Markus Watson, DDS

the dental services are ok but the financial handling is horrible. I had multiple negative remarks on my credit due to them sending my accounts into collections without even calling me or giving me a chance to resolve this.
This has left a stain on my credit report and this hasn’t gone away even after I paid them in full.
This is very unethical behavior.

Absolutely best dentist I have ever been to my entire life! Easy scheduling, super friendly staff, gentle and educational dentists. It also doesn’t hurt that the dentists and hygienists are sexy! ;-)

I would highly recommend Dr. Watson. I just went in to get my cavity filled last week. After experiencing some discomfort, his team admitted me back in 24 hours later, no problem. The staff are super nice and Dr. Watson is a very personable and highly trained dentist. I’ve seen him about 3 or 4 times and its always a great experience. You won’t be disappointed.

Gave me a new tooth. Looks great, nuff said. Friendly folks

I just wanted to add that my boyfriend and I have a little inside joke from an experience at Dr. Watson’s office years ago. I can’t remember if he was getting something done while I hung out next to him or vice versa, but Dr. Watson said in the calmest, sing-​songiest voice:
«…a little bit of blood, a little bit of blood…»
when it was a massive gusher! We just cracked up. Now if one of us spills a tall glass of juice or the whole compost bin, we’ll go:
«…a little bit of juice, a little bit of juice…»
«…a little bit of compost, a little bit of compost…» in the same sing-​songy voice.

Are you obsessed with your teeth and only trust the best? Then Dr. Watson is your man.
S H O R T
I hesitate to post this review because teeth are kind of a personal thing, but I think more people should discuss their dental hygiene and make recommendations. Dental horror stories make me cringe because they are avoidable. Whole mouth care doesn’t start or stop at home, you just need one good pro in your life — his teeth should look awesome too. Have you seen Dr. Watson’s teeth — perfect!
For those who make excuses: I don’t care how good your granpa’s genes are, teeth need maintenance– there is a science to it all. When you have a good dentist — you can avoid all of that crazy expensive shat like crowns, caps, etc. Take the guess work out of what you’re doing and go see Markus — he’s the sweetest and smartest dentist you will ever meet. The technology in his office is all state of the art, the office is super modern and chic, and you can book/​cancel/​confirm your appointments online or via text — that’s hot! But what really makes this office amazing is the dentist and his skills — put you cowards at ease.
LITTLE LONGER
I have extremely high standards for pro dental care — that’s what happens when you invest in your smile. I smile a lot cause I got a good one — dare you to say different. It’s because I learned how to take care of my teeth from the finest. I need the following from my dentist (1) good dental chair manner — gentle in speech and touch (2) thorough explanation of what I’m doing right and wrong (3) explanation of what my dentist sees as he/​she is seeing it (4) tips on what kind of products are the best right now [tooth paste, brush to floss].
Honestly, I don’t just like my dentist, but I love him.
TIP: Park in the Safeway and get your ticket validated.

Love Dr. Watson!!! I’ve tried at least a dozen different dentists by now and he is by far one of the BEST! Have you seen his new office? Amazing! Super clean, modern, stylish… and I just trust him as a doctor. You know the feeling that sometimes you need a second opinion on doctor’s advice? Well, he is my second opinion. If he recommends something i’ll go with it.
Oh, and his cleaning team is great too! Thank you for setting the standard for dentists for me!

I think he’s great!
Very competent, answers my questions, makes sure I’m comfortable during any procedure, and has a friendly personality.
I have high dental standards: my uncle was the head of the Maryland Dental Association and he was my dentist until I became an adult. So I appreciate and know a skilled dental professional when I meet one. And I have to say that Dr. Watson is the real deal.

I would like to only give 2 starts to Dr Markus. The initial testing of the teeth were awesome, Then a new guy came in for cleaning and Dr left saying that he wil come back explaining what all things need to be done.
After cleaning the doc. just sent his assistant and said you can collect the evaluation report from the reception. I had cavaties and other problems in my tooth and doc never told me which one needs to be done first. I had to ask the receptiontist to ask the doc about that. I mean should you be courteous enough to explain me what all he examined after paying $ 228.

