Crown Vision Center

This location was able to squeeze us in for a contact fitting appointment the same day we called. I called two other St. Louis locations, but no available appts for the same day, and no available Saturday appts for the next 2 weeks since the doctors were off. Arrive a little bit early to fill out a brief customer/​insurance document. We were seen in about 5 minutes by the tech, and then immediately by the doctor. We waited about 5 minutes to meet with another staff member to order the contacts.
Ordering the contacts was the worst part of this experience. While the staff member was friendly and apologetic for not knowing how to use his computer, or knowing how to read the insurance terms, he was impossibly slow. We were first told our insurance would cover 15% but he later corrected himself and said that insurance did not cover anything. We enrolled in the contact care program so that we could save 10% (the cost of the program is $ 40, which essentially just goes to pay for your «free» eye exam next year). We paid for the contacts, but then he noticed he did not give us the discount. So another mistake and more waiting for him to correct his error. It should not take 45 minutes just to order contacts, but that is how he handled the customer before us, and that is how long the other staff member was taking with her client, so it must be standard, right?
5 stars for fitting us in same day, 5 stars for the short amount of time we waited to see the doctor, 1 star for amount of time to order contacts.

Do not go here. The doctor here is extremely rude and all they’re after is money, they could care less about the health of your eyes. I tried to buy contacts from a different place and they refused to give me my prescription (which is illegal). I’m currently wearing only one old contact which could lead to serious health problems just because they want me to buy contacts from them. Absolutely illegal and now I’ll have to take further action.

I would probably give it a five star rating if not for the wait time. There were not a lot of customers but it was a long wait. Turns out the manager was off today, one of the opticians was new, and so was the doctor, so there you go. Also, they need some reading materials for adults and kids. Also, I was given a price on the phone for contacts, but a different woman behind the counter gave me a different price, but Adele made sure I paid the price I was told originally. I don’t think anyone was trying to give me the olé’ switcheroo, I just think there was some miscommunication.
On to the good part. The entire staff was very friendly and laid-​back. Adele was very nice on the phone and in person, a real sweetheart. The new optician was very nice and helpful as well. She helped me try on lots of glasses even though I wasn’t buying any that day. Dr. Ethakoti was very nice, patient and thorough. I appreciated the way he answered my questions and explained things to me pertaining to my eye health. And the gentleman who checked me out at the end was nice as well.
There was no push to make me buy lenses which was a new experience for me. They gave me a trial pair with instructions to see how they wear and to contact them to order more if I liked them, etc.
I almost did not go to this office because of some of the older reviews, but I am glad that I did. I live in south city, and I love finding services that are close to me and efficient. I will definitely be going back to this location in the future.

Great friendly service and had a lot of kid frames to choose from. My girls really enjoyed there exams as well

I gave this location a star only because the staff was friendly and helpful. However, the doctor here was extremely rude. He had a very bad attitude and was nasty to me and my boyfriend. My boyfriend is Latino and therefore has an accent as he is not a native English speaker. The doctor is not a native English speaker either, although I do not know his ethnic background. With that being said, I was appalled that he became frustrated and was rude when he did not understand or receive the answer he was looking for. This only discouraged my boyfriend from answering and made him mad and self-​conscious. We will never return to this location and the doctor should really learn some humility.

The only thing you can count on consistently here is bad service. If you like making several unnecessary trips for the inferior products they sell, have at it. Come on down, if passive-​aggressive employees are your delight. Appointments are scheduled, just not kept.
I’ll be glad when my insurance finally kick in, and I can kick these jokers to the curb.

Friendly staff. Work with you on competitive prices. Just this week there was an issue with an online order I placed. Nick from the Southtown office went the extra mile and resolved the situation for me. Highly recommend this location!

do not do the field exam! $ 20 out of pocket regardless of insurance.
be sure to know if you are in network. if not they charge you more.
not fair and not helpful at all. no disclosure of the field exam at all. terrible. i was told that i was out of network after the fact. waste of time and gas.

Easy to deal with in all aspects. Staff was friendly and knowledgable. Got me the best deal they could for my budget.

The staff is extremely friendly, helpful and knowledgeable. A pleasant experience and Kassandra is the best. R. Martinez024−14 505

Yet, another update! So, the place redeemed itself. I got a call last night from the new manager of the Southtown location and long story short, they’re letting me pick out a free pair of prescription sunglasses! So that’s cool. Not that I ever wanted anything out of this, but if I’m going to be given something than hey, I’ll take it! Kudos to the new Southtown manager, Jessica, for taking the time to read reviews and additionally taking the EXTRA time to do something about it. Thanks Jessica!