Sweet! Betsy Ann Chocolates Has Been Making Goodies for Nearly a Century

PHOTO BY HUCK BEARD

Jim and Karen Paras urge motorists to slow down when rounding the horseshoe bend by Betsy Ann Chocolates in West View — and then stop in for sweets at the factory store.

Their 88-year-old business produces gourmet goodies, including meltaways, cordial cherries, nonpareils and slowpokes, according to recipes created by Betsy Ann Helsel, the company’s late founder and namesake.

Around here, the passage of time is measured by candy instead of a calendar. For generations of Pittsburghers, each sugary morsel is a memory.

As soon as the last of the heart-shaped Valentine’s Day chocolates roll off the line, foil-wrapped bunnies for Easter begin to multiply. The Paras family also produces Irish Potatoes for St. Patrick’s Day. If you managed to snag the seasonal spuds — coconut creams rolled in cocoa powder and cinnamon and topped with a pine nut — before March 17, consider yourself lucky; they disappear faster than a rainbow.

In this Candy Land, the period between fall and spring is like that iconic episode of the 1950s sitcom “I Love Lucy,” when a high-speed conveyor belt leaves two workers buried in bon-bons. Betsy Ann employs about 50 people during the peak candy season.

“Making candy is not for the faint of heart,” Jim says with a laugh. “If you’re not willing to work hard, you can’t be in this business. Betsy was a pioneer. She ran a tight ship.”

After mastering the art of chocolate-making at Downtown’s Dimling’s Candy, Helsel launched the Betsy Ann brand from her North Side kitchen in 1938.  She moved the operation to the Perry Highway facility in 1961 and lived in an apartment above the retail shop.

I don’t have that kind of restraint around chocolate; in fact, it’s hard for me to reside in the same borough as Betsy Ann since my craving for cocoa is greater than all of the Wonka Golden Ticket winners combined.

Fellow West View resident Randy Wilson felt antsy in retirement, so he got a part-time gig as a Betsy Ann delivery driver (he always exercises caution on that horseshoe curve). The job keeps him busy, and within arms-reach of a sugar rush.  Trust me, one bite of the Truffled Fudge will keep you going all day.

An injury forced Helsel to sell the business in 1967, but she remained on duty for another year to mentor the new owners, Jim’s parents, Harry and Catherine Paras.  Harry’s father, a Greek immigrant named John Paraskevas, worked as a baker and chocolatier in Pittsburgh; he passed along his passion for making sweets to his children.

Before buying Betsy Ann, Harry worked as a baker, even making his and Catherine’s wedding cake on the day of their nuptials in 1952. They lived happily ever after as successful chocolatiers.

At one point, they had 14 retail sites in the area, as well as partnerships with Horne’s department stores, several malls and Kennywood Park. The candy industry has changed quite a bit since 1894, when Milton Hershey founded his chocolate empire in Dauphin County, Pa., but the Paras clan is dedicated to staying competitive while preserving Betsy Ann’s old-fashioned charm.

At the factory, there are century-old machines churning out treats alongside high-tech equipment; small-batches of caramels are still made by hand. Last summer, Hollywood filmmakers asked the folks at Betsy Ann to create candy props for “Hershey,” a movie about Milton’s rags-to-Kisses story slated for release later this year. I plan to eat my weight in Betsy Ann chocolate while I watch it.

These days, the landmark company is driven by wholesale business and online sales. There are still two brick-and-mortar sites that, thanks to the signature gold packages lining the shelves, seem to glow with an otherworldly light. It’s the perfect place to try a chocolate-covered marshmallow treat called Stolen Heaven.

During our interview, Jim and Karen let me sample about 50,000 calories worth of truffles, an upscale product line they introduced after taking the reins of the company in 1995.  I’m surprised I wasn’t carted off by Oompa Loompas!

“Chocolate is just one of those things,” Jim says. “The more you eat the more you want.”

Betsy Ann Chocolates
322 Perry Highway, West View Shopper’s Plaza, 4960 William Flinn Highway, Allison Park
betsyann.com