I haven't had much West African food in the past so when we were looking for some new food to try out over the weekend, we came across Bantaba. As other reviews state, this is kind of a strange restaurant that seems more like it's for regulars rather than new customers. There's no actual printed menu other than hints of a menu on the signboard above the register (and we confirmed this with the cashier). I guess this is to save on cost, which coincidentally also allows them to adjust pricing on the fly? There are photos posted of the menu from 2024, but my guess is those are of an old pre-COVID menu, given that the prices increased over 50% at this point. Per other reviews, dine-in orders are also packaged in takeout boxes and can take a variable amount of time to cook. We don't usually get takeout much, but decided to call in an order for this visit. This was at around 5PM on Saturday and we were promised a 30 minute wait. We arrived 30 minutes later, paid for the order, and it ended up taking about another 10 minutes. Not too bad. Benechin Beef ($18.99) - As I learned, benechin is essentially a different term for the more commonly known (at least in the US) jollof rice. In this case, the rice has a deep tomato and spiced umami that combines a pleasant saltiness with a heat level that builds and builds. It's topped with a small side of cabbage that seems to be stewed in the same spices as the rice. There's then a piece of yucca root, stewed but still rather toothsome with fiber strands all in one direction like muscle grains. For the beef, they include four pieces of thinly sliced barbecued meat. The meat is extremely flavorful with what seems to be a black pepper and allium based spice mixture. In terms of texture, it's quite tough and chewy, almost to the level of beef jerky. (4/5) Afra Lamb ($20.99) - This dish comes with a choice of rice or salad, not both as the older menu states. We went with the rice which comes in a smaller container and is a long grain rice cooked until perfectly fluffy. It's cooked with salt, which is something that I'm not used to. The larger container includes a mound of bone-in lamb meat doused in a savory and tangy mustard based sauce. The meat is a very interesting mixture of off-cuts, a combination of cross-cut ribs, shanks, lamb chops, and some random other cuts. The lamb is mostly bone in and there are tons of small bone shards all over the meat, making it a bit of a pain to eat. The meat isn't very gamey and all and is much more tender as compared to the beef jerky in the benechin. On top of the lamb, they include mustard infused softened onions and whole quick-charred onion rings, resulting in a still crunchy texture. They include some powdered dried chilis is a small pile hidden under the onions. Be careful - it's starts out smoky like paprika to start and the heat only starts to build after a couple of seconds. (4/5) Bantaba is a great place to try some new food. While it's not the most beginner friendly restaurant, it offers some flavors and dishes that are hard to find around Seattle. Bathrooms - Single unisex room read more

See all

Just updated with pictures of food and front of the restaurant for pictures of some ambiance. The owners and staff are fantastic. You hear lots of French here from staff and customers interacting. read more

See all

Arrived an hour before closing, no one was dining in and the kitchen was very busy preparing many to go orders. So although our food took a bit to come out it was delicious. Meat pies had a nice flaky dough with tasty beef and onion inside. Afra chicken had good seasoning as well as the onions. Plantains provided a nice sweet accent and soft texture that went well with the savory meat, rice, and black eyed pea slaw. read more

