Basil posted the following clarification 20 minutes ago:
To Our Dear Basil Customers,
We would like to make a clarification about our current Kosher certification. Menachem Mendel Schneerson is one of the business owners here at Basil. Under the New York State law, in order for an eatery to be kosher, it needs to be either certified by a kosher certification organization. Alternatively, an owner of the business must put his name down as the self certifier. Unfortunately, when the OK organization decided to abruptly remove their certification for reasons not related to kashrut whatsoever, we had no choice but to self certify until a new kashrut certification can be obtained from a proper kashrut organization. Menachem Mendel Schneerson, as part owner, took upon himself to oversee the wonderful work the mashgichim tmidim are doing, from open to close, to maintain the highest standard of kashrut, and therefore self certified the restaurant as per the state law. We in no way intended to G-D forbid disrespect or insult anyone and we hope this post provides the clarification and transparency that you, as our valued customers, deserve. Should you have any question or concerns regarding the kashrut you are more than welcome to email Mendel Schneerson at baisharav@gmail.com. Thank you all!