Hildebrandt’s knows how to pick ‘em.
The longstanding Williston Park diner, owned by the Sarfs horse racing family, sponsored jockey Junior Alvarado on Sovereignty and jockey Umberto Rispoli on Journalism. Between the two, they brought home the gold from the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes, winning Hildenbrandt’s what some call a triple crown by extension.
“It was just amazing,” said Hildebrandt’s co-owner Zack Sarf on watching Alvarado win Sunday’s Belmont Stakes. “We had Sovereignty and Journalism’s [jockeys] both wearing the pants. Just watching Sovereignty go across Journalism and just blow by the other horses was amazing to see.”
Hildebrandt’s sponsored Derby and Belmont-winning jockey Alvarado and his horse, Sovereignty, in both May’s and Sunday’s race. When Alvarado wasn’t able to race in the Preakness, the diner elected to sponsor the Derby’s runner-up, Rispoli, after he was a guest on their horse racing podcast, “The Horse Whisperer.” Rispoli and his horse Journalism took home the Preakness title with Hildebrandt’s name on his gear.
The pair came second to Alvarado in Sunday’s race, which was held in Saratoga Springs. Hildebrandt’s had a presence at Sunday’s race, selling its iconic ice cream and hats signed by winning jockeys at a stand on the grounds.
The Sarfs have known Alvarado, who lives in nearby Garden City Park, for years. Both have said they bonded over a shared love of horses and ice cream, with Sarf calling the decision to sponsor him a no-brainer in May.
Sarf said Hildebrandt’s decided to sponsor Rispoli, who’s from California, after he asked if he could be a part of their team when Alvarado wasn’t able to race in the Belmont Stakes.
Sarf said he hopes their sponsorship of the race’s winners raises awareness of jockeys’ need for support, something he and his family are passionate about.
“We got very lucky this year that our sponsorship was on all three winners,” he said. “But we are also very happy to raise awareness for these jockeys, for them to get sponsorships, hopefully from other people, and to make it more known that these jockeys should be making a lot more than they do. These sponsorships really go a long way for them and their families.”
Since Alvarado won the Derby, Hildebrandt’s has been selling Hildebrandt’s hats signed by him, and since Rispoli won the Preakness hats signed by him have been up on their site, x. Proceeds from the hats go to the Jockeys’ Guild, a union for unlicensed jockeys. Thanks to the hats, they’ve been able to donate over $10,000 to the group.
Now that they’ve sponsored this series’ string of winners, Sarf said a Hildebrandt’s sponsorship is in high demand.
“After this race, we had pretty much almost every jockey come up to us saying ‘I want to wear the silks, I want to wear the pants,’” said Sarf, who had travelled to Saratoga to cheer the jockeys on. “I would say a lot of jockeys will be wearing Hildebrandt’s colors this summer.”
In honor of both jockeys, Hildebrandt’s has rolled out ice cream flavors inspired by them. Customers can come in for a scoop of Junior Mint Chip ice cream named for Alvarado, which they offered scoops for free with any purchase at their Belmont Stakes watch party or Cappuccino Chip for Rispoli.
