Terrible experience.. I work up the street (mind you I'm a whole paralegal) and always see that they have cute colored eye glasses so I decided to go in and check them out. I asked if they accepted Insurance and the lady who was helping someone else chuckled. Of course I didn't say anything because I don't respond to ignorance so I just left.. I don't what was so funny about me asking that because I'm sure she's not even in my tax bracket but maybe if she looked for ways to save a buck she might just have some! read more

Paul is gone. Now so am I. Voorthuis is failing loyal customers with inferior materials and indifferent staff. Hidden costs, sloppy mistakes, poor comms, endless delays. With so many opticians and reasonable choices, why would anyone stay? read more

I have been a customer here for years, if not decades; I have always had wonderful, very, knowledgeable professional service without exception. It was time for new frames. I recently went back to them. Delighted to report that nothing has changed except there were a couple of new employees. They were totally professional, knowledgeable and helpful exactly like the ones that transferred to other locations. I worked with Mark on picking out some new frames. He was OUTSTANDING. I placed the order on Monday and the glasses would be in and ready for pick up on Thursday. On Wednesday the manager called and left a very, very professional message on my phone saying the glasses were in and ready for pick up. I picked them up and they are perfect. THANK YOU. read more

On June 26, 2025 at about 11am, at Connecticut Avenue location, found male who took the call unprofessional. I called to get a copy of my eyeglass prescription. To my astonishment, he said they did not have one. What reputable optometry shop fails to keep these records? Then this man blamed me for having given it to another optician (who demanded it). Of course he went on to mansplain to me that it was my responsibility to have kept a copy. He claimed they would have to call their Montgomery Mall location and ask the doctor of optometry there if she could produce a copy or a new one. If they don't have a copy of it, why would a reputable optometrist produce a new one without seeing a patient? I have over 20 years spent thousands of dollars with them. Unfortunately, after Paul retired at the Downtown location, no one provides his level of professional service. I won't be going back. So long Voorthuis. read more

Very attentive staff who are very professional and know their craft well. Reasonable prices and wide selection to suit any style.

The workmanship at Voorthuis Opticians has significantly deteriorated recently, in my experience. I had bought eyeglasses there for all of the people in my family for more than 40 years, so I was very surprised by the poor quality of the lenses I bought there in 2022. The glasses I bought in 2022 quickly began accumulating scratches on the lenses, despite the fact that they had been treated with a scratch-resistant coating and I always handled the glasses carefully. I have been wearing eyeglasses for more than 40 years and I have never had this happen to any other lenses. When I went back to Voorthuis to show them the excessive scratches, I also brought my previous glasses to show them; I had worn those previous glasses for 6 years and there were no scratches on them. The salesperson at Voorthuis was not interested in seeing them, and did not offer to repair or replace the scratched lenses on my current lenses. The important point, however, is that there is something clearly wrong with the scratch-resistant coating on these lenses and Voorthuis did not seem to care, either about correcting my lenses or investigating what is going wrong with their manufacturing process. read more

I have been going to Voorthuis for my eye exam, frame purchase/fitting, and lenses orders for over ten years. My visit/purchasing experience has consistently been enjoyable and excellent. On my last eye exam with Dr. Burt Mazzia, he worked with me in multiple sessions to find the perfect fitting contact lens brand and prescription. Thank you for being so caring and patient with my fitting Dr. Burt. You Rock! Paul is the best optician I know. He is affable and talented in finding a frame that brings out my best features or gives me a new look. I have worked with him for over ten years and he is consistently fresh and at his best. I recently took my frame to be adjusted after I bent it; he fixed it like brand new in a jiffy with cheers. I also had a chance to work with Avideh, she is wonderful to work with and welcoming. There is a frame she recommended I would like to try on my next purchase. The Voorthuis team has been great to work with. I recommend them for your next eye exam or eye glass purchase. read more

Online isn't killing retail, retail is killing retail. Came in looking for a specific line of glasses. While they had a couple, they had none of the 5 I was interested in. If I wanted to try them on I'd have to pay $20 each for them to come in. In addition, they don't take any insurances, so I'd have to do all that myself. Oh, and you get locked in while you shop. Not friendly, not helpful, not really interested in helping me pick out something I already wanted to buy. There are other options, and TONS of online options. read more

