Despite it being a late-ish addition to our ADR roster, it would be an understatement to say that Wingnut and I were pretty excited for this meal. We really enjoy Indian food, and also have loved our meals at Disney's African-inspired restaurants, Boma and Jiko, so we couldnt wait to try another Animal Kingdom Lodge restaurant.
We made our way to the podium a few minutes before 5, and checked in. While we checked in, I asked if it would be possible for us to have a window table, since we had been so enjoying watching the animals on the savannah overlook, and would love to keep watching them while the sun was still up. I was told that the request would be noted on our reservation.
We stepped away from the podium, and Wingnut discovered this cozy little nook (with very comfortable seating) right off to the side of the restaurant's check-in area.
A few brief moments of lounging later, we heard drumming and singing coming from Sanaa.
The staff performed a fun welcome song, drumming and singing and clapping. We clapped along and were led to our table pretty much immediately after the song ended, which had an absolutely gorgeous view of the savannah.
We both had mango lassis to drink (yes, included on the
DDP).
We really enjoyed these, they were a bit more mango-y and a bit less yogurt-y than the ones we are used to, and it was very smoothie-like and icy in texture.
Wingnut: The lassi was good, it was pretty standard. It had a lot of mango in it, which is nice.
They were an excellent and refreshing way to begin our feast. (You'll see in a few moments that "feast" is in no way an exaggeration to what we had to eat that night.)
Current Disney cocktail napkins:
Throughout our meal, we were visited by one of the birds roaming the savannah. Our server told us his name (which we completely forget now), and that he and his brother love visiting Sanaa.
Wingnut was absolutely set on trying the bread service as his appetizer, which came with a choice of three breads (between Naan, Onion Kulcha, Papadum, Paneer Paratha) and three dips (between Red Chile Sambal, Cucumber Raita, Coriander Chutney, Mango Chutney, Garlic Pickle, Mint Chutney, Roasted Red Bell Pepper Hummus, Tamarind Chutney, and Coconut Raita).
I decided to order the appetizer sampler for 2 as my contribution to the appetizer round. (Our wonderful server told us that only one of our appetizers would count for both of our appetizers on the plan, since they were both intended for 2 people. That was totally fine by us.)
(Yes, we started our meal with food for 4. Let the remorseless eating begin!)
Soon after, the food arrived.
Our bread service consisted of Onion Kulcha, Papadum, Paneer Paratha and Cucumber Raita, Coconut Raita, and Tamarind Chutney. We had decided to try the three breads offered besides naan, which we have had more often before. Out of the dips, we chose the tamarind (which I love), and the coconut and the cucumber because they sounded interesting.
We really enjoyed all of the offerings in the bread service. My favorite bread was the Onion Kulcha, it was chock-full of sweet onions. The Papadum was the thin and crispy bread on top, it had a nice light flavor. The Paneer Paratha is a cheese bread (paneer is made from cottage cheese), it was a bit heavier, but had a great flavor.
Out of the dips, the Tamarind Chutney was great, nice and sweet. The Cucumber Raita was very good, it had a nice slight heat to it. The Coconut Raita was the only disappointment, it was a bit too yogurty and not enough coconuty for our taste.
Wingnut: The Paneer bread was my favorite. It was more dense than the others, and it had a lot of curry flavoring. Out of the dips, I liked the Cucumber Raita. The Tamarind is always nice, it's got a nice sweetness. The other one we had was way too yogurty. It was nice, but it lacked...pizzazz.
(Yes, all of Wingnut's reviews are direct quotes.)
The appetizer sampler came with Potato and Pea Samosas, Lamb Kefta Kabobs, and Roasted Cauliflower
I really enjoyed the potato and pea samosas. They had a wonderful flavor and texture to them, a crispy exterior and a nice soft and warm interior. I especially enjoyed the chutney that accompanied them. The roasted cauliflower had a little bit of heat to it, it was very good. Around 99.3% of the lamb went to Wingnut, save for the teeny tiny bite he insisted I try (I'm not a huge lamb fan). I thought they were pretty good, but let him have most of them. (Especially since he said I could have most of his samosa in exchange for the meatballs.)
Wingnut: That was REALLY good. The lamb kebabs were fantastic. They were very spicy, but not overwhelmingly spicy. I liked the cauliflower, it was seasoned well. The samosas were very good. Standard samosa-y kind of things.
For our entrees, we both chose from the Slow Cooked in Gravy options. I asked, and you ARE allowed to mix and match from the meats and the vegetables lists, which is what I did. Wingnut went carnivorous for both of his selections.
