If it hadn't been for a young, Swiss confectioner catching the wrong train, the region might not have become home to perhaps the most prestigious cafe in the country. Kate Bowman takes a tour of the family-owned business Bettys, where if somthing's worth doing well, it's worth doing by hand.

IN the early 1900s, Frederick Belmont left his native Alps and travelled to England inspired by the dream of setting up his own confectionery business.

With plans to head towards the south coast, but unable to speak a word of English, he boarded the wrong train and ended up in the heart of North Yorkshire.

Whether it was the charm of the open countryside or the warmth and friendliness of the Yorkshire folk, something made him want to make it his home and, in 1919, he opened his first Bettys caf tea rooms in Harrogate.

Now run by Mr Belmont's great nephew, Jonathan Wild, Bettys has two cafs in Harrogate, two in York, another in Ilkley and a recently refurbished site in Northallerton.

The upmarket caf is renowned for its high-quality, its attention to fine detail and the impressive range of mouth-watering cakes, biscuits, chocolates and breads.

While Bettys' products don't come cheap, the skill, time, effort and ingredients that are used in the process more than justify the final price tag.

And if that isn't enough to sway even the most scrooge-like North-Easterners, then the proof really is in the tasting.

Step behind the scenes into the chalet-style buildings of Bettys craft bakery, in Harrogate, and the aromas of chocolate, roasting nuts, boiling caramel and freshly baked bread and pastry will immediately awaken your senses.

The firm excels in its range of bread, which is baked in the early hours of the morning for that day's sales. Eighty per cent of the bread is organic, with ingredients stretching from rye, malt, wholemeal and spelt flour to an assortment of seeds and nuts, sultanas and honey.

The mixing, kneading, shaping, proving and baking is done with strict precision for all 38 varieties, which includes Swiss breakfast, Swiss fitness, muesli, olive and rosemary, parmesan and herb and sun-dried tomato loaves, as well as the Yorkshire Cobble, Swiss Sticks and popular Bettys Mouse Bread.

The breads are cooked in three different types of oven, depending on the variety, including one of only three traditional wood-fired ovens in the country, made from reclaimed bricks and insulated with 20 tons of fine river sand.

Elsewhere in the bakery, thousands of tarts, cakes, tea loaves, biscuits and scones are made every week. The Fat Rascal - a plump fruity scone, made with citrus peels, almonds and cherries - is by far Betty's bestseller, with more than a quarter of a million made by hand every year.

Bettys communications manager Katy Squire said: "We have our core products, which our customers expect, but we are always introducing new things, perhaps just for a season.

"Quite often, a team goes to Switzerland just to eat the local food and look out for new ideas."

The bakery also includes a chocolate room, where 5kg blocks of milk, dark and white chocolate are melted down, then kept at a constantly altering state and temperature to prevent them from solidifying.

"The chocolate comes out of the taps at exactly 47 degrees Celsius, which is the perfect temperature to work with it. It should have a good, clear shine, like varnish, and break easily once set," said Katy. The chocolate is used to make all kinds of sweet things, including decorative Easter eggs, caramel or praline filled shapes, and solid chocolate hearts and mice.

"The process is very labour-intensive, but the end product is divine."

Bettys success comes down to two main things, according to Katy - high quality and hard work - and she praised the team of people working in the craft bakery, saying they are exceptionally loyal.

"Many people who come to work here stay for 20 or 30 years simply because it is a great place to work. The business believes in supporting the local community and preserving traditional craft skills," she said.

"Most of our products are handmade and depend on the makers being highly skilled, so employees will find an area they want to specialise in and then train to become a master baker or a chocolatier, for example."

The accolades the company has collected over the years speak for themselves.

It holds a Queen's Award for Enterprise for Sustainable Development, numerous craft bakery awards and has been included in the Sunday Times 'Best 100 Companies to Work For' survey for the past five years.

The firm opened a cookery school on the premises in 2000, equipped with purpose-built kitchen stations and a large demonstration area with plasma screen.

Its full and half-day courses range from baking cakes, moulding chocolate and cooking with pastry to sessions focusing on Mediterranean food, Swiss specialities and Christmas treats.

Bettys also have an online shop.

For more information, visit www.bettysbypost.co.uk

Hard work - but the results are worth it

ONE of the most impressive, labour-intensive and time-consuming crafts at Bettys bakery is the cake decorating.

It can take days just to make a few sugar flowers, but Jacqueline Tobin believes the skill that goes into the product is what sets Bettys celebration cakes apart from any other.

A qualified cake decorator, Jacqueline is busy hand-making the snowmen and trees to decorate the Christmas cakes with, as well as creating beautiful, sugar-sweet peas and lilies for wedding cakes, presents for birthday cakes and concocting small rattles filled with tiny sugar crystals to adorn Christening cakes.

"It takes a lot of time and effort, but the work is definitely worth it in the end," she says.

"We make a really bespoke range of cakes - anything from decorated fruit and vanilla sponges, to chocolate ruffle cakes, fondant fancy cakes and elaborate wedding cakes."

The price may not be cheap - up to £1,000 for a four-tier wedding cake - but the detailed decoration, delicate pipework and finishing touches make the cakes second to none.