Sanaa -- Dinner -- Table Service -- Animal Kingdom Lodge Kidani Village
*These dining experiences took place in August, September, and October 2015.
Sanaa, located in Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge Kidani Village, continues to be one of my favorite restaurants on Disney property. Not only is the food amazing but the atmosphere is unlike any other. Where else can you sit and watch zebras and giraffes while eating dinner? It really is incredible.This review covers 3 separate visits that I had throughout the months of August, September, and October. Many times, I went just for drinks and appetizers which is a great way to cap an evening. I could sit at the Sanaa bar area for days. It's so relaxing! And, if you don't have a reservation and want a quick bite, the bar is the perfect place to grab a meal, as you can order everything off the regular menu in the bar area.
Perhaps my most favorite drink on Disney property is the African Starr Mint Mojito. The simplicity of rum, fresh mint, and simple syrup makes this a refreshing drink, perfect for cooling off after a long day in the hot parks. This drink never disappoints, and I think Sanaa has the best mojito on property!
Bread service is a must whenever I go to Sanaa. Since the launch of a gluten free and vegan naan bread offering this summer, I have been back a ridiculous amount of times to order their bread service. It's best piping hot from the oven and tastes amazing with any of the dips offered.Equally amazing is the Sanaa soup. Though not currently listed on the allergy friendly menu, the soup is still gluten free. It can be made dairy free by removing the addition of cream. Trust me, this soup is so delicious you won't miss the cream at all! I can highly recommend the soup and bread service combo as a winning option when dining at Sanaa.
Sanaa also has some new appetizers out, and one evening I did try out the Oxtail Umngqusho, which is made of cracked hominy, black-eyed peas, and braised oxtail. I enjoyed this dish a lot though I would have liked to have had a bit more oxtail in the dish. This dish has a unique taste and was very filling. The oxtail tastes a bit like short ribs, so while oxtail might not sound appetizing, it's actually quite delicious!
Whenever I get bread service, the biggest decision is to get all of the dips or just 3. I'm partial to the mango chutney, red pepper hummus, and coriander chutney, but I love so many of the others too. The only one that isn't dairy free is the cucumber raita, and you can easily swap out that dip for a second of your favorite one when ordering the full bread service. For me, that always means more red pepper hummus! I have to admit though, the tomato date chutney has been my new favorite dip that they've added recently. So good!
The Sanaa dinner menu has changed somewhat, and I was curious to try some of the dishes. On my most recent visit, my friend and I both ordered the Braaivleis, which is marked as gluten free and dairy free naturally. It comes with Boerewor (a sausage), lamp chop, pork tenderloin, Tunisian olive oil crushed potatoes and seasonal vegetables.I loved the Tunisian olive oil crushed potatoes, as they were very flavorful. The sausage was milder than I expected it to be, which was great. I loved the pork tenderloin, though I should have asked to have it cooked longer. Cooked medium still seems a bit to raw for my tastes. And speaking of raw, if you are concerned about raw meat, avoid the lamb or ask them to cook a wee bit longer (which be warned, may toughen the meat). My lamb was entirely too rare for my liking but I found the flavors of the lamb delicious.Overall, if you visit Sanaa, you won't regret it. It's a one of a kind restaurant at Disney, and is very affordable and approachable. The bread service is a must! I can't wait to go back again to try some of the new dinner offerings.You can also read Gluten Free in Orlando's reviews on Sanaa too.Have you been to Sanaa? What did you love about this restaurant?
Olivia's -- Breakfast -- Table Service -- Old Key West
*This dining experience took place in April 2014.
When it comes to a relaxing destination on Disney property, Old Key West resort can’t be beat. It’s one of my favorite Disney resorts to “get away from it all.” I frequently find myself wanting to stay at this Disney Vacation Club resort just to relax and skip the parks. Whenever I visit, I’m immediately transported to Key West, Florida – with the low-key vibe and frequent sounds of Jimmy Buffet. Add in some terrific Key West inspired food from Olivia’s and your vacation is complete.On this particular occasion, I stopped by Olivia’s for breakfast during my weekend stay for the Gluten Free Living Conference held in Orlando. I knew that I had a busy day ahead of me, and I wanted a solid breakfast before I hit the expo and conference (and all the sweets that awaited me there).
On the last visit to Olivia’s I had been pretty impressed with my breakfast – it had been the best one I’d had at the restaurant to date. I was looking forward to an equally good meal this time. I have to say that one of the things that I love about Olivia’s is that the cast members totally remember you here. Even though I’m not really a regular, they do seem to recognize familiar faces and address those guests by first name when they’ve been there a lot. I also really enjoy the atmosphere too. It’s very relaxed and casual. Our server this visit was Jerry, who has assisted us before. My family joined for coffee and some fresh fruit but didn’t order anything else because they had reservations that day at Kouzzina (lucky ducks). I wanted something different, and I was very curious about the sweet potato hash that was on the menu.Chef Paula who was a culinary intern, assisted me on this visit. I asked if the sweet potato hash entrée was safe, and she said it was – minus the hollandaise sauce. It was served with poached eggs (which I really love) and toast. I was able to get Udi’s white sandwich bread toast and Earth Balance vegan margarine with the hash. 
When I got my entrée, I have to say, it looked great. The hash has regular potatoes, sweet potatoes, onions, and ham in it. Now that’s my kind of hash! The poached eggs on top were cooked perfectly. I find that getting perfectly poached eggs is a bit of a gamble sometimes, so I was very pleased to have well poached eggs. If you’re an egg yolk kind of person like me, you know how important it is and how delicious runny egg yolk is over hash or any type of breakfast potato (and if you’re not an egg yolk fan, you don’t know what you’re missing!). The hash was outstanding. It was a little onion heavy, so if you’re not an onion person, you’ve been warned. But, I thought it balanced really well with the potatoes and ham. Add in the toast, and this was a very hearty breakfast. I’m going to say that this was officially my favorite breakfast item at Olivia’s. It was really excellent. Even minus the hollandaise, it was a great choice. I’m pretty sure this is what I’ll be ordering again next time. It was that good!If you get the chance to pop by Olivia’s, I would highly recommend it. The food tends to be a bit basic at breakfast time, but this sweet potato hash with poached eggs will knock your socks off! I give this visit a solid 8 out of 10 for an excellent entrée, great service and terrific atmosphere.Have you been to Olivia’s? What was your favorite item to order for breakfast?