Category Archives: Olympus OM-D

Big Joe’s No Frill

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If you like roadside, charbroiled Australian lamb chops, the new Big Joe’s No Frill in SS2 might be the place for you. Their extensive menu range from beef goulash to Hokkien mee, with handmade pies thrown in. I am not sure the two burly guys running it are ex-bouncers or cops but it seems like a jolly partnership between Malays and Chinese 🙂

I tried their Chicken Cordon Bleu (photographed here). It is a boneless, breaded chicken roll with sausage, ham and cheese inside. Not bad for RM 12. The inside seating is very bright and great for photography. Outside it is dark, five-foot-way seating mamak-style but you get to see your lamb chop being grilled under a lamp post.

Big Joe’s Restaurant is at 44 Jalan SS 2/66, Petaling Jaya. Tel: 03 7865 6626. Opens daily from 5pm to 5am.

Olympus OM-D, ISO 200, f4, 1/40 sec.

Big Joe's No Frill

A Chinese Valentine

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Chap Goh Mei (or 15th Night in the Hokkien dialect) is the last day of Chinese New Year. After 15 days of non-stop blasting and feasting, the Chinese New Year celebrations come to an end, tonight.

In a peculiar tradition, maidens throw oranges into rivers hoping the guy who fished it out becomes her life match. As such, Chap Goh Mei is sometimes known as the Chinese Valentine’s Day.

In the old days, it was mostly spinsters throwing the bait. Nowadays, you see many teen girls writing their E-mail and Facebook addresses (with waterproof ink) on Mandarin oranges. Greedy guys would scoop up several oranges at one go and chuck those with names they don’t fancy.

Photographed tonight at Taman Jaya Lake, Petaling Jaya.

Olympus OM-D, ISO 4000, f3.5, 1/30 sec.

A Chinese Valentine

Like Moths To A Flame

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I always find it fascinating that Malaysians are attracted to the roadside steamboat like moths to a flame. The name steamboat (as in Chinese fondue) is sort of a misnomer. I prefer its other names of “Lok Lok” and “Dip Dip”. The travelling steamboat is essentially a truck selling sticks of meat or vegetables in which customers dip into boiling water themselves.

Photography tip: Unlike landscape, for such a scene with plenty of human activity, you may want to watch your shutter speed a little closer. With night breaking out, it is easy to blur every movement as the speed drops. Here, I set the shutter speed to 1/320 sec and let the auto-ISO ride instead.

Olympus OM-D, ISO 2500, f3.5, 1/320 sec.

Like Moths To A Flame