Kaimakis Barry, DDS

I recently switched dentists. I’m feeling disappointed by my experience. I went to him because I had seen his name on a lot of «Seattle best» lists, which I now suspect are the result of knowing the right people, payments, or sponsorships.
My three visits there were generally so-​so, but from my perspective, Dr. Kaimakis committed two giant dentist fails that cannot be overlooked:
1. Dr. Kaimakis gave me a filling without any pain relief. No numbing gel, no shot, no nothing… Need I say more?
He told me it was «a small one» so I didn’t need anything. I reluctantly trusted his judgement… It was truly one of the most painful experiences I have ever had — definitely the most painful experience at the dentist. As I started to cry I asked if I couldn’t just have some sort of topical gel. They said I was «almost done,» which felt far from the truth. 5 minutes later, and completely crying, I demanded it or I would leave. They finally gave me a shot as I sobbed (haha, embarrassing!). I thought for sure he was somehow trying to save himself or me money, but I’ve since talked to people in the industry, and they say that a filling is billed the same to insurance with or without the pain medication. I can’t figure out why in the world you would resist your patient comfort (especially if the cost is the same), but this is what happened to me. I’m over it now, but I had a couple subsequent dentist appointments where my natural reaction was to break into cold sweats. I had so much anxiety from my previous experience.
2. Second dentist fail is that he has bowls for free candy bars around the office for your taking! Seems insanely negligent and self-​serving to me. I’m sure he is a reasonable man that understands people will eat sugar even if it’s not good for their teeth, but to be the temptation and also the person conducting the fillings. Dentistry 101.

I went to Dr. Barry 7 years ago to get a crown on my wisdom tooth (part of which chipped off). My dad is a dentist in the Midwest and I had never gone to anyone else before, but I was 5 months pregnant and wouldn’t be able to make it back to see my dad until after having my baby. I told Dr. Barry that my dad was a dentist, so he knew that his work would ultimately be inspected by someone else. While getting the crown, my o my annoyance was that I ended up waiting an extra half hour for him to show up bc he was on a long lunch with a buddy. So unprofessional! I figured everything was fine as the crown was put in and I could eat with no issues (although even when my tooth was chipped I had no pain). As soon as my dad saw the crown, he immediately said he would have redone it, as it was a bad fitting (it wasn’t smooth with my tooth). Sure enough, the hygienist at my dad’s office immediately had the same comment about the poor transition from tooth to crown.

They are gentle, and I think competent, but dentist is very «Wham, Bam, Thank You, Ma’am». I’m paying for his services, but he rushes in, quickly checks my teeth tells me what he thinks and is already walking out by the time I open my mouth to ask questions. Very frustrating. Also not as good about keeping up with my chart (when I need x-​rays, other work, what I said last time they suggested the same procedures, etc) as I am. Concerns me that if I’m not carefully keeping my own records, I can’t rely on them to remember which services I need when and which I don’t.

If you are interested in a full package of dental professionalism, you have found the right place. I have been associated with this office for over 20 years. The people are all dedicated in individualizing care to meet the needs and desires for each client. Dr. Barry (as he likes to be called) starts with an examination beyond your basic look just for cavities or a little gum swelling. He stays current in all aspects of dental health and their relationship to general health. What makes him special is he shares the options available from simply getting out of trouble to advancing care through cosmetic dentistry. AND, he lets you know just what each level of care brings in terms of benefits, expectation and what an investment needs to be made. That way you know exactly what you are in for. If you have to take on a project one step at a time, you are just as welcome as someone who can do everything all at once.
Unlike many offices, he works with most insurance providers so that you get the best possible deal.
So, you get expertise, quality of care, genuine caring and no attitude…

