Madison Avenue Eye Care

I have been seeing Dr. kantrowich for a few years and he is terrific. I’m a bit of a nervous nelly when it comes to my eyes and he always takes the time to explain everything to me. I also feel comfortable enough to ask questions, even if they seem silly or mundane. He always takes his time and I never feel rushed. Highly recommend.

Dr was ok, but spent too much time trying to get me to «buy» and wasn’t clear that the charges would be extra. Staff was totally unprofessional — pushy and snotty.

On my initial visit which i booked due to the proximity from my job, I was given my annual eye exam without incident. I told them that my previous eyeglasses had broken the day before and I had been meaning to have my exam done anyway. I was then consulted about contact lenses which I have never used and given a 5-​day trial set of disposable lenses, which I was not billed for during the initial visit.
After the examination, I was NOT given my prescription, but paid my copay. A few days went by, and I brought in my old so they could test them to see how much my vision deteriorated since my last exam done elsewhere. At this point, they inquired how the contact lenses were working. I stated they were giving me difficulty and I prefer corrective frames and had thrown them out. The seemed upset by this.
After this, I asked for my prescription and was shown the offering of frames instead. Having to return to work I did not pursue obtaining my prescription, but once back at work I asked that it be sent to me (by fax, as they cannot email) and was told it would be sent by the end of the day. The prescription was never sent. The next day I asked for it to be sent again, yet still received nothing.
Later that day I went in person and asked that my prescription be given to me as it never was after my examination as required. I was again pressured to purchase frames form them but had no desire to. It was at this point they told me I would be charged for contact lens fitting, even though I only received a free trial pair from them. This charge was never communicated during the examination, while trying the contact lenses on, or during of the aforementioned visits/​communication with the office. It seems they assessed the charge simply because I was choosing not to proceed with purchasing frames/​lenses and had they actually faxed the prescription to me as they stated they would/​did, I would have no further reason to return to the office.
*Dr. Kurfirst himself was very thorough and attentive during the examination portion and when explaining my prescription. He should probably look into reevauating his staff however.

I’ve been seeing this eye doctor for a little over a year, and honestly, he’s the first competent eye doctor I’ve ever had. He’s knowledgeable, thorough, and knows what he’s doing. He will save your eyes! His sass level is higher than most doctors, but it’s something I can appreciate.
The only downside is the cost of the visit/​contacts/​glasses, all which have to be paid more or less upfront, BUT they’re flexible if you can’t pay everything then and there, and all of that includes the fact that you’re set for a whole year where contacts are concerned, and if you have any sort of issue, you can can come in and he will see you without charge. In the end, you actually end up saving money. I think it’s certainly worth.

Saw Dr. Kurfirst. Felt like I was seeing a used car salesman.
Appointment took a total of 2 hours. Without my consent, he performed a number of «extra» tests which he subsequently charged me an arm and a leg for. He then tried to charge me an obscene amount for a contact «subscription» service with him. I told him I did not want to participate and would prefer to order the contacts from an external source, and he was EXTREMELY pushy and pressured me very hard to buy contacts through him.
At one point he said, verbatim, «I know why you have contacts! Because you grew up in a small town that didn’t have big buildings so you thought your eyesight was bad because you were always looking at far off objects instead of close up tall buildings.» No, idiot. I got contacts because I couldn’t see the ball while playing sports and the whiteboard while in class.
I finally was able to get out of there, even though I still ended up paying an amount that was way above market.
After I tried on my contacts that I ordered from an external source I realized that my vision was blurry. I called his office to verify my prescription, and it was the same as the one on contacts I ordered (they had to verify the prescription when I placed the order anyways but I wanted to confirm). I am convinced he wrote my prescription down wrong.
I will now have to go see another doctor to get my prescription figured out. So now I’ve wasted over $ 100 on my appointment, another $ 150 on contacts that made my vision WORSE, and countless hours dealing with it all. I certainly will not be seeing Dr. Kurfirst again.
Overall extremely uncomfortable and time consuming experience. Just a flat out waste of my time and money. I think he is very dishonest and cares about one thing only: how much he can get away with charging his patients.

