Sanaa Dining Review

This week, we’re sharing our dining review of Walt Disney World’s hidden gem – Sanaa!

Sanaa is located in Kidani Village at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge.  As the name implies, this stunning resort is themed like an African lodge and houses gorgeous African artifacts and artwork. 

And outside on the savannah, guests can view free-roaming animals such as zebras, giraffes, and gazelles. 

There is so much beauty throughout this resort, and dining at Sanaa is a great excuse to explore it!

Sanaa offers two distinct dining experiences.  In the mornings, guests can partake in the Kuamsha Breakfast, a casual quick-service option that requires no reservations.  For lunch and dinner, however, Sanaa offers table service dining featuring African cooking with Indian flavors.  This table service experience is the focus of our Sanaa dining review!

Advance Dining Reservations are recommended, but because Sanaa tends to fly under the radar, you may be able to secure a last-minute table.  But for peace of mind, read our Tips to Score the Best Dining Reservations to ensure you snag your favorites!

Atmosphere

The name Sanaa means “work of art” in Swahili.  And once you step inside the restaurant, it’s clear how Sanaa earned its namesake.

Sanaa is themed to emulate a traditional African spice market.  The walls are adorned with handcrafted wares and African-inspired detailing.  Warm color tones create a cozy feel to the space.

On the dining room ceiling, you will see the sprawling branches of an elegant acacia tree.  Exquisite lanterns hang from these branches and create an intimate ambiance.

But one of the coolest things about Sanaa is the Savannah.  Floor-to-ceiling windows allow guests fantastic views of the animals outside.

Seeing the animals at Sanaa is a highlight of this dining experience.  To get the best view, request a table near the windows.  Also, make sure to book your reservation before it gets dark outside.  There are no lights on the savannah, so after dark you won’t be able to see the animals!

Sanaa Menu

As I mentioned before, the menu at Sanaa features African cooking techniques and Indian flavors.  You can expect these dishes to feature warm, Indian spices that have been slow roasted, braised, or cooked by tandoori oven.

The menu also includes a glossary to describe each dish and cooking method for those new to this style of cuisine.

Head to Sanaa’s webpage to see the most up-to-date menus!

The menu may seem “adventurous” for Disney’s standards, but there are many approachable and crowd-pleasing options such as the Sanaa Burger and Grilled New York Strip.

We are big fans of our local Indian restaurants back home, so we were eager to see what Sanaa had to offer!

Indian-Style Bread Service

For years I have heard rave reviews of the bread service at Sanaa.  To be honest, it’s a big reason why I made reservations here!  So, to start our meal, we had to see what the hype was about.

Sanaa’s bread service includes the following five breads:

Traditional Naan

Garlic-Ginger Naan

Spiced Naan

Onion Kulcha

Paneer Paratha

We’ve eaten plenty of naan back home, but the variety of breads served with this dish were the best I’ve ever had!  The breads were warm, pillowy, and flavorful.  We couldn’t get enough.

But that’s not all!  The breads are served with nine accompaniments:

And for those who love heat, there is a secret 10^th sauce you can request from your server.  So, of course, we had to try it!

Our server explained that the sauces start mild and gradually get spicier as you work your way through.  And they certainly did!  I was feeling the burn with the last three, but the cool and creamy Cucumber Raita and sweet Tamarind Chutney were great for counterbalancing the heat.

I could list off our favorite accompaniments, but we would essentially be listing all 10 sauces.  They were that good!

We enjoyed the bread service so much, at one point we reproachfully looked at each other to throw accusations that someone had taken more than their fair share!

PSA: Friends and family don’t fight over bread service. 

Potjie-Inspired

For our main entrees, my husband, teenager, and I split two orders from the Potjie-Inspired menu.  For each order, guests choose one protein and one vegetable dish.  These are served alongside an order of scented basmati rice.

For our first order, we went with the Butter Chicken and Chickpea Wat.

