Sanaa - Disney Dining with a View

Located within the Animal Kingdom Lodge resort, in the Kidani Village building, Sanaa is a table service restaurant that brings the flavors and feels of Africa to your table, all the while giving you a view of the animals that roam the savannah at the resort. With theming and décor that evoke the feeling of an African market, everything at Sanaa is rich with flavor and culture. A reservation is strongly recommended.

There is a good variety of options, including vegetarian menu options, when it comes to food and drinks here. Each option is infused with flavors that are new but make you feel at home all at the same time. Starting with drinks, you can order your standard array of soft drinks or dip into the luxury of the resort and try one of their signature beverages. On our visit, we tried the Agave Garden (non-alcoholic), the Raspberry Mojito (non-alcoholic), and the Pinacolava. The Agave Garden was a very light, fresh, and crisp drink that blended lime and cucumber flavors with the signature sweetness of Agave. Our second drink, the Raspberry Mojito, was refreshing with the mint and strong raspberry flavors mixed with the citrus flavors of a standard Mojito. Finally, the Pinacolava was a twist on a standard pina colada, a blended drink with sweet coconut and tropical flavors that were mellowed by the raspberry and rum that makes this drink unique.

Appetizers are where you can find the star of the show, the Indian-style Bread Service. This appetizer gives you five different types of naan bread with nine different spreads and sauces to try with them. Each of the accompaniments has different flavors that include fresh, fruity, savory, and spicy. We recommend tasting all of them individually and then trying to mix a couple and seeing what flavors you can find.

If you are looking to customize your meal, we suggest the Potjie Inspired dish. This meal gives you a base of scented jasmine rice while also offering you the choice of the protein and vegetables that are paired with it. In terms of the menu, this is described as one from the journey and one from the harvest, respectively. For our meals we chose butter chicken and braised beef for our protein and Rajma Masala and Lentil Dal for our harvest. The butter chicken was tender slow cooked chicken in a turmeric-based cream and herb sauce that had notes of butter woven through the flavor pallet. The braised beef fell apart as you touched it with the fork and was rich in earthy and rich flavors that left it with the melt-in-your-mouth appeal that you would want. The Rajma Masala was made up of kidney beans in a very well-spiced and rounded cream sauce that was well absorbed by the beans leaving this with a perfect texture. The lentils were cooked and flavored in an herbaceous sauce with mellow spices.

Finally, our desserts rounded out the meal with a sweet note paired with some warm drinks to cleanse the pallet. We chose the African Triple Chocolate Mousse and the Kheer for our food and the press pot coffee and spiced chai for our drinks. The mousse was rich and smooth with complex and complementing chocolate flavors that were woven through the dish and balanced by the cherries on top. The Kheer was perfectly cooked coconut-rice pudding whose smooth and sweet flavors were complemented by the salty cashew streusel around the edges and the bright saffron poached fruit that was presented on top. The coffee we had was smooth and bold with subtle back notes of other spices throughout. The chai was well balanced with its strong cardamom, cinnamon, and fennel flavors that were well balanced and brought out a relaxing beverage to end the day. (The chai was so aromatic that others near us noted the relaxing scent.)

Our experience at Sanaa will not soon be our last. With the rich and soulful flavors of African and Indian cuisine and a comforting atmosphere that allows you to see animals while enjoying your meal, we highly recommend making a reservation for your next trip.