Sanaa

Reviews 6

KR

Kristen Murphy

The atmosphere is wonderful at Sanaa, as you can usually see an animal out the window from where you are sitting. I was very excited to return to Sanaa with my family, as my parents had never been and had heard great things from the rest of us. Since Sanaa opened four of us had dined at Sanaa a combined 5 times. We all had wonderful experiences, and loved the bread sampler and slow cooked meals, which my parents were so excited to try. However, I really cannot express my disappointment when we dined here again in May. The four of us all LOVED the slow cooked lamb vindaloo. I was also missing the slow cooked beef I also had the last time. Those who are not familiar with Sanaa slow cooked meals, you choose two meats and one rice. This time the choices for the slow cooked meat were: durban chicken, durban shrimp, bison, a white fish, and another type of chicken. So, if you do not eat seafood, (like my father), your choices are narrowed to the two chickens and bison. And if you are not feeling like bison, then your choices are the two types of chicken. Very disappointed. I think one out of the 6 of us ended up getting the slow cooked meal, and the rest of us chose something else. Two of us decided on the tandoori lamb, since we REALLY wanted lamb, but asked for it to be cooked more than medium, since we never eat meat cooked medium. The waiter declined our request after giving a long explanation on how he thinks it is better cooked the way it is, which I understand but still do not want my meat bloody, which is how it arrived. So, I ate around the VERY red center, and was missing the slow cooked lamb vindaloo the whole time.

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MA

Matt Mehalso

Disappointing! Of all the places we had booked at Disney, this was the one we were most excited about and inevitably most disappointed in. We were staying nextdoor at the main Animal Kingdom Lodge - Jambo House and made an early reservation here for my sons 6th birthday. Right upon sitting down, we were rushed into ordering drinks, appetizers, and were told we should order our main meal as well. We had relatives joining us at Disney that we first met at the restaurant and feel like we did not even have a chance to say hello before the waiter was rushing us to order entrees. Honestly did not even have a chance to look at appetizers. We did not receive the warm welcome, description of dishes, etc that I saw other waiters and waitresses offering at other tables, and our waiter struggled to explain one of the entrees when asked about it. We had a theory that the waiter was upset his 6-top was filled with a couple of kids but not sure what was up. Lastly, the food was good but not great. I ordered traditional Indian paneer and curry and feel that I received the equivalent of a $10 small-portioned meal at a normal Indian restaurant for $20+. Wife and father both had the lamb shank, which was good but overpriced (though what isnt at Disney). In any case, if youre staying elsewhere and dont get to experience the wildlife around the hotel, then this may be worth it for that opportunity. If youre staying at the lodge or dont care, Id look elsewhere.

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JA

Jamie A

Having been to Disney many times, I was looking for a unique dining experience for my last day in Orlando. Sanaa did not disappoint! The restaurant is adorable and I was seated at a window with a great view of the "savanna" outside. Watching zebras, giraffes, ostrich, and ankole grazing while I dined was pretty cool! The cuisine is South African with an Indian influence. I started with the bread service and sauces. It included 5 breads (naan, garlic naan, spiced naan, onion kucha, & paneer paratha) and 9 dipping sauces. My favorites were the red chile sambal, tomato-date jam, red pepper hummus, and the cucumber raita. I washed them all down with a flight of Pinotage, South Africas signature varietal. For entrees I tried the lamb sliders, tandoori chicken, and the trio of butter chicken, spiced lamb, and basmati rice. They were all very delicious and had wonderful flavors. The lamb sliders were just a little on the dry side. There are lots of teas to choose from and its a great accompaniment to dessert. I decided on the mango Rooibos to go with the dessert trio which consisted of chocolate mousse, banana cheesecake, and kulfi. I also tried the bread pudding which had a nice spice to it. Service was excellent, the food was fabulous, and the experience was truly memorable. I almost canceled my reservation because I was exhausted from being at the parks all week. I am glad I didnt.

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DA

Davey Loot

Came here on Sunday August 28th. Im a very picky eater but my wife loves exotic food. I ordered from the kids menu. I got an "adult pizza" (pictured), its just two kids pizzas. My girls got the kids pizza and kids cheeseburger. My wife ordered the bread as her meal. I thought the pizza was ok. Nothing special. My daughter ate most of hers, so thats good. My other daughter ate her entire burger. Please note this place does not have pickle chips, so my daughter had to cut up a pickle spear and put those on her burger. I ordered the red sangria. It was meh. Watered down and not that great. My wife got the magical star drink. It was pretty awesome. Our waitress brought both my girls the wrong drink. They ordered lemonade and water, they both received some weird pink drink that tasted like trash water. My girls meals came with a cool desert that they loved. And my wife ordered the candy bar desert. It was also amazing. Overall, I think the atmosphere could have been better, it was nice but it wasnt Disneyfied. I wasnt crazy about our waitress, Bernadette. But overall the experience wasnt bad. I dont think I would ever return. Its just too expensive to try again.

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SA

Sakura Higurashi

This was my boyfriend and Is first trip to Sanaa and it came heavily recommended by co-workers. We were recommended by the waiter to order the naan variety appetizer and it was very tasty. There was a wide variety of authentic chutneys offered as well as some less traditional options. The naan breads were well flavored on their own and included garlic, onion, cheese, plain, and spiced. All of them were big and tasted as they were described to. For dinner we choose to do the mix and match entrees to create a custom meal. Both sets of food options that we selected arrived hot and fresh. Both dishes were well flavored and came with enough food to fill us up. I wound up taking some home. The mini dessert trio was the perfect ending to a heavy meal. The chocolate bar was a nice mix of bitter espresso and chocolate and was my boyfriends favorite. The lemon tart was smooth and delicious with a buttery crust and the berry kulfi was creamy and refreshing. This place is a little pricy but well worth it especially if you like North African/Indian flavors. We will definitely be coming back.

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NI

Nick Didelot

Visited on an off day from the parks for lunch, have heard a lot of hype over this place and Animal Kingdom Lodge in general. Neither disappointed! We arrived late after it took a lot longer to get there from Disney Springs then we expected but were still seated almost immediately, despite a fairly busy lunch service. Our waitress was prompt to our table and courteous, took a while to get some waters but no big deal. She was a great salesperson especially for the bread service which we intended on getting anyways. Food came out quick, I loved the bread service and can see why it came so recommended....really delicious. We only had three sides with it, I would get them all next time and try some stuff I might not normally try. For a main course I had the pulled pork which was very good, served with chips...I think I would have preferred fries but not bad and a bit lighter. To be honest consider splitting a main course after that bread service, we were all stuffed!! All in all a great meal, and an incredible view! Highly recommend!

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