Love Dr Bermel office they are great. So helpful and honest people. Would recommend this Leesburg office to anyone looking to get eye exams

I needed to have my eyes checked quickly before moving out of state unexpectedly. Dr. Bermel's office in Leesburg was able to get me in quickly. The staff, Arnold, Vanessa and Fabiola, were fantastic. They were all so polite and really took the time to work with me to pick out my glasses, explain all of my eye care, and then ship my glasses to me out of state when they came in. Dr. Heather Bae was the doctor that I saw and she was one of the best I have ever been to. She did a very thorough examination and then took the time to go over the findings and everything that I would need to do and what to follow up on after I moved despite her busy schedule. Once my glasses and case arrived to me the case was damaged. I called the office and they immediately agreed to ship me out a new one. I wish I hadn't had to move away because this would have been my permanent place for my yearly eye checkup. The office is professional, friendly, knowledgeable, and really goes the extra mile for their patients. They also handle all your insurance needs and explain everything prior to your exam. Go see Dr. Bermel Northern Virginia Eyetech Optometry in Leesburg. You won't be disappointed. read more

Made an appointment, was at the site 5 min before my appointment time. I checked in. Waited 20 min without a response. I went to thr front desk asking then what is going on. They said they were busy, but they will call me in few min. Overall, waited for an hour before they finally called my name. On my second visit, I got before my appt, and told them I will not wait any longer than 15 after my appt. They got the message and I was seen 15 after my appt. Always delay after Delays in this place. I had a person who was in training check my eyes and had issue operating the equipment. Has another person operate the same equipment without any success. Finally after a hour or so, an experienced optometrist was able to operate the equipment did my checkup. And, I heard another dissatisfied customer telling them how incompetent their service was and I agree from my experience. Never went back. read more

Review for the Leesburg store. Fantastic service from Lauryl. I explained the frames I was wanted to try-on and she suggested 4 potential pairs. Never felt pressure to buy. Came back later and I decided to go in a different direction. Again, Lauryl was very helpful. Explained the different options. I know I didn't buy the cheapest pair of prescription glasses, but that's ok. I could have gone to Walmart/Costco. However, the excellent service I received justified the purchase. read more

Very pleasant at first, but the first pair of glasses were waaay off. Likely a misunderstanding over terms like "computer use," "distance vision" and "reading glasses," although I described the specific use I had in mind: twin monitors in an audio studio at slightly more than arms length. They were too quick to jump to "computer use" which is typically musch closer than that. Fine, but they should have been able to understand the difference. The second pair--"reading glasses" to be installed in my frames--were not ready and couldn't be done on site as promised. So it took another 3 weeks. in the end, the glasses are fine, but the cordial demeanor of the initial visit was gone, and I felt like to them I was just a nuisance. read more

I received assistance without push. I appreciate that. I ended up buying 2 pairs glasses because the selection was really good. A lovely lady helped with my insurance. read more

Admin staff is constantly trying to upsell you products that are unnecessary. When you say no they are pushy and act like YOU wasted their time. Additionally, they are constantly messing up with pricing of services. They never give you accurate estimates and I felt like they could easily take advantage of someone who doesn't pay close attention to costs. At the Ashburn location, the receptionist is very rude and short. If you can seek out another office PLEASE DO SO. read more

I have gone here every time and my first experience I saw Dr. Bernal as my the optometrist. They sent me directly to a retina specialist that day as there was something wrong with my retina. The showed much concern and took care of me. Dr. Bermel was awesome. I went two other times and was disappointed with a certain person that seemed to run the desk. She was rude. Apparently she is. I linger there anymore. My visit today November 18th 2021 was so pleasant. Greeted well and everyone was nice and they wanted to help and be there. It was Vanessa that really stood out for me, she took the time to help me find the right glasses. She went over my benefits and the best way to use them. I thanked her and she said she was a people person. Let me tell you she sure is and she educates. The actual eye doctor was also very good and helpful, the whole experience was great. If you have been here and were previously dissatisfied, I say give it a go again, the staff has changed at least the desk area and it's a pleasant experience. I got 5 star service Thank you to all for the great experience! read more

Best optometrist in Fairfax and all cities in the DC metro area. I found out things I never associated with my eyes. Five stars.

