Luong Mary OD & Associates

Called twice to try to get an appointment. Both times the phone rang over 3 minutes before someone would answer, the first time they answered and hung up. Someone finally answered the phone the 2^nd time and couldn’t get me an appointment for glasses for 18 days. I thanked her for her time, hung up and called the Gilroy Costco… Guess what! They had same day appointments, I made an appointment for tomorrow! Just take the drive to Gilroy, such a much nicer experience.

I went to Costco for an eye exam for the same reason everyone else does: it’s cheap. For $ 99 you can get a contact lens exam if you have astigmatism. Unfortunately, Dr. Luong was out, so I saw Dr. Phoebe Nguyen. My experience was awful from the beginning.
I called ahead of time and they said they accept walk-​ins Mondays through Fridays. I went in at 10:45 on a Monday morning and the receptionist answered several calls before acknowledging me. She seemed very agitated and stressed. She finally asked me if I had an appointment. No greeting, no hello/​how are you, nothing. I said no but I was hoping to get one, and she rudely said she can’t take any more walk-​ins but to come back at 3:00. So I ran some errands and came back at 2:45.
At 2:45 the door was closed and had a sign that said they will be back at 3:00. I browsed the optical department and noticed a lady standing outside, so I asked her if she was waiting as well and she said she was. I decided to stand behind her so I would be sure to be next. The receptionist came back and a Mexican lady cut in front of me, insisting that she was first. I told her I had been waiting but the receptionist spoke to her in Spanish and let her in ahead of me (I am white, so I’m used to this type of thing in Salinas). Then she loudly exclaimed, «That’s it! I’m not taking any more walk-​ins!» I stood in line while she processed the others and when it was my turn she took my name. I sat down and after around 45 – 60 minutes had me fill out paperwork, then told me it would be another hour and a half. She took my phone number and said to come back.
I came back an hour later and got called in right before 5:00. The doctor did not introduce herself, so I asked her her name and she just said «Phoebe.» I asked her her last name so I could address her accordingly, and she said just Phoebe is fine. She quickly did the contact lens exam, but stopped a few times to check texts on her phone and take sips of coffee. Very unprofessional. The last thing I want during an eye exam is some rank coffee breath from the doctor when her face is two inches from mine. I also noticed that her hair was long and unbrushed, making her look as though she either didn’t care about her appearance or was clueless as to how a professional should present herself.
After fitting me with some contacts, Phoebe said that I’m between prescriptions and that they don’t make one that will fit me. She then looked at my eyes in the microscope for several minutes and asked me questions about which doctors I’ve seen. She held my eye open with her finger, not allowing me to blink, and shined a very bright light in it for an extended period of time. Normally the doctors do this part quickly, but she did not. My eyes were in a lot of pain afterwards. Phoebe then told me that I am not a candidate for contact lenses and that she wanted me to come back for a second opinion. She went back to her phone under the pretense of googling a photo for me, claiming that I had «blood vessels in my eye,» but I know she was trying to check her texts. She made me wait and then showed me a photo that was not at all helpful. I told her that I did not understand why she was saying I couldn’t wear contacts, because I’ve been wearing them for years and have never had problems, and she said that she didn’t want to lose her license and that she needed a second opinion. Then she condescendingly asked me if I wanted her to write down whatever «condition» I had for me, and I said no. She said that there and been too many changes in my eyes (although she had never seen me before) and repeated that I just was not a candidate for contact lenses. I was obviously upset, after wasting half my day waiting for this exam and then being told this ridiculous news, that she said she would not charge me for it. She then dismissed me quickly because she had another appointment to get to.
A week later I went back to my old, more expensive doctor, Dr. Moro. When I told the receptionist about my experience at Costco, she said I’m not the first person to say that they have been turned down for contacts. Dr. Moro’s associate, Dr. Kovach, said that there is absolutely no reason why I should have been told I can’t wear contacts. So overall, the point of this long rant is that going to Costco was a complete waste of my time. Both the receptionist and doctor were rude and unprofessional. I recommend asking for the other doctor if you go to Costco. I’m hoping that Phoebe’s demeanor is not an accurate reflection of Dr. Luong’s practice.

Dr. Luong is an amazing optometrist. She is very knowledgeable and very friendly. I have a really bad astigmatism and she suited me with great options to improve my vision. Her eyeglass exam is $ 49 which is a total bargain! She’s located inside Costco which can make it a 2-​for-​1 special (shop and check-​up). Will definitely be returning!