A Chinese-Speaking Dentist in the Heart of Chinatown
Dentistry in the language you think in.
A serious dental decision is hard enough without a language barrier in the room. At Centre Dental, Dr. John Shi and our team discuss your diagnosis, your options, and the cost in fluent Mandarin, Cantonese, or English — so nothing about your care gets lost in translation.
When it's your mouth, "close enough" isn't good enough.
Many of our patients have sat in a dental chair before, nodding along to a treatment plan they only half-understood — or relying on an adult child to translate a decision about their own health. A dental implant, a full-arch reconstruction, a set of veneers: these are decisions you should understand completely before you say yes. Below is what bilingual care actually means here, and why it changes the experience.
Half-understood treatment plans
Nodding along to a diagnosis you couldn't fully follow — then agreeing to work you weren't sure you needed.
A family member translating
Bringing your daughter or son to interpret a private decision about your own teeth, your own money, your own health.
Questions you never got to ask
The question you'd have asked in Cantonese never made it into the room — so the doubt stayed with you instead.
Every step of your care, explained in your own language.
Being able to speak Chinese isn't the point — being understood at a serious decision is. From the first consultation to the 3D scan review, the written treatment plan, the cost and insurance breakdown, and the day of treatment itself, Dr. Shi walks you through every step in Mandarin, Cantonese, or English. You ask the real questions. You hear the honest answers. You decide with full information — not a rough translation of it. For the procedures themselves, we link you to the detailed pages below so you can read the full clinical picture before you ever sit down.
Book a consultation in your languageWhat we do here
Full-service dentistry, delivered bilingually
What bilingual dental care really means
Plenty of offices will say "we speak Chinese." What matters is where that language shows up. At Centre Dental, it's present at every point where a decision is made: the consultation where Dr. Shi asks what's wrong and what you want; the moment you review your own 3D scan on the screen and he explains what each shadow and structure means; the written treatment plan; the cost and insurance conversation; and the chair-side instructions on the day of care. A dental implant or a full-arch reconstruction is a considered, often significant decision — the kind you should understand completely, not approximately. Being able to ask your real question, in Mandarin or Cantonese, and hear an honest, unhurried answer is the difference between consenting to treatment and truly choosing it.
Rooted in Lower Manhattan, minutes from Chinatown
Centre Dental is at 139 Centre Street, Suite 306, in Lower Manhattan — a short walk from Chinatown and easily reached from across the city. Being here, in this neighbourhood, is not incidental: many of our patients are members of the local Chinese community, and the practice was built to serve them properly rather than as an afterthought. The location makes us reachable for a first consultation, for the multiple visits an implant or full-arch case involves, and for the routine cleanings and check-ups that keep that work healthy for the long term. It's a real, established office — not a pop-up — with the imaging and treatment technology a modern case requires.
Meet Dr. John Shi — Columbia-trained, two decades of experience
Dr. John Shi earned his DDS at Columbia University and has practised on Centre Street for more than 20 years, with extensive experience across implants, full-arch reconstruction, and cosmetic dentistry. He speaks Mandarin, Cantonese, and English fluently, and he performs both the surgical and the restorative phases of treatment himself — which means the person who explained your plan is the same person who carries it out. That continuity matters: there's no handoff where your history, your language, or your goals get lost between one clinician and the next. You can read more about his background and approach on his profile page.
The care we provide — and where to read the full detail
Rather than repeat the clinical detail here, we keep a dedicated, thoroughly written page for each procedure so you can understand it fully before deciding. For a single missing tooth, see dental implants, planned from a 3D CBCT scan and placed with a custom surgical guide. For a full upper or lower arch, All-on-X full-arch replaces every tooth on as few as four to six implants. For the look of your smile — chips, gaps, discolouration, proportion — see cosmetic dentistry and porcelain veneers. Whichever path fits, the consultation, the scan, and the plan behind it are delivered in your language.
Related at Centre Dental
Concerned about comfort, bone, or cost?