AVOID AT ALL COST!!I should have read the reviews before my visit I have never been treated this poorly at an optometrist office ever before It was a total waste of my money and time. I will never revisit this office nor recommend to others. read more

Don't go to these people. My son and his wife went to get glasses and contact lenses. They were on Medicaid and I had to drive an hour to find someone who would accept Medicaid. They were push in buy unnecessary products. They left with a charge over $2,000. read more

This office gave me excellent service. I was seen on time and given the utmost care during my eye exams by Dr. Bermel. They made sure I was comfortable with what they were doing and Josh explained everything in a way that I could understand. They gave me their best opinions for eye glasses and contacts and let me make my choices based on what options would work best for me. I have also been treated for a dry eye condition at this office, and am much improved! Thank you Dr Bermel and your support staff. I was very satisfied with the care I received and would recommend Dr Bermel. read more

I have visited Dr. Bermel's office two separate times, 2 years apart. In my first visit, I ended up being given an incorrect prescription even after expressed my concerns to the technician (it was off a lot from my normal prescription and my vision had hardly changed in 10+ years.) I later found out that indeed, the prescription was incorrect, and I had been wearing the wrong glasses for nearly two years! During my second visit I saw Dr. Bermel himself. The admin staff were nice, and I was seen fairly quickly by the assistant, but I was asked for my medical insurance information. I asked why they would need that when my vision insurance was separate, and was informed it was in case of a medical emergency only, and that it would not be accessed or my records pulled until or unless such an emergency occurred. I agreed, but informed her that they did not have my permission to access my insurance. (I also wrote it onto the consent form, initialing and dating where I made the note stating they did not have permission.) When I actually saw Doctor Bermel, the exam took nearly an hour--I had never had such a long eye exam. On three instances during the exam he walked out of the room to criticize his staff for not having offered a specific service or product while I was waiting to see him. After the lengthy exam, he pronounced that I had a condition that would require eyelid cleansing cloths, which were around 30.00 per box. When I asked what would happen next, he told me it could also be treated by antibiotic eye drops. When I asked for the drops, he said he wanted me to try the pads first. I checked the Internet and saw I could get them elsewhere for around 8.00 per box, while he wanted around 30.00 so of course I told him I wasn't interested. But when I went to check out, he told the receptionist that I was getting the cleansing pads anyway, and then added them to my bag even when I reminded him I was going to get them elsewhere. He then again told her to add them to my bill, which I of course did not allow once he walked away. When I went to check out, my bill was 35.00 more than my vision co-pay. When I asked why, I was told that it was because of the medical eye exam that he performed. When I said I had not approved such an exam (I had been quite clear from the time I first made my appointment that I wanted a vision exam and contacts fitting only) she said "but your insurance covers it so why wouldn't you want it?". I was obviously quite upset since I had blatantly told them earlier they did not have my permission to access my medical insurance, and they had pulled it anyway. I pointed to the form that I had earlier initialed and dated showing that I had written they did not have my permission. When she told the doctor, he got so upset at her for not telling him before he did the (unapproved, unscheduled) medial eye exam that she nearly cried. Overall, the constant push of very expensive add on services that are not covered by insurance, combined with the attempt to force me to purchase products and services I had already point-blank refused, resembled nothing so much as a used car salesman. I was eventually able to get my money back for all the services except the basic vision exam, and also eventually got my written prescription (which I had requested multiple times on the actual day of the visit, and which he was required by law to provide if I requested.) but only after many repeated calls and written communication requesting it. This doctor engages in practices that make it a very unpleasant experience to go there. He ignored my expressed wishes on three occasions during a single visit. He left during my exam three times, all to curtly remind his employees about added (non insured) services or products they were supposed to have tried to push on me before I ever got to the exam room. I would definitely not recommend him to anyone, and in fact would encourage those who have been there in the past to visit another doctor at lest once to make sure they are not also being treated for conditions they do not have (or are not wearing the wrong glasses for nearly two years, potentially doing damage to their vision). While it is possible that you may have gotten acceptable care from him, based on my experiences, it is just as likely that you have been treated for conditions you may not have read more

