David Taft, DDS

I went to David Taft as a last minute measure through a friend’s not so good recommendation. Let me explain. My friend went to Dr. Taft and had a crown put on and a tiny cavity filled, but he didn’t do it correct the first time, so he had to go back and do it again, three times at that. On top of that, he billed his insurance ridiculous amounts for services that he didn’t render, leaving him with nothing for the entire year, as he used up everything on «fake services.» He got paid a total of $ 900.00 from his insurance and charged cash $ 450.00. My friend didn’t know this until a month later, when he needed to go back to a dentist, a new dentist of course, and was told by the new dentist office, that his insurance had maxed out. However, he did say he was nice.
Well, why then did I go to this dentist? Call me an idiot because I deserve it. I had an emergency and needed to leave out of town, and was asking anyone and everyone for a recommendation/​dentist. My friend told me about Dr. Taft, and said, «Look, I dont recommend this dentist at all, but if you have an emergency and no one else, go to him because he prob has an opening. None of other dentist offices were open, so I ended up calling Dr. Taft.
Of course, there was an available opening, so I went. BAD IDEA! His dental office is quite old, and some of his instruments were even rusting! On top of that, he pulled the same thing he did to my friend. I will need to do this and this and this and this on you, and your insurance won’t cover it, so I will bill your insurance for other things, and you just pay me $ 300.00. First off, I didn’t need to do «this and this or that and that.» And for him to sneakily bill my insurance to use up all my covered expenses for nothing, no thanks! I did end up filling a hole in my teeth, which he rushed through because I really had to before catching my flight. He also made me take xrays which I didn’t need, and he did bill my insurance for random things, a total of $ 670.00 which I am going to fight off. Actually, the bill was much higher, but that is how much my insurance paid this schemer!
All in all, I wouldn’t recommend him at all. He is shady and his work is far below average. I wouldn’t trust anything he had to say, in terms of what you need, in terms of how much he is charging you, in terms of insurance, etc. Did I mention, when I came back from my trip, I had to go to another dentist to have the work redone? Remember, the rushing thing?
I am going to be honest in all aspects. Dr Taft, the main guy you go to the dentist for is NOT TO BE TRUSTED. Now, the office staff, is another story. They are quite sweet and friendly. But, you don’t go to a dental office to chat away and shoot the sh_​t with the receptionist, do you?

My front tooth fell out… on a Sunday night… before a court appearance the following morning. Dr. Taft saved the day.
As stated in the other reviews, Dr. Taft, and the entire office, have a great sense of humor. I’m a huge fan of the blunt, tell it like it is, point of view, as is Dr. Taft. I called explaining the emergency and he said to come right in (8pm). My temporary really didn’t match the rest of my teeth, but what else can you expect from a temporary. I was happy I didn’t have a hole in the front of my mouth.
As he wasn’t on my insurance, I had to pay out of pocket for the tooth. I discussed getting a permanent crown with a dentist in my plan, or with Taft. I received a quote from my insurance and gave it to Dr. Taft. He said, for $ 100 more he would fix my front tooth, fill two cavities and provide a teeth cleaning. I was sold.
During the next two weeks I was fitted for a permanent, sent to a lab for color matching, had two cavities filled, and eventually got my permanent cemented in. Everyone in the office was extremely helpful, kind, and light hearted during each of my visits. I’m not 100% on the color matching (I’m a type A attorney perfectionist), however Dr. Taft said we could fix it at any time for no charge. Fabulous.
No one likes going to the dentist, however Dr. Taft was fabulous. I’m not sure what happened to the people here who have given him bad reviews. Sure he cusses in the office, but his work is quality and his prices are reasonable.

DO NOT GO TO THIS DENTIST!!! I called to see him and was given another dentitst when I arrived who was a total unprofessional — and the whole office is unprofessional. They told me they didn’t need my medical history and that I needed to remove several teeth which they would do for me at a discount — and would take mostly cash — it’s a rip off man… and i don’t want you to feel as concerned as i did going once i got into that office…

I’ve been meaning to post this for some time. Dr. Dave Taft has been my Dentist for over 20 years. He has no limitations. He’s done almost every kind of Dental procedure on me and has never let me down, Warm and friendly guy, always a great staff. He’s my Dr. Dave and I refer many his way. You can’t please all the people all the time but I don’t think you could go wrong with this Dentist…

Highly skilled, considerate, non-​judgmental, professional, reasonably priced. Up-​to-​date equipment including low-​radiation x-​rays and UV-​cured filling compounds. Very clean offices with helpful technicians. Extremely experienced. I’ve been a patient of his for several years. Choose this dentist!

Dr. Taft is the dentist with the personality. He has a sterling pedigree and a fun chairside manner to boot! I’ve been to several dentists over the years and really enjoy the staff, the location and the competitive pricing. Also the casual attitude. I am a CPA and have a client with a big dental practice. I get discounted or free work from that office, yet we go to Dr. Taft. My wife and daughter, both quite recently.
Last August my daughter had impacted wisdom teeth and Dr. Taft could have extracted two of them but he clearly explained the options and we elected to go to an oral surgeon to do all four extractions. I really appreciated his honesty and that he didn’t push us.
His office also handles emergencies and after-​hours service.