The short of it: In short, I went from a grumpy, far-sighted witch to a sunny kate spade-wearing art critic in the span of three days. It's pricey, but you certainly get what you pay for. the back story: The back story: I went into this place on Sat. afternoon, Jan. 31, 2010. I had learned weeks ago that I was far-sighted (who knew?). I needed some glasses fast because I was going to opening night of Alvin Ailey at the Kennedy Center and had waited until the last minute to get my prescription filled. Shame on me. I tried on about 45 pairs of frames--Chanel, Kate Spade, more designers, and some unknowns. I hadn't thought to look up my insurance, so the rep whose name escapes me this moment did it for me. He called my insurer and got them to fax the details of my plan, which included a 30% discount on some frames. The insurance part took all of 5 minutes. He endure my shopping, suggesting frames but not pressuring me to buy. I settled on a pair of black semi-rimless Kate Spade Mazie frames priced at $284. (I wanted the Chanel 3155H frames, but those were more than $500 alone. You can get them online for $400. They're still too much for me. Afterall, this is a recession.) My frames arrived the night of the show. It's a good thing I called because no one called me. However, they kept the door open for me after they had closed, fitted my glasses with no rush, and sent me on my merry way to Ailey. I've seen Ailey a handful of times, I saw "Revelations" and "Suite Otis" that night with more clarity than ever. read more

Voorthuis Opticians - Kate Spade Mazie frame - Optometrists Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

Went in to get my frame (that I got elsewhere) with broken nose grip fixed. The staff were extremely nice, and took the time to fix and adjust my frame. For the first time in my life my glasses are not sliding off my nose when I look down. Oh, and it's complete free! read more

These guys are amazing. I have been to opticians all around the world and these are the only ones to crack my problems. And the after-sales service is as good. I needed to reorder contacts and, naturally, I had lost my prescription. Add to that I am stuck in Kenya because of the virus thing. So I used the link on the Voorthuis site and assumed I would have to call, explain why I lost my prescription....but they uploaded it for me before I could make the call! Great opticians, and clearly psychic as well. Thanks to the Mandarin Oriental for recommending Voorthuis to me. read more

My dad was visiting town and needed his glasses repaired (nose guard). The guy helping us was super nice and did it free of charge.

Usually I don't bother to take the time to write reviews when I have a bad experience, however I felt the horrendous service I received from this company warranted it. When I called to request a prescription, the man who answered the phone was rude right off the bat for no reason at all. He continued to speak over me the whole time, even when I was just politely asking him a question. Finally, he told me he would read the prescription over the phone. I asked him if he could fax it to me, to which he replied in a very loud, sarcastic tone "Oh so you can't read prescriptions?" I tried to explain that actually I can read, I would just like a copy. However he would not let me speak and said "Oh so you can't read a prescription. Well I'm going to read it to you and YOU'RE GONNA LEARN". Wow. I have never had someone I don't even know speak to me in such a condescending manner. I had to immediately get off the phone with him because I didn't feel that I deserved to be yelled at. I don't know what I did to be spoken to like that. Perhaps he was having a really bad day and took it out on me. Maybe his wife left him. Maybe he's sad because no one will ever love him because he's such a raging asshole. At any rate, I have dealt with a lot of very poor customer service before but this is the first one I have ever felt compelled to write about. If you want to be yelled at and made to feel like shit for absolutely no reason, I would definitely recommend Dr. Mazia and Voorthuis Opticians. read more

I have a beautiful pair of Persol sunglasses (plastic) that had gotten slightly bent from wear, to the extent that I had mostly stopped wearing them because they started feeling like they wouldn't stay on, especially in the DC summer heat (read: sweat = nosebridge lubricant). I headed to Voorthuis around lunch and was greeted by Schuyler, who went to work on my glasses immediately while simultaneously discussing the ins and outs of sunglass construction, various brands, and their store's business model (it's independently owned), among other pleasantries. She heated the plastic and reformed ever them slightly to fit my face/ head/ nose/ ears. Glasses look and feel great now. I will go to Voorthuis for any and all optical needs from now on. read more

