While I was in Cebu, my friends and I ate at Larsian. It’s a very popular barbecue place since I was child. However, eating there requires a cast-iron stomach because it is not quite hygienic. I wanted to eat barbecue and puso that’s why my friends brought me there. Puso is rice cooked inside weaved coconut leaves. It is makes eating rice very easy if you don’t have a spoon or fork.
Larsian is styled like a food court with all the stalls selling grilled food so you can just imagine how smoky it is. When you enter the opening, you’ll be greeted by barkers calling out for you to eat at their stalls. There are long tables in front the stalls so all the customers will share the long table with each other. The first step is to choose a food stall then choose the food you want to order. Menu usually consists of barbecued chicken parts and chicken entrails like liver, heart, intestines, etc. and same with the pork. Grilled fish and squid are also available. The seller shall cook or heat the food that you’ve chosen then serve it to you in a plate wrapped in plastic. You’ll also be given plates wrapped in plastic. In lieu of spoon and fork, you’ll be given plastic to wrap your hand in so that you can eat with your hands. The plastic comes in handy because there is washbowl or sink available for you to wash your hands. I enjoyed the dinner very much even though I smelled like barbecue after.
In order to complete my Cebu food trip, we proceeded to the nearest Orange Brutus place to order mango shake. Orange Brutus was also very popular (and only?) fastfood place when I was still in elementary and high school, before the advent of Jollibee and McDonalds. It was known for its mango shake and sausages. I think that it’s only their mango shake that still remained true to my memories.
