Day 5: Restaurant Review

(in·grē·di·ent) Food Review

by Matthew N.

When you want to meet with your business buddies and have lunch, where do you go? Somewhere with an open menu and free Wi-Fi, of course. Panera Bread or a deli? Introducing (in·grē·di·ent), a restaurant with some good eats and reasonable prices. (in·grē·di·ent) has several metro locations, including Leawood, Downtown Kansas City, Oak Park Mall, and the Plaza.

The menu has a wide range of choices, including burgers, pizza, salads, and sandwiches.  The exterior of the Leawood restaurant made it look modern. The first thing I noticed about the interior was that it was oddly shaped into a funky triangle. I also saw that the table layout had a sleek, slightly disorganized feel. Most of the restaurant’s customers were aged from 21 to 55. However, a sign boasted the building could hold 140 people.

After standing in a medium crowded line that went pretty fast, we went to order. The clerk seemed to have a pretty good understanding of the menu. The prices were fair, with meals from about $10 to $16. The total for the four of us eating was $64. We then went to get our drinks. Apparently, they were experiencing difficulty with the soda dispenser, because the lemonade was out of order, and the water would not shut off when you selected it. We then went to find a table.

When we found our table, we marked it with our number and got our utensils. I noticed that there were only three TVs on the wall. I thought this was a good idea because not everyone cares about the latest trade rumor or walk-off home run. The people who wanted to see a TV could watch without everyone being forced to look at one. Our chips and dip ($7.99) came first. The preparation speed was very quick, and the chips were very good. Coated with sea salt, the chips reminded me of fare from Chipotle. Next up were our entrees.

The food came out a minute after the chips. I ordered a custom pizza ($10.95) with mozzarella cheese, Kalamata olives, and pepperoni. The first thing I noticed was the olives. They were whole olives, and huge. Then I saw the abundance of cheese smothering my pizza. After tasting it, I wish they would have spread the cheese out a little more. The sauce was also very spicy. The last thing I noticed was that the cheese kept falling off the sauce. I concluded that pizza isn’t (in·grē·di·ent)’s specialty.

Overall, I liked the atmosphere of the place. The pricing was reasonable, and it’s a good place to try something new. However, I would not recommend the pizza. As an alternative, my friends recommended the salads and wraps. (in·grē·di·ent) is a fun, emerging restaurant that has potential, but if they want to get rave reviews, they need to make menu changes.

Food Rating:

Three Knights (out of five)

Pricing: $$

Days 4 and 5: Advertising and Marketing with Social Media

Teacher's note: On Thursday, students visited Intouch Solutions, an Overland Park-based marketing agency focused on the pharmaceutical industry. The kind, intelligent, and funny employees discussed with the campers how Intouch uses technology and social media as key methods for conveying its clients' messages.

On Friday, students met with Eric Sorrentino, Sr. Brand Content Specialist at CommunityAmerica in Lenexa. Mr. Sorrentino emphasized how he utilizes his background as a graduate of the KU School of Journalism (providing a nice symmetry to the week) to write magazine, blog, and Facebook / Twitter content for his company. He also shared his passion for sports, something he had in common with several of the students.

After we returned to Barstow on Thursday, students rose to the challenge of creating their own unique products. They had to design a marketing pitch, complete with a detailed description of their product, an explanation of which segment of the population would ideally use the product, as well as ways to market the product using social media. What follows, then, is Matthew's creation:

The YUMMY Food Bar

Click HERE to download the PowerPoint presentation

Here are Matthew's tweets:

Day 3: Public Service Announcements

On Wednesday, students took a tour of the KCPT studios in Kansas City, learning about what distinguishes public television from its commercial counterpart. With those differences in mind, each student wrote and directed a public service announcement. Here is Matthew's.

Day 2: Entercom Communications

Day 1: KU School of Journalism

BARSTOW STUDENTS VISIT KU JOURNALISM SCHOOL

by Matthew N.

LAWRENCE, Kan. — Students from the Media Mania Barstow School summer camp met up with KU journalism recruiter Ashley Anguiano at the KU campus in Lawrence, Kan., on Monday, to learn about the wide range of journalism opportunities offered there.

The students, ranging in age from 11 to 13, first went to the Stauffer-Flint building, the headquarters of the School of Journalism.  Anguiano made a presentation about the journalism school and what journalists do there. The students met Jayhawk journalist and Barstow alumnus Michael O’ Brien, who talked about KU’s journalism school from a student’s perspective. Anguiano also showed a clip about the journalism school from the show “Good Morning KU.”

After that, the students went to the Dole Building, where they met Brett Akagi, the director of KU’s media program. He showed them the newsroom and explained more about what it takes to be a journalist.

“Whatever you decide to do in journalism, you need to feel right about it,” said Akagi. “You get to go on adventures every day, to places most other people can’t go.”

Anguiano, accompanied by O’Brien, led the kids into the filming site for KUJH-TV. O’Brien showed them all the technology used to put together shows on KUJH-TV. Then the students saw the set for the news shows and weather updates.

Next, the students walked up Jayhawk Boulevard to the Kansas Union building, where they saw the Media Crossroads headquarters. Anguiano explained that any student, even non-journalism majors, can participate in "Good Morning KU." The students switch jobs once a week, so everyone gets a chance to do all the positions. Media Crossroads director Cal Butcher said, “Good Morning KU is an [opportunity for] freshman to have experience in front of a camera or behind a camera.”

The students left KU after that, feeling satisfied that one day, they could be Jayhawk journalists.