Sara M.
Yelp
At night, Sana'a Cafe is a hub of energy in a corner of Lake Forest that's mostly quiet. This place is one of the only few that's open as late as it is, so it gets quite busy later into the night. My friends and I got here at around 9:30 PM and we could see how busy and bustling it was inside at 10 PM when we were parking. There is plenty of parking available as this is a shopping center.
The store is quite busy at night, and it stayed that way even when my group and I were on our way out around 11 PM. I've also come here before during the day, both earlier for morning tea and later into the day for a pick-me-up and it was less crowded. It's really at night when this place becomes super busy, at least in my experience.
There are quite a few tables but seating still feels a bit limited, especially since it's so popular. However, I've never had an issue, often finding a spot after waiting a bit, even when my group was larger. The best seating is on the right when you first enter with the plush seats and bigger tables but they are sometimes reserved for groups of four or more depending on how busy they get. There's also outside seating and they have those heating lamps to help stay warm.
The highlight here, and what you should really order, is the Adeni Chai. I recommend buying a teapot (they have a medium and large). The teapot comes with a little candle and warmer and the drink truly stays hot until the end (it's actually really hot at the very end since it's closer to the flame!). You can adjust the sweetness when ordering, and they provide you with cute little teacups. The large kettle is good enough for a group of 4 (obviously, adjust as needed and how much tea you want to drink!). I'm not even a hot drink person and this just hits REALLY hits the spot. It's spiced and brewed to perfection. I've been to a similar Yemeni cafe and I really do think this location steeps their tea in such a way where it's even more flavorful and just... it's SO good. I'm also usually a coffee drinker but the Adeni Chai is still what I order every time. I've gotten their pistachio latte and, while it was really delicious, it was quite pricey for how much you get so I'm sticking to the teas.
Their Yemeni Black Tea is also really good. It has cloves and mint but, while both were in the tea we ordered, neither of those flavors were really there or overpowering. It was just a really good, strong black tea. This was a great second choice since we ordered two teapots.
I've tried the pistachio, caramel, and biscoff milk cake. They really just taste like tres leches (in the best way) with their respective flavoring. I would recommend picking whichever flavor sounds better to you. I love biscoff and so of the three, that one is my favorite. Their sweets are a bit pricey and not really what I come for.
Service was wonderful, everyone is super kind and welcoming, and the vibes are just right. They also have a few sets of cards, dominoes, and a chess board available for patrons. My friends and I had a great time and I'm so glad they're open as late as they are because it's a place we keep coming back to.