The Animal Kingdom Lodge’s Sanaa has debuted a new lunch menu! And we have all the details and a few pics courtesy of guest author Julie B.!
You all know how much I LURVE Sanaa at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge Kidani Village (BUTTER CHICKEN!!!). And I’m excited to share that there have been some interesting changes made to the lunch offerings since our recent Sanaa lunch review.
In fact, it’s the most dramatic menu makeover since the restaurant opened.
Let’s take a look at what’s been updated…
Bread Service
The Sanaa bread service has been a major fan favorite for years. Basically, you’ve always been able to get a choice of three breads (including the gorgeous and buttery Naan bread) and three accompaniments for $8.99.
A Few Bread Service Choices -- Naan - Onion Kulcha - Paneer Paratha
Now, Sanaa diners can pay an additional $2 to receive all nine accompaniments with the bread service! Just two bucks and NO MORE CHOOSING!
Bread Service Menu.
You’ll get all those delicious sauces and chutneys for $10.99! Seriously good deal.
All nine bread service accompaniments!
Appetizers and Salad Sampler
The Appetizer Sampler for Two has changed its offerings.
OLD Appetizer Sampler for Two -- Potato and Pea Samosas - Lamb Kefta - Roasted Cauliflower
NOW, instead of samosas, lamb kefta kabobs, and roasted cauliflower, it features samosas, lamb kefta sliders, and a choice of Seasonal Soup or Chana Tikki (a new appetizer described as Spiced Chickpea Cakes with Tomato Chutney).
Appetizers and Salad Sampler.
The Lamb Kefta Sliders have replaced the former kabobs, and a seasonal soup is now a regular feature on the menu.
Never fear, the totally awesome Tomato Soup with Paneer Cheese is still there!
Tomato Soup with Paneer Cheese is safe on the menu!
Two new salads have appeared on the salad sampler – Kachumbari (didn’t get a detailed description, the Cast are still getting used to everything, too) and Mango salad. These replace the Golden Lentils and Tomato Salad, and the Roasted Beets salad.
Slow-cooked in Gravy
Another menu change Julie got to sample personally was the different variety of “Slow-cooked in Gravy.” She says:
You can sleep soundly tonight knowing your belovedButter Chicken and Beef Short Ribs are safe.
Slow-cooked in Gravy Menu.
But I am sad to see the Shrimp in Green Curry off the menu (truthfully it’s been hit or miss for me with this dish, but when it’s on it is spot on!). The new option is Sustainable Fish with Goan Curry. Our waiter informed us that the curry is derived from the traditional spices of the region Goa.
While the fish was mild and well cooked, I found the sauce a bit lacking. It had nice spices but they were too muted, especially after the spice explosion from the bread service. I added a little leftover coriander chutney to the dish and it helped some of the flavors to pop.
Slow-cooked in gravy: Butter Chicken, rice, and Sustainable Fish
Signature Sandwiches
Other changes to the menu: The Chuck Burger has been replaced with a Bison Burger, served open-faced on top of naan with goat cheese and spiced mustard sauce.
Signature Sandwiches.
Julie says:
The bison was very flavorful and the sauce wasn’t overpowering in its mustard flavor. It’s a little nontraditional if you’re in the mood for a standard burger on a bun. This burger is probably not one that you could easily wrap in the naan and make into finger food. It’s a more refined take on a burger, but tasted great!
Bison Burger.
Vegetarian Sampler
Seasonal Vegetable Wat, Lentil Dahl, and Chana Marsala have been added to the Vegetarian Sampler.
Out are the Stewed Lentils; Spicy Peas, Chickpeas, and Potatoes; and Vindaloo-style Vegetables.
Vegetarian Sampler.
African Cooking with Indian Flavors
On this part of the menu, gone is the Tandoori Chicken Salad, being replaced with a Chicken Chaat and Bhatura.
African Cookin with Indian Flavors.
Julie says:
The turkey sandwich has also changed and is now served on ciabatta with avocado, smoked bacon, pickled red onion, and lemon mayonnaise.
It sounds a little too run-of-the-mill for me if I’m at such an exotic restaurant, but I’m sure it’s a delicious turkey sandwich nonetheless.
Desserts
Final changes are found on the dessert menu. There’s a new dessert platter that feeds five guests as well as a Mango-saffron Mousse with Spiced Berry Compote.
The rice pudding has gotten a new description but sounds very similar in its tropical flavors and pistachio tuile.
The chocolate cake has been replaced by a Tanzanian Chocolate Mousse with Kenya Coffee and Caramel. Julie’s waiter mentioned that this was super rich, almost too rich!
Desserts.
Glossary
A fun addition to the menu style is a side flap Glossary.
Sanaa Glossary.
Julie says, “It can be very helpful in decoding a menu that has many terms I’ve never heard of before and makes a new cuisine a little more approachable for everyone.”
What are your thoughts on this new Sanaa menu? Any favorites you are sad to see leave or new things you’re excited to try?
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Oh no–the shrimp in green curry was my favorite thing on the menu! I guess I’m going to have to find a recipe so I can cook it at home.
I’m so glad they have kept the Paneer Tikka – the other veggie options look great too. I love Sanaa! I’m STOKED about the fact I can get ALL the accompaniments with the Bread Service. It’s always too hard to choose, and sometimes we’d order two separate bread services just to get the accompaniments =) Yay!!
Whenever Disney makes a menu change and people are up in arms, I never really get it – it’s just one menu item, and taking it away couldn’t actually change your mind about eating at that restaurant, right? WRONG. I’ve finally been the victim of a menu change! The green shrimp curry was the item that put Sanaa on the map for me. Bummer. Thanks for a review of the changes!