These are the questions a consultation answers directly. Dr. Shi reviews your 3D CBCT scan, evaluates your bone and candidacy, and outlines your options, treatment timeline, and estimated cost — including what your insurance may cover.
Thinking about it
The questions we hear first
Do you really speak Chinese, or just have a translator?
Dr. Shi himself speaks Mandarin, Cantonese, and English fluently — the clinical conversation happens directly with him, not through an interpreter relaying a rough version. That means you can ask a precise question about your diagnosis or your options and get a precise, first-hand answer back, in the language you're most comfortable in. For patients who prefer Cantonese specifically, that's covered too.
我可以用中文問診嗎？可以用廣東話嗎？
可以。Dr. Shi 本人能流利地說國語（普通話）、廣東話和英語，整個看診過程——從第一次諮詢、看 3D 掃描、到解釋治療方案和費用——都可以全程用您最習慣的語言進行，不需要透過翻譯。您想問的問題，都可以直接問，也會得到清楚、誠實的回答。診所位於曼哈頓下城 Centre Street，離華埠只有幾分鐘路程。
Where exactly are you located, and how do I get there from Chinatown?
We're at 139 Centre Street, Suite 306, in Lower Manhattan — a short walk from Chinatown and accessible by subway and bus from across the city. It's an established office with full imaging and treatment technology on site, so consultations, scans, treatment, and follow-up visits all happen in one place.
What kind of dentistry do you handle — is it only implants?
No. Centre Dental is a full-service practice. Implants and All-on-X full-arch are a major focus, but we also provide cosmetic dentistry, porcelain veneers, crowns, orthodontics such as Invisalign, and routine restorative and preventive care. If you're not sure which treatment fits your situation, the consultation is where we work that out together — and we'll point you honestly toward the option that's actually right, not the most expensive one.
Who is Dr. Shi, and why does his training matter?
Dr. John Shi holds a DDS from Columbia University and has practised on Centre Street for over 20 years, with extensive experience in implants, full-arch reconstruction, and cosmetic work. Because he performs both the surgical and restorative phases himself, there's no handoff between a surgeon and a separate prosthodontist — one clinician who knows your case, your language, and your goals carries it from plan to finished result.
Can I bring a family member to my appointment?
Of course — you're always welcome to bring someone with you for support. The difference here is that you won't need them to translate your care. The clinical conversation happens directly with you, in your own language, so a family member can simply be there for you rather than working as your interpreter.
The path
Your journey, start to finish
Consultation, in your language
You describe what's bothering you and what you want — in Mandarin, Cantonese, or English — and Dr. Shi listens without a translator in between. Nothing gets flattened or lost.
3D scan and diagnosis, explained fully
We show you your own CBCT scan or intraoral scan on screen and walk through exactly what it means — what's healthy, what isn't, and what your options genuinely are.
A written plan and honest cost
You leave with a clear treatment plan, a written estimate, and a plain explanation of what your insurance will and won't cover — no ambiguity, no surprises.
Treatment, with Dr. Shi
The dentist who explained your plan is the dentist who performs it — implants, cosmetic work, or full-arch — with care instructions given in the language you'll actually remember them in.
Explore Further
Related Services
Dental Implants
3D-guided single-tooth replacement, planned from a CBCT scan and explained in your language.
Learn moreAll-on-X Full-Arch
Replace a whole upper or lower arch on as few as four to six implants.
Learn moreCosmetic Dentistry
Evidence-based smile design — from bonding to full-mouth aesthetics.
Learn morePorcelain Veneers
Thin ceramic restorations that correct chips, gaps, and discolouration.
Learn moreChinese-Speaking Dentist Near You in NYC
Start here
Schedule your consultation
In a single visit, Dr. Shi reviews your 3D scan, assesses your candidacy for chinese-speaking dentist, and provides a written treatment plan with cost and insurance details — so you can decide with all the facts.
Extensive full-arch reconstruction experience by Dr. Shi
3D-guided precision, placed by an experienced surgeon
Bilingual — English, Mandarin, Cantonese
Live clinic hours · 139 Centre St, Lower Manhattan, NYC