indimini
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Mar 4, 2006
- Messages
- 219
I thought it might be worth adding to the reviews of Disney's newest restaurant Sanaa. Some quick background: this was our last dinner as part of a short (3 day) trip to the world. Originally, we had planned on heading over to the Poly @ 4:30 to try and get in because we had been unable to get an ADR for 'Ohana. However, some strong storms hit the area around 4:00 and we figured the restuarant would be swamped with people leaving MK b/c o the weather.
So, at 4:00, we called to see if we could get an ADR at Sanaa, our backup choice. We were offered times of 5:00 or 5:30. Clearly, this restuarant is not yet well known by the large crowds!
We arrived just after 5:00 and eventually found the restaurant. (Hint, make sure you go to the main lobby entrance and then down one level.) Since we drove over, we parked over in the Zazu lot and had a pretty lengthy walk to reach the main lobby. Not a bad walk, mind you as the new property is beautiful.
Once at the restaurant, we checked in and were greated by a playful CM. She kept joking with us (me) saying things like "you can have a window seat, but it will cost an extra $10", or once our pager went off that was just to inform us our table wouldn't be ready for another 30 minutes, lol.
We did in fact, get seated by the window and had a great view of the animals. Lots of zebra, giraffes, and ostriches grazed right outside our windw.
The service was fantastic - very friendly and more than willing to spend time explaining the menu options. Our family actually is very familiar with Indian cuisine (my personal favorite) so we were able to let the waiter know he needn't go into great detail on what the flatbreads are, describe the chutneys, etc. I got the feeling that the food offerings are not that familiar to the majority of their guests.
We (a family of 4 - DW, DD17, DS10 and myself) started with the bread sampler. This is a nice starter although I'd wished there was more bread provided. You can choose 3 of the 4 bread offerings: Naan, Roti, Paratha and Paneer Paratha. They only provide one round of each type, so the bread went quickly. You also get to choose 3 accompaniments to go with the bread - there were around 7-8 options. We chose the Cucumber Raita (offering a nice cooling for the palette), the mango chutney (very traditional) and a hotter Mango-Lime pickle. This is where my one concern with the restaurant first arose. I was thinking the food may be too "watered down" to appeal to a broader customer base. The Lime pickle had some heat but clearly not what you would find in a traditional Indian restaurant. All the breads and chutneys were very tasty.
We also got the sampler platter and the scallops apetizers. The duck was my personal favorite. The scallops equally tasty. Samosas also appeared on the sampler plate - they were good but lacked some needed heat. The caulitflower served as a nice compliment to the rest of the appetizers.
Our dinner choices consisted of the Tandoori chicken (DS10), Shortribs and Chicken in red curry (DD17) and Shortribs and shrimp in green curry (DW and myself). The main course is presented in a set of bowls so each item (including rice) is served separately. The shortribs were very tasty and the meat was fall apart tender. Both curries were also quite nice. Our son's tandoori chicken was well prepared although it seemed odd that the sauce for it was served on the side, so he had to dip it to add the sauce.
On our way in to the restaurant, we met one of the sous chefs and chatted briefly. I mentioned our son loves cooking (as do I) and asked if he could stop by later to chat. He did too - willingly! We had a nice conversation about the tandoor ovens they use and their custom blend of the garam masala they crafted for use with the foods.
Overall, I would say this restaurant was a very pleasant surprise! We've eaten at Boma and Jiko in years past, and I'd say Sanaa definitely compliments those two other restaurants by introducing some nice Indian flavors to the menu. As one who eats Indian a fair amount, I wouldn't put this at the top of my list of best Indian food ever, but I think the chefs at the restaurant have done a fine job of creating some flavors that will introduce many patrons to a new cuisine without "scaring them away" by being too true to the traditional methods and flavors. I expect we'll be adding Sanaa to our list of stops during our future trips.
So, at 4:00, we called to see if we could get an ADR at Sanaa, our backup choice. We were offered times of 5:00 or 5:30. Clearly, this restuarant is not yet well known by the large crowds!
We arrived just after 5:00 and eventually found the restaurant. (Hint, make sure you go to the main lobby entrance and then down one level.) Since we drove over, we parked over in the Zazu lot and had a pretty lengthy walk to reach the main lobby. Not a bad walk, mind you as the new property is beautiful.
Once at the restaurant, we checked in and were greated by a playful CM. She kept joking with us (me) saying things like "you can have a window seat, but it will cost an extra $10", or once our pager went off that was just to inform us our table wouldn't be ready for another 30 minutes, lol.
We did in fact, get seated by the window and had a great view of the animals. Lots of zebra, giraffes, and ostriches grazed right outside our windw.
The service was fantastic - very friendly and more than willing to spend time explaining the menu options. Our family actually is very familiar with Indian cuisine (my personal favorite) so we were able to let the waiter know he needn't go into great detail on what the flatbreads are, describe the chutneys, etc. I got the feeling that the food offerings are not that familiar to the majority of their guests.
We (a family of 4 - DW, DD17, DS10 and myself) started with the bread sampler. This is a nice starter although I'd wished there was more bread provided. You can choose 3 of the 4 bread offerings: Naan, Roti, Paratha and Paneer Paratha. They only provide one round of each type, so the bread went quickly. You also get to choose 3 accompaniments to go with the bread - there were around 7-8 options. We chose the Cucumber Raita (offering a nice cooling for the palette), the mango chutney (very traditional) and a hotter Mango-Lime pickle. This is where my one concern with the restaurant first arose. I was thinking the food may be too "watered down" to appeal to a broader customer base. The Lime pickle had some heat but clearly not what you would find in a traditional Indian restaurant. All the breads and chutneys were very tasty.
We also got the sampler platter and the scallops apetizers. The duck was my personal favorite. The scallops equally tasty. Samosas also appeared on the sampler plate - they were good but lacked some needed heat. The caulitflower served as a nice compliment to the rest of the appetizers.
Our dinner choices consisted of the Tandoori chicken (DS10), Shortribs and Chicken in red curry (DD17) and Shortribs and shrimp in green curry (DW and myself). The main course is presented in a set of bowls so each item (including rice) is served separately. The shortribs were very tasty and the meat was fall apart tender. Both curries were also quite nice. Our son's tandoori chicken was well prepared although it seemed odd that the sauce for it was served on the side, so he had to dip it to add the sauce.
On our way in to the restaurant, we met one of the sous chefs and chatted briefly. I mentioned our son loves cooking (as do I) and asked if he could stop by later to chat. He did too - willingly! We had a nice conversation about the tandoor ovens they use and their custom blend of the garam masala they crafted for use with the foods.
Overall, I would say this restaurant was a very pleasant surprise! We've eaten at Boma and Jiko in years past, and I'd say Sanaa definitely compliments those two other restaurants by introducing some nice Indian flavors to the menu. As one who eats Indian a fair amount, I wouldn't put this at the top of my list of best Indian food ever, but I think the chefs at the restaurant have done a fine job of creating some flavors that will introduce many patrons to a new cuisine without "scaring them away" by being too true to the traditional methods and flavors. I expect we'll be adding Sanaa to our list of stops during our future trips.
