History
The first Bettys tea room was opened on Cambridge Crescent in Harrogate, West Riding of Yorkshire, by Frederick Belmont, a Swiss confectioner, in July 1919. The Harrogate tea rooms later moved to their current position on Parliament Street.
Belmont arrived in England at King's Cross railway station able to speak little English and losing his document with the address of his destination. After confronting many passers by, an old gentleman who spoke a small amount of French managed to tell him where he was going, Bradford. Belmont returned to King's Cross shouting "Bradfat" at any railway station official he could find; eventually he managed to board the correct train to Bradford. In the 1920s, Belmont opened a craft bakery in Harrogate, which meant it was possible to open more tea rooms, including a York branch. The merger with Taylors of Harrogate (founded 1886) came about in 1962.
The origin of the name is unknown. The company's website suggests four possibilities: Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, mother of Queen Elizabeth II (which seems unlikely as she did not come to public prominence until marrying the Duke of York in 1923); Betty Lupton, former manager of the Harrogate Spa; the daughter of a previous occupant of the Harrogate premises who died of tuberculosis; or a small child who interrupted a meeting at which the choice of name was being discussed.
In 2001 Bettys opened a cookery school on the same site as their craft bakery, at Plumpton Park near Harrogate.
Bettys marked their 90th anniversary in July 2009 with afternoon tea of patisseries, fancies and cakes from the past served by waitresses dressed in period costumes.
Read more about this topic: Bettys And Taylors Of Harrogate
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