Exclusive | NYC’s elite new guard of young plastic surgeons are ushering in an era of radical transparency

Meet the new face of NYC plastic surgery.

Going under the knife in the Big Apple is getting a makeover — with a fresh, young and social media-savvy crew of surgeons under 50 delivering rhinoplasty with a side of rizz.

Gone are the days when having work done meant secretive visits to somber Park Avenue medical suites, where the likes of octogenarian surgeon legends like Dr. Gerald Imber and Dr. Sherrell Aston have ruled for decades — with some still requiring prospective patients to book appointments just to see before-and-after photos.

The new nip-and-tuck stars are meeting a moment where high-tech treatments are sought after by young and old, and where radical transparency is firmly in fashion —  thanks to boldfacers like “RHONY” alumna Jill Zarin, Kylie Jenner and mom Kris Jenner, who casually drop their surgeon’s names — NYC’s Dr. Steve Levine gave the latter her lifted visage — and share details of their procedures with their followers.

The new guard are dragging the process out of the shadows and onto Instagram.

They proudly show off the results of trendy, often undetectable deep plane face-lifts and tasteful breast augmentations on lively, public feeds that reveal the striking transformations of their cross-generational clientele for all to see, often amid snaps from family weekends and motivational posts after sweaty fitness classes — and it’s getting people to drop tens of thousands of dollars on their faces and bodies.

If they can get an appointment, that is. Seeing one of today’s “it” surgeons is like scoring a membership at Casa Cipriani, insiders say, and the demand is turning these miracle workers into coveted luxury brands.

Here’s a look at the best of the ascendant class.

The face-lift master: Dr. Sean Alemi

$45,000 for deep plane face-lift

At 39, Dr. Alemi is already a deep plane virtuoso, known for undetectable results — especially coveted by the younger set in their 40s and early 50s.

Alongside effortlessly stylish wife and nurse practitioner Carolyn, his face-lifts and neck-lifts have become a Manhattan status symbol. (“I have a few ‘Housewives’ in the pipeline,” Alemi told The Post.)

A Berkeley undergrad and UC Irvine med school grad at the top of his class, Alemi had his residency in Head and Neck Surgery at the University of California, San Francisco and trained under NYC big name surgeon, Dr. Andrew Jacono.

His technique recently scored him a spotlight in New York magazine, which touted not only his skills in helping patients achieve an “undetectably refreshed version of themselves,” in his words, but his “Disney-prince looks” as well.

Chloe Hall, 44, paid $76,500 for a deep plane face-lift, neck-lift, and CO2 laser with Alemi this summer, after seeing him on Instagram. The Upper East Side mom of three liked the fact that he had younger clients, and upon meeting him was instantly struck by his demeanor — and his smarts.

“If you meet him, he has a cerebral nerdiness about him that comes across immediately, and so that, for me, was actually what was most interesting about him. The depth of his knowledge goes so much deeper than I even understood,” Hall told The Post. “He’s very accessible, sweet and really great to work with.”

Post-lift, life feels easier, Hall said, noting that by day four or five, she was out and about and meeting a friend at the Met.

“When you look good, you feel good, and not that I thought that I looked bad before, but I look good. Dr. Alemi is now my doctor for life,” she said.

Alemi is currently booking for surgery in March of 2026. 

1125 Fifth Ave., (212) 658-0093; http://www.instagram.com/drseanalemi/

The fashion favorite: Dr. Andrew Timberlake 

$75,000 surgeon’s fee for face/neck/brow-lift

Dr. Andrew Timberlake’s age-defying facial work was the stuff of Fashion Week buzz this fall. His Instagram reads like a who’s who of style insiders — like Alice + Olivia founder Stacey Bendet, who credits him for her recent baby face-lift. 

“I loved Dr. Timberlake’s energy, collaborative spirit and aesthetic vision,” Bendet told The Post. “One of the reasons I chose Dr. T was because his stitches were the best I had ever seen — basically couture.”

“By day two they looked almost invisible, and after two weeks there was barely even a mark. I went to dinner (with sunglasses) on day five,” she said.

