Sanaa

[dizbang]

A new restaurant is opening May 1 at the AKL. Sanaa is located in Kidani Village, the DVC area of the AKL. With its fusion of African and Indian flavors and cooking techniques it looks like an interesting addition to Boma and Jiko. We have reservations for May 3 and will be reviewing it and giving our opinions after May 7 when we return from our trip.

[seenoevil]

Can't wait to read your review!

[migy21]

you bet...

[Rio_san7]

I have to say I'm not excited about it at all. They already have two full service restaurants at AKL, Jiko and Boma - both with exotic food. Why do they need a third one? I would have much preferred a counter service restaurant like Mara.

[BigPigletFan]

I enjoyed my dining experience at Sanaa last month. The location and styling of the restaurant is done wonderfully. The menu and meal presentation may be a little different, but it is an enjoyable experience. When dining there, I highly suggest the bread appetizer. I went for lunch and had the Dum Biryani. It was a bit out of my normal comfort zone as a finicky eater, but I truly enjoyed it. The most simple way to explain it would be to call it a vegetable hot pocket. The service is also amazing and the head chef is very talented.

[goofystitch]

I ate at Sanaa a few weeks ago and had a very mixed experience. It was not crowded when we were sat and yet it took 10 minutes to get our drink order for two people (the server claimed to have just been given three tables at once). The restaurant slowly started to get busier until it was eventually packed. It took 30 minutes to get an appetizer, another 30 to get our food. Our server apologized and told us that desert would be on the house, but it seriously took another half hour between ordering and receiving our desert.

The odd thing was that there were four managers just standing around. One of them was visiting tables and asking guests how things were going, but he decided to skip our table. I think he realized that we had been there for 2 hours. That is very unlike Disney. In the past when dining at a busy Disney restaurant, I've seen managers delivering food to tables or refilling drink orders because the servers are too busy. That's what I expect from Disney. Not what I received at Sanaa.

However, this was probably an isolated experience and I'm sure that this isn't the typical experience there. The food was good, albeit different and interesting. I also liked the decor in the restaurant. However, if I had to choose between any of the restaurants at AKL, I would be mostly like to go to Boma.