Considering the fact I am actively looking for a new dentist to replace Dr. Kaimakis, I decided it was time to write a review.
I moved to Seattle in September with a friend of mine and we both needed a dentist out here. We had seen Dr. Kaimakis’ name in several articles regarding Seattle dentists and decided to give him a try. The first turn-​off was the lack of organization by the office staff. My friend and I both scheduled appointments on the same day. I showed up for my appointment and everything was fine with the schedule. When my friend showed up an hour or so later, they told her they had never heard of her, she didn’t have an appointment, and they had no record of her as a patient. They said that a previous receptionist must have made her appointment and made her reschedule (we had also scheduled the appointments together… so their excuse was not possible).
Moving on to the actual visit… I was not pleased with Dr. Kaimakis’ exam or analysis. While I am not in the dental field myself and am not an expert by an means, I have gone to the same dentist for 20+ years in New York who I trust dearly. I am debating getting orthodontics to fix some gaps in my teeth and asked Dr. Kaimakis what he thought. He tried to convince me I needed cosmetic crowns for my teeth– which is purely cosmetic– and would cost $ 5,000+ up front. I called my dentist from NY and asked him what he thought of this assessment. While he said without examining me he couldn’t tell me for sureif this was a good or bad idea, it seemed VERY far fetched– and what Kaimakis didn’t tell me was that the $ 5,000 up front was just the beginning of costs associated with a cosmetic procedure such as this. When I went back to NY a few months later I had my dentist check me out and he said that he would NOT at all recommend the things that Kaimakis recommended, and immediately told me to not go back to him.
While I’m not sure of the specifics of her exam, my friend had a similar ‘bad taste’ from her exam– and also felt like he was trying to force unncessary procedures on her. She immediately switched dentists and has had much better sucess. I would not recommend Dr. Kaimakis to anyone… unless you’re looking for fake teeth and an expensive bill…

I’ve been in to see Dr. Kaimakis a few times now and don’t think I’ll be returning there. The last two times I’ve gone, he’s tried to push getting something that I do not need and is much too expensive for me to get. I’ve heard several similar reviews from coworkers who used to see him as well but have since switched care. Also, the staff there has more to be desired. They have not been the most helpful in working with insurance and being able to say what I can expect to pay. Also, when leaving a voicemail and asking for a call back — I expect a call back. When asked why I didn’t get a call back, I expect an apology and a promise to do so next time, not an excuse of «we’ve been very swamped.» I’ve been a front desk admin staff before — no matter how busy it gets, if someone asks for a call back, we’ve ALWAYS called back.

I’ve been going here for years and am glad I was referred here. The staff is friendly, caring & have great «bedside manner». I’ve always been explained, up front, what insurance would cover, my costs & what the outcome would be. Good or bad. When I had to get a crown due to a broken tooth, exposed root & was in extreme pain, they were able to fit me in on about 15 hours notice to get me relief.
Their obvious concern & care for their patients is what keeps me coming back. I don’t feel like I’m being turned & burned with a fast paced, impersonal visit. This is certainly a place where you can feel like family.
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I’ve since moved onto another dentist.
I started feeling like I was getting turned & burned, where the care went downhill.
I hope it turns around as I did really used to like

I will not be returning to this dentist. Here’s why:
1. Kaimakis was very coercive in trying to sign me up for a bunch of work including some purely cosmetic dentistry. He didn’t try to explain the importance of these procedures (i.e. treat me like an adult), he simply told me what I «needed». For example, he tried to sign me up for some expensive braces (which he admitted were designed by his friend) but didn’t mention that the only purpose of said braces would be to make the spacing between my teeth more like a movie star’s. Even if I wanted this cosmetic procedure, my insurance would not cover it because it is not necessary.
2. Though the explicitly stated purpose of my visit was to get x-​rays for a wisdom teeth extraction, he and his staff failed to take the proper x-​rays. Oh, they took x-​rays. They took a couple dozen x-​rays and I paid for each one. However, when I met with an oral surgeon a week later, he informed me that none of the x-​rays could even be used to assess a wisdom teeth extraction. He and his staff took the wrong sort of x-​rays (something about closed-​mouth versus open mouth). I had to pay to get the x-​rays retaken by the oral surgeon.
3. The reception staff was less than helpful. I expect reception staff to help deal with insurance. This receptionist couldn’t tell me what would or would not be covered by my insurance plan and insisted that it was my responsibility to research all these things. Fine. But I know that other dental receptionists will do this for me. So I guess I’ll go to an office that’s willing to work for me.
I’m giving this 2 stars instead of 1 because it could be worse. I didn’t feel unsafe or anything. I just think this dentist didn’t work out for me.

Just want to stress how lovely the staff at Dr Kaimakis’ office is. The receptionist knows me by name. They’ve always been helpful when I’ve had billing/​insurance questions. They give you a reminder call before your appointment. And today they were trying to accommodate a woman who was in some pain and on her way out she said «Wow, you guys are really nice.» Also, neither the hygienists nor Dr Kaimakis are rough. I like this place about as much as you can like a dentist’s office.