After the eye exam, possibly the worst experience I've had customer service wise in over 20 years. Went in for Silhouettes and after paying them $407 back in 2010, it's been nothing but a nightmare. First set of glasses wouldn't fit right after numerous 'fittings' so a new pair was ordered. Dr. Bermel's staff insists the lab is to blame for all of these however these are just a few of the issues I've had; a lens was missing a spot (about a fingertips worth) of AR coating, lens were scratched by the finisher before returning them, lens were different thickness with a very minor magnification. Took them to the Ashburn office and was told the pair never should have been given to me (and had the girl working there not said, 'oh sh*t, Mr. Lansberry's here' because she didn't want to deal with me, I probably wouldn't have accepted them) as they were loose and definitely not customer ready. Had another pair done up only to find more AR coating missing and then had to have them sent back again. In the end, it took approximately 13 weeks to get a $407 pair of Silhouettes back (and that's not including what my insurance company paid) and you know what, I was told they were fine only to find out when I went to use them yesterday that they are scratched or cracked near the drill mount yet again. Not even going to bother going back and will go somewhere else to have a pair made the right way. So unless you're up for waiting and being treated like a 3rd class citizen because you expect a certain amount of quality and customer service for your money, don't waste your time going. My wife uses MyEyeDr and had two pairs done so far and had both back in less than 10 days with no problems or errors at all. Oh, and I took the time to let the owner, director and a manager know about the situation and wasn't helped at all, was basically told in not so many words to go F--- myself and I wasn't getting any sort of compensation or assistance moving forward at all. Save yourself the time and hassle of dealing with this substandard group of offices (Leesburg and Ashburn both) and go somewhere that you'll be able to get your glasses done right in much less time and to much higher quality standards than Dr. Bermel and his staff will ever be able to show you. Edit after Friday, April 29th: After picking up the glasses on or about 04/15, after I was informed that the lab decided to put 1.7 lens in the glasses, I went home only to find scratches on the right lens by the top tension mount. I took them to Janet in the Ashburn office on 04/22 and when she looked at them she said she couldn't believe she missed it and taht it looked like a tool used in the lab slipped and scratched the lens. I said to see if it could be covered under my scratch guarantee which she said it could (even though I think if she's saying the lab scratched it, I shouldn't have had to use my warranty to cover it). She said she was going to get her VSP representative involved with this repair which makes what I found on Friday even worse because that means at all levels at the VSP lab and Dr. Bermel's office no one is paying attention at all. When I picked up the glasses on 04/29, they looked good, the office fit them to my face (to some extent) and I was on my way. I didn't see any AR coating problems, scratches and all the mount points seemed tight with no gaps at all. I wore them for a while at home and took them off and when laying them on my desk, realized the left lens (keep in mind the lens that had the scratches was the right lens) was visibly thicker than the right. I've emailed Janet regarding this but have received no response. On 04/29 I told Janet I could live with it however, the more I think about it (and I discussed it with my wife and we both agree) I don't think I will. To me, and I'm no expert on lens material), I think the lab pulled both lens and used the lower quality lens for the left eye and the 1.7 on the right eye. The lab upgraded the lens material to 1.7 at the last repair because of mounting problems and because of the level of incompetence (my words not theirs) that's been demonstrated over the past 9 months. I'll be contacting Janet again today by email to let her know I want it taken care of and am no longer willing to accept the difference in thickness of the lens (the pair I had made at Art for your Face, are exactly to the millimeter same thickness). More to come, I'm guessing at least for a while longer. read more