I know this sounds like an exaggeration, but I mean this quite literally: I have never ever gotten this level of care and service from anybody. I say this because they got many, many small details exactly right - but also got every single part and stage of the process perfect as well. Several extraordinary things happened: 1. PAUL AND VOORTHUIS WERE RECOMMENDED BY A COMPETITOR when I was desperately seeking a very specific need (I needed sunglasses that protected my eye from airflow - post-surgery paralysis on right side made it impossible to blink - a condition called "dry eye syndrome") before a long drive coming up in two weeks. 2. PAUL HELPED ME GET EXACTLY THE RIGHT FRAMES - they were a specialty item that molded to the contours of one's face and only available from a specific manufacturer with some hoops to jump through (they are usually only sold to active duty desert soldiers). He told me the proper and most expedient way to do that. This was extremely valuable and made my trip possible. 3. PAUL GAVE ME REALLY GOOD ADVICE ON LENSES - he took time to explain options and gave me a simple and direct recommendation, while making it clear he would do a good job with whatever I thought was best (different tints, bi-focal, progressive, all that). He listened to me regarding where my head was on price vs quality, effects on vision, and personal tastes. Hard to express how patient and pleasant he was. 4. PAUL CRAFTED AWESOMELY HIGH QUALITY LENSES and put them in the frames. I have never seen better craftsmanship; the lenses and frames are as solid as if they had been built out of the same piece of material. The prescription lenses are the best I've ever looked at the world through. There's good, there's great... but seriously; this was WOW. This guy is a master of the craft. 5. PAUL ALWAYS FOLLOWED THROUGH. I was on a ridiculously tight time frame from when the doctor told me I should protect my eyes until I took off for a 3000 mile driving week for work. He didn't know me from Adam when I called, yet he treated me better than most would treat lifetime customers. I never had to call him, I never had to worry about the status. Paul followed up at every step and actually delivered a few days ahead of (again, the ridiculously short time frame) when he promised they'd be done. In addition, I have to say that every single person I interacted with at Voorthuis (Connecticut and L St) in person or on phone was nice - pleasant, personable, and professional. It really was noticeable and made a difference. I'm a Washington DC native and I have gone to the same (not Voorthuis) opticians for years and years without complaints. But I will go ONLY TO VOORTHUIS in the future. This isn't "absence of negatives" this is "remarkable level of positives". I'm back from my trip and the new frames and lenses were as comfortable on the first wearing as glasses usually feel after months or years. Thanks, Voorthuis! Thanks PAUL! You rock. read more

For the longest time, I had been poking my nose in this place to get my sunglasses often re-adjusted. I never bought them from this place, but of the constant times I have klutzed out, sitting, bonking, dropping them... my frames always needed adjusting. Every time I came here, they never blinked and were also very cordial in helping my glasses fit. So when it came to for a new pair.. I decided this place should get an opportunity to get my business. I do not need prescriptions first off, (I have Heterochromia iridum) but I am seriously sensitive to sunlight and really need sunglasses. So with that out of the way, I went to many places in the area and Voorthuis had by far the best selection for men's sunglasses. The guy who worked with me was supper polite, very cordial, not the slightest bit pushy. He even let me walk outside the store with them on to try out before buying. In the end, walked out with a great pair of Serengeti's. Some items here are expensive but they are great quality. Glad I gave these guys a shot, I would recommend them to anyone without hesitation. Excellent customer service and great selection. read more

Awesome customer service! I was in town for a couple of weeks, and forgot to pack an extra pair of contact lenses. The ones I was wearing really began to irritate me, so I had my prescription faxed to me, and went around to 5 other stores looking for a place that carried my prescription before going into Voorthuis. They were super nice, and gave me a trial pair, along with some solution, for free. No question, if I was living here I would use them as my optometrist. read more

Paul Pinkham at this office of Voorthuis is the best optician I have ever worked with anywhere. He knows how to solve vision problems that baffle the experts. I can't recommend him highly enough. read more

BEST CUSTOMER SERVICE EVER! they clean your glasses for free whenever!!!!!!!!!! and no i dont mean wipe the lenses...i mean pop the lenses out soak them and clean any inside fluff in the frame...pop the lenses back in and sit you down to refit them to your face....ALL FOR FREE...whenever and wherever? who else does that? awesome selection of stylish glasses...expensive but hey its glasses...the extra money is worth it to not look like a douchie steve urkel read more

Amazing customer service- best optometrist I've been too. Great at fitting for contacts and they have a wonderful selection of glasses. Better service than LensCrafters and better deal too. read more