See all

While doing errands in Lynnwood, I browsed Yelp looking for new-to-me places to try and found Bantaba. It looked homier than Gold Coast in Seattle, and I felt adventurous and ventured into a "home turf" restaurant. Lol. This place is different, to say the least. This restaurant is more of a step down from an eatery. You order at the counter. They don't have menus. They don't have a website. They have photos on the wall without prices. When I asked about prices, she said, "I'll tell you." I had to keep my face straight, so I wouldn't giggle. We previewed on Yelp, so we had a decent idea of what we wanted. She didn't look like someone who was answering questions, so we avoided asking. The prices are very reasonable. That is their biggest selling point. We did remove the fried plantains when we learned that is $10.99. We knew it will be too much food anyway. Newbies probably shouldn't come here. The place is BUSY and SLOW. We arrived at 5pm on a Sat. They already have stacks of takeout boxes waiting for pickup. Only a group of two were ahead of us, but I later learned there were multiple takeout orders, too. We waited 45 minutes for our food. Everyone seems to know that's just how they roll. One guy came in with a thick book to wait for his takeout order. Their clientele is familiar with them and their food. Dine in isn't true dine in. It is sit-down to eat from the same takeout boxes using the same plastic utensils. No water service either, must buy water or beverage. No service actually, we bused our own table afterwards. Despite the good food, the long wait time is a turn-off. Overall, the food was flavorful, though the meats are charred to the dry side. Prices are good with big portions. The meats all have many bones; they would not suit those who favor the typical chicken breast, no bones meal. The Food: Benechin Chicken with Jollof rice, $15.99 - 4 Stars The Jollof rice caught my attention, which I learned about from the other African restaurant. Each cook has their own recipe. Theirs is tomato based with flavorful seasonings that has a slight kick. I liked it! The chicken is bone-in, well charred, slightly dry but not too bad. This dish is a two-days serving for me. AFRA Lamb, $18.99 - 3.5 Stars This dish comes with side of rice or salad. It is a generous pile that filled the little container. The lamb is also slightly dry, with lots of bones, but also lots of food. Hubby impressively finished his meal. He liked the meal, but the many bones exceeded his normally high tolerance. Meat Pies, $6.00 - 4.5 Stars I really like these flavorful meats and potatoes filled hand-sized pies. Well-seasoned with seasoning that I believe is unique to West Africa. I highly recommend ordering these. read more

See all

Highly recommend this spot for all considering trying something new and curious. I was served by a nice woman named Mary, the food was prompt, flavorful, and a wonderful change in spots for take out. I'd be up for trying other dishes! Would highly recommend the plantains as a side with anything ordered. The ambiance was simple, clean, and pretty busy for a week night. Parking lot was full, and had plenty of parking. Seemed like a decent amount of to-go orders too. read more

See all

The food here is delicious! We got the chicken yassa, fried plantains, & beef pies which was all incredible. The food takes a while to come out so don't come starving like I did it's totally worth the wait though. Seems like they mostly do carry out but you can eat there with counter service. Will definitely be back! read more

Pretty good West African food. I tried the afra lamb and I enjoyed the taste and flavor. However the sauce the onions came with was not evenly mixed so the flavoring was not very consistent. The food came out in to go containers even if you are dining in. The wait was quite a bit (roughly 20-30 min) so just be ready for that. read more

Bantaba African Restaurant - Afra lamb with rice - African Near Me - Lynnwood, Washington

The portion size was so big! I loved the charred flavor of the chicken. They also gave a vinegar flavor sauce on top, so if you like sour it's definitely a good item to try! Such a unique flavor! It seems like they are a great hit as while I was there someone was asking them to cater their child's graduation. A great whole in the wall place. read more

Bantaba African Restaurant - 6. Afra Chicken - African Near Me - Lynnwood, Washington

See all

Friendly staff and good food. However the service is so slow when it comes to getting the food. The lamb dish and the whole fried fish are delicious. However the rice and the salad are not good. I recommend you take fries instead because their fries is delicious. I am surprised they don't serve a nice African rice. Also try the Plantains , they are delicious. The prices are good too. They only serve curry out and don't allow indoor dining. I will definitely be back. read more

See all

Delicious food, has been consistent for YEARS! Highly recommend their sweet plantains!

Authentic west African delicious food!!! Staff were extremely friendly as well, and answered all our questions. Highly recommend. read more

See all

The food is always amazing! Every time!! I'm usually a chicken kind of guy but the Afra Lamb has been my go to. Black eye pea slaw with some plantain!!! 10/10 read more

Food was pretty good - I got the shrimp that was really tasty but only had 6 pieces of medium sized shrimp or so, so it was kind of a bummer. Hubby got the chicken (with bones in it). He really didn't like it - meat was pretty tough and cut was low quality. Probably won't be back again. read more

I was very happy with my food, as was my boyfriend, who is from Nigeria. The food wasn't as spicy as he would like but they had some pepper sauce for him to add in. The staff were kind and they were busy with lots of to-go orders. They seem to have a lot of regulars! read more

I had been craving West African dishes! My so selected this restaurant as my birthday present! When we arrived there were 2 customers seated and another group came in right after us. We ordered 3 dishes, and got seated and waited and waited and waited some more! The people who had come in after us got served right away. We wondered if the cashier had forgotten to turn in our order! After about 40 minutes the gentleman brought out our food! The chicken and the beef dish were tasty, but the greasy sloppy sautéed onions that covered both dishes was very unappealing. The fried whole fish was not edible, it was fried to a crisp and really hard to separate the meat from the bones! There was some iceberg lettuce floating in grease from the spoon full of sautéed vegetables on the side of the fish! Perhaps they were having an off day! read more

