Daniel Nam, DDS & Associates

I first came to see Dr. Nam on the recommendation of graduate school classmates (a number of them gave enthusiastic reviews). His practice is very generous toward UC Berkeley students, because even though I don’t think he officially takes the UC SHIP student dental insurance, I was able to see him without having to pay anything. On top of that, he saw that my retainer was breaking and offered to make me a new one for free because I am a student.
Dr. Nam and his hygienists (I’ve seen Kane and Taylor) are experienced, thorough, caring, and make you feel like family (they always remember that I am in school and ask how things are going). They also do a remarkable job of telling the patient what they are about to do, so no surprises, and patients know what is happening during the cleaning. Another great thing is that they never try to sell me anything — which is awesome, compared to some dentists who will try to sell you other services.
Erin, the front-​desk manager is knowledgable about everything to do with insurance, and it was easy to communicate with her over email about some insurance and scheduling concerns (I am a big fan of email). The staff all communicate with one another seamlessly, and as a result, the patient care is efficient and thoughtful.
The Oakland office is brand new and very nice and clean. There’s free parking in front of the building (and they are building out a small lot in the back too). In San Francisco, I think the Dr. and the same staff as in Oakland work a few days a month, so once I begin working in San Francisco after graduation, I might see them in their SF office too.
Overall, I think it’s hard to find a skilled but also caring dentist without getting word of mouth referrals, so I’m thankful that my classmates referred me to Dr. Nam.

Dr. Nam and his staff are amazing and always welcoming. I always feel comfortable and know that I am in good hands. I needed both Invisalign and an implant and I am so grateful that I was referred to Dr. Nam. I will never go anywhere else for my dental needs.

Everyone at my work goes here and we couldn’t be happier with the service.

Working in the dental field myself I have worked with and seen my fair share of dentists. There’s a reason why I see Dr Nam for my cleanings and other dental needs. My whole family and a bunch of my friends continue to see him. Living in San Francisco I have no problem driving to Oakland to see him. He’s that good! If you didn’t know he also sees patients in San Francisco’s Embarcadero but finding parking can be hard.
Dr nam is awesome person, dentist and has a passion for helping the community.
He’s honest and won’t up sell you like some dentist! Give him a chance and I promise you’ll love him and his staff.

My husband and I have been seeing Dr. Nam for years now. Dr. Nam and his staff are the best, my husband dreaded the dentist and refused to see one. Long story short my husband sees them regularly now, he also went through implant surgery! The staff are very warm and welcoming. If you need a dentist, Dr. Nam is the one!

I have been going to Dr. Nam as long as his Oakland office has been open. Twice a year, I have been going to his office to get my teeth cleaned and until recently I was lucky enough to not need any other work. I thought about leaving a review on Unilocal for Dr. Nam before but I really couldn’t judge just how good of a dentist he was. I mean, he is a nice dude and all my cleanings went well but that’s like judging an electrician on his ability to change a light bulb.
About six months ago, he spotted a cavity on one of my upper wisdom teeth that had erupted above the gumline and was coming out crooked. Whenevern I brushed my teeth, I always knew it was difficult brushing the two wisdom teeth so I wasn’t surprised that I got a cavity there. He had always recommended that I get these two wisdoms removed and the cavity was the tipping point. Honestly, I wanted to delay the extraction procedure as long as possible and set a date that was another half year out. That day was yesterday. I will be honest and admit that I was a bit nervous going into the office simply because I didn’t know what to expect. He had assured me that the procedure would be routine and quick but still, I was nervous. I arrived at his office. Two x-​rays and a few anasthetic shots to numb the areas that he was going to work on, he quickly went to work. Within 30 seconds, one wisdom tooth was out and I didn’t even realize that he had pulled it because he was so efficient. The second one took a little bit longer and I did feel the a tiny bit of sensation but that one was out within a minute too. When I think about it, a lot of dental work is a combination of brute force AND delicate touch. Simply put, he’s got skillz. As I am writing this, I am pretty much pain free and have not had any need to take pain medication, which also suggests that he pulled those teeth out without ripping up parts of my gum.
One more thing, as I was sitting in my chair waiting for the anasthesia to kick in, Dr. Nam was attending to a toddler patient for his first dental visit. Dr. Nam was awesome with the kid and the kid could be about as comfortable as he could be. After that kid was done and was leaving with his mom, I actually heard Dr. Nam dismiss some of the charges because the mom didn’t have insurance and was paying out of pocket. I could actually sense the gratitude and relief in the mom’s voice as she thanked Dr. Nam. It’s really ironic that I decided to post this today and I see the 1 star post claiming Dr. Nam is about $$$. Absolutely untrue.
5 stars.

So its been a bit too long since I went to the Dentist. So for that reason I didn’t want to face it, so I put it off even longer. By the time I made it to Dr. Nam I had some cavities and was beyond overdue for a teeth cleaning. Cavities I dread!!! But with Dr. Nam, he made going to the dentist bearable. My first visit I got a teeth cleaning and x-​rays. I was very comfortable, the staff was super nice, no one shamed me for it being so long for my teeth cleaning, and I even walked away with some flossing tips.
The next visit was fixing my cavities. The part I find most terrifying is getting numbed up. Dr. Nam made it pretty painless. He fixed up my cavities with that awesome sounding drill (I think someone should invent a silent drill). And I was done in no time. All in all, I have a new outlook on going to the dentist. Its not that bad!!! I think Dr. Nam and his staff will make your dental experience soooo much better, due to how professional, competant, and kind they are I give a big THANKS to them!!!

If you live in the east bay & you’re looking for a new dentist, look no further. Dr. Nam & his staff are warm, personable, down-​to-​earth, genuine folks. I found his office to be clean and comfortable — well-​appointed and without ostentation. His staff manages to balance professionalism with honest personality.
Dr. Nam’s chair-​side manner was among the best I’ve ever experienced. I have excellent teeth, structurally, but I’m always battling stains along my gum-​lines due to near incessant tea drinking and my gums have receded mildly in several areas — which is exactly where the stains tend to build up. Those are some really sensitive areas to clean. Dr. Nam was empathetic and carefully observant of my experience while he was cleaning my teeth, yet he still managed to do an excellent job in much less time than I’d expected.
It’s rare to find an entire team of people who all truly enjoy what they do, but this is one of those places. I left smiling — which admittedly sounds a bit corny considering I’d just been to a dentist’s office — but it’s true.

This man is a dental NINJA!
In an out of your mouth without a trace of pain! I had an injured tooth that started to darken from the inside. I dropped by Dr. Nam’s Oakland office (nice place with a relaxing view out the window from the chair) and he was in and out in no time. I had a root canal previously by another dentist where I was able to feel EVERY bit of nerve tissue as it was scraped out of me. Dr. Nam got to work and before I knew it, he was done. I didn’t feel a single thing, and wasn’t even sure if he had started cleaning out the nerve tissue. 5 STARS for sure!
He even bleached the tooth internally and now it’s back to looking human! (If only he does plastic surgery — I’d be all set)
The guy is a pleasure to work with, great chair side manner as others have said, and is a consummate professional. His staff is skilled and very friendly. I always feel comfortable going in, and for once in my life I dont dread going to the Dentist.
This man does great work, check him out — seriously.
He also does Invisalign. I’m about a month in, and it’s going great so far.
Tyrone going to be looking fly in no time!