Awesome service from Paul on so many levels -- understood exactly my price range, my comfort level, etc... while also being a nice guy to talk with. Also helped fix my fiancee's broken glasses. Strong recommendation. read more

I cannot begin to explain how great this place is. I started coming to Voorthuis when I moved to DC 10 years ago and started at the Friendship Heights location and have since relocated to their Connecticut Ave location due to convenience. I always feel comfortable and every single person is always so kind and welcoming. The staff at Connecticut Ave is such a great team. I always speak with Paul and he never fails to ask how I'm doing and I value his opinion very much so. I work in the healthcare business as well and I'm always surprised and delighted at Paul's customer service skills and how he remembers so much. My experience with Dr. Mazia is equally the same. I once had an emergency- my contacts weren't coming in till much later and they quickly accommodated by providing a weeks worth of contacts. I highly recommend coming to them. I promise you that you will not be disappointed in any aspect of your visit! read more

I had to have my glasses repaired-- one had broken eye pad. The other had a broken arm. The staff were experienced and fixed them both in very little time. One had a bent frame that he straightened. So glad to see nice people who know what they are doing. Will definitely be back. Thank you. Thank you. read more

Great Staff, many different choices of frames, and most of all, awesome eye doctor on site! It was one of the most thorough eye exam I've had in my life. The doctor informed me facts I never had known, and the exam was very detailed. Other doctors I had in the past were mostly just flipping glasses.... Anyway, I love the frame I found here. This place doesn't make glasses ready for you in an hour. But if you want great service and professional eye exam, you should give this place a try. Only downside is that many of their frames are high-end brands, and they're at least $250. So be ready to spend at least $500 w/o any insurance! read more

Short and sweet -- I'll be back to this store for frame shopping, other services. Why? I had a routine repair i needed done on a pair of glasses. I had never been in the store before as an exam patient, a browser, a frame buyer -- anything. I just walked in and asked the gentleman behind the counter "can these be fixed". (It was a temple piece missing a screw.) He immediately stopped what he was doing, went to the back, and worked to find the correct, matching screw to fix the frame. "What do I owe you?" He just shakes his head. Nothing? That's right -- nothing. A pair of glasses they didn't even sell me, they were glad to rapidly and competently repair, at zero cost. That's customer service. Nice work, guys. read more

very conveniently located quality eyecare - at a price. four stars in my book. i was in the u.s. just for a few days and wanted to get glasses made on the quick. i came to voorthuis and was not disappointed. i came in and was immediately approached by one of the staff - a very friendly and helpful guy who quickly sussed out pretty much exactly what i was looking for in frames (in spite of the fact that i had literally NO FLIPPIN CLUE what i wanted). seriously -- in approximately five minutes i went from "gee, i don't know. what do you think i should buy?" to "omg these are like THE BEST FRAMES EVER CONSTRUCTED IN THE HISTORY OF EYECARE." so after i got the frames he checked the doctor's schedule, but there weren't any openings for the remainder of the day. the soonest he could get me in was the next morning, and i had a flight two days after that. i explained all of this to him and he said don't worry, we'll get you in tomorrow and we'll rush the glasses (no extra charge) so you're sure to have them at least 24 hours before your flight. i said ok let's do it. the next day i came back and had the exam with a very nice and knowledgeable doctor. great "bedside" manner, yet quick to get me in and out. sure enough, the next morning i had a voice mail - "your glasses are ready to be picked up." so that afternoon i went by, got the glasses (which were perfect), and went on my merry way. to alison r.'s point, i have to admit that the place DOES seem a little snooty. and all of their frames are under lock and key, so it's not like lenscrafters where you can just walk in and paw everything you want (save for the staff -- that's a felony, yelpers!). so in that sense, yep, she's right. and there are no prices on anything, which is generally a sign that the place is on the expen$ive side. and my glasses were definitley more expensive than i've ever paid before. all of that said though, i am completely pleased with voorthuis. their customer service was very respectful and helpful, they were sensitive to a specific need (time sensitivity), and my glasses look AWESOME and allow me to see stuff again! four stars. read more

Paul, the main manager at this shop, is beyond competent. Perfectionist is more like it. He knows what he's doing and he's no nonsense. Just go there and seek his advice. I've been coming here for years and am always happy with the service. read more

I stopped in the DC office this morning to get an emergency repair on my glasses. Other shops near by would not help since I did not buy from them. The technician at Voorthuis was very fast and helpful. Great customer service. I highly recommend! read more

