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Soul of Basel has been stripped away by demolition of restaurants, says our man on the ground

Contractor working on stands at Baselworld says visitors have almost nowhere left to eat and drink after the exhibition.

A contractor working on building an exhibition stand for next week’s Baselworld says that the soul of the city has been stripped away because a parade of restaurants and bars on the street opposite Hall 1 has been demolished to make way for a new skyscraper.

Baselworld organizers have been working hard to make visiting the exhibition a more enjoyable experience by encouraging hotels, restaurants and bars to sign up to a code of conduct designed to stop them ripping off visitors during the show.

The area around the Messeplatz exhibition halls has never been rich with dining and drinking options, but the demolition of a huge strip of hostelries on Riehenring makes finding a place to meet colleagues and customers in the evening even harder.

“All those bars and eateries are now just a huge hole in the ground, ready for a skyscraper to be built,” the exhibition contractor tells WatchPro. “I have been working here for 17 years, and it really feels like the soul of Baselworld (for the networking) has been stripped away, as most guests who liked a tipple and a meal will now need to wander down Clara Strasse or into the town centre.”

Thankfully for the British contingent The Pub on Clara Strasse, also known as The Pickwick, remains open and may be back to its bustling best now that so many competitive establishments have been levelled.

 

Baselworld restaurants
An image from Google Streetmaps shows how the parade of eateries looked until the wrecking ball moved in.

 

Restaurants and bars pledge not to gouge Baselworld visitors

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