San Ramon, California · Family-owned
The dentist your family settles into.
Unhurried appointments. Honest recommendations — including when the answer is “this can wait.” And a team that will still be here when your children start bringing theirs.
Or call us —(925) 362-8180
4.9 ★
276 patient reviews
37 years
Dr. B in practice since 1989
Family-owned
Independent, never corporate
22 plans
Major PPO insurance accepted
Digital imaging
Lower dose, clearer detail
Same-day
Room held for emergencies
Our story
It started with a sixteen-year-old who wanted the job nobody wants.
While his friends were bagging groceries, Cliff Broschinsky talked his way into a job at a dental office — sterilizing instruments, pouring models, and watching how people behaved in that chair.
What he noticed then is the thing this practice is still built around. People relax the moment they can see what is happening and know that if we say something needs treating, it genuinely does. A fair number of our patients came to us after being told somewhere else that they needed work they turned out not to need.
He graduated in 1989, spent eight years in downtown San Francisco, and then opened this practice in San Ramon — where he still is, 37 years into the career he decided on at sixteen.
We’ve now watched patients grow up, bring in their own children, and — a few times — bring in their grandchildren. That’s the real measure of whether we’re doing this well.
Meet the doctor
Dr. Cliff Broschinsky, DDS
Founder & General Dentist
What he noticed then is what still shapes the practice today: patients settle once they can see what is happening and know that nothing will be recommended to them that they do not genuinely need. He has spent three decades telling people that the treatment plan they arrived clutching was longer than it needed to be — and showing them, on the screen, exactly why.
He graduated dental school in 1989 and spent his first eight years in downtown San Francisco before opening the San Ramon practice — the same practice he still runs, now more than three decades on. In that time he has watched patients grow up, bring in their own children, and in a few cases bring in their grandchildren.
Outside the office he plays piano — properly, and very well — and has spent the past while locked in a slow-moving dispute with a sourdough starter. He will explain the hydration percentage if you let him. Do not let him. His wife maintains that the granola bars are the actual achievement and that the bread is a hobby the family is being very supportive about.
You’ll always know what’s happening
Before anything begins, you’ll see your own images on the screen and hear what we’re looking at in plain language. No jargon, no rushing to the next room.
We’ll tell you when you can wait
Not every finding needs treating today. When something can be watched rather than drilled, we say so and write it down — and we’ll still be here when it does need attention.
Comfort is a clinical decision
Numbing that’s given time to work. Shorter appointments when that’s easier. A pause whenever you raise a hand. Gentleness isn’t a personality trait here — it’s a protocol.
Away from the office: Playing piano · Baking sourdough · Granola bars · Family time
What to expect
You’ll know exactly what happens, before it happens.
Most dental anxiety isn’t about pain. It’s about not knowing what’s coming, or what it’ll cost. So here is the whole visit, start to finish.
01
Before you arrive
Your paperwork comes by text or email, so there’s no clipboard. We check your insurance benefits ahead of time and tell you what to expect to pay.
02
Arriving
You’ll be greeted by name — we know who’s coming in. Tea and water if you’d like them, and somewhere comfortable to sit that isn’t a row of chairs against a wall.
03
Sitting down together
Before anything clinical, we ask what’s brought you in, what’s worried you in the past, and how you’d like us to handle it. Some patients want every detail; some want none. Both are fine.
04
Your exam
Photos, x-rays if they’re due, gums measured and charted, and an oral cancer screening. Then we put your own images on the screen and walk you through what we’re looking at.
05
Treatment, when you’re ready
Nothing gets decided in the chair. You leave with a written plan and real numbers, and you book when it suits you. If something needs doing today, we’ll say so plainly.
06
Afterwards
We call to check on you after anything significant. Your next visit gets booked before you leave, so it doesn’t quietly become three years.
Care
Everything your family needs, in one practice.
From a three-year-old's first cleaning to whitening before a wedding thirty years later — and an honest conversation about which of it you actually need.
General Dentistry
Cleanings, exams, fillings, and honest answers about what needs doing.
Learn moreCosmetic Dentistry
Veneers, bonding, and whitening — conservative by default.
Learn moreGum Disease Treatment
Diagnosis and non-surgical treatment of gingivitis and periodontitis.
Learn moreDentures
Full and partial dentures, fitted and adjusted until they’re right.
Learn moreInvisalign
Clear aligners, with an honest read on whether they’ll work for your case.
Learn moreDental Anxiety
An unhurried approach for people who have been avoiding it.
Learn more
Technology
Equipment matters only for what it does to your visit.
We invest in the technology that measurably changes your visit — making it more comfortable, more accurate, and shorter. Here is what we use and what each thing actually does for you.
