Welcome to the Out NYC, whose owners have called it both the first gay hotel in New York and a “straight-friendly urban resort.” Located in way west Clinton between 10th and 11th Avenues, the three-story, 70,000-square-foot hotel, the brainchild of Ian Simpson Reisner, a managing partner of Parkview Developers, has 105 rooms. The XL nightclub and bar are just off the lobby; a restaurant and other amenities are in the works.

So my question was: in a place like New York City, what does being a gay hotel mean, exactly?

The OUT NYC hotel boasts two hot tubs, a secret garden, its own nightclub and the title of Manhattan’s first boutique hotel built specifically to cater to millions of gay tourists to New York.

The hotel, not far from Times Square and Broadway theatres, also hopes to cater to the friends and families of its gay clientele. And so, turning an old concept on its head, the owners of the hotel like to describe it as “straight-friendly.”

New York’s first “straight friendly” gay hotel opened in Hell’s Kitchen yesterday, welcoming the gay and lesbian set to an urban- style resort designed for their tastes.