I was able to get seen within two hours as a new patient with a broken sealant. Dr. Watson was very friendly, explained the process and got me in and out in less than 30 minutes.
No hassles with insurance either — they honored my insurance’s office visit rate for the cost of sealant saving me $ 60 over their normal rate.
I’ll be coming back for future dental work without question.

Dr. Watson is a friendly professional dentist. His staff is polite and courteous and he is conveniently located. I have and will continue to recommend this place to my friends.
I will continue to go to Dr. Watson even if I move to another neighborhood in the city.

Not into this place at all, whatsoever.
I chose it based on the Unilocal rating and proximity to my office on Townsend. I am one of those obsessive decision-​makers, who like to thoroughly examine all of my options, weigh pros and cons, so that I can enter any situation feeling confident that I’m getting the best thing available to me given my own parameters. Unilocal has helped me attain this sort of confidence as a consumer and for the most part has not let me down.
I made an appointment with Dr. Watson to ensure an even more superior experience, but walked away disappointed in so many ways. I definitely felt like this office was high through-​put in the negative sense. Markus gave me no sense of the highly regarded experience that I was expecting, instead focused on performing the bare minimum of dental work and patient interaction.
The quality of his work was simply not up to the standards set by my previous dentist and in addition he lacked any personalized attention towards me. I don’t consider myself a highly sensitive dental patient nor do I at all care to answer a bunch of bullshit questions about what I do for a living etc, but I at least expected him to make an effort toward an authentic welcome and it was a rare occurrence where I really felt like I was just ushered in and out ASAP.
Maybe it was that I had high expectations based on the Unilocal ratings, but this truly was an overall disappointing experience. Even though my former dentist at UCSF is in a location that is crazy inconvenient, the office is outdated and drab, parking is an expensive pain, and the front desk staff is not as pleasant per se, I’ll be returning there for my future visits because what is most important is the quality of the dental work and feeling like I am getting the most bang for the buck.

This review is for my experience at South Beach Dental with Dr. Bryan Abrams. I know most people saw Dr. Watson, so I figured I’ll add my two cents on a different doctor.
I thought their office space, conveniently located at 4^th and Townsend near the Walgreens, was very clean and well maintained. Pretty much everything ran as planned.
The office called in advance to remind me about my appointment, I filled out the pre-​appointment paperwork online, they didn’t hassle me about getting a copy of my insurance card as soon as I walked in the door, etc. The waiting area is pretty serene… they have a goldfish tank, which is pretty neat, and a space where you can get tea or coffee.
The only thing that was unexpected is that when I scheduled my appointment, they said I would see Dr. Lai, but, when they called me back, I was actually in with Dr. Abrams, with no explanation as to why. I didn’t really mind, though, I just figured maybe he was out sick or something, I just was wondering the reason for the switch.
The person who took my x-​rays explained everything he was doing, which was good, and was patient. Dr. Abrams saw me pretty quickly after the x-​rays were taken, and I liked how he showed me the x-​rays and went over the results with me. He was very kind and answered my questions in a way that made the results easy to understand.
I like that he did the cleaning himself – a lot of dentists use hygienists to do the cleaning, but Dr. Abrams did it himself, as well as the dental exam. It was quick but thorough and pretty painless. He even gave me the option of listening to an Ipod during the exam, but I declined.
Checking out was a breeze. They had a goodie bag ready for me, and gave me the option of either scheduling my appointment 6 months ahead of time or filling out a reminder postcard. I went with the postcard option.
Would definitely recommend this office to others. Kind, professional people, and an efficiently-​run office with high-​tech, clean equipment make this a great dental experience.

Insurance changed, had to leave the dentist I love and strike out anew. South Beach Dental is in my neighborhood and it’s covered, so I gave it a shot. I needed a standard cleaning, turns out I have some cavities. Boo, life sucks, onward forward we go.
The cleaning itself was fine. Modern equipment, nice doctor (though he seemed very new and a little nervous. buck up and develop a god complex bro!)
The three stars are mainly because the staff there were just totally disjointed. They weren’t that professional, I couldn’t tell which one was talking to me (at one point, all three people at the expansive front desk were talking at me regarding my insurance and billing). They are all nice, but it was just confusing.
All in all, I had a decent cleaning. I need some work done on the cavities and I’m debating going elsewhere. Their confusion and lack of professionalism did not inspire me to go back. I hope folks in the office read this (and many other postings). It’s probably costing you a considerable number of patients.

