I had a chance to enjoy dinner at Sanaa, located at the Animal Kingdom Villas at Walt Disney World. Sanaa is a restaurant featuring African cooking with Indian flavors with spectacular views of exotic animals. Disney took a bit of a risk initially with Sanaa in that they used one of their best pieces of real estate for a restaurant serving food that many of its typical guests wouldn’t be very familiar with or find slightly intimidating. A safe choice would have perhaps been something like a steakhouse as opposed to the predominantly African-Indian menu. However, this place was packed and reservations at good times are sometimes tough to get, so apparently it’s working! The name is pronounced “Sah- NAH” with the first part like the beginning of “safari” and with the stress on the second syllable “NAH”. It is derived from Swahili, where it roughly translates to “artwork”.

Sanaa is located in the Kidani Village at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Resort Area. If you are not staying on property be aware there are essentially two lobbies at the resort, Jambo House and Kidani Village. Jambo House is the one you’ll encounter first and is predominantly for the hotel portion of the property. Kidani Village is the Disney Vacation Club Area and they’re separated by a 5-10 minute walk. There’s also a shuttle that runs between the two portions of the property that runs every 5-10 minutes. As you enter the property Jambo House would be the one you encounter first and has a large parking area. Jambo House is very impressive and even though it won’t be where you are eating, if you’ve never visited it is worth checking out this beautiful lobby. Jambo House is more grand and lively while Kadini Village has a quieter vibe.

At Kadini Village you’ll need to proceed to the back of the lobby, to the right and down an elevator to reach Sanaa and there is signage to guide you the whole way. While you’re walking along there will be a chance for some great views of the savanna.

One you arrive you can check-in like you would at any other restaurant, but while you wait there’s a spectacular outdoor patio area where you can enjoy watching some of the animals while you wait. This area is quite stunning, especially at “golden hour” and sunset. You’ll see birds, giraffes and zebras all out in the savanna habitat in front of you. You can wait out here until you’re texted that your table is ready. The cast members who act as hosts were simply spectacular.

Once texted you’ll be guided to your table. All tables at Sanaa are not created equal. Along one wall are a series of windows that overlook the savanna with tables in front of them. Most of the tables in the restaurant will have a view out the windows, but some are tucked deeper in the room with more obstructions. The tables directly in front of the windows are mostly tables for 4 people and the birds will often come right up to the glass, but larger animals are kept further back by barriers. Still, even without a table with the perfect view it’s still a spectacular dining experience and, as mentioned previously, you can always enjoy the animals from the outdoor patio.

The menu at Sanaa may be a bit intimidating at first with some unfamiliar options. However the staff here is great and will answer any questions and offer descriptions for anything you want. It’s a pretty simple one page menu with another page of drinks. There is also a robust kid’s menu with pizza, nuggets and other familiar options for the little ones. The lunch and dinner menus are about 90% identical, so lunch could be a way to save a little money. The only major difference is the lunch has a burger and a sandwich option while the dinner has steak and pork tenderloin in their place and adds lamb kefta as an appetizer.

The bread service, which is inspired by Indian cuisine, is a must do part of the Sanaa experience. You’ll receive 5 different breads to pair with 9 different dipping sauces making many different flavor combinations. The breads primarily naan and include traditional, garlic-ginger, spiced, kulcha (uses baking soda/powder for flakier texture) and paneer paratha (whole-wheat dough stuffed with a spiced paneer cheese). The sauces include cucumber yogurt, sweet chutneys, hummus, garlic pickle and spicy.

Breads

• Traditional Naan
• Garlic-Ginger Naan
• Spiced Naan
• Onion Kulcha
• Paneer Paratha

Sauces

• Cucumber Raita
• Mango Chutney
• Tamarind Chutney
• Tomato-Date Jam
• Roasted Red Bell Pepper Hummus
• Coriander Chutney
• Garlic Pickle
• Red Chile Sambal
• Spicy Jalapeño-Lime Pickle

For the main course he highlights are the Potjie-inspired entrees. Here you select, “one (1) from the Journey and one (1) from the Harvest”. The Harvest consists of 4 different meats including butter chicken (curry), lamb curry, braised beef and spicy shrimp. The Journey is a plant based option with options like chickpeas, beans, lentils or collards. All are served with Scented Basmati Rice. If curry is not your thing there is a steak, pork tenderloin or charred cauliflower option.

The drink menu is a lot of fun. The craft draft beer options feature Old Elephant Foot IPA by Tampa Bay Brewing Co. and Safari Amber which is brewed by Anheuser-Busch exclusively for the Walt Disney World Resort. The mixed drinks feature African Rum, African Gin and African Vodka which is something you don’t see everyday. There’s also a mango margarita made with Sango African Agave Spirit. The nonalcoholic selections are also quite unique and the kid’s specialty fun drink is a cotton candy lemonade. It comes in a Stitch cup that you get to keep and it was only $7. My son can be picky with beverages and he loved it. There were dessert options too, but after the bread service and our meals we were stuffed and threw in the towel.

You never know what you’re going to see and the Animal Kingdom Lodge. Up in the lobby after dinner a cast member had setup a table to “match the feces to the species.” There was also a truck ready to take people out for some night animal viewing. There are also tons of public areas to view animals, sitting areas, craftspeople working and shops. It’s a very vibrant area with lots to see and do.

If you’re at Walt Disney World don’t miss the chance to eat at Sanaa. The restaurant isn’t overly expensive (relative to other restaurants on property) and you’ll find it a unique and memorable experience. The food was excellent, especially the bread service and this is really a “can’t miss” part of a trip to Sanaa. The staff is great and the menu may open your eyes to a whole new type of cuisine that you’re not too familiar with. Sanaa will be a fun and exciting dining experience and probably become a place you want to return to in future trips. Be adventurous and head to the savanna of Africa for a great meal at Sanaa.