
There’s a lot more to this quintessentially English Café Tea Room than you think. So here’s 20 things you might not have known…
- Our dear Bettys is nearly 100 year’s old. The cafe opened in 1919 by a gentleman called Frederick Belmont. The Original Café was round the corner from the Harrogate Café you see today.
Image from bettys.co.uk - There’s six Café Tea Rooms across Yorkshire (two in Harrogate, two in York, one in Ilkley and one in Northallerton.
- Curry was served in the Belmont room in York.
- Bettys Instagram feed is deliciously magical making me very hungry every time I look at it.
Image from instagram.com/bettys1919/ - Bettys Macaroon’s still use the same ingredients as medieval times.
- Bettys has a Swiss heritage but Yorkshire roots. Frederick Belmont originated from Switzerland where he was orphaned at a young age. After traveling his way through France learning his trade as a baker and confectioner he landed in England and found his way to Bradford. Later he secured a job with Farrah Toffee, fell in love with a Yorkshire lass, and the rest they say is history.
Image from bettys.co.uk - Bettys Spiced Christmas Hot Chocolate is the best I’ve ever tasted. Made with Swiss chocolate and topped with a cinnamon and nutmeg dust. Only served at certain times of the year.
- The Belmont room in York is inspired by the Queen Mary ship after Frederick and his wife took the maiden voyage in 1936.
Image from bettys.co.uk - It’s a family owned business.
- Bettys has no apostrophe. Betty lost its apostrophe around fifty years ago. It is believed that the name was thought to look better without one – more distinctive, less messy.
- You can jump the queue. If you book the reservation only Lady Betty Afternoon Tea.
- In the 1960’s Bettys opened a cool espresso bar on Street Lane in Leeds.
Image from bettys.co.uk - Bettys York basement was nicknamed ‘the dive’ and airmen in WWII used it to plan secret missions whilst chatting up the waitresses.
- Bettys and Taylors have planted over three million tress world wide!
- Bettys specialties are made in their bakery in Harrogate.
Image from bettys.co.uk - No one knows who Bettys is or even if she was a real person.
- Bettys Cafe Tea Rooms serve Fish & Chips and they are one of the best!
- You can learn all about Bettys yourself at the Cookery School.
- The Fat Rascal has had babies called the Cheeky Little Rascals and feature Cherry & Almond, Double Chocolate and Orange & Sultana.
- 10,000 Fat Rascals are made every week.
- OK, so technically it’s 21 things you might not know about Bettys but this isn’t about Bettys but more about myself. I work for Bettys and have done for most of my life. In 2006 Bettys opened a Cafe Tea Rooms at the RHS Garden Harlow Carr where I became a waitress. I left in 2008 to travel and start a proper career, little did I know that career was back at Betty. In 2009 I returned not in PR but HR but I soon made my way over to PR in 2011. Now I work in the Internal Communications team which is rather fun.
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