After studying molecular biophysics and biochemistry at Yale, Timberlake, in his late 30’s, continued his medical and graduate studies there, graduating cum laude from the medical school and with a Ph.D. in genetics.

He completed his residency in plastic and reconstructive surgery at NYU Langone’s Wyss Department of Plastic Surgery. He was trained by Dr. David Rosenberg, before joining him in practice.

“Nearly all of my patients are from word of mouth referrals,” Timberlake told The Post — explaining that his clients are mostly after a little zhush, with deep plane face- and neck-lift with an endoscopic brow-lift being the favorites.

Some patients, like Charlotte Groeneveld, can deliver an awful lot of referrals. With nearly 600,000 Instagram followers, the fashion insider chose Timberlake before a big birthday.

“I decided for my 40th. This was the perfect gift to myself,” the mother of three told The Post.

“He’s an incredible person and so hardworking. He has so many clients you would never know about because people don’t really share about it. He’s a special one, you have to find him,” she said. 

Charlotte went for an endoscopic brow-lift, upper and lower blepharoplasty and laser resurfacing. “I didn’t want someone to change my face,” she said, “I wanted to look like myself, but refreshed.” 

Her recovery was a breeze. “I went to the Hamptons for an event with Gucci ten days later” — and she’s thrilled with her results.

“The second I look in a mirror and I see myself, it’s how I felt like I was always supposed to look. Fresh and not tired,” she said.

Timberlake’s surgical waitlist is currently months out, which, at least, is quicker than a Birkin.

225 E. 64th St., (212) 832-8595; http://www.instagram.com/drandrewtimberlake

The quiet luxury king: Dr. Ira Savetsky

$15,000-$20,000 for a brow-lift

Dressed head-to-toe in Loro Piana with a youthful, effortless aura, Dr. Ira Savetsky is the “nice guy” surgeon New Yorkers trust across generations. Husband to Lizzy and father of three, he boasts upwards of 450K followers on Instagram, where he shares intimate glimpses of family life and candid post-procedure patient talks. 

Known for his face-lifts, subtle eye work and rhinoplasties so natural you’d never guess, the 41-year-old has cultivated a following that spans from the Upper East Side to the influencer crowd — just ask Jill Zarin and Dina Lohan, both of whom openly credit him for flawless work. 

For Bronwyn Sciarrino, an RN and co-owner of Elite Private Recovery, offering private nursing for post-surgery care, choosing Savetsky was a no-brainer.

“I’ve been a nurse for plastic surgeons for over fifteen years, I could have chosen anybody to go to but I’ve been able to see his results first hand and I knew he would do right by me,” Sciarrino, 42, told The Post of her recent upper blepharoplasty and brow-lift.

For her, what stood out was Savetsky’s exacting attention to detail, calling him “meticulous and a perfectionist.”

“It’s also how humble he is,” she added. “He’s got this humble elegance about him that you want to be around. He listens and is an all-around great person in addition to being a talented surgeon.”

The results, she said, speak for themselves: “People do not believe I am 42. I was recently on a flight to London and the flight attendant offered me a mimosa and she said “Wait, are you old enough?”

Taylor McMillan, a recent rhinoplasty recipient, also praised the doc’s demeanor: “Dr. Savetsky is a genuine person and his charisma helped the process be more comfortable. I’ve had friends who’ve had experiences where they were told they needed a rhinoplasty to be pretty and Dr. Savetsky is not like that at all.”

The nose shrinker’s rep is backed by top-tier training — he has residency and fellowship programs under his belt including the NYU Hansjörg Wyss Department of Plastic Surgery and an aesthetic fellowship at the Dallas Plastic Surgery Institute.

Savetsky told The Post that his patients are commonly referencing a handful of celebrities when they come in for a consult.

“For the face I’ve been getting Kris Jenner. Nose is Kate Middleton, and for brows and eyes it’s Anne Hathaway,” he said.

His surgery waitlist is currently six months long.  

