Great Coffee In Basel, Switzerland

By Leila

a group of flags on a building

Basel is a wealthy and vibrant city in the Germanic region of Switzerland and offers many excellent choices for delicious coffee. Here’s a look at four places that are worth a visit.

Best Coffee In Basel, Switzerland

When I’m in Germany visiting my in-laws, I’ll typically bike from their house to Basel on Sunday afternoons for coffee, followed by (Anglican) church. It has become a quintessential part of my travel routine, in no small part because coffee shops tend to be closed on Sundays in Germany, but open in Switzerland.

Here’s a look at four places over my two visits.

Café Frühling
Klybeckstrasse 69
4057 Basel, Switzerland
+41 61 689 16 23
8:00 am – 6:00 pm (daily)

This is a trendy coffee shop filled with young people, offering delicious coffee (I had a flat white) and indoor and outdoor seating. I really enjoyed this coffee.

a group of people sitting outside a restaurant

a group of people sitting outside a building

a group of people sitting at tables outside a building

a menu on a wall

a woman standing at a counter in a coffee shop

a coffee machine making coffee

a plant in a pot on a table

a cup of coffee and a glass of water on a table

a group of people sitting on a chair in front of a row of bicycles

Daniska
Feldbergstrasse 12
4057 Basel, Switzerland
8:30 am – 11:30 am, 12:00 pm – 4:00 pm (Monday – Friday)
10:00 am – 5:00 pm (Saturday – Sunday)

After enjoying my flat white at Frühling, I biked to Daniska and found out (it was about 5:00 pm) that there was no coffee left! I’m going to assume the coffee must be pretty good in order to run out on a Sunday and will be back to try it next time.

a row of multicolored buildings

a person riding a bicycle on the street

a sign on a window
“Alles Aus! Sorry, Sold Out!”

Cinnamood
Freie Strasse 93
4051 Basel, Switzerland
+41 61 421 77 77
8:00 am – 8:00 pm (Monday – Friday)

9:00 am – 8:00 pm (Saturday)
10:00 am – 6:00 pm (Sunday)

With Daniska closed, I biked into the city thinking I’d just skip my second cup of coffee, but came upon a place called Cinnamood, which appears to be the Germanic equivalent to Cinnabon. As tempting as the cinnamon rolls looked (and yes, they did look very tempting) I resisted the urge and just had a flat white, which was very nice.

a group of people sitting outside a restaurant

a mirror on the ground

a store front with people sitting at tables outside

a white wall with black writing on it

a tray of pastries on a counter

a man standing behind a counter with a coffee machine

a cup of coffee on a tile table

Oh, and this place sells humorous greeting cards as well…

a shelf with cards on it

a card on a shelf

Brü Specialty Coffee
Grenzacherstrasse 97
4058 Basel, Switzerland
8:00 am – 9:00 pm (Tuesday – Friday)
9:00 am – 6:00 pm (Saturday – Sunday)
Closed Mondays

I was biking back to Daniska last trip but stumbled upon Brü instead and decided to stop…wow, what a pleasant find! The guys were very nice inside and the coffee was excellent.

a child riding a bike on a path with people in the background
The bike ride from Lörrach, Germany to Basel, Switzerland is one of my favorites…

a street with shops on the side

a street with a building and a street with trees and a street light

a group of people sitting outside a building

a scooter parked next to a bicycle

a room with tables and chairs

a group of men standing behind a counter in a coffee shop

a table and chairs on a deck

a cup of coffee with a leaf design on top of it

a cup of coffee and a glass of water

a boy sitting in a chair drinking from a white bowl

CONCLUSION

In case you read the menus closely, you can expect to pay a hefty premium for coffee in Switzerland. For example, the flat white at Brü is 6,90 CHF, which at current exchange rates is $8.69. That’s an expensive cup of coffee! But I appreciate the quality of the coffee at each place I stopped at, and it’s nice to be able to drink coffee on Sundays too!