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On any given sunny day in Jerusalem, you will find The Bastet in top form. The crowd overflows from the café’s small interior out into the tables arranged on the pavement at its front, cheerful and smiling; there is a pleasant familiarity among the staff itself and between the staff and the regular patrons, who are, often, not only patrons but friends, and the music playing in the background is always a fun surprise that is characteristic of the people who are working the current shift. An easy-going camaraderie between all is something that makes The Bastet not only a place to get good coffee but a place to sit and enjoy your time in good company. That was always the intention of its owner, Klil Liftshitz.
Located on a small stretch of the lower part of Heleni HaMalka street, a characteristically Jerusalemite slope that slightly tilts the tables and chairs of the many establishments taking advantage of this prime location, The Bastet is a relatively young addition to the city, but already it is considered a staple of Jerusalemite coffee culture, and especially Jerusalemite queer culture. The Bastet is considered a queer café, and that’s ingrained deep in the ethos of its operation, from the people the place aims to employ and the people the place aims to service, in the way it is run and in the way customers are treated.
In an interview I had with Klil recently, she told me that the idea to open a queer café was born, first and foremost, out of her love for coffee. Then, when the opportunity to open a café arrived, she thought, what kind of business does Jerusalem need? The answer was clear. “The idea was to take my identity, my political views, my feminist association, and define the target audience and the place’s nature based on them,” Klil told me. “It was important to make [The Bastet] an expression of all these things that don’t really have a place in Jerusalem.” Klil was right in thinking that. During the COVID crisis, as cafés, restaurants, pubs, and all sorts of small business were struggling to survive, I followed the developments regarding The Bastet on Facebook (from afar, as at that point I already left Jerusalem) and was happy to see the community it so wonderfully serves did not give up on it. Nobody wanted to lose The Bastet. Nobody wanted to lose this charming, home-like space.
Now, as the waters are settling and after a small refurbishment, The Bastet is reopening and getting back on its feet. That’s good news all around for quality coffee lovers, not only for the queer community in Jerusalem. Klil takes coffee seriously. She trains her baristas carefully, she educates customers on how their drinks should be served, she works with a Costadoro blend that she describes as balanced and a little chocolaty, and she wishes she could bring more varied brewing methods into the Israeli coffee scene—but regrets that there is not really a crowd for trying anything that isn’t espresso-based, especially in Jerusalem. The motivation to open The Bastet came from her disappointment in the unpredictable quality of cafés around Jerusalem, and so she makes sure The Bastet is consistent in its practice.
If you get a chance to visit Jerusalem, it won’t matter who makes your coffee at The Bastet and it won’t matter what day of the week it is—whatever you choose from The Bastet‘s selection of espresso-based drinks, you know you’re going to get it made well. If the weather is chilly, you can join the crowd and order a cappuccino, most likely based on soy, oat, or almond and rice milk; if the heat is persistent, maybe consider an icy americano. Those are, at least, the popular drinks. Maybe they’ll bring back the Cold Brew, or at least, I’m hoping they will. Klil herself likes to experiment with what she gets out of her espresso machine—she chooses a cup, and whatever fits there and she’s in the mood for, is what she’ll drink. If she’s home, she’ll experiment with blends, roasts, and brew times. The Bastet is a representation of her character: open, accepting, fun, and inventive.
I’d say it’s easily the best café in Jerusalem.