737 Park Ave., (212) 300-9863; http://www.instagram.com/drirasavetsky/

The yoga boob queen: Dr. Anna Steve

$35,000 for minimally-invasive breast augmentation

The reigning queen of ballerina breasts and yoga boobs, women are flocking to Dr. Anna Steve for stylish small-volume breast augmentations, as a new generation embraces the understated aesthetic over the Baywatch-style look.

With her stunning looks and soft-spoken charm, the 35-year-old is the talk of every heated mat pilates class in the city. In a world increasingly shaped by GLP-1s and lean physiques, Steve knows that bigger isn’t always better.

“My calling card is small volume implants using minimally-invasive techniques and even sometimes wide awake with only local anesthesia,” Steve, part of Neinstein Plastic Surgery on Park Avenue, told The Post — revealing that the most-requested chest, currently, is Kendall Jenner’s.

“We have patients fly from all over the world to NYC to have small volume implants and more minimally-invasive procedures,” she said, noting that her lively social media presence has been a boon. She called it “a great way for patients to find a surgeon who is the right fit for them before they even begin the consultation process.” 

Glasgow, Scotland-based creator and model Madison Nicole is one of the long-haulers who found Steve on Instagram.

“I was immediately hooked on watching through all her videos because not only were they educational, but I truly felt like she approached breast augmentation from a different angle than most. The lens of confidence and womanhood, rather than sexuality and the male gaze,” she told The Post.

After an online consultation, Nicole booked her surgery, “I felt calm in a way that one can only feel when they are truly being seen and heard. She met me with open ears, ready to listen and with affirming and objective answers to all of my questions.”

Nicole opted for 230cc Motiva Ergonomix Demi implants over the muscle — with local anesthesia only.

“Because I had a negative previous experience with anesthesia, I opted to do the procedure under local anesthesia only — one of the biggest factors playing into my decision to work with Dr. Steve,” she noted.

Steve administered local anesthetic blocks via several injections in each breast. The procedure took an hour, and after a life of self-confessed struggles with flat chestedness, Madison loves the tasteful results.

“I feel like me — I’ve found myself excited to be in my own skin, excited to get dressed to leave the house, excited to take photos and make silly videos with my friends, excited to simply exist,” she said.

Steve is currently booking December 2026 dates — but has some availability sooner than that, for flexible patients.

110 E. 60th St., (212) 249-0949; http://www.instagram.com/annakstevemd

The body sculptor: Dr. Darren Smith

$20,000 for a hybrid tummy tuck

When Emily Dodge first walked into body contouring maestro Dr. Darren Smith’s chic Ritz Tower practice, she knew she was in the right place.

Another surgeon had been pressuring her into a full tummy tuck to revise a C-section scar, but she wasn’t convinced.

“I wanted something minimal with less recovery and small tweaks, and he was totally on board,” Dodge, 38, told The Post. “Dr. Smith doesn’t look at you like a number. He looks at you like a person.”

From Mounjaro users looking to cinch up loose skin to new moms in need of a sleek makeover, Smith is the go-to for a growing number of patients who are after the “long and lean” aesthetic, the Brown University and University of Pittsburgh-trained practitioner, 46, told The Post.

His top treatments include breast augmentations, hybrid tummy tucks, brachioplasties and a full range of body work — with a lot of patients mentioning Margot Robbie’s breasts and Jennifer Lopez’s toned stomach on their wish lists, Smith said.

He’s known for his rapid recovery method for breast augmentations, which includes meticulous dissection to minimize tissue trauma and instilling a long-acting local anesthetic into the implant pocket at the time of surgery to minimize narcotic use post-op — meaning you can be having dinner at Casa Tua just two days after your procedure.

“I would send 100 people to him if I could — he’s a gem,” Dodge said, reporting that confidence and her clothing options have expanded greatly. “I can wear all of the clothes I had before I was pregnant. I feel more confident, but mainly, I think it’s feeling more comfortable in my skin.”

Smith is currently booking for January 2026, early enough to debut your body tweaks on an impromptu trip to Miami this winter.

111 E. 57th St., (212) 633-0627; http://www.instagram.com/nycplasticsdoc/