Why a Westchester restaurateur gets to meet Yankees legend Derek Jeter

A Westchester restaurateur is about to spend a weekend in Miami with Yankees legend Derek Jeter — and it all started with an Instagram post based around Jeter's Optimum commercial and a playful campaign for Optimum Complete, which the company bills as the GOAT, or “Greatest Offer of All Time.”

Bobby Harris, co-owner of The Barley House in Thornwood, Barley on the Hudson in Tarrytown and the Barley Beach House in Rye, was scrolling through Instagram a few months ago when he saw a contest sponsored by Optimum asking for business owners who are "G.O.A.T.'s" in their community.

As someone who loves contests — and constantly enters them — he answered, listing some of his accomplishments (and passions). Among them: Serving as the president of the Mount Pleasant Chamber of Commerce for two years (he just finished his term); working with his partners to raise more than $30,000 in donations for the local Mount Pleasant food bank last year; raising $10,000 for a former chef who had health issues and needed a new leg; and, with his partners, donating $10,000 to Blythedale Children's Hospital in Valhalla and providing meals to seniors in Mount Pleasant.

"I just rattled off a few things and didn't think much about it," he said.

Until he got the call saying he won and inviting him and his wife to Miami Feb. 8 for a long weekend, where he'll get to meet the legendary Yankees player. Optimum is even giving him $1,000 to donate to a local charity which he will be giving to Feeding Westchester.

More: Meet a Yankees legend: Paul O'Neill to celebrate beer launch in White Plains Feb. 2

Harris said he's one of 10 people in the country selected, and thinks he's the only one from the Northeast. "I'm a huge Yankees fan so this means a lot," he said.

As for winning, he said it's humbling. "I honestly don't think I'm the greatest of all time — there are so many people who do so much more than me — but maybe they didn’t enter the contest."

It's a lot of Yankees news lately: Wolf & Warrior, a brewery in White Plains, recently partnered with Paul O’Neill, another baseball legend, YES Network TV analyst (and Westchester resident) for a re-release of "Warrior 21," an India Pale Ale named after O'Neill's number.

According to Wolf & Warrior Brewer/Owner Michael Chiltern, this the first hazy/Northeast-style IPA to be brewed in collaboration with a professional baseball player; the first beer to be brewed in collaboration with a Yankees player; and the first beer ever to be brewed in collaboration with a World Series champion.

Jeanne Muchnick covers food and dining. Click here for her most recent articles and follow her latest dining adventures on Instagram @jeannemuchnick or via the lohudfood newsletter. 

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Westchester NY restaurateur to meet with Yankees legend Derek Jeter