Hi, I'm Miss Tam Chiak. "Tam Chiak" is actually a hokkien translation of "greedy" or "贪吃". My surname is not Tam, and please don't call me chiak. My name is Maureen Ow, please to meet you.
I started this food blog in July 2007 while I was interning at a chinese food magazine. Back then, I called this blog "Jaime-La-Nourriture". It is actually in french and it means "I Love Food". Sounds atas isn't it? But very soon later, I realise it was a total mistake as I myself have difficulty pronouncing it.
In 2009, I decided to go for a change. Hokkien is a common language among the Chinese in Singapore, so I wanted to call this little food blog of mine something closer to the heart, and hence "Miss Tam Chiak" was born.
Since it was because of the internship at a chinese food magazine that made me started this food blog, I decided to blog in Chinese and hope to continue the beauty of Chinese language in this blog. Frankly, it is not easy. Yes, I am unique as there are less than 5 chinese food bloggers in Singapore. But, it is depressing to realise that majority of the readers visit my blog merely to admire the photos without reading the words. So on the 4th anniversary of my Singapore Food Blog (July 2011), I decided to transformed the entire blog to an English one.
Everyday is a learning journey for me. And I'm thankful for all the support from readers. Miss Tam Chiak will not be what it is today without all of you.
I will continue to make all of you hungry. Thank you for staying with me.
My Camera
I didn't carry a DLSR right from the beginning. Like everyone else, I was using a Fujifilm digital camera in the beginning. Slowly, DSLR became more affordable and I bought a Canon 450D with a 50mm F1.8 lens in May 2009 for food photography. In May 2011, I upgraded my gear to a Canon 7D, Canon 60mm Macro lens, Sigma 24-70mm walkabout lens and Speedlite 430EX flash.
Strictly speaking, I am not a professional food blogger nor photographer. I don't do this full time because I believe that passion cannot become a job. But I think Miss Tam Chiak is my serious hobby, which I will never give up.
Features
This humble blog of mine has been featured on i-weekly (2010, issue no 667) and Cuisine & Wine (Jan 2011). I was also interviewed by Radio FM 100.3 on 7 August 2010 and now I have a weekly food program with Daniel every Sunday 8am. Not forgetting my weekly hawker column in My Paper every tuesday.