I had my first appointment with this group in the Ashburn location. Horrible!!! I was there over 1 1/2 hours!!! I have never had a eye appointment divided into 3 segments, see eye dr first, take contacts out, sit and wait for glaucoma test, then sit and wait for 30 minutes!!! yes 30 minutes, to be see again to have eyes checked without my contacts in. The Dr was wonderful, the running of the office, just totally mismanaged. The girl at front desk was lack luster to say the least and acted like she could care less about the patients or her job. Once i get my contacts, i will never go back there. I've always gone to My Eye Dr. and been in and out of there in 30 minutes. You have an appointment time, and they stick to it and see you thru every step until you are done - not be sent back to sit out front. Maybe it was because i was at Dr. Bermel's on a Saturday - they were busy. But an appointment is an appointment, you don't take other people in between yours. read more

Dr. Bermel is the very best Optometrist! He was our eye doctor when we lived in Virginia. He is by far the most knowledgeable doctor that I've gone to for my eye exams. He's extremely thorough and educates you in the importance of your overall eye health. He truly cares about his patients. Since I'm diabetic my exam will always be considered a "medical eye exam" and Will go through my medical insurance, not a general eye exam which would go through Vision insurance. My exam takes a little longer and I have special testing done. Dr. Bermel always makes sure I do not have any signs of diabetic retinopathy or any other issues that may cause vision loss etc. I could never thank him enough for taking such good care of me and my husband's vision health. If you want a quick eye exam like most discount optical shops have, he may not be the doctor for you. He is a "doctor" first and takes great pride and care in his profession and in what he does. He doesn't rush you in and out of your appointment. He listens to you and your eye history etc. We are so grateful for an eye doctor of his caliber. Thank you Dr. Bermel! You're the best! Thank you for 12 wonderful years of being our doctor while we lived in Virginia! read more

This office does appear, in my honest opinion, to be run on scams led by none other than Dr. Bermel. I was charged an additional $50 (on top of the standard Contact lense exam and fitting fee of $99) just to show my son "how to put in his contacts." This is the only office around to access such a ridiculous fee. Our office visit took a full three hours and I can't tell you how many products they tried to sell us from Gentle Molding to a special UV cleaning product to eyeglass frames. We were also told that we could not purchase contacts without also purchasing a pair of back-up glasses (even though my son already had a pair). This is really a suspicious bunch. I will NEVER go back again. Buyer Beware!! read more

This office is very difficult to get scheduled for exams- the doctors are only in every other day since they rotate between offices. I had to have my exam at the Ashburn office two weeks after I made my appointment. Most of the employees in the office are great. I feel like the doctors are thorough and do a good job examining your eye. I went in Thursday for my eye exam in Ashburn. I am a first time contact wearer so the doctor selected a brand of contacts for my eye and sent me out front to schedule an appointment for the insertion training. They scheduled me for Saturday at the Leesburg office (which is closer to my house) however when I got there after spending 40 minutes with a receptionist teaching me how to poke myself in the eye I was told that I would not be leaving with my contacts. They had scheduled me on a day in which the doctor wasn't in the office! Without a doctor to look at my eye and decide if it was a good fit I was forced to leave my contacts at the office. Elena was unapologetic and rather rude about the fact trying to say it was because I had an eye infection that the doctor hadn't had me try them on at my exam (it was not, the appointments were 2 days apart and I don't have an eye infection- I was on a preventative antibiotic drop due to an eye injury 3 weeks ago, but the doctor and the receptionists at the time of scheduling said nothing and said my eye looked great) i.e. Elena was just trying to come up with a reason to cover up a scheduling error. I'm ok with scheduling errors, it happens- but at least apologize and don't try to make it my fault. This is a holiday weekend and the doctors won't be back in until Tuesday (if that's a day that they have a doctor in the office) With how busy an office it is it could be next saturday until I can see a doctor based on past scheduling experience- which would mean 1/4th of my contacts life has been spent suspended in saline solution in their office. Contacts that I have already paid out of pocket for since insurance doesn't cover the trial pair and insertion training. I will update this review when I see what actually happens with the appointment. read more