The butter chicken is made with a rich, creamy sauce and warm, earthy spices.  And despite being a richly spiced dish, it’s in no way “spicy” in terms of heat.  We like some heat to our curry, so this was somewhat of a downside to us.  But the chicken was juicy and tender, and the sauce was very flavorful.  This is a very approachable dish for those new to this style of cuisine. 

The Chickpea Wat was a pleasant surprise to me – it was incredible!  The dish had a slightly sweet quality with layers of spices and complex flavors that had me going back for more.  I highly recommend this accompaniment!

For our second order, we tried the Braised Beef and Rajma Masala.

The beef was flavorful and fork tender, but I found myself preferring the Butter Chicken.  The sauce for the beef just didn’t have the same richly spiced flavor as the chicken.  However, this dish was still very tasty and well executed.

The Rajma Masala, on the other hand, was not a favorite of ours.  This dish was quite simple and highlighted the earthy flavor of the kidney beans.  However, all three of us found it to be quite bland.  It was the only dish on the table we didn’t finish.  Clearly Chickpea Wat is the way to go!

Kids’ Meal

The kids’ menu at Sanaa offers restaurant specialties like the Butter Chicken as well as traditional items such as burgers and pizza.

My six-year-old ordered the cheese pizza. For her sides, she went with the fruit cup and cheddar mac-and-cheese (which she shared with her little brother). 

The portion was very generous, and despite the two kiddos sharing, we still managed to take leftovers back to the room!  (Maybe we shouldn’t have shared so much bread service with them!)

Dessert

The Sanaa menu features several desserts that seasonally rotate, but the sweet treat I chose to end our meal was the Gingerbread Martini. 

This seasonal drink was available during our Christmastime visit, and it was delicious!  Even though it is currently unavailable, I had to share in case it returns next holiday season.    

We skipped dessert at Sanaa because I already had my sights set on a different Animal Kingdom Lodge treat – Zebra Domes!  These chocolate mousse bites are baked with cream liquor and coated with more chocolate.  Yum!  You can find this popular treat at Animal Kingdom Lodge’s quick service restaurant, The Mara.

Pro Tip: Grab some Zebra Domes and head outside to enjoy peaceful views of the animals roaming the Savannah.

Sanaa Review – Final Thoughts

Sanaa has flown under the radar for two reasons, the first being location.

While it’s true Animal Kingdom Lodge is a fair distance away from other Walt Disney World locations, it’s a quick 10min bus ride from Animal Kingdom Park.  And even if you aren’t in the nearby vicinity, the resort is absolutely stunning and worth the journey.  You could easily turn a dining reservation at Sanaa into an excursion to see everything the lodge has to offer.

The second reason guests seem to shy away from Sanaa is they are unaccustomed to the cuisine.  Many guests may fear spicy flavors and unfamiliar ingredients.  But Disney is probably the safest place to try new things, and Sanaa is no exception! 

Sanaa does a wonderful job of making this cuisine approachable to broad audiences.  In all honesty, this was the only downside to our visit as the mild nature of the entrees left us heat-seekers wanting more.  However, it may be possible to ask your server if the chef can spice things up.  It never occurred to us to ask during our visit, but I plan to in the future!

So, is Sanaa worth the trek out to Animal Kingdom Lodge?

Absolutely!

Two words: Bread Service.

We loved the bread service so much we stopped by Sanaa again to place an order to bring up to our room (along with some Samosas).

Eating our Sanaa takeout and watching Home Alone 2 in our hotel room ended up being one of my favorite memories of our Christmastime Disney trip.

But besides the bread service, guests of Sanaa enjoy the warm and inviting atmosphere, majestic animals of the Savannah, and flavorful and well-executed dishes.

Sanaa is a great introduction to ethnic cooking, and a great starting point to develop your own obsession with Indian cuisine like my family!

I hope you enjoyed our Sanaa dining review and make a point to check out this hidden treasure the next time you’re visiting Disney.

Have you dined at Sanaa? If so, tell me your favorite menu items in the comments!

Looking for other Disney dining reviews?  Check out our Oga’s Cantina and Raglan Road reviews!

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