Dr. Watson is great. My visits have ranged from simple cleanings to Veneers. I had been to at least 4 dentists prior to Dr. Watson, with several of them I never felt confident that they were giving me steady and constant advice. With Dr. Watson, not only have my visits been painless, the advice is solid, the work is pristine, and he’s also so damn cool!
Great dentist to have, I feel very fortunate to have him on «Team Mabrie», keeping my smile looking right!

Have you ever had a gun to your head with someone saying «Give me your money!» It’s kind of like that. Demanding money that I never agreed to pay.
Oh dear Dr. Watson and staff. I am upset to write this review because you did, after all, take excellent care of me and keep me very comfortable through my dental work. But, there was a huge issue with billing and your office was unwilling to work with me, when you were clearly in the wrong. If there was a way for me to file a lawsuit or otherwise obtain any satisfaction in the matter, I would.
Unilocalers, I think it’s important for you to know that the quote you’re given and agree to, may not be the same as the bill you receive later. Here’s my story…
2007– go in for cleaning and inquire about having a thing made to snap into place to cosmetically address a missing back tooth. I am told insurance will cover it in another year bc I have to be on my insurance plan for a certain period of time before they’ll cover it. Sounds fine.
2009– I return for a cleaning, some fillings and have the mold made for my new gadget, which I will pick up a week later. I pay my portion in full and had an excellent experience with the staff and comfort of service.
later 2009– I get a bill for $ 566 for the device. I call immediately explaining that I waited over a year to have this thing be covered by insurance — PER THEIR INQUIRY WITH MY PROVIDER AND THEIR DIRECTION, and if I had to pay for it out of pocket I would NOT have even had the thing made.
If it was an error on their part, meaning they inquired with my insurance provider and were given misinformation, they should be dealing with insurance for the payment. Or maybe they never really checked. They just said it would be covered so I’d move forward, knowing I’d be billed later. Such nonsense.
a few weeks later– being totally blown-​off by the gal I was working with, I had my husband call. Same run-​around, but this time she mentions discussing it with the «office manager» and the possibility of splitting the fee. Then, abruptly, she tells him she can no longer speak with him without written permission from me, the patient. Dead End.
Later– I call back, wtf? Same story, split fee possibility, talk with office manager, we’ll «work it out» BS
In the meantime — I keep getting bills from them, which I refuse to pay because I DID NOT AGREE TO PAY THOSE FEES WHEN THE TREATMENT PLAN AND FEES WERE SIGNED. My records show a bill that was paid in full. Period.
Last week– We get a notice from a collection agency. Are you kidding me? Hubbs calls Dr. Watson and speaks to him personally. Dr. Watson says «we’ll have the office manager look into it and get back to you» blah, blah, blah. She calls my husband to say we must pay the bill in full immediately.
** It’s actually not about the money. I mean it is, but it’s more about how you do business. If you tell your patients they will receive x treatment for x fee, it is unethical/​illegal to come back after and bill them more. Right? Or any of us could go for services, agree to a fee and them «oops, you actually owe us $ 500» That is so wrong!
I am beyond disappointed by how this was handled. I was not surprised to see that other poor ratings were linked to billing issues. Looks like I got the worst of it. I am appalled by their lack of compromise when every part of my decision to pursue the treatment was guided by THEIR instructions.
Watch out patients, you may find yourself with a gun to your head, too.
****************************IN RESPONSE TO THE COMMENT BY YIRA AT DR. WATSON“S OFFICE:
Really? How very funny, I think you know exactly who I am.
Maybe I’m about to blow your mind, but sometimes people use nicknames on the internet. «Cali C» is not in fact my real name. But my real name IS on the check that should have just arrived.
Here is a perfect example of the frustrating, pretend «know-​nothing» treatment I’ve experienced from Dr. Watston and his staff. Be advised.