The optometrist was very cordial and knowledgeable, and was able to explain to me what was happening with my vision. I did need a prescription for reading and working on the computer, and that’s when the service went downhill.
I was told by the individual who fits the eyeglasses that they would be available the following Friday, but when I arrived – no glasses. I was told, «They will be here on Monday — Definitely!» I couldn’t come in Monday – but rather came in the following Friday.
«Oh, I am so sorry,» she says. «They will be here at 4 p.m. today. I promise.»
If you’re like me, you do not have time for the runaround. Had she initially said, «I will call you when they come in. It can take anywhere from one to three weeks,» I would have been okay. But to have me come in twice, and still no glasses is a breakdown in customer service.

I cannot speak highly enough about Dr. Kantrowich. He was thorough, attentive and genuinely caring. My doctor back in Jersey was prescribing me eye drops that were over $ 150 each. He made instead gave me free samples and informed me of generic drops that could be substituted. He also ran various tests for my condition and explained the results in simple, understandable terms to me. I highly recommend Dr. Kantrowich.

Dr. Kurfirst is helpful and knowledgeable but the staff are AWFUL and are highly dismissive when they think that you intend to buy your glasses elsewhere.

I came to Madison Avenue Eyecare because I was getting very worried about my eyesight as it seemed to be deteriorating at an alarming rate. I was able to make an appointment for the same day with Dr. Kurfirst. The lady at the front was very kind and made me feel comfortable as soon as I arrived. I filled out some basic paperwork and was given a few tests. I didn’t have to wait long to see the doctor.
Dr. Kurfirst was knowledgeable and professional. He answered all of my questions and gave me a very thorough exam. I was a little wary about ordering glasses from an eyeglass store because I had such a terrible experience with the last time I did that (at a different establishment) but the lady working there was kind enough to give me a quote as to how much I could expect to pay for my lenses with my insurance. The quote was reasonable enough for me to come in the next day to choose some frames.
When I came in the following day I brought in my old glasses so that the doctor could take a look. I was curious to know how much my prescription had changed since I had last gotten it filled. It was a relief to find out it had not changed much. The cause of the blurriness I had been experiencing could be attributed to the brand of contacts I had been using which weren’t allowing enough oxygen to get to my eyes.
I want to thank the very kind lady at the store who took extra time and care to make me feel comfortable in choosing a pair of frames that I liked and looked good in. She was patient, professional, and so very nice. The quote that she gave me the previous day for the lenses was almost exactly the price that I ended up paying with my insurance (I have VSP in case anyone was wondering). I am incredibly happy with the level of service that I received here and would highly recommend this place. Thank you for restoring my faith in glasses retailers. I did not feel pressured to purchase more expensive frames nor did I feel uncomfortable trying on several pairs of frames and taking my time choosing. It’s really refreshing to know that there are still genuinely nice people out there. :)

My eye was acting up one day — it was red and inflamed, and looked like pink eye — so made an emergency appointment at this clinic. It happened to be close to my office — huge mistake. I was told on my first visit by the doctor that he did not know what was causing my symptoms. He prescribed me $ 100 antibiotic eyedrops anyway despite the doctor stating that he did not know whether the condition was bacterial or viral in origin. He added that it might be a chronic condition, which of course worried me enough to make a followup appointment. On the second visit, I was told that everything had been caused by a small scratch on my eye.
The first visit cost me $ 50 post-​insurance — and could have been more, because I was also almost charged extra for an eye exam that the doctor administered, which I most certainly did not request nor was told I would be charged for; I disputed the charge. The second visit, which I had to wait 15 minutes for but lasted 5, cost me an additional $ 50. $ 200 for a SCRATCH. Exceedingly unhappy.

i had a very positive experience with Dr. Kurfirst. He was helpful and patient, taking the time to explain to me the reason for my irritated eyes, and the necessary steps to solve the problem. Even showed me pics of my eyeball with his new high tech machine (awesome)
He made himself available when I called the office for follow-​up questions and was more than cooperative with Warby Parker when dealing with my Rx.
Would definitely recommend, especially to anyone in midtown since his office is in the Chrysler building.

