Hildebrandt's Ice Cream is Coming, Saratoga
The fan-favorite Long Island brand will be available at Eddie F's New England Seafood Restaurant just in time for the Belmont. PLUS: A Purdy Good Cocktail, Belmont edition.
What do ice cream and Saratoga horse racing have in common? More than you might think.
For one, Stewart’s Shops has brought back its limited-edition Bel-Mint Stakes flavor, a tribute version of the fan-favorite Mint Cookie Crumble, available at 175 participating Stewart’s locations through Sunday, June 7. At the track itself, you can get a cone or dish of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, or a shake at the Capital Region’s only Shake Shack location. And now, an ice cream shop located just 10 miles from Belmont Park in Long Island is following the jockeys north to the Spa City.
The story starts in 2022, when Hildebrandt’s, an iconic ice cream shop and luncheonette that had been operating in Williston Park since 1927, was on the brink of shutting down for good. “We used to go there every weekend when I was a kid,” says Long Island native Zack Sarf. “And then when they were about to close, my dad said, ‘Let’s buy the place and see what we can do.’”
Five years later, Zack and his father, Randy, are co-owners of Hildebrandt’s, and are working to bring the historic brand, which sells its pints in more than 100 locations in New York City and beyond, into the 21st century. One way they’re doing that is by partnering with athletes; Hildebrandt’s is the official ice cream partner of The Mets, and last year, the brand began sponsoring jockeys.
“We have Jose Ortiz, Junior Alvarado, Dylan Davis, Edgard Zayas, and Manny Franco,” says Zack, whose family has been involved with horse racing for more than 50 years. “The future of Hildebrandt’s is working with these jockeys. We’re opening at Keeneland. We’re opening at Churchill. We’re opening at Del Mar. We’re around the new Belmont already.” And while last year Hildebrandt’s was available in the Taste NY Pavilion at Saratoga Race Course, beginning this week, it will be for sale at Eddie F’s New England Seafood Restaurant on Clinton Street.
“We’re going to do the homemade ice cream sandwiches and pints,” says Eddie F’s owner Ed Fazzone. “And I think we’re going to do milkshakes out of the restaurant. I’m going to meet with them next week to see if we can do sundaes and stuff.” Ed hopes to have his freezers installed early this week and be selling ice cream by Wednesday. Down the line, Eddie and Mario’s New England Seafood & Pizzeria in Clifton Park will carry Hildebrandt’s, too.
Fans of Hildebrandt’s can expect to find around 75 percent of the brand’s flavors at Eddie F’s, from Junior Mint and Chocolate Mallomar to Cappuccino Chip and Butter Pecan.
“People up in Saratoga love our ice cream,” Zack says. “Especially people surrounding the racetrack. So having it up there for the rest of the town to have all year round is the plan.”
—Natalie
A Purdy Good Cocktail
Brought to you by Purdy’s Discount Wine & Liquor
The final Belmont Stakes at Saratoga is less than a week away—do you know what you’ll be drinking?
The Belmont Jewel
Ingredients:
3 ounces bourbon
4 ounces lemonade
2 ounces pomegranate juice
Sparkling water (optional)
Lemon wheel or cherry for garnish
Instructions:
Combine bourbon, lemonade, and pomegranate juice in a cocktail shaker and fill shaker with ice. Shake until container is ice-cold.
Fill a low-ball glass with ice, pour mixture over ice and top with sparkling water if desired. Stir.
Garnish with a lemon wheel or cherry and enjoy.