Eye Carumba Optometry

San Francisco, United States

4.1

Closed now

20 reviews

By Appointment Only

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Telephone:
+1 415-772-8282
Website:
www.eyecarumba.com
Address:
4 Embarcadero Center Lobby Level, San Francisco, CA, 94111
Financial District
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:
250 ftClay St & Drumm St
500 ftSacramento St & Davis St
570 ftThe Embarcadero & Ferry Building
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Bussiness info

By Appointment Only
Yes
Accepts Insurance
Yes

Today

Today 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
Closed now
Local time (San Francisco) 07:33 Saturday, 28 June 2025

Business hours

Monday 9:00 am – 6:00 pm
Tuesday 9:00 am – 6:00 pm
Wednesday 9:00 am – 6:00 pm
Thursday 9:00 am – 6:00 pm
Friday 9:00 am – 6:00 pm
Saturday 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
Sunday –

Description

Specialties

Personalized attention from our doctors and staff. Our exams are a full 45 minutes, no technicians, just one-​on-​one with the doctor’s full attention.

Our staff of opticians are American Board of Opticianry certified — a high standard which we are proud of. We will help you choose glasses that meet your specific needs whether you are using them for close-​up work at the computer, need distance glasses for golfing or need progressive glasses to see both far and near.

The best of technology is used in our offices. Out went the old projectors which were replaced with LCD screens. We now offer the Optomap retinal exam which provides an photographical overview of your retina.

Our in-​house lab allows us to provide a faster than usual turnaround time for delivery of your glasses. We also keep an inventory of the most popular contact lenses for those on-​the-​go purchases.

We are known for our attention to detail and our high level of customer service.

History

Established in 2004.

Eye Carumba was established by Dr. Joseph Torres to provide a higher standard of service that he wanted to provide for his patients. Our mission is simple: Deliver personalized service for every person who walks through our doors! We promise not to rush you through the machines, and that is why you will find all of your exam services to be performed by our experienced doctors, they even perform the contact lens training.

Our history is our awesome patients who have supported us everywhere, including here on Yelp. Thank you for your continued support and interest in our practice! We will always be here for you.

Meet the Manager

Kerrie V.

Manager

A long-​time friend of owner, Dr. Joseph Torres, Kerrie came on board to manage Eye Carumba Optometry in July 2010. Ironically, they met at her first job as a file girl in an optometry office in downtown San Francisco. She was 16 when Joe told her he wanted her to manage his future office. After college, Kerrie traveled extensively in the U.S. and abroad, settling in Fiji where she met her husband. They currently live in San Francisco. Kerrie has a BA in Management from Florida Institute of Technology.

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20 reviews of Eye Carumba Optometry

