Marty's Place review

Anthony Semler

YouTube Summer 2009

Restaurant review

 

              Ahh, summer. This time of year never gets old. Morgantown in the summer is pleasant because the students are out of town, traffic is usually manageable, and the Cheat Lake is enjoyable while on a boat viewing the spectacular scenery, mountains and bikini-clad girls alike.

              Last Wednesday, I had the pleasure of visiting Marty’s Place with three close friends. Marty’s Place is located off of the Cheat Lake exit near Ices Ferry. It is located in the old Dimitri’s location, which sits next to Interstate 68 and along the back of the 18th fairway of the Lakeview golf course. Marty Biafore, the owner, has 25 years of industry experience. We came too late to enjoy the vast deck and outdoor bar, but the manager allowed us to check it out anyway. New construction to the old deck included a 25-foot extension, a new terrace, and also a pond, all of which was done by Rich’s Garden Creations.

              Marty’s place has yet to begin advertising, partly because the dining room is not open, and partly because the menu has yet to be finalized. The bartender, Katy, was pleasant enough, but for some reason I was expecting a more attractive person because of how upscale the establishment is. I know that this may seem rude to most, but it is a personal observation.

              Around me sat a handful of people sipping on martinis and other cordials. A few dinner plates were being cleared as we ordered drinks.  The bar was fully stocked to compliment the menu. Between my friends and I, we ordered shrimp cocktail, boar sausage and dill sauce, a few house salads with a Hennessey vinagariette, two pounds of king crab legs, and a 14 oz. Wagyu steak.

              The shrimp were definitely jumbo sized, but there were only four, and for some reason I was expecting five. The cooked perfectly and served with plenty of cocktail sauce, although I found that to be mainly ketchup as opposed to a tangy horseradish and garlic base. The salads were a great size for a pre-meal bite, and they included tomatoes, cucs, and olives. As for the dressing, it should be bottled up and sold! It is a bright yellow, with a medium consistency and a sweet-and-sour flavor. My friend Sara thought it complimented her perfectly steamed crab legs and chardonnay. The crablegs were meaty and juicy. Served on the side, baby sautéed carrots and draw butter with garlic flattered the entrée. As for the 14 oz. steak my friend Adam ordered, it was like tasting heaven! Wagyu is a delicate beef that should only be cooked medium rare and seasoned only with salt and pepper. His steak came with a salad and a side of sautéed carrots.

              Overall, we were all extremely satisfied with out meal. Prices were either really reasonable or over-priced ($16 for the crab leg meal – reasonable, $14 for the shrimp cocktail – unreasonable).  Marty’s has a casual fine dining atmosphere that I felt comfortable in. I’m excited to see where the Marty’s vision takes the restaurant!

             

Week 4: Media 2.0

The past 5 years has a brought about a wave of user-generated technology aptly named media 2.0 by those who study it. I am not a person who studies the new media phenomenon, but am one who is slowly adapting to it and integrating it into my life. I find the difference in these two to be read-only vs. user-generated.
I feel that media 1.0 was based off of a read-only platform. Information was filtered through search engines such as Dogpile, Ask.com, Yahoo, and Google, to name a few. Results came from the official websites of what you had searched for, and somewhere within the results, several Geocities pages popped up. This was also back in the day when there weren’t banner ads and online advertisements filling up whatever white space was available.
Nowadays, search engines are way more refined and in tune with what I’m looking for. I blame cookies for my computer running slow, but love that Google and Amazon remember my likes and dislikes. Media 2.0 is predominantly based off of user-generated content. Internet consumers have at their hands, via Smartphones and PDA’s, the ability to buy and sell, search, shop, review and recommend, organize and share. It seems as if anyone with an opinion, thought, or comment on any subject can post it to any website they’d like. And if there isn’t a website that they like, well, then they can create a blog and then link it to a particular site.
I think that it’s important for consumers to have the ability to create web content because it has the ability to reach their particular network or community, which was its original purpose. As internet technology gradually creeps into my life, I still find it hard to always find what it is that I am looking for, as there is so much to take in! For example, if I were to Google “Pittsburgh Steelers stats,” results from the official NFL website, Yahoo! Sports, Fanbase, and various other sites pop up. I have to decide which provider has the most accurate numbers, best play-by-play recall, best photos, interviews, etc. I came in for one thing but come out with so much more than I had planned, which reminds me of those cleverly placed end caps at Target and Kroger.
I am a reader, a consumer, and it seems as if every website wants me to create something or to comment on something. This new media is still a bit much for me. Through this class, my participation with the outside world has increased via Blogger.com. My friend Sara, who is several years younger than me, keeps trying to rope me into the social benefits of Twitter and MySpace. I gave MySpace a whirl but was not too happy when I received so many random messages and wall posts from strangers wanting to be my friend. A few phone calls to Sara later, I learned how to adjust my privacy settings in order to block out strangers. Even though I have a Blogger account, I keep it limited to academic assignments instead of personal thoughts and rants. For future reference though, I am glad that I’ve taken this class and am amazed at how Google has streamlined it search platform into a daily-life organizer. In the meantime, I rely on my laptop’s broadband connection to get the latest in sports stats, cars, and weather. As of now, Sara is my only MySpace friend.

