— CHERRYWOOD DENTAL - SAVAGE, MN
Dr. Melissa Zettler
"Dentistry, at its best, is an act of care. Every smile I restore is a person reclaiming something they thought was lost."
— WHO SHE IS
— HER STORY
A dentist defined by genuine care — for her patients, her craft, and the profession she loves.
Thirty years of purposeful practice
There are dentists who treat teeth. And then there are dentists who treat people. Dr. Melissa Zettler has always been the latter. In nearly three decades at Cherrywood Dental, she has built a practice grounded in one simple but rarely simple idea: that every person who sits in her chair deserves to be truly seen.
Patients routinely describe their experience with Dr. Zettler in words you don't usually hear about dentist visits — words like "reassuring," "unhurried," and "listened." That is not an accident. It reflects a deep personal conviction that excellent dental care begins with trust, and trust begins with compassion.
Genuine Listening
Every patient begins with a conversation, not a procedure. Dr. Zettler takes time to understand concerns, history, and goals before any treatment is discussed.
Honesty
Treatment recommendations are based on the individual patients' needs. Options are explained clearly and without pressure.
Dignity in Every Visit
No judgment. Every patient is treated with respect and kindness.
Dr. Zettler grew up with two passions that would define her career: an insatiable curiosity — the deep pleasure of understanding things — and a genuine desire to be useful to other people. Dentistry, she found, was the rare profession that asked for both at once.
After earning her undergraduate degree from St. Olaf College, she went on to graduate with honors from the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry — a program that sharpened her clinical instincts and her exacting standards. A one-year residency at the VA Hospital in Minneapolis followed, where complex, demanding patient care forged her ability to stay focused, compassionate, and skilled under pressure.
She founded Cherrywood Dental in Savage in 1997 — a woman-founded startup built from the ground up — and what began as a bold leap of entrepreneurship has grown into one of the Twin Cities' most credentialed cosmetic and restorative dental offices. Through it all, she sought out and trained alongside the best in the industry, studying under leading clinicians at the Spear Institute and Dawson Academy, earning fellowships that required her work to be judged by international panels, and continuously raising her own bar — without ever losing the personal, unhurried quality that defined Cherrywood from day one.
She gets great satisfaction in seeing the transformation of a smile — restoring an undervalued asset to a healthy, beautiful attribute again. That moment of recognition on a patient's face is why she chose this work.
The credentials she has earned over three decades — her FAGD, her ICOI Fellowship, her AAACD accreditation — are meaningful not because of what they represent on a wall, but because of what they represent in the operatory: a dentist who never stopped pushing to be better for the people who trust her.
— CREDENTIALS & TRAINING
Earned, not assumed
Every credential Dr. Zettler holds was independently evaluated and earned through examination, case submission, and demonstrated clinical excellence. They are a patient's assurance that her expertise has been verified — not self-reported.
AACD Accreditation
FAGD — Academy of General Dentistry
ICOI Fellow — Implantology
U of Minnesota — Honors Graduate
Spear Institute & Dawson Academy
Bioclear, Vista Grafting & More
— EDUCATION & CAREER
A Career Built on Continuous Learning
Dr. Zettler's academic journey began at St. Olaf College, where she developed the scholarly habits and intellectual discipline that would serve her throughout a career defined by continuous advancement.
What makes her educational story unusual is not where it began, but that it has never really ended. She approaches every new technique, every new technology, and every professional organization not as a box to check but as a genuine opportunity to become more capable for the patients who depend on her.
That same spirit of continuous learning is what she now models — and teaches — as a faculty mentor at the Spear Institute and as leader of a regional dental study club.
Bachelor's Degree
Foundational undergraduate education — where a lifelong love of learning first came into focus.
Doctor of Dental Surgery
Graduated with honors from the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry — one of the nation's top dental programs.
VA Hospital Clinical Residency
One year of intensive clinical residency at the VA Hospital, Minneapolis — forging composure, precision, and compassionate care under pressure.
Founded Cherrywood Dental
Established her woman-founded startup practice in Savage, MN in 1997 — now nearly 30 years and counting as a cornerstone of the community.
FAGD — Academy of General Dentistry
AACD Accredited
One of fewer than 400 dentists worldwide to hold full accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry.
— PHILOSOPHY OF CARE
Planning, precision, and people
Dr. Zettler believes that the best dental outcomes are never accidental. They are the result of careful planning, honest communication, and a commitment to understanding the whole person — not just the tooth in front of her.
Her approach is to plan extensively before a procedure begins, using 3-D imaging, digital design tools, and surgical guides to map out every step before the patient is in the chair. The result, consistently, is that procedures go more smoothly, take less time, and feel far less daunting than patients anticipate.
But the technology is always in service of something more human: a patient who feels heard, a plan they understand and believe in, and a result that exceeds what they imagined was possible for their smile.
Plan First, Treat Second
Much of Dr. Zettler's restorative and implant planning happens before the patient is in the chair — using 3-D scans, surgical guides, and digital design to eliminate surprise from every procedure.
Patients as Partners
Never Stop Learning
Excellence as a Standard, Not an Aspiration
AAACD accreditation, the FAGD, the ICOI Fellowship — these are not accolades. They are a commitment, renewed year after year, to operate at the highest verified level of the craft.