Really, really, really good. My favorites were the black eyed pea slaw and plantains (I'm not much of a meat eater), hubs loved the peanut butter beef (which IS really good), and the rest of the family loved the grilled lamb. The chicken Yada was also delicious- the flavor is almost a mix between sweet and sour and satay. Would absolutely eat here again and recommend to friends. read more

Bantaba African Restaurant - Menu - African Near Me - Lynnwood, Washington

See all

The best food I've found. So flavorful and amazingly seasoned. The people that work there are so very kind. I've tried other west African restaurants. None compares to this location. Not only are their recipes consistent, but the food is also extremely fresh. You won't experience freezer burnt food from them. Treat yourself and give them a chance. You will not be disappointed at all. read more

Food: This takes like nostalgia and some home cooking! I am of West African origin, and the food is legit! I'm all about the benechin with fish; it's very similar to the Senegalese national dish, which reminds me of my early traveling days. Portions are huge (easily two large meals when I have self-control) Tip: call in advance to see if they have what you want, or just be flexible, as they sometimes run out for the day. Service and ambiance: You don't go here for white glove service; you go for the food and a casual vibe. I love that this is a melting pot of others, like me, in search of good food; stepping into the restaurant gives me one of the more diverse eating experiences I've had in/near Seattle. This place feels authentic in what it is: a joint for some home cooked goodness. I'm a fan. read more

Bantaba African Restaurant - Plantain with this delicious red sauce - African Near Me - Lynnwood, Washington

See all

I just had the best food in my life! My wife and I were in Seattle and she was in the mood for mafé. The closest place that was open was Bantaba. I asked the gentleman at the register what he recommended, and he said he loved chicken yassa. And now I understand why. It's a mind blowing combination of chicken meat, onions, a touch of garlic, and lemon. My wife loved it as well. The servings are incredibly generous and the staff wonderfully kind. They kept waving at our baby and playing peekaboo, so he had a smile on his face the whole time we were there. The ambiance is nothing special, but there's nonetheless a welcoming family vibe. It's an easy place to hang out. We will most definitely be back! read more

I have been a loyal Bantaba customer for years. But their service has gone down the drain. Even when I call in for my order an hour early, they still make me wait in there. I have waited anywhere from 30 minutes to over an hour. Worst thing is people who came after me and ordered after me get their food before me. It's really disappointing. This will be my last time as a customer. The food is good but I'd rather eat somewhere else where they respect customers' time. read more

I've stopped messing around and only get the grilled shrimp with black eye pea slaw. In the last 3 weeks, I've literally came every day they're open. The other recommend dish is the yassa chicken, but nothing beats the shrimp. I also always get a side of the black eye pea slaw to go because it's a great breakfast treat. Also love the warm friendly environment. The staff can be heard jovially debating various topics... Like sitting in someone's kitchen. And reminds me of my many wonderful global travel experiences. On a regular week day, the entire restaurant is full of Africans... people with accents from West Africa, not African Americans. Owner Laye no longer works at the restaurant much, but his new chef Mikahile is equally fun and friendly. Highly highly recommend. Definitely one of my three regular stops... And currently my favorite place. read more

Bantaba African Restaurant - Grilled shrimp with black eye pea slaw. - African Near Me - Lynnwood, Washington

the best food you will ever have. the nicest people, and such an unassuming location.

My 1st time: I stopped in at closing. Everything was very good and hot.. I ordered the Afra Chicken (yummy), the peanut butter sauce and beef (Omg). w/ Rice. I ate it over an hour later and it was still hot!! read more

The food here is FIRE. Seriously. Small, compact menu so you know it's gonna be good. Yassa chicken is my favorite, I tell myself I'll try other things, but most of the time I end up ordering the yassa chicken anyway. Pea slaw, benechin, meat pies, and shrimp have all been great too. Shrimp perfectly cooked and seasoned, chicken always tender. Service has always been good, the staff are friendly if a little shy sometimes. Dining area is clean, kitchen looks clean too from what I could see. Only critiques would be the run-down bathroom and the takeout boxes used for dining in. They used to serve on plates, but have moved to serving food in the foam takeout clamshell boxes. Seems a little wasteful, and I'd be afraid of the hot food melting the foam. But I'd even eat some melted foam to get me sommathat poulet yassa. read more

