Jose Garces’s Latest is One Reason to Brave Times Square

Today, we’ve got for you a solid reason to plan a night in and/or near Times Square.

Wait, don’t leave.

…Jose Garces is the reason.

His place is called Ortzi. It’s a spacious, sleek restaurant tucked into the LUMA Hotel, and you’ll have to brave a fair amount of electronic commercialism to get there. But it’ll all be worth it. It’s open now for all your pre-theater dining needs.

This is the Beard-winner’s second opening in our fine city (Amada is the other), and what he’s orchestrating here is Basque country-inspired dishes prepared in various Basque country-inspired styles served alongside Basque country-hailing wines and cocktails—all in a crisp, modern, blonde space.

There will be pitchers of Txakoli and sidra, for instance. Terracotta pots (cazuelas, in this case) will brim with pork ribs, black bean stew and guindilla peppers. There will be crudos and conservas like braised octopus with garlic and pimentón. Check the menu for more on that, or plan on springing for the tasting menu. Good place to trust with that kind of thing.

And now, to the slideshow: for drinks, food and visual proof of the place’s existence.