Harden's survey result
Summary
“You can’t go to Harrogate without a visit to this Mecca of traditional afternoon tea” – a “quintessentially English experience that is not to be missed”. The flagship of a family-owned business launched in 1919 and now with four other branches across North Yorkshire, it also serves breakfast and lunch which nod to founder Frederick Belmont’s Swiss origins with a menu including bircher muesli, Alpine macaroni and potato rösti – but it is the “heritage and great bakery” which pull in the crowds. Top Menu Tip – “great fat rascals and Yorkshire curd tarts”.
Summary
A Yorkshire “legend” – “the epitome of an old-fashioned afternoon tea room, and with a great pianist too”. “You might have a long wait in the queue to get in, but it’s worth it” for the “delicious pastries and well-filled sandwiches” served at this flagship of a family-owned business founded in 1919, now with five venues across North Yorkshire. “Places that are described as an ‘institution’ are often a stuffy, stilted let-down – Betty’s is none of the above”: “even the fish ’n’ chips are stylish”.
Summary
“Betty’s is a real institution in Harrogate” of over a century’s standing, and as the home of “traditional afternoon tea at its best” these “quintessential” tea rooms are peerless (they are “masters of the art of making a visit memorable”). “Amazing cakes and pastries are made on the premises and served alongside a wonderful selection of teas”, in a “stunning” setting enlivened by a pianist tinkling away on the ivories in the background. “Thoughtful, delicious and with no unnecessary frills: this is Yorkshire through and through”. “You cannot book so turn up early”.
Summary
“You haven’t had afternoon tea ’till you’ve been to Bettys” – “a peerless institution” for over a hundred years, which “has not really changed” and where a visit “is likely to involve you in a long queue for a table (which says it all)”. “Go there hungry” to make the most of the brunch, sandwiches and cakes – all “beautifully presented in opulent surroundings”.
For 33 years we've been curating reviews of the UK's most notable restaurant. In a typical year, diners submit over 50,000 reviews to create the most authoritative restaurant guide in the UK. Each year, the guide is re-written from scratch based on this survey (although for the 2021 edition, reviews are little changed from 2020 as no survey could run for that year).
Have you eaten at Bettys?
1 Parliament Street, Harrogate, HG1 2QU
Restaurant details
Prices
 Drinks |
|
|---|---|
| Filter Coffee | £4.50 |
 Extras |
|
|---|---|
| Service | 10.00% |
1 Parliament Street, Harrogate, HG1 2QU
Opening hours
| Monday | 9 am‑5 pm |
| Tuesday | 9 am‑5 pm |
| Wednesday | 9 am‑5 pm |
| Thursday | 9 am‑5 pm |
| Friday | 9 am‑6 pm |
| Saturday | 9 am‑7 pm |
| Sunday | 9 am‑5 pm |
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