Dr. Bremel's staff and associate optometrist did a complete eye examine on my 14 year old and told us he DEFINITELY needed glasses. Given that he has never appeared to have problems, I took him to an ophthalmologist for a second opinion. The Ophthalmologist said his eyes were perfect 20/20. Can you imagine if we had gone ahead and gotten glasses?! This could have ruined his eyes and caused him to have to wear glasses the rest of his life. To no avail, I have sought reimbursement from this quack's office for the appointment and second opinion. read more

I agree with the last reviewer about the scams. If I had bought everything that man wanted to give me I would have paid almost $3000 for one pair of glasses. As it is I am still trying to get by on my BROKEN glasses and they told me it would be 6 weeks before I could get the glasses covered by my insurance. What a rip!!! Don't go to this outfit. read more

Linda, I am glad you wrote the article on how much of a "scammer" this Dr is. I went to him for a few years and although his knowledge of eye care was good I agree that he runs his office like a "used car" dealership. I am so disgusted with the service and financial scams that this office has pulled on myself and others that I will not even step foot in the office to pick up my medical records. There are plenty of other "ethical' eye doctors out there and I have learned my lesson from this guy. read more

Beware of this office, as well as any offices offiliated with this doctor. Our daughter, older teens, went in for a contact lens/eyeglasses exam. When Caroline at the office called to say that our insurance wouldn't cover her exam, I had my first of many bad feelings. I informed her that all of our family are entitled to an eye exam and have enjoyed this coverage for over 25 years, all over the country. She commented "I'll have the doctor tweak the visit".... There is NO tweaking needed. Even if our eyes are perfect, we are entitled to an exam. I wanted our daughter to leave, but gave her the opportunity to make her own adult decision. She unfortunately decided to try a new doctor and allowed them to begin their exam. She left their office angry after the wrong prescription contact was placed in her eye, causing pain and a headache. She is far from new wearing contacts, she knew something was very wrong, and she got up and left without the exam being completed. So, I go in with a complaint. No one other than a young girl in the office to talk with me. I requested a direct call from the doctor, then my spouse requested a call, both went unanswered. I received a call from their office, her contacts are in...??? How does she have contacts when no one ordered them and we still have not received a prescription. I made myself very clear to the receptionist, if they are charging us for an entire exam, we expect a written prescription, which will be evaluated by another eye doctor. The charges for her visit were 90% higher than the price originally quoted, and according to our prior eye doctor, her eyes are normal, no special anything, no astigmatism. Her prescription is common. We still have not heard from the doctor, still have not recieved a written prescription, but their office has elected to send a bill without completing their services. We actually have 2 different insurance companies and will be filing a complaint with them both. We can't even trust the prescription that we may eventually get from this office. I've learned an expensive lesson, but their office lost a large potential years long account. We ALL need glasses and there are quite a few of us in this family. So by now you are asking why we went to a new doctor to begin with. We are new to this area and while we liked our doctor from last year, I wanted a place with more eyewear options. I did like all of the options in their store, however, having more options does not trump horrible customer service and what I see as a poor attitude from their doctor to not return our request for a discussion as to what happened with our teen at his office. read more

I went to this establishment for 3 years. I paid over 400 for just lenses!!! These people did not get my prescription correct, I could not see clearly. I told the doctor this...response was "it takes time to get used to prescription". My wife used to go there as well but she stopped because they wrote a prescription for eye drops and she told them she would pick it up at pharmacy A and they kept calling it in to a different pharmacy not once , but 4 times. I give them 2 stars b/c they are very nice and accomodating when i came to pick up my medical records for my new doctor. PS . dr bermel does not make his appts, when you show up or call and it is a different doctor- no notice- no nothing. dont bother with these people. read more

I have never posted to Yahoo reviews before, but the horrible service I have received from this office has prompted me to do so. I have been to his office three times and still have not received a prescription for glasses. The contacts I was prescribed cause me constant headaches. I have been pressured into buying products whose functionality is questionable at best. Horrible, horrible experience. I will not be returning. read more

