TIP-​no tips for this unless you’re into pain.
Dental Work– had to see two specialists after seeing Dr. Gross. Both dentists stated he did a horrible job and did not follow textbook guidelines for a bridge. As a result I lost 2 teeth and spent more than $ 6000 out of pocket b/​c by then my insurance premium was completely stripped by holistic dentists and Dr. Gross. TIP-​get a second opinion and quote from another dentist before proceeding with this establishment.
I came here because Dr. Gross markets himself as a holistic dentist. Far from it it was the most painful, frustrating and conventional dental experience. If I could give zero stars I would.

I happened on Holistic Dentists because it’s across the street from my office building downtown. I saw the name and was curious if they might have a different take on my TMJ /​jaw issues than the usual «i know, lets file your teeth down and see if that helps» or «here’s a new expensive night guard for you to chew on» recommendations, both of which are questionable approaches that doctors do not agree on. I found out Holistic Dentists offers cranio-​sacral therapy, which I had heard can work for tmj.
Sooo, I haven’t visited a dentist there yet, but have been seeing Emily Ireland for CRT therapy. She is a delightful person, and so far her treatments are helping my jaw.
As for the office, the staff and vibe there is serene, welcoming and friendly – more so than what you get at most doctors offices in the city.
Liking the feel of the place, I referred my fella here a few weeks back when an old filling of his was going bad and causing intense pain. He saw Dr Verma, they worked him in the same morning. He got the permanent crown today and said she got it comfortable first try. He also was extremely happy he didnt have to get a root canal because things went so well. He also liked her personally, which is huge for a guy who dreads the dentist.
Overall a great experience and really nice people. I’m surprised to see these bad reviews, but I also see dozens of positive reviews for this office hidden by Unilocal.Seems weird! What’s up Unilocal!… Let’s see if my review makes it through! I hope so because if I’d found only these negative reviews I would have been scared off, which would not have helped my jaw!

Update… I received a nice call from the dentists who fixed all of my cavities checking up on me. She also apologized the appointment mixup. I really do like her and the dental assistants. I received a small gift for the mixup which I greatly appreciate. I do find this dentist to be quite expensive even with insurance, and I think the ‘holistic’ approach is lost. Luckily I should be good for awhile.

I was a patient here years ago but it was one of the worst dental experiences of my life. I thought it was safe since Dr. Gross agressively markets himself as a holistic dentist… but no, I’m sorry this guy is a butcher and ALL ABOUT money. First of all he brings up my account while I’m sitting in the chair about to get my dental work done and starts grilling me about my payment arrangements when that was already squared away with the billing manager. very tacky.
As for the holistic well, it got as holistic as showing me a pressure point on my hand, I was to squeeze the soft part of my hand in the «v» between my thumb and index finger. While I’m doing this he gives me a novacain shot, now I’ve had needles, root canals, wisdom tooth extractions, I can manage a decent amount of pain. But this dentist is very heavy handed… I was in visible pain, and all he told me was to keep squeezing that stupid pressure point which did ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. It was like a comedy act but not funny.
Another time he was drilling and hit a sensitive spot, I moaned through the contraptions in my mouth to inform him it hurt, but again he just kept going until I had to hit the side of my chair with my fist to tell him ARRRGGHH! HURTING! He is completely ambivalent to patients in pain… who the hell wants a trait like that… in their dentist no less?