Before I freak out about the Shrimp being gone (also my favorite item on the menu), does that change only apply to the lunch menu since that was specifically addressed?
We always make an effort to try new things at Sanaa but one thing we always got was the green curry shrimp. I would have rather seen them replace the durban spiced chicken – it’s always been a little on the over-cooked dry side to me, and do we REALLY need two seperate chicken options?
Oh well, if it’s gone even from dinner I’ll definitely get over it, it’s just puzzling and slightly disappointing.
I loved the green curry shrimp and am very sad to see it go. However, on a whim I bought a jar of green curry simmer sauce at Trader Joe’s and BAM! It was really good and very similar. I did jazz it up with more garlic and a shot of hot sauce…
Just noticed the Durban Shrimp option, so I guess that somewhat negates one of my complaints. I don’t recall that as an option previously though it’s been longer between visits than usual so I probably just forgot.
Does the vegan menu still exist?
Since it’s my fav restaurant in all of WDW, I get nervous when they make any changes. I love the idea of being able to get all the sauces w/the bread service! However, I’mnot too happy with the shrimp w/green curry sauce being gone:(
Can you still get the Tandori Burger? Or was that what you called the Chuck burger that is being replaced with the Bison Burger.
Would be interested to hear the revies about the deserts they seems to be laking before.
I was at Sanaa two weeks ago, and did get the Shrimp with Green Curry. Honestly it was the least impressive thing I had that day, so I can’t say I’m sorry to see it go. But being able to get *all* the accompaniments for the bread service is VERY exciting!
Kachumbari salad is a raw salad of choopped onions, tomatoes chili peppers. Very similar to a pico de gallo but the indian peppers add a slightly different taste. It all sounds so good, can’t wait to have the bread service with everything when we go in December!
It’s tricky when restaurants change menus that lots of folks love. We’re always disappointed when we lose an old favorite. I can think of dozens of dishes, that have gone away over the last thirty years and even whole restaurants, however I feel that the food choices are much improved over the “good old ” days. But stagnant menus lead to boring meals. These tweaks look pretty good, worthy of a try
Ooo I hope those new desserts will also be available at dinner! We have an ADR for Sanaa in a little over 2 weeks, and they sound delicious!
Yum! looks great. Does anyone know what counts as an appetizer credit here?
I’ve been looking forward to see what changes Chef David would bring along with his Kenyan background. I’m happy with the new menu.
Ariel, any bread service, or appetizer sampler, or salad, or soup can be ordered as an Appetizer on the Deluxe Dining Plan.
Why oh why did they take off the shrimp with green curry?!? It was my favorite dish on all of Disney property as well as my husband’s! We even asked our server for the recipe, but they did not give that one out. We had it 3 times last year (twice during our honeymoon in May and once in December). The bread service is still something we can look forward to, but I don’t know that we’re going to be as eager to make our way all the way to Kidani without our favorite dish on the menu. I know there are plenty of other things to try that will also be delicious, but we crave that dish all the time back here in NY.
We had dinner at Sanaa on the second day of the new menu. Hubby and I shared the bread service with all 10 accompaniments (seriously, sooooo worth the extra 2 bucks!), and we also split a vegetarian sampler with the Vegetable Wat and the Paneer Tikka.
The paneer was amazing, but we thought the wat was really lacking in flavor. Also the eggplant in the wat had a really unpleasant texture, but to be fair, we are not eggplant fans anyway.
Even so, we had a great meal and left pleasantly stuffed even though we had shared one appetizer and one entree. It was our first visit to Sanaa, but I hope it’s not our last, we really loved it.
I was also going to mention the jarred green curry sauce at trader joes is very similar to the shrimp dish at Sanaa. Just simmer some uncooked peeled shrimp in the sauce for a couple of minutes. Could not be easier.
My dh and I ate at Sanaa for the first time on Sun. Apr. 28th. Having never been there before, we weren’t sure of the changes, but the menu looked good, so we dove in. We had the Bread Service with all 10 accompaniments. Loved this! We chose the Pappadum, Garlic Ginger Naan and the Onion Kulcha for our breads. My only complaint was that there is not enough bread for all those lovely condiments! We were told we could buy more (for $2/piece), but it would be nice if they gave you a little more for that price.
For our entrees, we both chose the Spicy Durban Chicken and the Butter Chicken. My husband got the rice and I got the pilaf. I thought both chicken dishes were only so-so. The Spicy Chicken was not spicy at all to me and the Butter Chicken was pretty bland. I did add some of our extra condiments which helped, but I was not wowed.
Our service was adequate, but not very friendly. The server seemed very rushed throughout dinner. We were seated by the windows, so we got to see a lot of animals, which did add to the fun factor.
All in all, it was a decent experience, but it certainly didn’t make my list of restaurants to visit again. I might go again for the Bread Service and Salad Sampler or I might skip it and head back to Boma and Tusker House.
We’ll still love it no matter what they do, but I still haven’t gotten over the loss of the heavenly Chai Cream.
My favorite place has a new menu. I’m so happy to hear about the bead and new salads. Can’t wait to try it.
Can anyone give me the recipe for the Lentil Dhal from Sanna Restaurant at Animal Kingdom Resort?
I loved it….. and have been looking for the recipe but I can’t find it anywhere
Alina, DIsney might be able to give you the recipe. You could try reaching out directly to them. I don’t see it available online either.