— I thought everyone just wrote bad reviews about dentists, obviously not, it was particular to my last, bad dentist.
Peter Lai was great.
TOP of the line x rays, technology etc.
I was offered an iPod to listen to!
My filling on my front tooth looks FAR superior to the other 5 times I had it filled. I mean, it looks great. It has never looked great. Awesome.
I made my appointment and got in right away, and didn’t wait for more than 3 minutes.
Everyone was friendly.
Do they offer referral fees, because I can pretty much guarantee about 3 – 6 more patients over this next year!
See you soon… I still have some cavities to go!
***** One tooth is a smidge shorter than the other, visually and with the tongue test, which I had hoped would not happen. It isn’t horrible though, but def. shorter.

I’ve always avoided going to the dentist in the US, preferring to visit my old dentist in Hong Kong whenever I’m there. I finally decided to take the plunge, realizing that I would need to occasionally have my teeth cleaned here.
My friend recommended South Beach Dental so I made an appointment and filled out their online form. Someone called later to verify the appointment details and take down my social security number for payment/​insurance purposes.
My appointment was scheduled for 10 am. I had to wait a while for my appointment to start but I assume it was just because it was a busy morning. At any rate, there were plenty of magazines to keep me occupied. The paperwork was simple.
After a while, I was shown to a chair that also had a built-​in massager. That was certainly a first for a dentist visit. Dr. Watson also offered me an iPod to distract me during the cleaning, though I declined. They also have this interesting «vacuum» thing they put in your mouth to suck out the water instead of the traditional water + cup + mini sink that I’ve been accustomed to. The cleaning + examination process was pretty standard and Dr. Watson did a good job of explaining each step so I knew what was happening.
Carlos, the hygienist, took x-​rays of my teeth. The process was pretty quick though the camera they had to stick inside my mouth was a little uncomfortable. It was already the smallest size though so no complaints there. Dr. Watson then explained the x-​rays to me and taught me how to floss properly. Until now, I had only been flossing between my teeth but not between my teeth and my gums.
The ladies at the front desk were friendly and checked to make sure my next appointment (in 3 months) would be covered by my insurance. Thankfully, Delta Dental covers two cleanings a year so it all worked out. I left a little after 11 am.
My teeth were a little sensitive post-​cleaning so I had to bite more carefully during lunch but that’s to be expected. All in all, it was a good visit and I will return.

By far the most wonderful experience I have ever had in a dentist’s office.
One of my least favorite things about going to the dentist/doctor’s office is the initial paper work and waiting period. I hate arriving for my 2pm appointment at 1:45, filling out paper work for 10 minutes, then waiting another 15 minutes because the dentist/​doctor is running late.
NOT A PROBLEM HERE! All forms are filled out online, so when I arrived at 8:55 for my 9am appointment, all I had to do was sign some papers, and I was in the dentist seat at 8:58… 2 MINUTES EARLY!
Next came some of the best hospitality I have had. I was there for a check up, cleaning, and filling. All the procedures were explained thoroughly, and on top of all of that, I was given an ipod and shades to relax with the entire time. After the work, I was shown exactly what was done on their computer program, and given a dental plan for the rest of the year.
So thorough, so dope.
If this weren’t enough, every person there (ESPECIALLY Markus Watson) is delightful. I rarely use that word: delightful, but in this case, it is the most accurate adjective I can use to describe the disposition of the staff. No one was too busy, to help, and they genuinely seemed please to be there.
As long as I am living in the Bay, Markus Watson is mine and my wife’s dentist. Period.

This is one of the best Dentist offices I have been to in SF.
Markus (Dr. Watson) is very attentive, friendly and knowledgeable. He obviously has set the same expectation for the other dentists, technicians and receptionists alike.
I was in there this morning and did not see Dr. Watson but instead saw another Dentist. Everything went great and I did not even miss Dr. Watson… (sorry!).
I like the fact that the team takes there time to explain all the procedures as well as any billing issues and they have an outright friendly disposition. Hard to find in some places as soon as they get your $$$$.
Keep up the good work!
Oh.Let me not forget… The guys are hot! (Woof!)