I have been a patient of Dr. Taft’s for 17 years. He is friendly, honest, professional, and an excellent dentist who has been practicing for 30 years. His office staff is welcoming and professional as well. His office is modern (re-​done 2 years ago) and his uses digital xrays and sterilized instruments — of course! Major dental care does not end when I leave his office, as he will call to make sure I am alright. He also treats my 3 children.
It really ticks me off to see a caustic, gratuitously negative review, which borders on slander and liable. Violet C — you are a whack job. It is a blatant lie that Dr. Taft charged you for «fake services». Dr. Taft is a dentist in excellent standing with the dental board. Of course he took X-​rays — this is standard, especially for a new patient, or one coming in on an emergency. He needed to see what condition your teeth were in before starting work. A dentist must keep exact records of teeth condition and work needed/​performed — especially if required later to defend a lawsuit. Any really good, professional dentist would have done the same. And he might have suggested additional work you needed, based on what he saw, but so what? This was his professional opinion, not something he was going to strap you to the chair and do without your consent. As to your accusation that he «rushed through» — did you take a stupid pill before writing your review? BY YOUR OWN ADMISSION you were rushing to catch a flight. It was a filling, not brain surgery, and I am sure that Dr. Taft followed his standard of care in making sure that you were out of pain and the filling completed to the best of his ability, based on the time constraints YOU gave him. In addition, you must have kept your eyes closed the entire time as Dr. Taft’s office is anything but old. It is clean, beautiful, modern, light-​filled and welcoming.
SHAME ON YOU, Unilocal! You really should check out a person who would post such a negative review on a professional who only has extremely POSITIVE reviews. This person’s one other review is also extremely negative, as they have set themselves up to be the harbinger of doom in some perverse and misguided attempt to inform and save the masses from the myriad of horrible business in the world. What a narcissist! Violet C– do us all a favor and lose the computer.

Please, please do NOT go to Dr. Taft. After reading his reviews, I decided to try him. But the guy is an absolute joke. His equipment was super-​old and he just didn’t know what he was doing. He quickly jammed into my mouth and did a very basic inspection and then told me he wanted to give me fillers right away. I refused of course. He then wanted to give me a cleaning — which I said yes to. He then put a pick into my mouth and literally poked around for 2 minutes and said — «wow, looks good.»
Trust me, this guy is a quack — he acts really weird and is just a bad dentist. I don’t know who wrote the other reviews, but trust me… stay away.

I moved to LA a few months ago and needed to find a new dentist. Dr. Taft was covered under my insurance (Guardian) and was right next to my work so I decided to go with him.
I was able to get an appointment within a few days and when I went, Dr. Taft and his staff were extremely nice and professional.
My only complaint is that because I was the last appointment of the day, I felt like they rushed through my cleaning a little because Dr. Taft had somewhere else to be.
That said, I still feel that they did a good job and I will definitely go back for my next cleaning.
*One thing to keep in mind, though, is that they don’t validate parking and it can be difficult to find parking near Santa Monica blvd. (I walked from work which was great).*

David Taft is really great! He is a funny and friendly and I felt very comfortable going to see him.
The appointment was prompt and kept short. I got all my questions answered and I loved how he wasn’t pushy. He let me know what I needed to get fixed and didn’t rush me into getting everything done in one day.
He also offers a great coupon for first timers off his website that includes cleaning, exam, and x-​rays for around $ 50 something! Totally worth it! I will be a long time client and suggest this to everyone I know.

Love Dr. Taft and his staff. I was referred to him by my friends who have been going to him for years. Everyone at the office is so warm and inviting. I am really scared of the dentist and they coddled my fears. He won’t rip you off and will tell it to you straight. Great office, great man.

I just got back from my annual checkup with Dr. Taft and his staff. This place seriously never disappoints. The friendly atmosphere makes coming to the dentist actually fun (who knew??). As I’ve said before, Dr. Taft is a very smart, friendly, funny, and knows how to run his business.
It’s good to see that others here on Unilocal who appreciate his services as well. If you’re looking for a Dentist in L.A., Dr. Taft is the place to go!
Till next time! Thanks again! :)

This ain’t your mamma’s dentist! (unless he is)
Dr. Dave is Rock N Roll!
I have been going to Dr. Dave for about 5 years now and not only is he a GREAT dentist, but he has become a good FRIEND.
His staff is always friendly and his office is always filled with laughter.
He makes going to the dentist fun!
But when it’s time to work… he’s a master.
He always explains everything he is about to do in layman’s terms. And he knows how to keep it as quick and painless as possible.
If you’re looking for a good dentist, keep looking.
If you’re looking for a GREAT dentist… look no further. You’ve just found one.
ROCK ON DR. DAVE!!!

I’m a nervous dental patient. When i moved to Santa Monica and had to seek out a dentist, it was a traumatic thought to randomly pick a dentist and hope my teeth don’t all get yanked out with no pain meds… that was the story in my head anyways. I called every dentist in the area and interviewed the staff, and requested interviews with the dentists. Dr. Taft was one of the few dentists that returned my phone call, and was quite happy to talk with me and answer all kinds of questions. He really cares, and he always goes to great lengths to relax me when i’m in ‘the chair.’ Even more amazingly, he and his staff remember me very well, i don’t feel like a number. They always remember our last conversation and they make an effort to make a personal connection. Oh yes, and the dental work is quite good too! Dr. Taft is pretty gentle, and totally reasonable about avoiding unnecessary dental work.

I’ve been going to Dave Taft for my dental needs for about 15 years. The work and service is always great; Dave is highly professional and truly cares about his patients. I’ve had bad teeth, mostly genetic, and he works very hard to keep them in excellent shape. I live in the valley and even though going to him is a long drive, it’s worth it. His staff is also excellent.

I have been going to see Dr. Dave since 2002, and he is the best dentist!!! I moved and tried to go to another dentist, but no one else compares. So, my husband and I drive up from Orange County to see Dave.
He and his staff are extremely helpful. They will find out what your insurance covers and give you your best options before they do the work. They are very helpful and hilariously funny!
My husband was hesitant to go to the dentist after a bad experience in China. But Dave made him feel relaxed and did wonderful work!
Dentist Dave uses the highest quality equipment and materials. Look no further. After eight years, I am still an extremely happy and loyal patient.