No registration required
Place rating: 5
San Francisco, CA
AMAZING customer service and pricing every time. I have sent several co-​workers here who love it just as much. Highly recommend.
Place rating: 5
Pacifica, CA
A long overdue post… Good luck finding any better optometrist than Dr. Torres. I trust my eyes to no one else. Great skills, great personality, and just an awesome human being. Apparently also a good businessman, as his place is always busy, and the staff members are terrific, helpful and loyal. Also a great place to purchase your eyewear. Yes, you can buy frames cheaper somewhere else, but Eye Carumba’s selection is top-​notch and they work hard to keep the inventory current and fresh.
Place rating: 5
Daly City, CA
My friend and I went in recently (a few different times) and we had a very good experience each time. My friend is a patient there already. We were both trying to use our VSP coverage before it expires. We found the staff very kind and helpful. We were assisted by Kerrie on the first visit and Jim on the 2nd and 3rd visits. Everyone there was courteous and helpful. I felt like they did everything they could to assist us with their opinions, referrals, checking on the best scenarios for us to save money and walk out with the best fitting glasses for each of us. Their assistance was personal, friendly, honest, sincere and much appreciated. I would highly recommend them!
Place rating: 1
Fountain Valley, CA
Way overpriced! They also rescheduled on me three different times in one week. I would not recommend this company!
Place rating: 1
San Francisco, CA
If you’re thinking of going there, STAY AWAY. They will find many ways of extorting extra money out of you and your insurance. The only people who go there are folks who dont understand how much money this business is taking from their insurance.
I ordered contacts through 1800 contacts. 1800contacts asked for prescription information from Eye Carumba. They denied the request because I wasnt approved for the brand of contacts I was ordering. I have ordered the same brand from the same optometrist twice last year, it wasnt a problem. When I called Eye Carumba to approve the prescription, they said I would have to come in for an exam to see if this new brand fits my eyes. Here is what they are trying to do:
1) Extort money from my insurance for another eye appointment, just so I can order a new brand. Oh and lets not forget the copay.
2) Trying to prevent me from ordering from 1800contacts, because they want me to buy the contacts directly through them, which are 50% more expensive than 1800 contacts.
I dont have time to go for another appointment just so I can get approval for a new brand, a brand that they have approved in the past as long as I get it from them! Never going back again.
Place rating: 5
Lafayette, CA
This place is awesome! Friendly staff, great doctors, accepts insurance, etc. Greatly exceeded expectations. I highly recommend it.
Place rating: 5
Dallas, TX
What a great place! Friendly staff and Dr. Avery is so patient and great at explaining everything. She listened to my particular needs and I felt like she really cared. The woman that helped me choose and fit my new glasses was on point! She was super helpful and picked out an awesome pair for me. Do yourself a favor and get your eye needs taken care of here!
Place rating: 5
Crockett, CA
Been coming hear for a long while now. Dr. Torres is always great, great, great, and now they have equally great customer service with arranging appointments and purchasing glasses. It’s all goooooood.
Place rating: 5
San Francisco, CA
I am a new patient and had a really wonderful experience with Eye Carumba.
I needed to schedule an appointment ASAP, as there was a last minute mixup with the doctor I had intended to visit, who was no longer carrying my insurance. Eye Carumba is right next to my office and despite an extremely full schedule called to let me know they could fit me in that day. Perfect!
The visit itself was wonderful and very informative. Both the doctor and the staff were extremely patient and helpful, and the doctor was very upfront about everything he was doing. He answered all my questions in a straightforward and detailed manner, and gave me a ton of free pairs of the new contact brand (my eyes had been overcorrected previously and I had been wearing a very old contact brand, and the doctor said just to come back any time to sample new contact products if need be). I felt as if my I was being listened to and that I had 100% of the doctor’s attention while I was there.
Shopping for doctors is not an easy process, and Eye Carumba did a fabulous job with me as a new patient. I would highly recommend them.
Place rating: 1
Mountain View, CA
TL;DR: Really rude receptionist, but the doctors are fine.
I have been to this place a few times to get my eyes checked, do contact lens fittings, and most recently order some contact lenses. I wear my contacts very infrequently, so before making an order I called to ask when the lenses I wanted to order would expire. I was told it would be around 2020. Today I picked up the lenses and the expiration year was actually 2017. I called them to ask about it and they said they all expire in 2017, which was different from what I was told when I called a week ago. I informed them that this was the case. The receptionist called me a «rude ass» and was very unprofessional, even though I just requested that next time they double check the date before passing the information to the customer.
I don’t plan on coming here again due to that receptionist, and hope you don’t have the same experience that I did. Overall the place was fine, but that experience tarnished whatever good feelings I had for it.