Week 3 Assignment David vs Goliath

Anthony Semler
Week 3 Assignment
My Tube User Generated Media
William Anthony Semler
David vs. Goliath
6/9/09


For you to understand where it is I come from when discussing the Narrative of David’s vs. Goliath’s, I feel it necessary to give my personal understanding. Even though this story originates in the Bible (1 Samuel 17), I don’t view it in a biblical sense, but more from an athletic point of view. Being someone that has grown up playing every sport, and many times have been both the David and the Goliath, I can relate to the feelings each possess at that particular time.
There were times when I was the Goliath, and had this “I can conquer the world!” feeling, where I had no reason to fear losing. And that’s exactly what happens, a loss to David! With losing being the most gut-wrenching experience in sports, imagine being the David. It’s funny how it’s the complete opposite feeling when you’re the David. You go into a situation having no reason being on the same field as your opponent, but guess what your there! At that moment you tell yourself, “I have nothing to lose!” and you go out and do the impossible, you defeat the Goliath. A feeling of adrenaline rushes over you and you enjoy that moment like no other with your teammates and coaches.
When I think of David vs. Goliath and user generated media, I can see arguments from a couple of different views. Just like me being on both sides of the spectrum regarding David vs. Goliath, user generated experiences the same thing. Let’s look at user-generated media being the David. Years ago when user generated media came onto the scene, society jumped on board and started adapting to the new technologies that were coming out. The answer is no, and even today there are those that do all in their power to not use the new technologies that control everything we do. Don’t get me wrong these people I’m talking about are the last of the Baby Boomers, and whatever is left from before then, but they are still here denying the fact that new technologies exist. So in a way user generated media is a David defeating the Goliath (mankind) because those that said it would never happen were wrong and it has happened and then some.
Let’s look at user-generated media being the Goliath. That feeling I told you about, this “I can conquer the world feeling!” user generated media certainly has felt that way for quite some time now. If being user generated media and the Goliath, it would be about impossible at this point there will ever be a David come and take you out. I guess what I am saying, and what it seems, as we are supposed to figure out is that user generated media is here and it’s not going anywhere. It seems as if you are trying to get us to realize that we are in a user generated media world, and it is going to continue to be the case forever. I will be honest, I am not very savvy at all on most of our new technologies and this one is growing on me in a good way. I like seeing these applications in my day-to-day life!

Week 2 Assignment

Anthony Semler
Week 2 Assignment
6/2/09

After reading the articles for this assignment it seems as if the writers have a lot of the same opinions about why there has been a tremendous decline in the buying and reading of newspapers, as well as the decline in watching television shows that broadcast daily news/events. It's obvious that the Internet is responsible for the major decline. Other than the internet, another reason for the decline is the information provided by newspapers and television is a lot of times not the truth but what they think the reader/watcher want to read/hear. I grew up in time where if you weren’t getting your information from the newspapers then you would obtain it from television or the radio. Internet wasn’t really something that I had at my fingertips (literally) to try and find information about what’s going on in the world. The use of Internet has changed the way that most of us are living our lives. The Internet is something that is being used in so many different ways that it has become a part of the world’s social outlook. For example communicating isn’t done just by telephone; you now have email, chat rooms, blogging, twitter, etc… Not only is there more ways to communicate it is a means of FREE communication. Along with being free it is also the FASTEST way for people to obtain the information they seek. We as Americans are the highest contributor to this movement. If we would stay in the Stone Age and not begin to use the Internet/Cellular phones as a means of communication, whether it is for news or pleasure, then we would not be developing ourselves as a leading country. Therefore in a way I agree, why would you read a paper or watch a television show that is either going to give you the news late or give it to you in a way they see fit as opposed to the truth. My opinion about the decline in readership being cyclical or a linear trend is that we are most likely headed down a linear path. I can see the trend coming back around like it has in years past, but if the economy is going to dictate whether or not newspapers will again rise as the main means of information, at this point I am fairly sure it will be a linear trend. On the other hand the economy may not have any influence on whether the newspaper will arise again. If you think about it our technology, it is getting better and better every day so to think that newspapers will be the main source of information is probably absurd. With children using the Internet and cellular phone services as their main means of communicating, I can see newspapers becoming less of a factor in people’s main means of information. I know that when and if I have kids they will be raised around the newest technologies so that they aren’t feeling lost in the dark quite like I feel from time to time. These assignments however hard for me are also quite educating considering what it is we are trying to achieve!



http://www.thesimon.com/magazine/articles/canon_fodder/01032_pulitzer_legacy__decline_print_america.html
http://akinokure.blogspot.com/2008/09/decline-of-print-journalism.html
http://cyberlaw.stanford.edu/node/6167