The doctor was good, she fitted me with excellent new contacts that are good for my dry eyes. The frame selection wasn't as diverse as I expected, especially after the person on the phone when I made my appt told me I'd be overwhelmed by their goods. Also, it was sort of awkward figuring out if you could go browse them by yourself (he let me but I don't know if that's usual). With the exception of the eye exam, it felt a bit snooty. I don't think I'll be back. read more

Best optician I've ever found - awesome customer service! Really appreciate their advice in helping me pick out the perfect frames! They have a terrific selection, and my 3 favorite pairs of glasses are from here. read more

Great selection of interesting frames! They carry higher end frames, so it's a bit pricey. Paul helped me with my frames - he definitely knows how to pick good frames for your face shape, and he does a great job fitting them. He even spent time adjusting my existing frames (that I got elsewhere). read more

I have been a customer of Voorthuis for about 10 years. It took one purchase for me to understand why I pay a tad more for their frames than I would at another shop. Their service is superb, and their taste is well beyond what you would expect from a mere optical store. To those who complain that their offerings are encased - the frames they carry can be terribly expensive and, at least at the Connecticut Avenue store, because of the store layout, it would be a snap to walk in, snatch a pair, and walk out. I think that keeping the cases closed is a sound business decision. I highly recommend Voorthuis. read more

This place is fantastic! Paul and Brian are excellent--very knowledgable and personable! It is always a pleasure chatting with them. Paul set me up with beautiful Martin and Martin glasses--absolutely love them! Great for my face shape and he was able to tweak them a bit to sit better on my nose. Went back today for help with sunglasses--offered very reasonable pricing for lenses and even remembered my name from 6 months ago! I will definitely be coming back here again and can highly recommend to all! read more

Have used them several times now. Always friendly and knowledgeable. One staff member even recognised sunglass frames I was wearing that I had bought overseas and are unavailable in the US. Rapid service and they have awesome selection of up to date frames. You don't walk out looking like everyone else, but looking good and stylish. I would give them five stars except that they are expensive. They;re easy to get to by metro (Farragut North) so no need for parking. Haven't used their optometrists since mine is around the corner but I may next time. read more

Called a bunch of eyewear places to try to get lenses put in my frames very quickly (one day timeline). Nobody else could do it. Got in touch with Voorthuis, and they put in the lenses same day. Took them 20 minutes--just enough time to grab a cup of coffee. Exceptional customer service, aesthetically-pleasing storefront and wares. Can't recommend these guys enough! read more

I've never reviewed anything on Yelp before, but I just had such a pleasant experience at Voorthuis (they told me it thymes with "courthouse", for anyone who's wondering) that I had to post. After a bad experience at another glasses place, I decided to try Voorthuis. I went to the Connecticut and L location and was so impressed by their professionalism and skill. Plus, they are incredibly nice and polite. I will always get my glasses here in the future! read more

My experience with Voorthuis was great. I was able to get beautiful frame, that met my prescription needs and my face type. Communication could improve as I think the staff is unaware of what others are doing and you're left wondering when your frame and lenses will arrive. I would recommend you speak to Paul, for he is the most knowledgeable guy there. He will get things done. I'm definitely returning in the future. read more

I meant to post this in January 2016, but I haven't forgotten the wonderful customer service I received by the Voothuis staff. I was visiting my fraternity brother for the New Year's holidays when my prescription glasses broke. To make matters worse I had no contacts with me. We stopped by this office to see if they could help with the frames, but the damage was a little too extensive. Seeing how I was visiting from Indiana there was no way I was going to navigate D.C. visually impaired. Dr. Mazia gave me a trial pair of contacts to hold me over until I flew back to Indianapolis. He didn't 'g=have to' but he saw the dire need I had even if I wasn't an official patient of the store. I told the staff that I would recommend this eyewear store to my D.C. area friends/family since I cannot personally patronize from the Midwest. But compassion goes a long way and I am thankful for Voorthuis Opticians for being great health practitioners. read more

The service is always great and the staff is wonderful as well. I have been going to the store for years and love this store! Matt Shannon

There are another 20 opticians with 2 blocks of Voorthuis. Don't bother with this one. I had excellent customer service with one staff member and awful service with another. It looks like you can get the same frames elsewhere in the neighborhood for less money. read more