Digital x-rays
A fraction of the radiation of the film we grew up with, and the image is on the screen beside you in seconds — so you can see what we’re seeing rather than taking our word for it.
Intraoral photography
A camera the size of a pen shows you the actual crack in the actual tooth, magnified. It’s the most useful thing we own, because it ends the guessing about whether treatment is really needed.
Digital scanning
No trays of impression material, no gagging. A wand passes over your teeth and builds the model on screen — more accurate, and considerably more pleasant.
Diode laser
Used alongside a deep cleaning, the laser disinfects gum pockets and reaches bacteria that instruments alone miss. In practice it means less bleeding during the appointment and noticeably less soreness afterwards.
Easier if you’re anxious
Most of what made dentistry hard to sit through has been engineered out. The scanner replaces the gag-inducing impression tray, the laser means less soreness afterwards, and seeing your own images on the screen removes the not-knowing that makes people tense in the first place.
Fewer, better appointments
Careful planning means less of your work day spent here for the same result. Respecting your calendar is a clinical decision too.
In their words
Thirty years of families who stayed.
Every quote below is a patient's own, unedited, from our reviews.
“We LOVE LOVE LOVE Avalon Dental! Dr. B is the best dentist we’ve ever gone to”
Cassondra H. “Dr B. always does a great job and you don’t feel the work getting done”
Marie T. “The staff always make my experiences with them the best and most comfortable”
Rebecca C. “Dr. B', He is very patient and thorough! Most importanty he’s Gentle”
Maggi R. “Dr. B is outstanding. He and the hygenists are thorough, gentle, and make the experience”
Rachel Z. “Always a great experience! Been going here for as long as I can remember”
Kiralise R.
No insurance?
A membership plan that just makes the maths simple.
No deductibles, no claim forms, no annual maximum, and no waiting period. Preventive care covered for the year, and 15% off most other treatment.
- Healthy Smile — $39/month for adults
- Periodontal Wellness — $69/month for gum health
- Kids Club — $29/month for under 14
“We’d rather see you twice a year than fix something expensive later.”
That’s the whole reason this plan exists. Preventive visits are the cheapest dentistry there is, and skipping them because of insurance is how small problems quietly turn into big ones.
Membership is not dental insurance. Valid 12 months from enrollment.
Questions
The things people ask us on the phone.
Answered here, so you don’t have to.
Do you take my insurance?
We’re a Delta Dental Premier provider and take Delta’s PPO plans too. With the 21 other carriers we accept — Cigna, Aetna, MetLife, Guardian, Blue Shield, Anthem Blue Cross and United Health Care among them — we’re a PPO provider. Call us with your card and we’ll verify your actual benefits — your remaining annual maximum, your deductible, what percentage applies — before your first visit, so there are no surprises.
What if I don’t have insurance?
Our membership plan covers a year of preventive care for $39 a month for adults and $29 for children under 14, and includes 15% off most other treatment. There are no deductibles, no claim forms and no annual maximum. For larger treatment we also offer Cherry payment plans, Sunbit and CareCredit financing.
How much will my first visit cost?
A new patient exam with x-rays and a cleaning typically runs $250–$400 without insurance, depending on what’s needed. With most PPO plans it’s covered at or near 100%. We’ll give you the number before your appointment, not after it.
What actually happens at a first visit?
About an hour and a half. We talk before anything clinical happens — what’s brought you in, what’s gone badly before, how you’d like us to handle things. Then a digital scan, x-rays, intraoral photos, a gum assessment and an oral cancer screening, followed by your cleaning. Dr. Broschinsky then examines you, walks you through your own images on the screen, and builds your treatment plan with you. You’ll leave with that plan in writing and no pressure to book anything that day.
Will it hurt?
For a cleaning and exam, no — and if your gums are inflamed and sensitive, tell us and we’ll use topical anesthetic. For treatment, we numb thoroughly and we wait for it to work properly rather than starting early. You can raise a hand at any point and we stop. That isn’t a formality; it’s how we actually work.
Do you offer sedation for anxious patients?
We offer nitrous oxide — laughing gas — which takes the edge off within minutes and wears off before you drive home. For most anxious patients, though, what helps more is time: a longer appointment, a slower pace, and someone explaining each step before it happens. Tell us you’re nervous when you book and we’ll schedule accordingly.
At what age should my child first come in?
By their first birthday, or within six months of the first tooth. Early visits are mostly about making the place feel normal to them — we count their teeth, they pick something from the drawer, and they leave having had a good time. That’s what makes them relaxed at twelve.
I have a dental emergency. What do I do?
Call (925) 362-8180 now. We hold room in every day’s schedule for emergencies, and you don’t need to be an existing patient. If you have facial swelling that’s spreading, or difficulty swallowing or breathing, go to an emergency room instead — that’s beyond what a dental office can safely handle.