Restaurant Kelim

16 June 2014: after two months, this was easily the worst dining experience in basel. oh the food was actually quite good, but I’d never set foot in this place purely because of the horrific service I received… and this from an American who suggested we go.
my partner and I were taking out his mother and sister (their first time in Europe), and he wanted to take them some place authentic and off the beaten path. all of us had chosen entrees in the CH Fr.32 (that’s $ 35!) range before the server took our orders. my mother– and sister-​in-​law ordered Cokes (at CH Fr.4.70 each), and I was going to order tap water and a beer, until I was told I could only order bottled water (still or ‘with gas’ at CH Fr.5.70), but no tap water unless I ordered a bottle of wine. I then inquired twice more thinking I must’ve been misunderstanding him, until I realized he looked like he was about to stab me, so I declined a beverage completely, and we then all ordered our entrees. I was told to expect that sometimes restaurants will still charge CH Fr.1.50 even for tap water, but that wasn’t even an option in this case. livid about the whole water issue, I elected to get a simple CH Fr.8 bowl of soup instead. I can also say that if it hadn’t been for the in-​laws, I would’ve just left and found another restaurant to go to since there are so many in basel.
on a warm summer night when all of basel is out to restaurants and bars watching the World Cup, this place was nearly empty. I imagine this guy must be the owner and is losing his business. why else would anyone treat their customers so poorly? his attitude and demeanor reminded me of the infamous overzealous soup store owner from «Seinfeld»!
ps: what is it with the Swiss and their ridiculous need to hawk $ 6.25 bottled water at every meal when the tap water here beats every American city I’ve ever been to?!

This Turkish spot provides some of that Mediterranean feel and cuisine right into cool and structured Basel. The meze are arranged semi-​structured on a large plate that caters for a plethora of taste that goes well with the cosy carpet-​clad room. Definitely a place to check out.

Very nice place, quite small inside but cosy and nicely furnished and there’s a big wintergarden just in front of the restaurant where one can sit aswell. The food is very nice just a little expensive, but when you live here you get used to it. The grilled meats taste amazing and most of the other food tastes great aswell.