Place rating: 5
Oakland, CA
Just went for a regular eye check, Dr Joseph took care of me and I had such a great and pleasant experience! He was very caring and explained very well the exams I was going thru. I highly recommend this location. Also you can fill all the paper work a time ahead so you just have to sign off the documents when you arrive and wait for the doctor to come get you! See you soon Doc!
Place rating: 5
Seattle, WA
It was Christmas eve morning and I had only 1 mono vision contact. I had torn the right lens the night before. After chatting with online contact lens providers and my optometrist, I was advised that my best option was to take my prescription to a local optometrist who might have a trial pair. I called eye Carumba and in a few minutes they told me that I could pick a trial pair anytime before they closed — for free! Eye Carumba saved my vacation as everything was going to be closed for several days.
Thank you Eye Carumba for your service!
Place rating: 5
San Francisco, CA
Love Dr Torres! I hadn’t had my eyes checked in possibly 10 years and after a few blurry computer days, I figured I’d put my vision benefits to good use. A friend highly recommended Dr Torres and he was everything she said and more. Adorably sweet, fun, informative and patient (coming from someone who can’t even use eye drops without squirming).
Place rating: 4
San Francisco, CA
I was late to my appointment due to an unexpected work meeting however Dr. Avery was friendly and accommodating while still providing a thorough evaluation of my eye health. Due to medication I regularly take, they gave me a vision field test as well as an eye scan to examine my macula. Dr. Avery examined the scans, and explained her findings then and there relieving me of any anxiety waiting for tests results.
Would recommend to friends and family!
Place rating: 5
San Francisco, CA
For an eye exam and eye glasses selection, I definitely got to the right place! :)
The optometrist and the whole personal are supper nice and friendly!
The eye exam, scheduled in advance, took about 40 min. My 10 years old daughter was next to me during this exam, and was enjoying and learning about all of this new «machinery» (really appreciated the patience of the optometrist explaining the details of each device).
The glasses selection, even though not extensively large, was very descent. The selection process was much enjoyment: With the help of a professional sales person, I was doing a show for my daughter and wife: while they liked some frames, they had some good laughs at others when I fitted on my big ovally head.
Finally, I was able to find a creative new style that also got the big approval of the «audience».
Place rating: 5
San Francisco, CA
Dr. Yeh was energetic, professional, and very willing to answer all my questions.
Trevor was very helpful choosing frames and making an adjustment to my current frames that the last place I went couldn’t do after 3 or 4 tries.
Overall, one of the best eye care visits I’ve ever had anywhere.
Place rating: 4
San Francisco, CA
I had a great experience here! I made a lunch time appointment and came in to see Dr. Yeh. He was very attentive and knew what he was doing. I had a contact exam as well as got my eyes dilated. It was a very standard eye appointment but I he was very thorough and informed.
As this is my first eye doctor experience in San Francisco, I dont’ know if it’s «as good as it gets» but I’m happy with my experience and would definitely recommend this place to anyone who has VSP insurance.
Place rating: 5
San Francisco, CA
Great service provider. They keep you up to date on exams and provide quality service. Also have a great selection of frames and are in an outstanding location!
Place rating: 4
San Francisco, CA
Dr. Yeh is a great eye doctor, very thorough and knowledgable. The eye tests they do are through and leverage the most recent medical technologies, which I find confidence and comfort in, especially with the eye history in my family.
The staff is friendly and great, which I also appreciate.
The only thing that bummed me out was the eye frame assortment, could be a little bit more expansive from an variety standpoint.
With that being said, I will definitely come back here once are year for my annual eye check, based on what I stated above. I will take that over an office’s eye assortment, you definitely can find choices on that, exceptional doctors are hard to find and beat!
See on my Unilocal friends;)
Place rating: 2
Healdsburg, CA
I choose this place because I liked the catchy name: Eye Carumba! It is hilarious eh?
I liked the location also… this big expensive building and all these cool frames. The doctor did my perscription easily enough. I don’t even remember who it was — but what difference does it make? It was the guys who ordered my glasses that pissed me off. They got it wrong twice! This was two years in a row. These yo-​yos were young hip guys who exuded the «yeah — I got this!» charm. You might expect to find them in some hip bar sucking down whatever it is that hip people drink and smoking a whatever it is that hip guys smoke. I’m an old geezer so they made me feel hip too… except they screwed up my prescription twice. Wrote down the wrong numbers for the left eye on one pair, screwed up the bifocal distance on another. If you go to his place and see hip guys to order your glasses say these words, «Ay! Caramba!» and dance the Ariba Ariba dance out the door. (see
for the moves and the lyrics — tight jeans are required for this though)
While my review is 2015, the experience was 4 years ago — and my guess is that hip guys are gone otherwise they would be out of business… but just in case…