Bettys Cafe

We had a lovely time at Bettys today! I booked afternoon tea a couple of months ago as a surprise for my mum’s 60th birthday, and they’d even got her a little cake with a candle on, and the pianist played ‘Happy Birthday’ – fantastic : )

The food was delicious, the service absolutely faultless, and the tea perfectly brewed!

Popped into Betty’s by chance on my birthday. It was pouring with rain and the wind was battering Harrogate, and yet this place was packed with patrons.

We were given a booth table in the restaurant area and were served by a lovely young waiter who was more than happy to answer all our questions and offer alternatives to our various dietary needs.

The decor is marvellous, the large windows offer a great view and the general buzz gives this place a great atmosphere.

The chips were amazing! I have to say this. We ordered them on a whim to accompany our dainty little crusts-off sandwiches and they were perfectly golden and crispy. My spiced hot chocolate was delcious and the dessert of brown bread ice cream was fantastic.

It is a little on the expensive side, but worth it for a treat.
Recommended if you have a few pennies. Just wish I could afford the confectionery from the bakery.

This was the first time that I’ve visited these tea rooms. Set in the beautiful town of Harrogate (which is truly a beautiful town and worth a visit alone), these tea rooms are exceptional.

I know some people comment that it is expensive compared to other places but it is reflected in the quality of the goods and service offered here. The selection of teas and coffees is exhaustive. We had the English Breakfast and another blend that I couldn’t quite remember along with some delicious hot food and desserts. The service was superb. To demonstrate how popular this place is, you had to queue outside. Luckily it’s sheltered so no worries about it raining. You were given a menu whilst you were waiting which was a nice touch.

All in all, this truly is a fantastic experience and I’m sure that I’ll repeat it again.

When in Harrogate, a visit to Bettys is one of those tourist cheesy must-do's, along with a visit to the baths and a wonder around the park. But it's deservedly famous, you pay for it but the service is fantastic and the food exquisite. I went with my partner for an afternoon treat, opting for the slightly cheaper option of sitting upstairs in the "Continental Cafe" since there was a queue (on a Tuesday mid-afternoon, busy busy!). We went for the traditional tea and scones option; this is actually for 1 person, but consists of a pot of tea and two scones with clotted cream and jam. They gave us an extra pot of hot water so we could quench our thirst while gobbling down the lovely creamy scones. We were both pretty pleased with the whole experience, I can see the afternoon tea, whilst being a little expensive, being a fantastic treat.

Well worth popping into the shop on the way out too for some snacking in the park. They do a mean line in artisan breads which, considering the price of normal bread nowadays, is actually quite well priced! Combine it with a visit to The Cheeseboard for awesome picnic faire...

If you want a brew and home made cakes, this is the place to go while Harrogate.
Slightly over priced, but a treat to one self.

Betty's is one of the mainstays of Harrogate's attractions. from the outside it is architecturally impressive.

maybe the day was too sunny, attracting too many visitors, but the queue to get in lasted half an hour. once in we were shoehorned in. you may have gathered by now that I am not a great fan. I had looked at the menu before I went in, but £7.50 is ridiculous for a pot of tea and a scone.

Whenever you mention 'Harrogate' to someone in the UK, more often than not their first response will be to mention Bettys. Part of the Harrogate scene for almost a hundred years, Bettys has become one of the 'must-visit' places in the town.

However, since it is so popular you'll need to wait in line for a good while before you're seated. Similarly once you're in, you may feel slightly under pressure to eat and choose quickly in order to get the queue through.

Nonetheless, Bettys does do fine teas and coffees, as well as an excellent selection of cakes and snacks. If you've never been I'd recommend a visit just for the experience, but it's not a place I choose to frequent.

Bettys Cafe is the original establishment of the chain and somewhat of a local landmark. We dutily queued up outside waiting for a table; a member of staff helpfully coming out with menus so you can browse while you wait. Bettys is a seriously popular place, nationally famous, so be prepared to queue!

There are two main areas to eat in Bettys, a restaurant type area with an interesting and varied menu, and a coffee shop that sells mainly patisseries and hot drinks. We opted for the coffee shop, ornate tables and comfortable chairs make you feel you are in a special place. The food and drinks were on the whole expensive, and fairly unremarkable, no better than any other coffee shop; you really are paying just for the surroundings and the experience of going to Bettys. The restaurant area is fabulously opulent, but required a longer wait in the queue. One special mention has to go to the toilets, probably the nicest I've ever been in!

Bettys also has a fascinating shop selling homemade bread, cakes, exotic sounding coffee and tea, and at the time we visited, iced pumpkin and ghost cakes!. Again inordinately expensive, but visiting Bettys was an experience!

I was looking for a cream tea the English style. Sorry to say, but the tea served over at Bettys is a plain low quality grass infusion with no aroma at all. No luck on the scone side: mediocre with salted butter spread. The main feeling from the whole "tea ceremony": not a trace of style and quality. I think that being a tourist attraction, Horrogate is overly tolerant to the low quality of overpriced local "BUZZ" places.

