[2] The first Bettys tea room was opened in Harrogate, West Riding of Yorkshire, by Frederick Belmont, a Swiss confectioner, in 1919.

[3][4] Belmont arrived in England at King's Cross railway station and boarded a train to Bradford, as much through luck as judgement, for he spoke very limited English and could not recall the address (or even the city) to which he was supposed to be heading.

[9] Bettys marked its 90th anniversary in 2009 with an afternoon tea of patisseries, fancies, and cakes from the past, served by waitresses dressed in period costumes.

The locations of the tea rooms are: The St Helen's Square café in York was inspired by the RMS Queen Mary cruise liner and became particularly popular during World War II, when the basement "Bettys Bar" was frequented by American and Canadian "Bomber Boys" stationed around York.

[16] Bettys has consistently declined to open branches outside Yorkshire, citing a preference for maintaining close oversight of every detail.