AKL Sunset Safari-Tell me about dinner @ Jiko

[MartDM]

Hi,

We'll be taking the Sunset Safari next week and I was wondering what the deal is with dinner at Jiko. I understand it's some type of sampling menu but I'm wondering if someone who has been on it could ellaborate. Is it substantial? Should we save up our appetites or will it be more of a light tasting menu?

Thanks for any info!

 

[MartDM]

34 views and nobody has input...hmm

 

[ckj]

Hi MartDM,
Definately save your appetite!!!!!

Lemme try to remember.
It's served family style, they bring out a platter.
With each course, the chef, in our case Chef Anthony, would come out and explain what it is, etc.
For appetizers.
Crispy Cinnamon Spiced Beef Roll. Maybe some maize tamales.
I think the duck and pork firecracker.
We also had the taste of africa - Kalamata Olive Hummus, Cilantro-Green Chili dip, and Moroccan Chermoula, with Lentil Papadam, whole wheat lavosh, and flaxseed Naan bread.
We then had a sorbet, forget what it was.
For the main course we had
monkfish, filet w/ mac-n-cheese and roasted chicken. Basically there was 1 of each for every person on our safari.

Next was a dessert wine, very sweet.
Pistachio creme brulee, Tanzanian Chocolate Candies, Apple spring roll and a flourless choclate cake.

We asked for a pressed pot of coffee and were brought out two at no charge.
Also included are wine pairings.
All I can say is I was stuffed after.
Have a great time!!
We'll be doing it again in december.
ckj

 

[CoolDisneyCat]

The safari itself was wonderful, but the dinner was probably the best part!! After the safari was over, our safari guides walked us from the front of AKL down to Jiko, and they talked to the host/hostess to get us seated. We waited in the lounge for a few minutes, which gave us time to go to the restroom and wash our hands (kinda dusty on the safari!), then we were taken to our table. Everyone was so friendly, asking how we enjoyed the safari and what we liked the best, etc.

The sous chef Anthony was very knowledgable and personable and we really, really enjoyed hearing about the different entrees and the wines. My DD23 (22 at the time) loves to cook, so that was one of her favorite parts of the entire experience.

There were 4 ppl on our safari, so the portions were all divided into fourths to make sharing that much easier. It was very obvious how experienced the staff at Jiko were at making the post-safari dinner as relaxing and enjoyable as possible, and they succeeded wonderfully!

One of the desserts was Anthony's personal creations, pistachio creme brulee. Neither my DD nor I like creme brulee, but this was absolutely delicious! It's a definite must. It's great to be able to try so many different dishes from the Jiko menu. The spices and cooking styles are different than what the typical American palette is used to, so it's fun to experiement without worrying that you've ordered an entire entree you aren't going to like! Our sorbet, btw, was raspberry (or something equally sour) with white peppercorns. It was an interesting combo of sweet/sour/spicy. Refreshing and...odd.

We were nervous at first about eating with strangers, but we ended up having tons to talk about - the safari, Disney, the hotel, the food - it was a lot of fun. We know nothing about wine, but the gentleman on the safari with us did, so he gave us a mini-wine lesson during dinner. All in all, the sunset safari is a magical experience capped off with a wonderful dinner - it's definitely something not be missed!

 

[MartDM]

Thank you both, those are great details! I appreciate the feedback so we know what to expect (and man oh man, I can't wait now!)