I was honestly amazed when I read the prior reviews after my family was seen in both the Leesburg and the Ashburn office. I initially took my 15 year old son into the Ashburn office, as I his teachers shared with me that he seemed to be struggling to see the board. This was a ongoing concern for over a year, but as I had taken him to a different Optometrist last year who told me he did not need glasses I was at a loss to determine what was the true issue. We went into the doctor who after taking him back to do his exam actually came out to get me and explained that apparently my son was attempting to avoid trying to wear glasses and was trying to trick her into thinking he could see. She did a very thorough exam and took much more time than the prior optometrist last year. She was also very understanding of his apprehension and took a lot of time to work through obtaining his prescription. I ended up learning that there was no way possible he could have seen the board, and not only that he got away with faking out our prior optometrist the year before. Since his vision had been uncorrected it had probably gotten worse and he was going to have to wear glasses at all times. I did get a lot of information from the salesgirl on different types and quality levels of lens which can be confusing as I haven't ever worn glasses. They offered to price match and I did end up shopping around because glasses are fairly expensive. I ended up buying from the Ashburn office as I looked at myeyedr and a few other places, but when I found cheaper prices, or looked at some of the "specials" the frames and lens weren't very good quality. I ordered and had his glasses in 8 days. We have since then also gone to the Leesburg office and our experience there has also been great. The exams are far and away more thorough than the regular run of the mill eye exams I have always gotten in the past. I'll be sticking with the doctor who can actually tell when my kid can't see! read more

The office was clean and the visit with the eye doctor was very thorough. The problem ensued when it came time to pick out my glasses. As soon as I stated that I would like to look at the glasses that my insurance would cover, I felt that I was no longer a priority to the staff. A box of glasses were put up on the counter for me to sift through as she walked away. I then decided to use my insurance towards contacts instead and just keep my old lens as my prescription did not change. I was told that a contact fitting fee of $169 would be in order. I was a bit boggled as to why I would need to sit for a fitting because they are the exact lens that I had ordered from this office previously. I was informed that a contact fitting fee is needed every year regardless of a prescription change. I decided to go ahead with the contacts and I asked the optometrist to clean and adjust my current pair of glasses. A moment later, I was approached with my glasses broken in half. I understand that accidents happen, but felt like again, the situation was not handled in the best manner. She did not say sorry and just stated that my glasses were old. I was given a pair of "loaner" glasses until my one set of contacts came in for the fitting and I needed to see to drive home. The added expense of buying new glasses on top of the new contacts was not planned on and was very stressful. I felt like the front office staff was just all about the "money" and did not truly care about helping me see better. read more

Absolutely the worst possible experience. I went because I was having difficulty reading after seeing the doctor is where the trouble started. The office manager was eager to sell me glasses but when I told her I was going to buy some glasses online is where she told me I could not have my prescription. Being my first pair of glasses she told me a prescription would take time to write and would have to be mailed to me. It sounded ridiculous but being my first glasses I just thought that the way thing were. As you might guess I never received my prescription in the mail. I followed up and requested to come back in to pick it up. At that time I went in and the younger more helpful receptionist wrote the prescription on the spot. I submitted the prescription to the online company and things seemed to be back on track. Wrong. The prescription that was written was missing a number. No big deal I thought. I will just call them up and they can give it to me. When I called I got the original office manager who originally didn't want to part with a prescription. As you might guess she wasn't going to give me any numbers over the phone. She told me the prescription I received was wrong. Not sure how she knew that as she didn't write or see it. She started asking me what the distances were written on it which was odd because she should have those numbers in front of her. So now I must go in a third time to hopefully get a prescription. How can anyone want to go into a place which such difficult people. How can anyone trust them when they with hold information and give conflicting stories. This is not how you want an experience with a doctor to be. I wish I could start over. Knowing what I know now I would not be the victim of a person looking to be difficult and give you the run around. I would pick a different optometrist someone I could trust and feel good about. I would not recommend this place to anyone. read more