(Do not be deceived by the size of these bowls. I promise you, these servings have a LOT of food in them, much more than Wingnut and I had been expecting, based on pictures.)
Wingnut and his entree, the Spicy Durban Shrimp and the Coconut-Curry Lamb.
Wingnut: The Spicy Durban Shrimp was AWESOME. They gave a ton of shrimp in the dish. Usually when you order shrimp, you only get a few, this was like, 10 of them. The lamb was really really really tasty. They know how to do a good lamb.
I went with the Beef Short Ribs and the Vegetable Sambar.
The short ribs were honestly one of the best dishes of our trip. Wingnut described them as "Indian pot roast," and I think that's really the best way to describe them. They were perfectly cooked, deliciously seasoned, and simply awesome. The vegetables were also great, but were nowhere near the amazingness of the short ribs.
We both had the Basmati rice with our meals (you have a choice of that or 5-Grain Pilaf), which our server recommended. It was very well-cooked and nicely flavored.
Yep, we're pigs.
After those plates were cleared away, I noticed a Mickey on the table!
If you think that we're going to let a thing like enough food for 17 people stop us from having dessert, well, you're new to my food reviews, aren't you??
For dessert, I chose the Orange Sesame cake with Strawberry Ginger Kulfi. Kulfi, as I had Wikipedia'd before we left, is like a super-creamy ice cream.
I thought that this was very good. It's essentially a lightly-orange flavored pound cake with a sweet sesame topping (don't worry, it doesn't taste like you're eating a bagel). I really loved the flavor of the cake. The kulfi was very interesting, and I don't say interesting in the sense that I hated it, because believe me I didn't. It was literally a flavor explosion, in a little pink package. I have never had such gingery strawberry flavor before, especially in a creamy ice cream sense. The ginger flavor was very prevalent, as was the strawberry. I thought that it was an interesting component with the cake, although the ginger flavor was a teeny bit overpowering when paired with the lovely orange cake.
Wingnut went with the rice pudding. He is a HUGE fan of rice pudding, and was excited to try Sanaa's take. Our server did warn him that it was not really a traditional rice pudding, per se, but he was still on board.
(The rice pudding is in the glass, topped with a crispy cookie. In the small pitcher is a cinnamon-scented milk.)
Wingnut: I was disappointed by the rice pudding. It was very dry, and it wasn't very sweet. And it just wasn't what you expect from a rice pudding. The crunchy cookie on top was tasty and sweet though.
Overall, we LOVED Sanaa. It absolutely lived up to our expectations, the food and the atmosphere were both incredible. It was one of our favorite meals of the trip, and as we pretty much rolled out of the restaurant, we were almost giddy that our meal had been THAT good, and that our vacation dining was off to THAT great a start.
I would absolutely, completely, entirely recommend Sanaa as a wonderful wonderful meal. Do not be scared away by unfamiliar ingredients or cooking methods. The servers are more than happy to answer any and all questions. Believe me, I am not that adventurous an eater (I don't even like dark meat chicken! Oh, and while I'm on the subject, Sanaa only uses dark meat chicken in its dishes, except for ones that specify that they are a chicken breast), but I was thrilled with our dinner here.
Leaving Kidani Village, the temperature had dropped considerably. During dinner, we had discussed our plans for the evening. Magic Kingdom had EMH's that night, but Wingnut suggested since we had been up since 5 that morning to fly down to Disney (yes we're still on day 1!), why don't we relax, get our refillable mugs, and explore the resort a bit. I agreed that this was a good idea (now decreeing that we had to stop at our room for warmer clothes before heading the GCH!), that I was tired too.
We decided to return to the Polynesian by way of either Magic Kingdom or Epcot (depending on which bus came first), then monorail. The Epcot bus showed up, and I joked that I hoped we'd have an easier time finding Tokelau from the TTC than we had had with the reverse earlier
(I'll leave you with that bit of foreshadowing for now
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the giraffe photos! Not to leave the zebras out, of course, because they're also very photogenic! 
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I don't know...he's four. I'm afraid of how long it will take to get anywhere. I have a secret (OK not so secret) dream for a trip for Christmas week, which would simply involve staying at AKL and soaking up all the fun there. I even love how the lobby smells there. And the bathrooms...OMG...they are fantastic.
June will be here before you know it!!! And the Disney Princess Live show will definitely help bridge the gap before then too!
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