Big Tom's Charbroiled Burgers in Juana Osmena Street, Cebu City

One of the hottest food stops in Cebu City right now is this charbroiled burger joint in the middle of the city. It is known as Big Tom's. The place used to be a house if word around town is to be believed. Entering the place, one can't help but notice the jars overhead used as makeshift lamps. The atmosphere is especially perfect for the Instagram generation with wifi available and social media icons drawn using chalk on one of the place's walls displaying the establishment's name prominently. Now let's go to the meat of this post.

The menu

The above photo shows the menu highlighting the different choices at one's disposal depending on your preference for burgers. Available sizes are 4 oz and 6 oz burgers.

Burgers are served with a knife and fork along with a wooden chopping board to help you dissect your prey with ease. Many would wish some more fries will be added though. Now for the burger itself.

This is the Deluxe Cheeseburger. The bun has just the right degree of fluffiness and firmness so as not to hinder your appreciation of the meat.  Inside, there's tomato, lettuce and Big Tom's sauce.

If you noticed, the cheese is Cheez Whiz-looking. Since they put in their blackboard that they are using cheddar cheese, I was expecting the quite solid cheddar cheese slice. Some might prefer to have the traditional cheddar cheese slice for their burger.

The burger is charbroiled, well done, not flat with just the right thickness. Big Tom's claimed that the patty is freshly prepared daily, never frozen, 100% pure sirloin beef. So let's do the taste test.

The patty is quite juicy, not dry. The sauteed onions are small enough that it will not stop you from savoring the patty. The add-on veggies and sauce complement well the burger's taste which was blended with just the right mix of ingredients and charred just right, not overcooked or burnt. Approve. Thumbs up. Although I personally wished they have the solid cheese.

They also have other items in the menu aside from burgers like spaghetti and meat balls and some more.

Correction, it's spaghetti and meat ball without an S. Just a single meatball although the meatball was big and yummy. Again, I don't know. I'm for grated cheese instead of the quick-melt kind with my spaghetti. The serving is for someone with a big appetite but it costs around 150 or 160 PHP if I remember correctly.

Overall, Big Tom's offer great tasting charbroiled burgers. And I forgot to tell you there is wifi.

So want to visit Big Tom's today? Pa-burger naman dyan?

Ah Phets Noodle Haus and Rice Toppings

One Sunday, me and my wife were randomly looking for something new to eat and we chanced upon one in Escario Street in the same vicinity as Buddies and near Best Western Plus Lex Cebu. It is Ah Phets Noodle Haus and Rice Toppings and we were in for a surprise.

Since their name has noodles in it, we tried their bestseller, the Beef Brisket noodles.

Tasting it, one can tell that they are indeed Chinese style noodles. Ah Phet is generous when it comes to their meat and other ingredients with a reasonable price of 65 pesos. Can't wait to try their other noodle dishes soon.

But it's not just the noodles which deserve a thumbs up. They also have other satisfying items in their menu.

Oriental Spring Chicken

One is the Oriental Spring Chicken. At 110 pesos, you get one half chicken serving. Big, isn't it? And it comes with pickled cucumber and carrots and matching sauce. And fried rice. Again, the dish is really Chinese style.

Humba Pata Tim

That picture above is Humba (Pata Tim). The Cebuano favorite is combined with a Chinese restaurant staple to produce a very tender, delicious dish which comes with rice, a separate Pata Tim broth and cucumber with carrots which serve as a good partner to most of their dishes.

Looks like she can't wait to eat it.

If you are looking for a hybrid of a traditional Cebuano Chinese restaurant and a Chinese fastfood chain, Ah Phets is a very good alternative. Below is some of their other dish offerings.

They may not be well known but they are worth the try.