Madina Restaurant

Food is awesomely good!!!! Bernard was very welcoming , helpful with explaining menu and preparing delicious food!!!! Large portions and scrumptious food!

Thank you Guinea for this blessing! What a wonderful a rare treat to have this restaurant in Indy! We had to take our food "to go" due to an emergency, but wow was the food impressive! I had the chicken yassa with white rice; wonderfully spiced with perfectly cooked chicken. My culinary-partner had the whole fried fish with a side of fried plantains. The fish was succulent; crispy on the outside, flavorful and perfectly cooked on the inside! We fell in love with the fried plantains! They are the best plantain pieces I have ever had.The customer service was great and the host at the counter was kind and welcoming. Some reviewers have complained that no one is there to take their order when they go; simple rule of thumb for this restaurant: GO TO THE COUNTER AND RING THE BELL! They will respond! We will be back to this gem!Protip: if you love hot-spicy be sure to get their hot sauce; it was fire! If you don't like hot-spicy, DO NOT TRY IT - it is super hot!

We had lunch at Madina this weekend as a part of our quest to have food from every country, something that's taken us to all sorts of interesting establishments across Indianapolis and across the country. Never before had I seen a Guinean restaurant...we've had Ghanaian, but other than that our West African experiences have been limited.The overall verdict with Madina is that it's one of those places you go only for the food and not for the experience. Might be good for takeout, heard they also do catering. The place was dead when we were there, looked closed when we drove up to it. Except for one guy who came up and got takeout, we were the only customers in the restaurant the whole time, and it was verrrrrrry quiet. Like awkward quiet...no music, no other customers chatting, just silence. They have a front room with a couple tables by the register and a buffet (which they apparently don't use anymore) and a much larger back room with a bunch of tables. For whatever reason, we were seated in the back room in the middle of the empty room instead of just in the front, but we were glad they turned the lights on for us because it was kinda dark when we went in..LOL. Waitress explained to us what dishes they had available at the moment, but we didn't really catch everything she was saying. My mom and I both went for the chicken yassa. Didn't look like the same chicken I saw in the Yelp photos but nonetheless was very tasty. Feels like it has been marinating and stewing for quite awhile, seasoned with onions, peppers, olives, and bay leaves. I had couscous as my side and it is a HUGE plate, way more than you need, so expect to take home leftovers. They'd do well to add a little oil or parsley or at least something to the couscous to add flavor, but if that's not the traditional way I get it. Not complaining because I love couscous. My mom got rice and it the portion size for it was almost ridiculously large, but once again not complaining, makes for more meals later.My dad had a lamb kebab. Probably not as traditional Guinean food, but we really wanted to try the plantains and that seemed like the best shot at getting them. The kebab was pretty good, but don't expect it to be anything crazy, it's just straight up lamb, no sauce or anything--they did bring some sort of green hot sauce to the table, and it was SUPER spicy, like too much to handle for my mom and I. The plantains were very well-cooked, just sweet enough, the right consistency, etc. Definitely recommend.A second waitress came who was a bit more conversational, answered some questions, asked us how we found out about them and told us how they'd been doing and all that. Although it wasn't perfect, the food here was good, especially the chicken yassa, so I really hope they do well here. It's kind of off the beaten path, in a random strip mall on the westside that I can't see many people just stumbling across. Nice people and good food should hopefully bring them enough customers that they stay in business.

I don't know if there are enough goof things to say about this little, locally and black owned business. The whole fried fish is my favorite thing on the menu followed very closely by the fried plantains. They are HEAVEN. the chicken yasa is great too. I'll be back time and time again for the great food and the calming atmosphere.

I think this was my first experience with African food and it was awesome. There is a rice that is similar to Couscous but is lighter and fluffier and a "healthier " version of traditional white rice that was amazing under the different sauces they served. I loved the peanut sauce and the okra sauce and the chicken was cooked perfectly. I started talking and my husband put some on my plate and I couldn't believe how tender and juicy it was.The owners Maw and Barry are very sweet people and took very good care of us while we were there. I would definitely check out the ginger beer that they make in house. (My husband loves ginger beer and I think I just found his new favorite one.) We will definately be back

The Madina is a west African restaurant owned and operated by a Guinean family. The food is delicious. We had three in our party, so I asked the lovely server to bring us three different dishes. One beef, one fish and one chicken. All three were amazing, the chicken dish had a savory sauce with onion, chicken chunks and sweet potatoes served on rice. The beef dish were kabobs, the beef was seasoned perfectly and tender served with a salad and finally the fish. A whole fried fish cooked perfectly served with fried onions and cracked wheat.We came for lunch around 12:45. At this time of day the menu is limited. We were told to come for dinner around 7:00pm for the full menu. Which we will!I forgot the ginger beer. They make ginger beer. Amazing ginger beer. Heavy with ginger, heat and flavor.The Madina has only been open for 6 months. Everything is cooked to order, nothing sits in a steam table, so be mindful and patient, it is slo food cooked with love, meant to be lingered over and truly enjoyed.

Omg! The has to be the BEST African food that I've ever tasted in this city. The food is magnificent! The flavors are so perfectly paired is amazing. I will never eat any other African food unless it's from Togo or the Ivory Coast. I wish I could give 10 stars!

When I moved to Indy in the 90s I started what I called strip mall dining. I would pull into a strip mall and pick a restaurant. There were not as many then as there are now but I was able find a few. On Wednesday I joined the the International Market Coalition for their bimonthly lunch in the International District. We went to Madina in a mostly deserted strip mall. We were treated to an unbelievable buffet. The owners are from Guinea. There were lots of meat dishes and some vegetarian options. This is a real start up. The owners are still discovering the restaurant business. Be curious and explore the area on Commercial Drive on the west side. The restaurant is close to Saraga which is my favorite international market You will find other dining options.

The food is amazing. And portions are beyond reasonable. I've had african food from all over Indiana and no where tops here. Not to mention they're most affordable too. I love the atmosphere too. All around great restaurant!

YESSSSS TO THE CASSAVA LEAF OMG! I had it with the fufu and my consort had it with the rice. I love cassava leaf. It was soooooo smooth and delicious. Their pepper sauce is spicy but great! Love this place! Great hospitality during their renovations. Definitely will be back!