Miami has no shortage of bars where you can watch a game, but PLAY Sporting Lounge is about to level up the entire concept.
The 12,000-square-foot hybrid of restaurant, nightlife spot, arcade and full-blown simulator playground is finally opening its flagship location at 3450 NW 83rd Avenue, Suite 145, this December, and it’s aiming bigger than your typical sports bar. Think chef-driven seafood towers instead of sad nachos, craft cocktails instead of light beer in plastic cups and private sports simulator suites where you can play everything from golf to zombie dodgeball.
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PLAY is the brainchild of founders Terry Lee and Adam Flierl. Their first iteration of the concept, PLA Sports Bar at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, turned into an unexpected hit despite opening on the eve of COVID shutdowns. That prototype helped shape what the Doral flagship will offer: a space that treats food, drinks and games with equal seriousness and cool vibes.
The Doral outpost is nearly three times larger than the original. There’s a sprawling indoor/outdoor bar pouring cocktails like Bramble Bliss and the lychee caipirinha, digital dart lanes, a patio with backyard games and 60 TVs, making NFL Sunday feel like a sensory experiment. The simulator suites are fully customizable and even offer the choice to stream movies on site if you want to turn your night out into a private screening.
But PLAY’s biggest flex may be its menu, overseen by executive chef Manny Saavedra and corporate chef Justin Fields. This is not standard bar-food territory. Raw bar towers feature colossal crab, chimichurri oysters and tuna poke. There’s truffled lobster pearl pasta, brisket street tacos and a double smash’d burger that will probably end up all over Instagram.
PLAY also doubles as a community hub. Its PLA IT FORWARD Foundation supports underprivileged youth through sports, and even some cocktails benefit the nonprofit. The mission—play, love, act—shows up in everything from the staff culture to how the space is designed.
With more than 300 seats spread across indoor, outdoor and private areas, PLAY Sporting Lounge is poised to be Doral’s next go-to hangout, whether you’re coming for the games, the cocktails, the food or to hone your zombie-dodgeball skills.