A landmark dental destination is not only a place patients stumble on the way home from work. It is a practice they plan travel to – flying in from other states, the Caribbean Islands, and overseas driving from neighboring cities, scheduling visits during their trips to Miami – because the standard of care and the depth of expertise are not available in their own home cities.
Sharp Dentistry & Associates has earned that description over a quarter century as a cosmetic and prosthodontic practice in Coconut Grove, Miami. This is a look at what makes it a destination, and why patients from across the United States, Latin America, and Europe choose to complete their most important dental work here.
What Makes Dental Practice a "Destination"?
Most dental offices are neighborhood businesses, and there is nothing wrong with that. You need a dentist close to home for cleanings, checkups, and everyday care. But for high-stakes work – complex smile makeovers, full-mouth rehabilitation, prosthodontic reconstruction and maxillofacial prosthodontics – the standard shifts.
A destination dental practice generally shares four qualities:
- Specialty-level training beyond general dentistry
- Concentrated expertise in a specific discipline – cosmetic, prosthodontics, maxillofacial prosthodontics, implant, reconstructive, endodontics and periodontics
- Integrated capabilities under one roof, including an on-site laboratory
- A long-standing reputation that predates the internet
Patients travel for these practices because the work being done is either not available locally or not available at the same standard. Miami has become one of the few U.S. cities where this level of dental care is concentrated, and Coconut Grove sits at the heart of it.
The Coconut Grove Setting
Coconut Grove is one of Miami’s oldest neighborhoods, defined by tree-lined streets, historic architecture, and a boutique-professional culture that draws designers, artists, physicians, and specialists to its offices. It is not a mass-market district, which is precisely why patients like it. Appointments here feel unhurried. The pace is different from a downtown corporate practice, and the practitioners tend to be independent specialists rather than franchise operators.
Sharp Dentistry has been part of this neighborhood for 27 years, occupying a boutique space that reflects the Grove’s character – small, trendy, considered, and quiet.
A Fourth-Generation Prosthodontic Legacy
Dr. Bruno Sharp is the fourth generation of his family to practice dentistry. That legacy is not incidental to the practice – four generations of clinical judgment gets passed down in ways that no textbook captures.
Dr. Sharp is also a prosthodontist. Prosthodontics is one of the specialties formally recognized by the American Dental Association, requiring three additional years of hospital-based training beyond dental school. Prosthodontists focus specifically on the restoration and replacement of teeth, from single cosmetic veneers to complete rebuilding of a bite that has failed after decades.
Most cosmetic dentistry in Miami is done by general dentists who have taken continuing-education courses. Excellent work can absolutely come from that path. But for cases involving worn teeth, misalignment, or bite complications, prosthodontic training changes what is possible.
The In-House Laboratory: Integrated Care Under One Roof
One of the reasons patients travel to Sharp Dentistry is the in-house dental laboratory. In most cosmetic dental practices, impressions are shipped to a third-party lab that receives work from dozens of offices. Turnaround runs 10 to 14 business days per case, and adjustments require another round-trip.
At Sharp Dentistry, the ceramist and the prosthodontist work in the same office. Shade, shape, and fit are refined in real time. The patient can walk out of the operatory, see the ceramist working on their case in the next room, and provide feedback before anything is finalized.
This integration is what allows Sharp Dentistry to deliver a full case of porcelain veneers in approximately one week and dental crowns in a single visit – timelines that are impossible with outsourced lab work. It is also why veneer work at Sharp Dentistry is designed to last a lifetime. Precision fabricated on-site outlasts precision fabricated across a shipping route.
Why Patients Travel to Sharp Dentistry
Sharp Dentistry sees patients from across the United States, the Caribbean Islands, from Latin America – particularly Argentina, Colombia, Venezuela, and Brazil – and from Europe. The reasons vary, but three patterns come up repeatedly.
Complex cases that require prosthodontic expertise
Patients who have been told their case is ‘too complicated’ by general or cosmetic dentists often find that a prosthodontic approach – planning the ideal final result first, then reverse-engineering the treatment sequence – makes the previously impossible possible.
Compressed timelines - Efficiency
Out-of-town patients cannot make five appointments across two months. The in-house lab makes it possible to complete work in one trip or two, rather than spreading it across an unmanageable schedule.
Spanish-language care and cultural continuity
For Latin American patients, the ability to have their entire treatment planned, executed, and followed up in Spanish and Portuguese – with clinicians who understand the culture – is not a small consideration.
The Experience of a Destination Visit
What patients notice about a first visit to Sharp Dentistry is usually tempo. There is no assembly line. A consultation is a real conversation about goals, options, and sequencing. Photographs and digital scans are taken, and often a diagnostic wax-up or digital preview is prepared before any treatment decisions are made.
For patients traveling in, the practice coordinates scheduling around flights, hotels, and follow-up needs. ‘Concierge’ is not quite the right word – it implies pretension – but the coordination is thorough, quiet, and practical.
Plan Your Visit to Sharp Dentistry
Whether you live down the street in the Grove or are considering a trip to Miami specifically for your smile, Sharp Dentistry & Associates welcomes new patients with the same standard of care that has defined the practice for a quarter century.
Contact Sharp Dentistry to arrange a consultation and, if you are traveling in, to receive guidance on scheduling, accommodations, and coordination.
Frequently Asked Questions
Destination dental practices offer specialty-level training, integrated capabilities such as an in-house laboratory, and a concentration of expertise that patients cannot easily access closer to home. Patients plan travel around them.
Yes. Miami is one of the leading U.S. cities for cosmetic and prosthodontic dentistry, and Sharp Dentistry sees patients regularly from other states, the Caribbean Islands, Latin America, and Europe.
No. The practice serves families in Coconut Grove and greater Miami for preventive, restorative, and general care as well. The destination work is one part of the practice – day-to-day care is the foundation.
Rarely. The in-house dental laboratory allows most cases to be completed in one or two visits, coordinated around travel plans.
Twenty-seven years, under the leadership of Dr. Bruno Sharp, a fourth-generation dentist-aprosthodontist.
Yes. Consultations and treatment can be conducted in Spanish, which is a significant consideration for many patients traveling from Latin America.