The food that we had was good, served hot and plenty of it. We don't know enough to say if it was authentic, but it had new flavors and spices that we hadn't encountered in other cuisines. My wife loved the ginger drink and it seemed freshly made. The place was clean with understated but thematic decor. They served us quickly too. The less than great part of the experience was that they were out of the two dishes that we most wanted to try. Then, while we were waiting for our food, the woman at the counter had a lively but loud conversation with a man who appeared to just be hanging out. When our food was ready, it was packaged to go - we hadn't specified and she hadn't asked. We had wanted to eat there. Just as well, listening to a loud conversation during dinner wasn't what we had in mind. read more

Ordered benechin jollif rice, yassa chicken, and whole lemon herb fish. Yum, it's not as good as Dijahs kitchen nearby but still very very good. I thought the yassa chicken was just average but my wife and kids thought it was superb. Jollif rice was addicting. Daughter wanted to eat the fish nonstop. They only have takeout boxes, kinda weird, and you have to clean up yourself even if u are a sit-down customer. read more

Bantaba African Restaurant - African Near Me - Lynnwood, Washington

Food is great. Love their Yassa Chicken $11. And plantains $6 and their black eyed pea salad is divine. Benechin $11 is really good, tomato rice with a piece of fish (with bones) yucca and cabbage tasted yummy even after nuking it for a few seconds in the microwave 2 hours later. Lamb/ Beef Afra $13 is a hit or miss ...sometimes are dry and chewy but flavorful. The rice they serve is a LOT - I often skip rice for 2 entrées if I'm ordering 3. The most frustrating thing about Bantaba is that despite ordering your food in advance you can bet on it not being ready even if you go 15 minutes after their promised time. All the customers waiting for their food to pick up called in their order it and we get to watch the cashier confusedly bumble around trying to figure out who's order is ready. I asked about catering and the cashier said that they do catering but did not have a catering menu nor had no idea about the prices for catering. So much potential for this to be an amazing restaurant. A quick witted cashier would take care of so many many of the issues of customer service and delays. read more

We decided to eat here because he had been and I saw it was Yelp-approved. The ironic thing is he asked, "So, what makes a place get 5 stars from you?" I said, "It takes a lot... usually excellent food, good service, passable ambiance (I don't mind the dives), and in a perfect world, consistency in all of these." So, yeah, well, I've only been to Bantaba once, and, I'm probably still just mesmerized by the plantains. I mean, buttery sweet goodness. And, although it doesn't really make sense together, that amazing side of onion sauce or whatever. I would slather than on any chicken breast any day. I also got the chicken yassa. It actually wasn't quite 5 stars -- more like 4, maybe 4.5, but it was still great, and great as leftovers. And, I tried some of my co-eaters slaw and OMG, yum. No, I'm not a millennial who says "OMG" in all my prose, but it makes sense now. It was delectable. Absolutely yum. Fresh cilantro. Yummy beans. (This woman likes some beans.) Bottom line: I mean, you've got to go. If you don't mind a healthy (not healthy) dose of veggie oil with the yummy ethnic concoctions of Africa, this is the place to go. Worth its weight in stars. Worth the calories. Worth the frequent return. At least based on my one, luscious visit. read more

Food was amazing, flavors you can't get anywhere else, was really busy with to go orders so it was a wait for our food

This place is Amazing!!!!!! Hands down one of the best West African restaurants in this area. My favourite thing to get is the Afra lamb. Don't know how they make it but if tou don't know what to get and you like and appreciate lamb, this is a great starter dish. Not from Seattle but if there is a dish I have to get before flying out, its the afra lamb. Hope you enjoy this place as much as I do. read more

Bantaba African Restaurant - African Near Me - Lynnwood, Washington

The food is amazing! I lived up the road from them when they opened and would hit the spot often. The Afra chicken is bomb. The shrimp and slaw is bomb. Just go and eat here but come early because they run out of stuff. read more

Terrible service. They don't care about the condition the food will be in when it gets to you

Afra chicken was 10/10 but the Afra lamb was somehow even better. Gotta go back to try everything else now

