Cebu Food Tour with Food Crew PH #FoodCrewPHGoesLocal

Where to eat when in Cebu? What are the best restaurants in Cebu? What are the new restaurants in Cebu? Where to find the best lechon Cebu? How is the food scene in Cebu? Is it fun to go on a food trip in Cebu? These are just some of the questions I had in mind and fortunately was able to answer when I joined the Cebu Food Tour with the Food Crew PH recently.

Truth be told and not to offend anyone, I have several favorite places in the Philippines (Palawan is the current apple of my eye, food trip blog posts soon!) and Cebu is not really something I am too enthusiastic to visit. I guess it is because of the notion that it is just another Manila. This tour however show me of the delicious charm that The Queen City of the South has.

This is the first time that I am writing about Food Crew PH here at YedyLicious hence, an introduction is in order. 

Food Crew PH is a community of Digital Influencers that aims to gather like-minded individuals who share the same passion for creativity towards promoting the Philippine food industry. Basically, Food Crew PH gathers those who have online presence and influence such as bloggers and Instagram-enthusiasts who can partner with businesses to give them wide reach and exposure thru social media. 

It was founded by B'ley (@ManilaEatUp) and Seanta (@MyTummyCraves) who are considered as respectable online influencers themselves.

Personally, I have respect for Food Crew PH because I witnessed how they worked hard for their clients (food and travel businesses) that they do not mind going the extra mile when needed. Also, they are one of the few entities who acknowledge the importance and the worth of digital influencers. Based on my experience, no hard work is ever wasted if you collaborate with the Food Crew PH. 

Aptly accompanied with the hashtag #FoodCrewPHGoesLocal, this Cebu Food Tour with Food Crew PH aimed to showcase local and homegrown restaurants in Cebu. 

Digital influencers who joined the trip include @YummyPH, @ClickTheCity, @DiscoverMNL, @ForkSpoonManila, @ManilaEatUp, @LissaKahayon, @TheBaldbakerPH, @Chef_In_Heels, @MyTummyCraves, @ArellanoAlyssa, @PepeSamson, @FoodInTheBag, and yours truly, @YedyLicious.

Food Crew PH Goes Local Cebu Food Tour was co-presented by Cebu Pacific (@CebuPacificAir) which served as our official air transport during the entire trip.  

One of the major sponsors, Uber Philippines (@Uber_Phl) made our Cebu food tour super convenient and hassle-free as they serve as our official land transport for the entire 3-day trip. Yes, they also have Uber in Cebu, making the commuters' lives way easier. 

A bonus for YedyLicious.com readers: New Uber users will get Php200 off their first two rides using the promo code YEDYLICIOUS. (Thank you, Uber Philippines!)

Also one of the trip's major sponsors and our official residence for the entire trip was Alba Uno Hotel (www.albauno.com). It is only 30-minute away from Mactan-Cebu International Airport and a stone's throw away from Cebu Asiatown IT Park where BPO offices, 24-hour restaurants, and other businesses known establishments are located. 

The published rate ranges from Php2,000+ to Php5,500 making it a good option for those who are looking for a decent place to stay while in Cebu without burning a hole in one's pocket. 

Now, the adventure begins when we started our mission to visit 10 Cebu restaurants and try the food they have to offer within our 3-day stay in Cebu. Not a hard feat to be honest, especially for some of us who are used to the task. 

Below are the Cebu Restaurants we visited during the Cebu Food Tour with Food Crew PH. I have included some snapshots to show you what transpired during the food tour. I however will still write a separate blog posts for these restaurants so consider this post a teaser of some sort.

First stop - Choobi Choobi Restaurant. If you are a long time reader of YedyLicious, you probably have an idea how much I love seafood especially shrimp. And Choobi-Choobi, being a restaurant which specializes in exactly that won my heart over. 

Next stop was at the Tablea Cafe. We are talking about legit tablea chocolate here, so imagine the utter bliss that chocolate-lover in me have gone through.

Touted by Sun Star Cebu as one of the Best in Cebu, the Isla Sugbu Seafood City, I must say, is one of the many reasons why I would still go back again and again in Cebu. Seafood and paluto buffet, it's a little piece of heaven on earth for me, to tell you the truth.

We pretty much went all out during our first night in Cebu because after the paluto buffet, we headed to Tsay Cheng, a popular Chinese restaurants in Cebu. We feasted on their delicious assortment of dim sum as well as probably more than a dozen of their feast bowl special rice toppings. 

It was a satisfyingly delicious first day in Cebu. By this time, its charm is slowly growing on me. 

On the second day of our Cebu food tour, our fist stop was at Harbour City Dim Sum. We just had our breakfast at the hotel but we are more than happy to enjoy the brunch at this one of the favorite dim sum places in all of Cebu. 

Not really a local food business but still loved by many locals and tourists, our next stop after our dim sum feast was at Tom N Toms Coffee Shop. It specializes in South Korean coffee and coffee bar grubs. The ambiance transported me back to Manila as it reminds me of the usual coffee shops I frequent to.

Next was Ilaputi which I would have to say one of my favorites in terms of food's flavor profile. It there is an Ilaputi in Manila, it would probably be one of those restaurants I would frequently visit and recommend to my blog readers and basically everyone who seeks for a good restaurant recommendation. 

Cebu food tour wouldn't be complete without feasting on the famous Cebu lechon. The one responsible for our lechon fix during our tour, you ask? It's the House of Lechon. I was so full by the time we set foot the House of Lechon restaurant and I even swore the only thing I could manage to intake was oxygen for my survival. 

But lo and behold, couple of second into seeing plates upon plates of lechon served on our table, I was already reaching for the oh so crisp lechon skin and munching on it like there is no tomorrow. 

During the last day of our Cebu food tour, it was one of Abaseria, one of Cebu's hidden gem which regaled us with their own take on Filipino food. Since Abaseria is also a charming store for native products, it was definitely one of those which most of u in our group enjoyed the most. 

Abaseria is one of my favorites among the Cebu restaurants we visited - from the food to the ambiance and up to the warmth of service, Abaseria really left a good impression on me.

Last but definitely not the least, also one of my favorites - Bocas Patisserie. There is a lot of things to be loved about Bocas. While it also reminds me of some of my favorite patisseries in Manila, Bocas has its own charm you know you can only experience when you visit them in Cebu.

All things considered, this Cebu Food Tour with Food Crew PH was an enjoyable one. Not only it opened my eyes to the delicious food landscape of Cebu, it also give me several reasons why I should already plan my next visit in Cebu. The restaurants we have tried during the tour I find impressive that I cannot wait to share my thoughts on those in separate series of blog posts. 

Heartfelt gratitude to Food Crew PH, Cebu Pacific, Uber Philippines, and Alba Uno Hotel Cebu for this wonderful collaboration. Special thanks to Choobi-Choobi Restaurant, Tablea Chocolate Cafe, Isla Sugbu Seafood City Restaurant, Tsay Cheng Chinese Restaurant, Dim Sum Harbour, Tom N Toms Coffee Shop, Ilaputi Restaurant, House of Lechon, Abaseria, and Bocas Patisserie for welcoming us. 

To my dear readers, there will be more Cebu Food Tour blog posts in the coming days so, stay tuned. If you have other restaurant recommendations in Cebu, please feel free to leave a comment. I would love to read about your thoughts and would definitely consider trying them out the next I find myself in Cebu. Thanks!