I had a great experience here. Dr. Kurfist was really kind. There happened to be a problem with my insurance, so he helped walk me through other options and tried to make everything as inexpensive for me as possible. Totally not a salesman, just an honest good guy. The eye exam was really comprehensive and great. The contact lenses he gave me are by far the most comfortable I’ve ever had. Great place!

I initially went here for an eye emergency thinking I had an infection. Didn’t want to take any chances since I’d had LASIK.
Turned out to just be seasonal allergies.
Doctor ran every test and tried to sell me on eye glasses in the first visit, while I was still dealing with the current issue. They billed my medical, but no attempt was made to bill my eye insurance until after they tried to have me pay the difference.
Given their inventory and service I decided I decided to take my benefits elsewhere for glasses. It took over 3 weeks and several requests before I was able to get my prescription from them.
Would not recommend.

I can see a lot better now! It had been awhile since I had my eyes examined and I was having the typical middle-​age issues (print too small, arms too short, no ability to read a menu without breaking out the cellphone flashlight, etc.)
Dr Kurfirst gave me a thorough examination and almost nailed it right on the head with the first batch of contacts even though I had been wearing my previous RGP lenses for over seven years and the shape of my eye was a little wacky. He was able to tweak one of the lenses and now I can see as well as I could 20 years ago.
I do have to say that it’s not cheap (as in a pair of glasses and a set of contacts was nearly a dozen benjamins) so that makes it about twice as much as I paid at Cohens several years ago. However, they do a good job so if you aren’t on a budget or if you actually have some type of vision insurance that pays things, then by all means, I’d recommend this place.
I would come back and I promise I won’t wait seven years.

Dr. Kurfist is completely unprofessional. He spent twice as much time aggressively selling me his lens package than he did looking at my eyes, and wouldn’t let me get a word in edgewise. It was a mistake to go here in the first place, but I certainly won’t be going back, and would advise anyone who doesn’t need extra stress in their lives to stay far away.

Dr. Kurfirst and his unhelpful staff made my experience very difficult. I actually intended to make an appointment with Dr. Kantrowich based on his good reviews, but didn’t realize who I was making an appointment with because the receptionist never told me. Not only was I totally mislead — the receptionist doesn’t return calls, gives wrong information about pricing and appointments, and takes inaccurate notes. That’s the short of it – it really made things stressful for about a month. So disorganized. Dr. Kurfirst is also very condescending, rude and out of touch. His prices are extremely high. I saw another customer experience this while I was at the office, so beware.

Who woulda thought my first time in the Chrysler Building would be to get eyeglasses.
Anyway I had Dr. Kurfurst who was super knowledgeable and answered a lot of my questions.
I just wish that the woman helping me with my eye wear was just as accommodating. She pretty much just was a sales person that gave me a hard time in trying to get my prescription.
I showed up the next day to get my glasses like she said, but they weren’t there and I actually was able to get my prescription from the receptionist without question when she wasn’t there.
I wish they had a selection of trendier styles that weren’t all the way designer (I felt forced to get the Gucci glasses I tried on since they seemed to be the only style that actually looked good on me).

Dr. Kurfirst is amazing! Every time I visit I learn something new about my eyes. His advice is honest, objective, and geared to help you find the right prescription, pair of contacts or glasses.
I had constant problems with dry eyes when I wore contacts and he helped me find an amazing brand most optometrists didn’t even carry yet.
Don’t be turned off by the 6 month pay plan for contacts — I was at first, but it really does work out, especially if you lose your contacts a lot.
Best eye doctor i’ve found in the Midtown Area (and trust me, there are a ton of bad ones out there!). I would knock off half a star since they’re not open on weekends, but everything else really does make up for it.

The doctor is nice but the office staff is terribly unprofessional. Had issues obtaining a copy of my prescription and ended up completing my order elsewhere.

Dr. Kantrowich is the best optometrist I’ve been too, and I’ve been wearing glasses for 25 years. He is thorough, patient, kind. I can’t say enough good things about this practice.