Few visitors to Yorkshire fail to visit Betty’s Café Tea Rooms. Founded in 1919 by Frederick Belmont, a Swiss confectioner, Bettys’ reputation for old-fashioned hospitality, mouth-watering cakes and award-winning cups of tea has made it world famous.
More than 80 years on and we’re still a family business, with six Café Tea Rooms in some of the most beautiful locations in Yorkshire. Our business is remarkably self-sufficient and remains true to our founding principle that ‘if you want something just right, you have to do it yourself’. All of our cakes, breads and chocolates are made by hand at Bettys Craft Bakery. An extensive menu of teas and coffees are specially imported from our sister company, Taylors and Harrogate.
We know, of course, that people are the critical ingredient in our recipe for success. Behind the scenes you’ll find over 500 craftspeople, working in many different roles including waiters and waitresses, chefs, retail staff, team leaders and managers. When it comes to recruitment we have no rules about education or previous experience; what really counts is a desire to please and to be of service, as well as commitment, energy, enthusiasm, and a warm friendly smile.
As you’d expect from a business which has been recognised as an ‘Investor in People’ for more than 15 years, the training we offer is not only heartfelt, but well-organised and disciplined. New starters receive a comprehensive induction, covering Health & Safety, Food Hygiene, Customer Care and a ‘Grand Tour’ of the whole business.
But the story doesn’t end there – training continues throughout your career with us, with a structured system of craft skills and master class training. For our back-of-house teams we have our own cookery school. We believe in promoting from within: our six managers have all developed their careers with us.
We think that the working conditions we offer are rarely matched in the hospitality industry we have no split shifts , generous holiday entitlements, quarterly profit share bonus and free meals. We’re also committed to working in a responsible way, and every year give 5% of our profits back to our local and global community.
It’s partly for these reasons that Bettys has been acknowledged as one of the best places to work in the country for the past five years in The Sunday Times ‘Best Companies to Work For’ Survey