dr gross was quite affable but costly and the experience was not very holistic feeling.
BACKSTORY: bfore coming to dr gross i went to my oral surgeon in long island. i was panicked about a hurtin molar that was on an old root canal. we had tallked on the phone and i was ready to pay him $ 500 to have my tooth pulled — but wnen i got there my oral surgeon informed me that the tooth could be saved. he told me to go to a dentist to clean out and fill in the tooth.
so thats why i came to dr gross to deal with cleaning /​rebuilding the tooth.
DIFF OPINIONS: dr gross said my tooth had to come out. he didnt want to clean and rebuild. unlike the oral surgeon dr gross felt i needed to have the molar pulled immediately. i wanted the ordeal done with. so i agreed.
EXTRACTION: that tooth was huge. he did that extraction the old school way. cracking twisting wrenching and yanking. took about ten minutes and was excruciating bloody and frankly traumatic even before the i got the bill. my jaw was really messed up afterwards and the price tag was significntly more than the oral surgeon wouldve charged.
but i recovered and was relieved to have dealt with it. now i just need to get a bone graft and an implant somewhere. not there. i fel bad writing a «bad review» because the ARE nice there. but I felt compelled to write this review for he following reasons:
A). their reviews on city search are from blatantly fake reviewers
b) there was nothing «holistic» about this experience
c) they offer a free consult– but ultimately charged more than a hundred and ffty. dollars more than the more qualified oral surgeon.
d) dr was highly exasperated with his assistant and the vibes between them were hostile — it made me feel uncomfortable when he huffed at her incompetence.
e) they cancelled the follow up appointment to remove the stitches and i wound up removing the stitches myself.
bummer.

Phone manner for an appointment seem rushed and unwelcoming. I asked who I would be seen by and he mention the Dr. and a person I had prior for a cleaning. Thought the cleaning seemed thorough, the experience was somewhat uncomfortable, which left me with a sore jaw afterwards. Just wish overall everyone was a little more accommodating and I concur with the 1^st comment above, respective of possible manner.

PAINFUL AND OVERPRICED!
I chose Dr. Gross because his office is close to where I work and they were able to give me an appointment soon after I called. I had a small bump on my tongue that I wanted to have checked out. In the end it turned out to be a simple infected taste bud, but unfrotunately my experience with his practice was not so simple.
Before having the procedure, I sat down with Dr. Gross and asked him to be honest and tell me what he thought my total out of pocket would be, including lab fees, given the dental insurance plan I had at the time. He was very clear the total out of cost would be $ 250, after what my insurance would cover and including lab fees. He suggested I pay in person right before my procedure.
I was taken to one of the rooms and given anesthetic as I was told they would need to cut out the taste bud. As soon as they started the procedure I could feel everything so they gave me another shot. The dentist performing the procedure was assisted by an intern of sorts, who kept stating how this was ‘so cool’ and describing how much of my tongue was being cut open, and trying to have me see it through a mirror. They ended up cutting out about 1 square inch from the center of my tongue. Afterwards, I explained I was starting to have pain and I have a long commute so I asked for something for the pain. They told me they couldn’t give me a prescription and just to take advil when I got home. I almost passed out from the pain while on the train.
A few weeks later I got a bill for $ 200 from the practice of the dentist who actually performed the procedure. It turns out they bill seperately and didn’t communicate my insurance information, so they didn’t submit a claim to my insurance and I had to do it for them. Once approved by my insurance, his office billed me for another $ 100. I also got another bill in the mail from the lab for another $ 95.
Needless to say, patients should not take Dr. Gross’s word when dicussing pricing, get it in writing! They don’t communicate insurance information and overcharge for non-​standard procedures. Beware: terrible service!

Billed as a holistic dental practice, they use low-​radiation x-​rays, and are open to alternative pain treatments and such, but the experience overall does not have that much of a holistic feel.
Dr. Gross is nice enough, but he doesn’t spend that much time reviewing a patient’s file, and looking at the teeth and the x-​rays. He is very much interested in cosmetic dentistry for his patients, and I understand that people have to make a living, but if I’ve been your patient for several years, and you know that I never go for it, perhaps it’s time to get past the fact that I don’t want any laser whitening. I think my most recent negative experience with him was when I was getting a filling. His assistant did most of the actual dental work, and the two of them spent the entire time they were supposed to be focused on me discussing the billing of another client. It was unprofessional and just plain rude. Getting a filling is stressful enough; I certainly don’t need to hear about billing Ms. Doe’s crown.
One of their oral hygienists, Karl, is a bit careless, and I’ve often found myself wincing in pain as the high-​pressure water-​irrigation device seared into my gums or tongue, or as tooth polish plopped into my eye. To top it all off, he’s a bit brusque. If you do choose this dental practice, I recommend going on Wednesdays when Lorena is the hygienist; she’s very good.