Please share your thoughts on Sanaa

[disneybliss2]

Thinking of trading Tutto Italia for Sanaa. I like to try new things. My DH really enjoys Indian food. I thought my girls (age 5 & 9) would enjoy seeing the animals outside while we ate, and I know they can get your standard kids' food there so I don't have to worry about the meal being too adventurous for them.

Drawbacks: we'll most likely be @ Epcot or MK that day so it's a bit out of the way. It would be even more out of the way leaving there to get back to POFQ )(having to get bus to AK, then bus to POFQ). Any other drawbacks?

Currently we have Tutto Italia booked for this meal in question. The reviews for Sanaa are better, but I wonder if it's not because Tutto is a little pricier, or is the food just better at Sanaa?

 

[minniebeth]

Thinking of trading Tutto Italia for Sanaa. I like to try new things. My DH really enjoys Indian food. I thought my girls (age 5 & 9) would enjoy seeing the animals outside while we ate, and I know they can get your standard kids' food there so I don't have to worry about the meal being too adventurous for them.

Drawbacks: we'll most likely be @ Epcot or MK that day so it's a bit out of the way. It would be even more out of the way leaving there to get back to POFQ )(having to get bus to AK, then bus to POFQ). Any other drawbacks?

Currently we have Tutto Italia booked for this meal in question. The reviews for Sanaa are better, but I wonder if it's not because Tutto is a little pricier, or is the food just better at Sanaa?

Sanaa is one of our favorite restaurants. Yes, it's a little out of the way to get to, but seeing the resort and the animals is really nice in itself. Talking to the animal guides on post there is one of our favorite things. They are not only knowledgable about the animals, but love to share about their life in Africa, where they are from, about their family and their experiences working here in the US. The food is very good. We also like the food at Tutto Italia though...we've eaten several times and it has always been very good for us too. It's hard to compare the two because they are so different. If you want a completely different experience, not just the dining, I would say try Sanaa. I don't know what time you are planning on going, or what time of year, but AK might be closed by the time you are done with eating? (If it's for dinner.) If you want to make an evening out of it, you could even take the bus over to Jambo House (or walk) and explore the resort there too and have an after dinner drink at Victoria Falls. My suggestion would be to splurge a little and take a cab back to POFQ to make it easier than taking a bus to an open park and then back to your resort...that would take quite some time.

Both restaurants are great and are good choices.

 

[disneybliss2]

Thanks minniebeth for your thoughts. I'm glad to hear you had a good experience in the past at both restaurants. At least I know I can't go wrong either way I go. I appreciate the added info you gave me about the AK Lodge. My girls would really enjoy that experience.

 

[Figment2]

Sanaa is one of our must do's every trip (in fact we usually go several times over the week). We love the food especially the bread service. We have a large group so usually get a couple orders and then have one of all the dips (since we all have our favorites).

We usually go for an early lunch (11:30). This way we still have most of the day to go to some park, back to the room or DTD.

Cyn

 

[mom2cookies]

on thing: when they say its' spicey... they mean it! I'm a hot food lover, and that stuff is spicy ( the things they say not everything on the menu )

 

[DVC~OKW~96]

Keep in mind we went early in Sanaa's Disney opening. We were not impressed and haven't been back.

The server was disgruntled when we asked her some questions about the menu items. Probably because as a new restaurant, she wasn't familiar with the menu.

The service then suffered.

The food was bland, and boring and poorly prepared. We like the atmosphere and the location, but there are many other choices for us to dine and spend our food dollars (where we are happy with service and quality of food).

 

[minniebride]

We tried Sanaa for our first time during our honeymoon in December. We had high expectations from the reviews we read on here and the fact that we love this type of cuisine and we were very happy with our experience!

The highlight of the evening was definitely our view. I highly recommend that you arrange an early dinner while it is still light outside and request a savannah view table-it is well worth it!!

I also recommend ordering the bread service-it was so good!! The only thing I did not care for was the tandoori chicken-it was not the fault of the restaurant. I didn't realize it was going to be thigh meat and I prefer breast. Next time I will try the lamb. Chai cream for dessert was delicious!

Sanaa is worth the extra travel, in my opinion. Exploring the different savannah views around the resort after dinner is lots of fun as well!

 

[Joy]

We have been to both places. They are both great. Sanaa is one of my favorite places. That being said, I have adopted an "eat where you are" policy. I personally wouldn't make a trip from to AKL to eat at Sanaa. I might go if I had a car or planned on using cabs. I feel like you loose too much time taking Disney transportation just for dinner. But only you can decide if the travel is worth it.

I think you will have a good meal no matter what you pick. If you haven't been to AKL, it is really cool. It is my favorite resort.

 

[ciera321]

Sanaa is our new favorite. The atmosphere is wonderful and the food and service are great!!! The servers are very helpful and knowledgable about the menu. If you don't want spicy/hot, they can steer you to something you'll love. Our DS HATES spicy and he LOVES Sanaa.

As far as getting to and from Sanaa....If you're at a park, just take the AKL bus and get off at Kidani. And going back, I'd take a DTD bus and then a boat back to POFQ. I know a lot of people say AKL is so far out, but it's not. It might be an extra 5 minutes, nothing bad. Have a wonderful time!!!

 

[Pakey]

We have dined at Sanaa on each of our last 3 WDW vacations. We enjoy it but don't go expecting Indian food as it's only Indian inspired.

I'm not a fan of Tutto so I'd take the extra travel time in order to have better food. For $20 you can grab a cab after dinner and be back to your resort quickly.