When we moved to Doral five years ago, we just wanted to make my commute to work shorter so that I could enjoy our baby boy as much as possible. Back then, my first son was only a few months old and I was spending an average of two hours daily in traffic commuting from home to work in Doral and vice versa.
It was a good moment for us to buy our first home and at the time the market was favorable. So, we bought a house and made the move to this side of the Miami “suburbs.” Little did we know we were about to find everything we needed in Doral and wanted to continue growing our family and building our life together.
These are the reasons why I love living in Doral.
Up-and-coming, evolving and family-oriented
In these past five years we’ve been living in Doral, I have noticed how the city has been growing and continues to be planned with a family-centric vision.
I have seen several new residential and commercial developments. Housing opportunities of all types have grown to a point the market has become extremely competitive. New office buildings, shops, entertainment locations, schools (rated A), sports and arts academies, and churches are constantly being added to the existing wide variety of lifestyle options Doral residents have to enjoy the city and raise a family.
A great example is Downtown Doral, a community that features local businesses and trendy restaurants, located by one of the city’s well-known charter schools and a park. It is becoming more and more popular as it continues to provide Doral families the ideal scenario to enjoy an afternoon or evening out and about. In fact, our recent Mom’s Night Out encounters and Bloom event just took place at The Doral Yard, one of the hottest gathering spots and restaurants in the area.
Fertile soil for small businesses
Doral has become one of the best small cities for small businesses in the US and the Best City in Florida for Business Startups by BusinessWeek. The city also ranks 51st in the Top 100 Places to Live and Launch a Business in the United States by CNNMoney.com.
It’s exciting to see so many entrepreneurs launching their local brands, products, and services in the city–including mom-owned businesses resulting from the dreams of people who have migrated from their countries in Latin America and found Doral to be the ideal place to reinvent themselves.
Parks
There is a park with a playground in almost every neighborhood in Doral and they are all fun, with different amenities and features to serve the families residing in the city. We never get tired of the ones that are close to our house, so when it’s not raining, you will find me and my children playing, running around, or laying down in the grass in one of these fun parks.
In addition, there are a lot of other interesting sights in Doral worth visiting, such as the Trump National Doral Miami. “Who knew that an iconic golf resort nestled in recently booming Doral, is also the perfect luxurious getaway for the entire family?” Check out this article with more info on this place and our founder Cierra Bragan’s recent experience as part of our Staycation Guide.
Restaurants
In Doral, you can find pretty much every type of restaurant you can imagine, especially those that showcase the best of Latin America’s flavors. If you migrated to Miami from a Latin American country, you will most likely find a place that reminds you of your mom’s or abuela’s food. Our family favorites are Francisca (Venezuelan), Bachour (international), Mondongo’s (Colombian), and any place we can find arepas or tequeños!
Memories from Venezuela
Last but not least, besides being such a family-oriented community (one of my favorite aspects of the city), Doral reminds me of my beloved Venezuela. Everywhere I go I hear my accent, my music, my food, and so many other aspects of my culture that remind me of my country. The Venezuelan population is significantly large in Doral, so that’s why at some point someone informally named the city Doralzuela and I love it! I can say I’m proud to be a Doralzolana and enjoy feeling at home while being able to share these aspects of my culture with my Brazilian husband and my children.
This post is part of our Love Where You Live series. Be sure to check out the other posts in the series here!