This is old fashioned gentility - on a plate, so to speak. It is in a very pretty part of the world and you can count on long, slow queues. When we went they were doing up the ground floor, so there was less space available to sit in. But we met some very friendly people in the queue and had thick coats on, so it was ok.
I used to live in the North of England and, so I miss the delicacy of a Yorkshire curd tart. So, it was a natural choice for tea. Everyone was pleased with their choices.

The loos are worth remarking on - delightful with a lovely view.

There is a shop on the groundfloor with an amazing range of utterly breath-taking creations. Very, very expensive but you may like to take something home with you. Exquisite Easter eggs and Christmas treats.

Betty’s at Harrogate has just undergone a lengthy refurbishment, creating an area by the main entrance for teas, sandwiches and cakes, and upstairs for afternoon teas etc. Queues are still about 20 mins, despite all the extra seating!

As usual, the food is splendid, if a little stingy with portion size. Today I had the beetroot, onion and goats cheese tart, which I relished! However, I almost choked when I saw the same tart in the bakery section for £2.25….a whole £4.50 LESS than it was to eat in!!!!!
I know there are overheads involved when eating in, but a 200% price hike for simply heating & sticking it on a plate with some lettuce leaves…..Come on!

PS: I bought said tart to take home…..

Always a long queue, but worth the wait!

Bettys Cafe is a must in Harrogate, though it will mean queing it is well worth it…
The food is delicious! The menu ranges from sandwiches and cakes, to omlettes and milkshakes and toasties to Haddock with chips.
I had the croque monsiuer with chips and a chocolate milkshake which was about £11-£12 but really enjoyed the experience of a true english tea room!

If you dont have time for lunch the shop sells lots of nice cakes, breads, coffee, chocolate etc so you can buy something to take away with you.

I love this little quaint coffee shop! Its quite expensive and there is always a queue when you want to get in but its so worth it. Perfect for an afternoon of shopping at the weekend!

We came to Betty’s for my hen do afternoon tea, the civilised portion of the day before the alcohol started! We queued in the rain for over half an hour, but it was worth the wait. We had sandwiches and chips and lovely cakes and the best tea in Harrogate.
There were 17 of us, which is quite a big group to just rock up but they seated us really quickly once we were indoors out of the rain. The staff also didn’t seem to mind that we were dressed as brownie guides!
It’s pretty good value, but more as a treat than a regular place to go for a cuppa.

We were in Harrogate visiting my aunt and had been told that a visit to Betty’s was a must. After a long time spent queuing for a table (about 20 minutes in total) we were shown to a small table squashed in beside two others, both of which were full. The afternoon tea that we ordered was reasonable and at an expected price (£15), although I was disappointed that the scones weren’t warm. The tea was lovely and the cakes delicious. The main problem was that it took the staff a very long time to give anyone their bill - ourselves and a couple of tables around us all had to practically trip up the waiting staff, who were otherwise lovely, to try and pay. I found this surprising as, given the queue, the staff might be keen to have a faster turnaround of tables. I also noticed a couple of empty tables downstairs when I visited the ladies’, although these were quickly filled by the maitre de.
Otherwise our experience was good, although I now that we have been I think I might be inclined to try one of the other tearooms that Harrogate has to offer in future.

I do like Bettys and the one in Harrogate is a good one, I think. I prefer it to the one in Ilkley.

Betty’s is a lovely old-fashioned tea room, it’s well known in Yorkshire. The waitresses wear little frilly aprons and food / cakes are served on proper cake stands. It is pricey, but you pay for the experience, not just the food.

I love their cinammon toast. I’m drooling, thinking about it now. Also, their displays of breads and cakes in the windows is very appealing.

The downside: the price and the queues. You can sometimes queue for a VERY long time.

I’m glad Betty’s exists.

A real Agatha Christie experience, as it probably has not changed that much since the 1920’s. Sumptous finger licking cakes and pastries, afternoon tea to die for. The usual fine array of Coffees and Teas.
A joy if you can get a seat near the large glass windows and watch the world go buy in refined and genteel splendour.
Not cheap but well worth the experience.
If you cannot get a seat, buy from the well stocked and always busy shop. Buy two of everything as you will only want more when you get home!!
The staff are professional and friendly and always immaculately turned out.
p.s. Do not lick your fingers it is frowned upon! Oh what the heck do it anyway!!

This is an old fashioned and unique experience. You may need to remortgage your house in order to finance it, but the food is great - I particularly recommend the cinnamon toast and the spiced hot chocolate - great for a cold winter afternoon. The location is great - right in the middle of harrogate, and the building, a huge, rounded listed building with large glas windows right around the front, is beautiful. Get there early though, as the queue around morning or afternoon coffee time can be quite long.

I can’t really give this place huge praise because it is SO expensive, there is always a huge queue to get in and the service feels like you are on a conveyor belt so meals are slightly rushed. The food is certainly quite good but the price of a cream tea (for instance) is really expensive, and the fact that one queues for 40 minutes for the privelege is disappointing. I’ve eaten there 3 times and didn’t feel I had received value on any occasion, and the staff weren’t very friendly. This place is more reputation than substance in my opinion.