Just finishing up my takeout meal from Bantaba. I stopped here on my way back from hiking near Darrington, needed to run some errands at Alderwood and it was the excuse I needed, because I've been wanting to eat here for a while. It took a few tries to get through on the phone to place my order, and when I arrived I realized why: there was a large stack of takeout boxes on the kitchen window, and a bunch of people waiting to pick them up. Never seen that many people getting food at 3:30 on a Sunday. This restaurant only does takeout and is very serious about social distancing and masks, which I appreciate. I ordered chicken yassa, black eye pea slaw and plantains. The whole meal cost $23 and I think the portion sizes are very generous for the price. I will have plenty of leftovers. The food was fantastic: flavorful to the max, very fresh ingredients, carefully prepared. I especially like the pepper onion and tomato sauce that goes with the plantains. The black eye pea slaw has a wonderful contrast between the perfectly cooked beans and the crispy cabbage. The chicken yassa has a tangy, mustardy taste that doesn't overpower the other flavors. I was very satisfied and impressed with the food here and will look forward to returning to try more of their dishes soon. read more

Bantaba African Restaurant - African Near Me - Lynnwood, Washington

I've had a fair amount of Northern African food but never Gambian. My son and I wanted to try some dishes and were excited to check it out. The folks are friendly but the service was slow - we waited about 45 minutes for our food. We ordered the shrimp, the Afra chicken, and the Jollof rice with lamb. For me the absolute best thing there was the Afra chicken. I couldn't get enough of the onions. The chicken and rice were on point. Nice and mustard-y. The jollof rice was good - I've had jollof Rice before and I would say it was solid. My son loved the lamb and didn't let me have any. The shrimp was my least favorite. I found it to be on the bland side - the slaw with black eyed peas just felt like it was missing something. I would definitely go back again for the Afra chicken! read more

First time trying African food and I'm impressed! The food was super flavorful and I definitely enjoyed the afra chicken over the yessa chicken. Both dishes had huge portion sizes! Definitely shareable. We came about 2-3 hours before closing on a Saturday and they sold out on about half of their menu so I suggest coming early. read more

Bantaba African Restaurant - African Near Me - Lynnwood, Washington

I've been coming here for years, and the food is really good, but for the last few years, their service level has drastically gone down. 1) It's very difficult to get through the phone line 2) If they pick up the phone, they are constantly out of ingredients 3) Even if you give them plenty of time to prepare your food (allow 20 mins but I go 30, sometimes 40 mins after), they still end up making it only when you get there. They really need to get their act together. read more

We finally got to come in today and were so happy that we did ~ everything we ordered was so tasty and we're excited to try more! We ordered fried plantain appetizer and beef benechin. We've never had west African food before so we were really excited to finally try some. It was so flavorful and tasty - definitely lived up to the hype. In the to-go box, there was rice at the bottom (of which we had plenty of leftovers), beef, cabbage, potato(?) and a little pile of hot powder in the corner. The plantains came with a container of hot sauce that had stong elements of bell pepper. Everything was so. good. Those plantains are life-giving. The only thing I wish was different is that there was more of the hot powder (I wish I knew what it was!). Can't wait to try more stuff like the veggie plate and peanut dish. This is one of those places where the food's so good that the customer service doesn't matter. It seemed pretty busy when we came in to pick up our order so we understood that we had to wait a bit. Everyone had PPE, there were markings on the floor for where to stand, and the restaurant seemed nice and clean overall. We'd love to dine-in when that's available again :o) read more

Bantaba African Restaurant - beef benechin and fried plantains - African Near Me - Lynnwood, Washington

Amazing food! Everything on the menu is delicious. Good size portions. Our go to order are the Yassa chicken, Afra Lamb, Benechin rice w/lamb, and plantains. The restaurants gets very busy during dinner hour. I would recommend that you call your order in ahead of time versus going in and placing an order to go. Wait time to get your food is around 20-30 minutes but worth it. read more

Bantaba African Restaurant - Afra Grilled Lamb & Yassa Chicken - African Near Me - Lynnwood, Washington

See all

Delicious food, friendly staff, great ambience. I have been driving by this place every day for almost 2 years, after reading the reviews I finally decided to stop by and I'm so glad that I did read more

Bantaba African Restaurant - Afra Grilled Lamb - African Near Me - Lynnwood, Washington